It’s true, I have a scrapbook filled with lies. I started this scrapbook years ago when I received quite a bit of resistance to background checks on applicants prior to making job offers.

Managers and VPs would say, I worked at such-and-such large company and we never did background checks there. Rather than fight over this, I merely starting sending them copies of articles I had collected. It’s pretty impressive… particularly when they saw who was doing the hiring and the hiring mistakes made.

Companies need to have a level of trust in their employees or we’d be working in prison environments where we’re watched every minute. However, the trust begins with a realistic and necessary step… background checks. A high percentage of resumes have an “error or omission” on them. Meanwhile, our California courts are holding employers more responsible than ever for who you allow into the work environment. So, if you’re not doing this basic due diligence, your company can and will be held accountable if problems arise.

I like to have every employee, at any level, complete an employment application simply because they must sign it attesting to its accuracy and truthfulness. And I hold them accountable  [click to read more ...]

       Over the years I’ve been in HR, it’s been interesting to hear other people’s comments about how HR fits within a company. I’ve met executives with large company experience who feel HR is “the dreaded HR entity” that exists simply to make it impossible for them to do business.  I’ve met small business owners who have no awareness of HR at all. These are the extremes.

The dreaded HR entity is the box. That HR is blindly doing it’s own thing by enforcing rules, nitpicking, and ignoring the rest of the business. Sadly, this really was HR for years and years. And, in many companies, it still is their HR style. It’s this very reputation that has made it so hard for HR to prove its usefulness in helping companies save money by making better hires, increasing productivity, and reducing lawsuits and claims.

I’m not a fan of the box. Let me share my thoughts about HR in general. HR represents everything employee-related within a company and, as such, is considered a complete department regardless of the number of HR people in the department. HR strives to find a balance between the needs of the employees and the company’s ability  [click to read more ...]

Have you ever used a consultant, or started to, then decided to hire someone instead? How did you make the decision that the person you were hiring was good enough? What did you gain or lose in that decision?

As an HR consultant, I run across companies that decide it’s more cost effective to hire an employee to manage their HR rather than hire a consultant. It usually turns out that the employee is a "combo" person … someone who wears several different hats because the company is too small to have enough need in any of the areas covered. The combo person may have several titles depending upon what they happen to be doing at that moment, such as Office Manager-Executive Assistant-HR Manager. I’m all for the combo person. In fact, it’s often a necessity in a small business to have multi-talented, multi-tasking people.

When it comes to HR, the combo person is typically who I would train to handle the day-to-day routine things. This includes the hiring paperwork, time off or time card paperwork, and other items that are the black and white areas of HR related to basic compliance with the employment laws and regulations. These things can be  [click to read more ...]

Are you using a Non-Disclosure Agreement or Employee Handbook or other form of agreement with any or all employees? Are you sure you’re protected?

I recently met someone who used a Non-Disclosure Agreement. However, he had neglected to follow-up with employees to make sure he actually received back signed copies. When he was terminating an employee it was discovered that his company’s technology was unprotected.

Sadly, this is not an uncommon situation. You’re busy and get distracted with other work. A week goes by and the last thing you’re thinking about is having that signed form returned to you. But without the employee’s signature on these documents, they are worthless in protecting your information, acting on policy violations, etc., etc.

I’m guessing that you didn’t create those agreements or your Employee Handbook just to have it ignored and unable to defend yourself in court if needed. So you really need to develop a system to ensure you get those signatures in place and files in each employee’s file.

I use two methods. One is for new employees and is simply using a form that lists all the new-hire paperwork that was given out. I keep that form in my follow-up file until I receive  [click to read more ...]

I’ve tried numerous ways to keep track of all my to-do’s. Each method offers advantages and disadvantages, depending upon our personal likes and dislikes. For instance, I hate to file paperwork. Once I finally get myself doing it, it’s never is as bad as I felt it would be and it normally takes me less time than I thought it would. It turns out my procrastination makes a mountain out of a molehill, to use an old phrase.

You and I both know there are certain things we absolutely must do as part of our work. Some of those things have the added pressure of drop-dead deadlines. I am the type of person who actually excels with deadlines. I find myself more organized, better at prioritizing, and much more focused.

When I have a deadline that has dire consequences if not met … such as not getting insurance enrollment forms to the carrier in time so insurance coverage isn’t delayed another 30 days or sending stock option repurchase letters out in time so the purchase agreement isn’t negated by the company’s lack of action … I always successfully meet the challenge. What I find exhilirating about those deadlines is the  [click to read more ...]