HR 101: Human Resource Dos and Don

1
HR 101 Human Resource Dos and Donts

• Presented by Brian Walters, MBA, CBA
• The Summit Medina Business Alliance
• For The Hudson Library and Historical Society
• Burton D. Morgan Center for Entrepreneurship
  Research
• November 9, 2011

2
Introduction

• Summit Medina Business Alliance (SMBA)
  Competencies
• What this session will include
• What this session will not include

3
HR 101

• What does the term Human Resource mean to you?
• Hiring?
• Firing?
• Providing Benefit Packages?
• Managing Laws/Rules?
• Interfering with Business Units?
• Any thing else?

4
HR 101

• Human Resources (HR) must
• Understand the business model
• Revenue and cost drivers
• Non Revenue drivers
• Come out of their tower
• Communicate all HR policies and procedures
• Honestly
• Candidly

5
HR 101 HR Must

• Create transparent policies and procedures
• Most critical?
• Performance Appraisal/Review System
• Develop HR and people skills in management ranks
• WHY?

6
HR 101 HR Must

• Listen to employees and management
• Accept feedback from the correct perspective
• Measure its performance
• In qualitative terms
• In quantitative terms
• Use an external source for credible results

7
HR 101 HR Must Not

• Be inaccessible and unapproachable
• Create bureaucratic procedures
• Involve itself with mundane tasks
• Outsource them
• Payroll
• Benefits Admin
• Always present a management view
• If no union, HR must represent employees

8
HR 101

• HR Department/Employment Process
• Job Description
• Hiring
• Interviewing
• Motivating
• Appraisal/Review
• Managing Poor Performance
• Employee Exit
• Firing
• Retiring

9
HR 101 Job Description

• Do
• Use a factual/impersonal style
• Base the description on the departments needs
• Be accurate, concise, and complete
• Use complete sentences
• Begin each duty/task with and action verb
• Achieve
• Augment
• Organize
• Strategize
• Conduct
• Implement
• Develop
• Negotiate

10
HR 101 Job Description

• Do
• Be careful and consistent if using may and
  occasionally
• Why?
• Refer to job titles rather than persons in a
  position
• reports to Regional Manager
• Not
• reports to Gene Simmons

11
HR 101 Job Description

• Do
• Be precise, succinct
• Critical for accurate job evaluation and analysis
• Focus on critical activities
• Use a logical flow when describing
  duties/responsibilities

12
HR 101 Job Description

• Dont
• Use a narrative writing form
• Base the content on capabilities, skills of any
  one person
• Write the description as a guide on how to do the
  job
• Include minor or occasional tasks

13
HR 101 Job Description

• Example
• Position Details
• Job Duties
• What you do
• Performance Standards
• How you do it
• Job factors

14
HR 101 Job Description

• Position Details
• Working Title
• Main function or role of the position
• Be specific
• Examples
• Program Director
• Help Desk Support Analyst
• Business Manager

15
HR 101 Job Description

• Job Description Summary
• Contains 1-3 Paragraphs
• Summarizes the main points of the job description
• Responsibilities
• Functions
• Duties
• Education/Experience
• Travel Necessity

16
HR 101 Job Description

• Job Duties
• Foundation of the Job Description
• Outlines
• Complexity
• Scope
• Level of responsibility
• Composed of three main elements
• Key Accountabilities (main areas of
  responsibility)
• Use 3-5 Key Accountabilities

17
HR 101 Job Description

• Job Duties
• Duty Statements
• Provide additional information on Key
  Accountability tasks
• Percentage of Time
• Estimates a portion of time spent on each Key
  Accountability

18
HR 101 Job Description

• Performance Standards Section
• Conveys the expectations of the position
• Depicts the human capital necessary to be
  successful
• Provides a basis for measuring performance
• One section for each Key Accountability

19
HR 101 Job Description

• Job Factors
• Outlines the knowledge and skills necessary
• Education
• Analytical skills needed
• Level and nature of internal contacts
• Level and nature of external contacts

20
HR 101 Hiring/Interviewing

• Do
• Use someone experienced in interviewing
• WHY?
• Listen Actively and with empathy
• Not all can do this
• Make an interview a conversation
• Discuss any pressures associated with the
  position
• Overtime
• Priorities
• Deadlines

21
HR 101 Hiring/Interviewing

• Do
• Outline specific duties of the position
• Talk about necessity for additional training
• Refer to facts relevant to the applicants future
  performance

22
HR 101 Hiring/Interviewing

• Dont
• Ask the following
• Where were you born?
• Is your name Irish, Italian, Jewish, etc?
• Are you married?
• Do you plan to have children?
• What does your husband/wife/mother/father do for
  a living?
• Do you live alone?
• Where do you go to church?
• Do you have a sitter?

23
HR 101 Hiring/Interviewing

• Do
• Ask the following
• What made you apply for this position?
• What is your biggest weakness?
• Why are you leaving your present/last job?
• Describe a work related accomplishment that you
  are most proud of
• Describe a work related disappointment
• Why did it happen?
• What did you learn from it?

24
HR 101 Hiring/Interviewing

• Do
• Ask the following
• What are your career goals?
• How do you feel about working overtime for a
  special project, trade show, etc?
• My favorite
• Tell me about yourself

25
HR 101 Motivation

• Employee Engagement derives from 3 factors
• Employee alignment with the company goals
• Faith of the employee in management competence
  and their commitment to company goals
• Trust in their direct supervisor
• Support the staff
• Assist them in succeeding

26
HR 101 Motivation

• Employees rarely quit companies. Rather,
  employees quit their supervisors by leaving the
  company

27
HR 101 Motivation

• To improve employee engagement
• Dont
• Get angry (Any one can do that)
• Be cold, distant, rude
• Mislead your team
• Send mixed signals to your employees
• Avoid taking responsibility for your actions
• Jump to conclusions without checking facts

28
HR 101 Motivation

• To improve employee engagement
• Do
• Admit your mistakes
• Recognize your team
• Publicly support your team
• Be responsive (return emails, calls)
• Ask and listen!!!!
• The manager of the future will know how to ask
  rather than how to tell. Peter Drucker
• Do what you say you are going to do
• Smile and laugh
• Have fun

29
HR 101 Appraisal/Review

• Employer viewpoint
• Used to
• Measure employee performance
• Establish goals
• Open channels of communication
• Strengthen the relationship

30
HR 101 Appraisal/Review

• Employee viewpoint

31
HR 101 Appraisal/Review

• Do
• Provide
• Clear identification of job standards
• Consistent, objective measurement relative to
  those standards being met
• Opportunity for clarification/feedback
• Be sincere!
• Rewards to top performers
• Encouragement to marginal performers
• Proper feedback to those with low performance

32
HR 101 Managing Poor Performance

• Ignoring poor performance contains costs
• Employee morale
• Customers
• Revenue

33
HR 101 Managing Poor Performance

• Tips to manage poor performance
• Dont
• Begin a conversation about the topic in a
  demeaning or defensive way
• Talk at the employee
• Have the conversation in a public realm
• Sugarcoat the conversation

34
HR 101 Managing Poor Performance

• Do
• Be clear and firm when addressing your concerns
• Address issues as they occur
• Share specific examples of poor performance
• Provide details and examples of how to improve
  poor performance
• Make it a conversation

35
HR 101 Managing Poor performance

• Do
• Highlight a part of their performance that is
  positive
• Provide clear and measurable goals
• Follow up after an agreed upon time period
• Are they reaching their goals?
• Summarize the discussion and plan in writing

36
HR 101 Firing Employees

37
HR 101 Firing Employees

• Dont
• Leave the firing to someone else
• Why?
• Fire an employee on the spot
• Unless it is truly warranted
• Based on company standards and acceptable/unaccept
  able behaviors
• Get personal

38
HR 101 Firing Employees

• Dont
• Be unprepared
• Prepare the termination letter
• Rehearse what you will say
• How you will say it
• In what sequence
• Become defensive or debate the merits of the
  decision

39
HR 101 Firing Employees

• Do
• Act quickly after a careful decision has been
  made to terminate
• Be respectful
• Ensure that your notice arrangements meet legal
  compliance
• Moderate Emotion
• Solicit feedback
• No dialogue!

40
(No Transcript)
41
Brian Walters, MBA, CBASummit Medina Business
Alliance

• 526 S. Main Street
• Suite 813
• Akron, OH 44311
• 330.375.2111, ext 4343bwalters_at_akronsbdc.org