No matter how diverse the jobs within a company might be, there’s one department that knows what people do more than any other: human resources. While marketing might not know exactly what the coders are doing, and upper management might have no idea about the inner workings of warehouse jobs, HR recruiters have to know about all of these positions so that they can find the best people for the jobs at hand.

But for most people, HR itself remains a mystery. And wherever there’s mystery, there are sure to be myths and misconceptions that pop up. Today we’re going to take a look at three very real myths that surround the hiring process when you work with HR consultants.

MYTH: THE INTERVIEW IS THE MOST IMPORTANT PART OF HIRING

Now don’t get us wrong, the interview can be very important. We’ve touted the importance of them before, and stand by the fact that interviews are an excellent way to find the right person.

But there are other equally — and often more — important parts of the hiring process that occur before the interview. Sorting resumes, verifying work histories, tracking down referrals…all of these can help create the shortlist for a job opening.

Soft skills is a term used to describe intangible, non-technical skills that you can’t learn in school or from a book. They include things like communication, time management, work ethic, and critical thinking. Compared to hard skills, they are ways of working and interacting with people and today’s HR recruiters will tell you that they matter now more than ever.

Soft skills are more difficult to learn, and without them, all of the technical training and education will get you nowhere. If you want to make sure you’re hiring the right people for the job, you have to make sure they possess the right soft skills. Some are more desirable than others depending on the type of job, but let’s take a look at the ones recruiters focus on most.

COMMUNICATION

Communication is a broad category that can encompass many things, but unless you work alone and don’t have to interact with anyone else, being able to communicate effectively is important for any job.

Communication isn’t just talking with someone face-to-face, it’s how you come across, including your tone and body language. Depending on the job, an effective communicator may have to have good presentation skills and be comfortable speaking in front of a group. Or maybe you have a job that’s technical in nature and one of your responsibilities is to put complex concepts into layman’s terms. There are countless ways in which we communicate with people every day. If you aren’t an effective communicator, this is the first skill you should work to improve.

When posing the question, “Are you aware of the activities that take place in your company?”, they’ll undoubtedly tell you that they have a pretty good grasp on what’s going on in their workplace. Employees are engaging in chit chat about their day over lunch in the break room or important discussions about the next company’s project in the meeting rooms. As a business owner, you probably feel like you know exactly what’s going on beneath the surface.

If you want to succeed, you need to dig a little deeper. Are you interested in creating more meaningful conversations this week?

If your answer is yes, just ask these following questions.

How do you think this business could improve?

From time to time, you’re so involved in your own business that it sometimes becomes difficult to see any glitches that become present. Your employees are assisting your clients and customers every day, which means they have a complete understanding of the ins and outs of your company. One thing that you could do is find out what could be done to help the company progress moving forward. Doing this could potentially lead you to some amazing ideas, and it could do wonders for engagement and morale.

New Figure Marks Decrease from 2019

Under the employer shared responsibility (“pay or play”) provisions of the Affordable Care Act, applicable large employers—generally those who have 50 or more full-time employees (including full-time equivalent employees)—may be subject to a penalty if they do not offer affordable coverage that provides minimum value to their full-time employees and their dependents.

For plan years beginning in 2020, the Internal Revenue Service has announced that coverage will generally be considered affordable if the employee’s required contribution for the lowest-cost self-only health plan offered is 9.78% or less of his or her household income for the taxable year. For plan years beginning in 2019, the applicable percentage is 9.86%.

Given that employers are unlikely to know an employee’s household income, they may use several safe harbors to determine affordability, including reliance on Form W-2 wages.

Courtesy of HR360

Onboarding is often known to be the last stage of the recruitment process – and the first step towards retention.

If done correctly – your new employee will evolve into a valuable asset to your team.

If done incorrectly – you’ll miss out on honing in your employee’s full potential, and you’ll waste your time and money.

Check out these 7 onboarding misconceptions to help you get your onboarding process started.

1. Onboarding begins on the employees’ first day – Usually, there is a gap of two-weeks from when you hire your new employee and when they first start their position. This is the time to get those small, tedious tasks out of the way, such as cleaning out their desk space, providing them with basic office supplies, creating their name badge, etc. It is key to make sure that your new employee is excited about their new role and to make them feel welcomed as their joining your team.
2. Onboarding must be done by you only – Most companies assume that the onboarding process is something that they must take care of themselves. However, this is a service that can be outsourced and done without lifting a finger.
3. Onboarding is only for large corporations – Even though onboarding can take up time and resources, it does not need to be costly. It is up to you to do whatever feels right for your company and your employees. Think outside the box when attempting to get your new employees involved.
4. Onboarding should be quick – While onboarding may be tough, it shouldn’t be handled too quickly. In some instances, onboarding an employee can take up to two years to be completed. This time limit may vary depending on the company; however, onboarding should not be considered fully completed until the employee understands the culture, services and how to work well within your company.
5. Onboarding is Human Resources’ responsibility – Contrary to popular belief, onboarding is not the same as orientation. Human Resources can present an overview of the basics, such as policies, paperwork, and mandatory training sessions, but that is only a portion of the onboarding process. Managers and team members are the people who merge a new employee into their position.
6. Onboarding is strictly for entry-level positions – No matter how many years of experience your new employee has in the industry, your company is one-of-a-kind. Your employees should know exactly how YOU operate your business from day-to-day.
7. Onboarding must be done on-site – Many businesses assume that onboarding is something that can only be done on-site. Little do they know that onboarding can be a virtual process. Processing your onboarding virtually allows you the opportunity to run several onboarding training sessions right from your employees’ computers.

On August 20th, 2019 our Sr. HR Consultant and President of Smarter HR Solutions, Nicole Bellow had the opportunity of joining Mr. Isiah Carey of the Isiah Factor: Uncensored to discuss how some employers are beginning to loosen their reigns when it comes to background checks and drug testing. We would like to send a special thank you to Misty Starks of Misty Blue Media and Isiah Carey FOX 26 of the Isiah Factor: Uncensored for this amazing moment!

When it comes to managing people it is important to have great communication, leadership and being a good delegator. There are also a few other rules that should be taken into count when it comes to management. Check out these 7 rules of management that can help you enhance your management style.

• Hire with an eye for tomorrow – When you first start a business, of course, you intend to grow that business. So, when you’re choosing your staff, think about how they can help you in the long run. All businesses plan to grow, so hiring within that plan is important.
• Trust wisely – When it comes to your team, you must put your trust in them. You should give people a chance to fail as well as succeed. To learn from any lessons, you must first make mistakes.
• Be fair and consistent – The golden rule when it comes to great management is to treat everyone as you would like to be treated. You wouldn’t want anyone to treat you unfairly, so keep everything fair in the workplace. As an employer when you’re following the rules and applying them to everyone, that exhibits fair behavior.
• Avoid complacency – Complacency in the workplace is something no business owner wants. Therefore, you must do your best to avoid it. Try avoiding routines, change up the tasks required of your employees to add a little variation. Always remember idle people foment lost opportunities.
• Praise publicly, critique privately – Your employees are an important part of what helps your business run. They look to you to be a leader for the and a leader should know that those who praise in public lead by motivating, those who scorn in public lead by fear. Fear is not something you want to instill when it comes to your management style.
• Listen, then lead – As a business owner you should always consider what your employees have to say. Listen to what your employees have to say, take it in before you respond. Another great idea would be to try a suggestion box to get some feedback from your employees. For many, listening is a lost art; listen to what people say, then act.
• Reward appropriately – Showing your employees your appreciation for their hard work can go a long way. There are little things you can do to make your employees feel good about the efforts they’re putting into your company, such as a handwritten thank you, a party, time off or maybe even taking them out to lunch.

When it comes to workplace safety, there is no better time to promote new ideas or reinforce safe working habits than in a safety meeting. However, we often see small business owners asking how to make their safety meetings more effective. It’s important that owners, managers, and employees don’t think of safety meetings as a waste of time. Here are some simple steps that you can take to ensure all your safety meetings moving forward are a success!

In an ideal world, we’d never have to worry about solving other people’s issues within our businesses. We’d have perfectly crafted policies, a highly skilled management team, and an engaged workforce with employees who are passionate about helping our operations to reach their full potential.

Of course, things don’t always quite work out this way. Pretty much every business owner has experienced some tricky Human Resource (HR) issues during their career, and most would agree that they can sometimes come out of nowhere but now is not the time to point fingers. If you’ve found yourself with a complex and confusing people issue that you must deal with, then right now, you need to be focused on finding the solution to the problem.

We’re going to explain more about the necessary steps you can take to get yourself out of your HR pickle.

Utilize the law as your first step

Employment legislation exists for a reason. It’s there to protect workers and ensure that standards are upheld. It can be confusing to navigate at times, but it’s important to recognize that ultimately, it can help you. If you’re handling an HR problem and you’re not sure what to do, the first thing that you should consider is your legal responsibilities.

It’s the topic every human resource manager has heard repeatedly: millennials are the future of the workforce. Research from Gallup found that millennials are the generation most likely to switch jobs 60% of one survey’s respondents are open to new job opportunities and they’re the least engaged generation in the workplace. Though many may think this is because millennials are bored and constantly looking for a new thrill, we know it’s all about culture.

This goes beyond the unlimited paid time off and best-in-class snack bars. Millennials are willing to put the work in to feel they are valued, against what others think. They want to be surrounded by committed and talented people who live and breathe the mission and culture of the company.

Check out these five realistic ways to maintain millennial employees:

1. Put an individualized growth plan in place for personal, financial and professional desires.

   Millennials tend to seek conscious training, feedback and a road map of what their future looks like during their time at any company, both inside and outside of the office’s walls. This is where mentorship programs are necessary and successful. Begin by pairing each staff member with a seasoned employee with like-minded goals. Success is in creating a meaningful partnership for both parties. The senior leader should get to know the millennial staff member and learn their goals at work and in life. You should have your senior leader approach your millennial employee with these key questions, “How can the company help you get to where you want to go?” and “How can you help the company get to where it wants to go?”

   more

Trust is a funny old issue. It’s hard to describe, and it’s arguably not very measurable. Those who are skeptical of the Human Resource profession might say that it’s exactly the type of thing that we’re known for dealing with. In other words, all fluff and no substance!

Jokes aside though, if there’s a lack of trust between management and employees, you’re going to run into serious problems. Issues that may occur could be things such as, low productivity, high turnover of staff, and a bad reputation as an employer. Issues such as these could suddenly, seem a lot more serious.

Trust issues may be caused by a wide variety of factors. It could be that you didn’t deliver what you said you would, or you were unable to keep a promise that you made in haste. Sometimes, these things are unavoidable mistakes that leaders will make at some point or another.

However, you can’t change the past. What you can do though is ensure that you get it right moving forward. Let’s take a look at the big things you will need to avoid when building a level of trust in your company.

You’re not listening

It would be difficult to overstate just how important communication is between management and employees. If you’re going through the motions with initiatives and half-hearted activities like staff surveys, your workers are going to see through you right away.

Being a great manager doesn’t happen overnight, it comes with grown, learning and developing the experience. Becoming a great manager requires honest self-evaluations and occasional reassessments of your management style. The following checklist is designed to guide you in that evaluation. Use it to take note of your people skills. Be honest with yourself. Then, revisit it in six months to reassess.

1. Lead and guide don’t control: Try to take a more completely hands-off approach, but don’t micromanage your employees either. Explain to your employees what needs to be done, but it’s best not to dictate exactly how you want it done.
2. Utilize your employees’ strengths: Each one of your employees has something to offer the company. Identify, recognize and cultivate their specific skills and assign them to the task to put those skills to great use.
3. Empower employees: Give them the tools they need to succeed and the opportunities to learn new skills. Don’t
4. Trust: Never second-guess your employees and their abilities. When it comes to them, it is up to you to believe that you hired great staff.
5. Take an active interest in employees as individuals: Take the time out to get to know your employees, ask them about their families and things that they like to do. Remembering their birthdays and sending condolences when necessary can go a long way.
6. Offer praise: Always be the manager that gives a compliment when it’s due for a job well done.
7. Respect employees: A mangers position of authority is never a reason to belittle, abuse, or humiliate your staff. Even if you don’t if it comes off unintentional you should always think before speaking to your employees. You can make sure your tone isn’t condescending, especially when it comes to critiquing or giving instructions.
8. Admit faults and ask for help: There is nothing wrong with admitting to an employee that they are more skilled in an area than you. Asking for help shows that you respect the employee’s knowledge.
9. Have integrity: Avoid the “do as I say and not as I do” attitude. Hold yourself to the same standards to which you hold employees. Anything you ask your employees to do should be something you would do yourself. Also, give credit where credit is due. For instance, if you use an idea from an employee in a proposal you submit to your boss, give the employee credit.
10. Learn from your mistakes: It’s not enough to admit when you make mistakes. You should learn not to repeat them. Otherwise, employees are going to consider your admissions of error and accompanying apologies as nothing more than just talk.
11. Do not play the blame game: In the face of adversity, seek a solution to the problem, not try not to place blame. Employees tend to value knowing that you have their backs. That doesn’t mean you should insulate them against deserved discipline. Just don’t throw employees under the bus when they make honest mistakes.
12. Give your employees a voice: Whenever it is possible, allow your staff members to have a say in decisions that will directly impact them. Also, ask them for feedback this can help with improving how you’re managing your staff. If you cannot implement their suggestions, explain why.
13. Listen, really listen, to what your employees are saying: Sometimes, you must read between the lines or listen for the things that are not
14. Keep employees in the loop: Let them know when, why and how decisions are made. Also, explain the reasons behind new policies or changes made to existing policies.
15. Keep things in perspective: Don’t go crazy over something small. Ask yourself, “Will this matter a week from now?” If not, it might be best to just let it go.
16. Don’t waste employees’ time: Call meetings only when necessary. Have a clear agenda and make sure you’re organized. Also, recognize that employees have lives outside of work and give them the flexibility to live them.
17. Compromise: Meeting your employees halfway goes a long way! Be careful, however, of compromising too often. If you do, employees may start to think they can bend your will whenever they want and take advantage, in the process, lose respect for your authority.
18. Be blunt, but tactful: Don’t beat around the bush. Burying your message in small talk, for example, could result in the message getting lost.
19. Hold all employees accountable, i.e., don’t play favorites: Not only will a failure to treat similarly situated employees pit them against each other, but it could also result in a discrimination claim.
20. Open your door and walk out of it: It’s important for employees to know that your door is always open to them. But be careful of waiting for them to come to you. Make a habit of walking around the department and interacting with employees in their workspaces.

Imagine you had to miss work for a week, two weeks or maybe even a month. Would your employees or co-workers know how to step in and take over the reins while you’re absent? If you plan a vacation or become suddenly ill, you would want your business to run smoothly without major interruptions. So, here are some steps to get you started:

Delegating someone for the tasks:

We know that it can be hard to delegate tasks to another person because you have gotten into the habit of doing things yourself. However, before you go on vacation or must miss work, it is best to make sure to delegate critical tasks and discuss your expectations. So, when you return, you’re not faced with a lot of “need to do’s” that could have been done while you were away.

Empowering that delegated someone:

When you delegate someone to take over your tasks, make it a priority to empower them to handle the tasks in the manner they feel necessary. We have a habit of thinking our way is the best way and that is not the case most of the time. If the result is what was communicated and expected, the road to get there should be allowed to vary unless non-compliance becomes an issue.

Presenting precise and clear directions:

Have you made the decision to work with a Human Resource (HR) consultant to tackle people management issues within your business? This could be an excellent choice and tactic that could really pave the way for more efficient working practices in the future. If you don’t have the resources at the current time to have your own in-house HR expertise, using the services of a contractor can offer the best of both worlds. You could get flexibility, affordability, and most importantly, better results.

It’s important that you understand what you can expect along the way, and how you can get the most out of the working relationship. You’ll want to ensure that you get the best return possible on your investment, so it’s time to start planning and thinking about how you’ll get the outcome that you might be hoping for.

Read on to discover three top tips for success.

Be upfront and honest

If you know that there are problems within your business in terms of people management, this can be a difficult pill to swallow. Perhaps you’ve let things slide in terms of key policies such as absence management and disciplinaries, or maybe you haven’t been giving your line managers the tools they need to excel in their roles.

Do you ever stop for a second to consider the consequences of your staff deciding to leave your business?

You’ve put mass amounts of time, effort, and money into finding and recruiting the very best people, so it would make great sense to think about how you can continue to make a return on your investment by nurturing your employees and doing all you can to hold on to them.

It’s worth noting that there are right ways to improve your retention rates, and there are approaches that are far less desirable. In some cases, certain popular practices could do more damage to your business than good.

Let’s examine some shady ways of holding on to your staff that you should seek to avoid.

Making big promises that you know you can’t keep

Perhaps you are aware that your staff wants greater opportunities for learning and development. Your staff has shown interest to take on more responsibility and that they have the drive and ambition to succeed.

It can be tempting to promise them what they’re looking for, but this should be avoided at all costs unless you know that you can deliver.

You need to effectively manage expectations, and you need to run your business with integrity. Be honest but look for other solutions. In the end, your staff will thank you for it and value the approach you take to running your business.

Nicole Bellow

SR. HR CONSULTANT

To Our Clients, Prospects, and Partners,

We are committed to being a resource to you while navigating through the effects of the pandemic, COVID-19. Please be sure to follow the recommendations from the CDC and do your best to refrain from large crowds, exercise good hygiene, and use your best judgment when exposing yourself to others who may be sick or those with compromised immune systems that you could unknowingly infect. If leaving your home is not an absolute necessity, please refrain from doing so over the next two weeks. However, if you know an elderly person who may need assistance with food, errands, medication, etc., please reach out to them because this population is at a greater risk for COVID-19 to cause serious harm to their health.

During this time of uncertainty and lost income for most businesses, especially small businesses, meeting payroll related requirements and other overhead expenses may be a challenge. The SBA is offering webinars that contain helpful information regarding near-term and future financial assistance to those who qualify, even if the business is less than two years old. There are bridge loans available for those businesses who qualify while waiting on Texas’ determination for Economic Income Disaster Loans (EIDL).

If your company has less than 50 employees, you are covered. Within the law, there was some language that the Secretary of Labor can issue an exempt to small businesses with fewer than 50 employees where it would jeopardize the viability of the business as a going concern but that may only be for the leave to care for a child whose school has closed. We are still waiting for further guidance on the details.

Summary of the Law:

To summarize this new law, it is a very short, quickly written law, that was signed by the President on March 18th and will take effect on Tuesday, April 2nd. Most of the questions about how to execute or implement it will be filled in over the next day’s/weeks/months. We are sharing everything we know below and will not be able to answer follow up questions about it until agency guidance has been released, which will take some time. We will update the website if and when things change and encourage you to check there.

Key Information for employers:

• FMLA expansion
• Paid sick leave
• Payroll tax credit: employers will get all the money they pay toward this back as a Social Security tax credit (taken off the top) quarterly. However, if they pay out more than they own in SS taxes, they will not get a refund.

Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA)

Since the enactment of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act on March 18, new information and guidance have been released every few days, though still much slower than employers would like. We have summarized what we believe to be the most relevant new information below. We will continue to update the HR Support Center multiple times per day to keep you informed, and we encourage you to visit the site regularly for updates.

Required FFCRA Poster

The Department of Labor (DOL) has released a mandatory employee rights poster for the FFCRA. It should be posted or distributed to employees electronically (via email or online portal) by April 1. More information on the requirements can be found here.

Now that our local area will soon resume business activities, it is prudent to start shaping our new “normal”. Business owners and managers plan annually to assess worst-case scenarios that may impact their business as it relates to their greatest assets – their employees – but now we should take more of a quarterly approach if not monthly approach. Pandemics are least likely to be planned for but now is the time to update your Employee Handbook and Emergency Disaster Plans using the knowledge that we’ve gained over the last 6 weeks and include a plan for a resurgence of COVID-19.

Usually, disaster recovery plans are not well maintained but unfortunately, we have used ours consistently over the last four years due to hurricanes and flooding. Remember how your employees have been impacted and update policies to mitigate any issues you’ve encountered. These are unchartered waters. Do not underestimate input from your staff. They will have valuable input since they have been actively working despite barriers. As a business owner or leader, working through an overabundance of uncertainty can take its toll, collaborating with colleagues may you move forward quicker. Leaders must lead by example, be as transparent as possible, and communicate frequently to display the confidence that team members need.