I personally think at least 75% of the employee issues organizations have could be solved with making a good hire in the first place. According to Leadership IQ, 46% of all new hires fail in the first 18 months. Of those, 89% failed for reasons of attitude, not technical skills.

Unfortunately, hiring right is not where our priorities tend to be. Usually managers wait until they have to make a hire and then hire the first warm breathing body that seems might work. Sometimes the manager gets lucky; oftentimes not.

So, here are some pointers for hiring right:
  - Spend the time. Hire in haste; repent at leisure.
  - Know what you need and prioritize your requirements.
  - Have an application that requests the necessary information to screen candidates.
  - Conduct a structured, behavioral interview.
  - Be sure to conduct background screening.

Obviously, you need to know the right way to go about each of these steps. Watch for an announcement of an upcoming "Hire Right" workshop in early December for more information.

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"This information previously published in the Venture HRO LLC newsletter, September 24, 2010. "

Employers (especially small employers) are often overwhelmed with their safety obligations. And yes, there are some industries with complicated and rigid requiremens. However, for many industries, the requirements are relatively straightforward, although it does require some work up front. If you have even one employee, you have OSHA requirements. So here's a list for your reference:

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A lot of companies have or are considering allowing employees to work from home. Should  you?

There are obvious advantages to a telecommuting work arrangement:
  - Less office space (less rent, lower utility costs)
  - Recruitment and retention

However, there are many things that need to be considered in order for a telecommuting work arrangement to be effective:

  - The type of job: Some jobs are more easily done in a telecommuting arrangement. Other types of jobs just cannot be done anywhere but at the workplace.
  - The personality of the employee: Not all employees can work in this type of arrangement. If an employee has a high need for interpersonal interaction, they may not like working in isolation.
  - Teamwork: Most jobs, even those which are highly autonomous, rely upon teamwork. How will you ensure the feeling of team in a workforce that is not co-located?
  - Performance management: How will you determine how well the employee is doing the job if you cannot see them?
  - Technology: A virtual environment relies on technology. You need to consider what type of technology is most effective as well as the training and expertise of your workforce.
  - Security: How do you keep your company information secure?

None of these issues are insurmountable, but they do require planning and attention.

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If you have employees, you need to attend (or send someone to) the Wichita Falls HR Management Association Fall Conference on September 14, 8:30 - 4:30, Holiday Inn.

This is a low-cost, local HR conference with lots of information applicable to all employers. Registration information can be downloaded from my company website in the events area of the home page. To register, contact Vernon College Continuing Education at 940-696-8752, ext 3211.

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It would be nice if employees and companies did things because those things are the right thing to do, and to some extent they do. However, for most people and most managers, you have to answer the question about why they should do what you want them to--in other words, answer the all important question, "What's in it for me?"

That's where incentives come in. I have talked some about performance incentives in the past, but as this article shows, incentives can be effective in changing a variety of behaviors. Want to save money in a particular area? Rebate part of the savings back to your employees.
Personally, I have always been a little disgruntled about incentivizing behaviors I feel as an employer I should get by virtue of paying a salary, but hey, we're a capitalistic society.

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I am constantly irritated by false dichotomies--when someone asks a question designed to force you into one of two viewpoints based upon an assumption that the two are mutually exclusive, when they are not.
No wonder it seems no one can think any more--we are bombarded with black and white choices when usually the true answer should be somewhere in between. We just aren't given that option. When we don't select one or the other polar end, somehow we're avoiding the question. You see a lot of this approach on quasi-news shows.

But the question that got me on the soapbox was in an e-newsletter I get. The question was: "What should come first in HR: People or Business?" It's a chicken or egg question.
The bottom line is business. If the business is not successful, there won't be any people to deal with. However, if it is true (and it is) that the competitive advantage of almost all businesses is the knowledge and skills of its people, then if you're not paying attention to the people piece, you may not be in business long. So there is no choice between the two extremes--paying attention to people makes a business successful. Making good business decisions keeps us all employed. The true choices lay along the spectrum between the two. Good managers will focus on blending elements of both ends for the best option.

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I just finished the book, Equipped to Lead, by Dan J. Sanders and Galen Walters. It's an easy evening read and worth that much time anyway. Of course, I'm biased toward the central message of the book, which is, "Putting people first provides a blueprint for naturally creating success."

A couple of interesting concepts worth considering:
  - Adapting the P&L statement to include unrealized potential
  - Return on Investment in Humanity (ROIH)

Both of these are interesting concepts, not well defined or fully explained, but certainly worth more exploration.

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Yes, the economy is getting better, if the mood of workers is an indication. According to the Wall Street Journal, the number of employees quitting was higher than the number of employees being let go involuntarily in February, for the first time since October 2008.

Why is this a big deal? It means that employees are beginning to think there are alternatives to their present jobs. Most employees have been sitting tight, thankful to have a job. However, many have not been happy. Again cited in the WSJ article, a survey conducted by Right Management found that approximately 60% of workers planned to quit their jobs when the economy improves.

My own informal sense of the mood of workers would indicate many are starting to put out feelers. Employee turnover is a huge cost for employers. Assuming that employers managed to hang on to their very best workers during the recession, the idea that a significant number may start looking for greener pastures is not a good one.

Now is the time to begin evaluating your employer/employee relationship, especially if you have let that relationship sour in the past couple of years.  On the other side of the coin, if you are in a position to hire, now might be an excellent time to pick up some good talent that until now have been reluctant to leave the security of their current employer.

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There has been a lot of news in 2010 about employees injured or killed in the workplace due to the violent behavior of others. Unfortunately, one very serious incident took place here in Wichita Falls recently.

Although most incidents are not serious enough to make the news headlines, that doesn't mean workplace violence of any kind is OK.

Employers have a responsibility to provide a safe place to work for their employees and that includes taking reasonable precautions to ensure they are safe from violence. Do you know how you can help reduce the likelihood of workplace violence? Do you know what you should do if something happens?

To learn about preventing workplace violence, plan to attend "Preventing Workplace Violence: An Employer's Guide" on May 19, 10:00 AM - Noon at the Workforce Development Board Room at 901 Indiana, Suite 180. Registration is just $25 and all proceeds benefit First Step, Inc.

For more information, visit the Events section at http://venturehro.com or email This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it .

For HR professionals, this course has been pre-certified by the HR Certification Institute for 2 hours general credit.

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Pareto and Your Business

Some of the most useful ideas in business are based upon the Pareto Principle (also called the 80-20 Rule or the Law of the Vital Few.) It basically says that roughly 80% of the effects will come from 20% of the causes. This is a very useful principle when trying to decide how to tackle process improvement. It is also very useful in considering your employees.

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