HR Shield

A few months ago, through the HR Shield blog, we addressed the top reasons Why Good Employees Leave, and just recently, we came across an article in the Post and Courier by Diane Stafford, further supporting the pull factors, but also emphasizing the push factors, which play a much bigger role in employee turnover.  

It’s not a hard kept secret that employers need to worry about why their best employees are leaving. After all, how do you prevent future employees from leaving if you don’t know what’s upsetting them? While money remains one of the top determining factors in selecting a new job, it’s the push factors that outnumber the pull factors by 2-1, according to business consultant Leigh Branham. 

Two-thirds of the time there’s a turning point, one final straw that pushes people right out the door. As an employer, you may wrongfully assume that direct internal conflict or poor management may be the source of the push, but surveys show that the pushes aren’t always personal- sometimes behaviors alone, even indirect,  serve as the pushes. For example, some workers decide to leave their company because others simply aren’t working as hard as they are, or they believe there is a lack of ethics within the organization.

As a business owner, executive, or manager, you have to be aware of your actions at all times and how they effect your organization. Turnover costs organizations a lot of money, and while best practices include conducting an Exit Interview upon departure, it’s typically too late to save them. The Exit Interview will let you know why the employee has left, if they choose to be honest. This information can prevent others from leaving. But, there’s always an opportunity to start turning things around today—before you encounter an employee’s costly departure.

HR Shield gives you full time access to an employee performance management system that really works, including employee handbook templates, employee reviews and all the HR advice you need. Through HR Shield’s services, we have found that employees tend to be more honest regarding their workplace opinions (positive or negative), simply because we are a neutral party and not the employee’s immediate boss.  A handful of HR management best practices can go a long way in bettering your working environment. HR Shield helps recognize and resolve any employee unhappiness before it is too late.

For questions or concerns about current employee situations, contact HR Shield.

Does your company have an employee handbook? Is it up to date with the necessary policies and procedures to ensure your employees are following the rules? Is your company compliant within the labor and employment guidelines set by federal, state and local requirements?

Employee handbooks, while sometimes tedious and demanding from an administrative standpoint, should never be put away on the shelf, or only distributed when hiring a new employee. The objective of an employee handbook is to provide all employees, not just new employees, with any and all pertinent information they may need to efficiently and effectively understand and perform their job.

Your employee handbook should be updated periodically and include the following and most up to date information pertaining to:

1. Introduction to the Company/Company Background
2. Start-up Information for New Employees (How to set up email, use phone system, who to report to, etc) 
3. Contract of Employment
4. Pay and Promotions
5. Benefits
6. Company Policies (Such as family medical leave, equal employment, paid time off, non-discrimination, workers compensation and more)  
7. Disciplinary Codes
8. Grievance Codes  
9. Employee acknowledgement page

Worried about continuous updates and printing? Information can be provided in a loose leaf binder for easy and cost-effective updates to certain sections, rather than reprinting the entire book each time an edit is made. With electronic copies of employee handbooks, you often cannot predict whether or not the employee will review it on their own—it is best to hand them a hard copy and include an employee acknowledgement page for their signature.

Because our team is well aware that creating, updating and administering an employee handbook is time consuming and takes time away from your important everyday responsibilities and tasks, we have created a customized solution for our clients. Through HR Shield, our members gain immediate access to a licensed HR professional for employee handbook creation or review. In addition, HR forms and templates are readily available to maintain a compliant HR department. For more information, contact a licensed HR professional at HR Shield today. Toll Free: (877) 636-9525.

Original Article posted at HR-Shield.com

We’ve all got them—New Year’s Resolutions. Every December we set goals for the New Year, whether they are fitness goals, finance goals, relationship goals or even business goals. As a business owner, executive, or HR Professional, you may have many of the following resolutions for your working environment and employees. With the support of HR Shield, your long list of goals for the New Year doesn’t need to be intimidating, and it CAN be achieved!

We understand that managing HR requires every ounce of energy you have in order to stay ahead of the competition and grow your bottom line. Even with an HR Manager on staff, human resources administration can be overwhelming. The expert team at HR Shield provides the perfect alternative to outsourced HR services – a simple, yet often necessary, helping hand!

Stay Organized: By utilizing HR Shield’s Forms Library, you can readily have access to reliable human resources forms for hiring, firing, workers comp, harassment, overtime, tax forms, unemployment claims, federal and state documentations and more.

Avoid Hiring the “Wrong People” this Year: We provide hiring support including interviewing tips, background checks, employee compensation help, drug testing, documentation support and more. We have all of the talent and knowledge necessary to attract and retain the right employees for your company this year—and can even help terminate the bad ones if necessary, through exit interview assistance, compliance consulting and more.

Create a Safer Working Environment:  You never want to see an employee hurt on the job. Perhaps your working environment has experienced an injury on the job in 2011? If so, you know firsthand that accidents DO happen, and employees who aren’t trained properly leave you exposed to costly consequences. The importance of safety in the workplace can’t be underestimated. Let HR Shield help you out this year, with office safety training, HR compliance services and more—everything you need to keep your employees safe!

Boost Employee Performance This Year: Need help motivating your work force? HR Shield provides an employee performance management system that really works, including employee handbook templates, employee reviews and all the expert HR advice you need. We can help your business create custom compensation packages and rewards systems that truly improve employee morale!

Whatever your business and HR goals may be, HR Shield can lend a helping hand. Best business wishes to all for the New Year, and do not hesitate to call usthis year– we’re turning resolutions into realities!

View Original Article at HR-Shield.com

Many of us have heard of KSAs, especially when it comes to job performance. KSAs (Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities)are demonstrated through qualifying experience, education, or training. As an employer, paying attention to a potential employee’s KSA’s are extremely important—they are often used to distinguish the “qualified candidates” from the “unqualified candidates” for a position.

When handed or sent a completed application from a potential candidate, the application must fully address the KSAs specified in the vacancy position. Assuming you, as the human resources professional or hiring manager, have identified specific prerequisites for the job, your candidate’s skills and background should match as best as possible. If a candidate’s information shows the relevant education or years of experience that satisfy the requirements and has great knowledge, skills and abilities, you can advance further consideration in the evaluation process.

KSAs are defined as:

• Knowledge – An organized body of factual information about the candidate’s knowledge. The “Knowledge” section of KSA should indicate what rules, regulations, policies, practices, and more the candidate is familiar with.  How will this knowledge apply to your work environment and the vacant position? Did the candidate give you examples of significant situations where this knowledge has been applied?
• Skills – The proficient manual, verbal, or mental ability of operating data, technology or other items. For example: computer skills, software experience, presentation development, machinery experience. How will having skill(s) with these various types of mediums apply to the job? How much experience does the potential candidate have using each item?
• Ability – The power or ability to perform a task. For example, having the talent or capacity to multitask and operate numerous instruments at once. Will the candidate’s experience and ability to utilize numerous tools have a positive impact on your working environment? 

While KSAs are only part of the resume and application process, they can truly make one candidate standing out amongst the rest. Look for examples that demonstrate initiative, innovation, leadership, complexity and most importantly, team work!

Hiring employees involves a long list of important details that, if not handled properly, can lead to poor performance. For more advice on hiring and scanning resumes, contact the HR professionals at HR Shield.