Why do I already talk to my preteen boys about what is most important in finding a mate? I want them to decide what is most important to them before they are charmed by the first pretty girl who turns their head! (I’ll let you know in about 10 years how it works out!)

Before you ask yourself what my personal parenting mission has to do with an HR article in the top local business publication; let me say that hiring the best available talent is much the same. Employers who hire top talent view hiring as a methodical, logical process where the desired result is determined at the beginning, not the end, of the process.

How often do organizations hire for familiarity or convenience rather than hiring based on a predetermined set of criteria? Think about it: what are the chances that the best possible candidate for your position is the person who happened to walk in your door, befriend your neighbor, or run into you at the gym? Even if they are the best possible candidate, how would you know, if you don’t have objective criteria on which to evaluate them? As with so many things, the easy way isn’t necessarily the best.

What do purveyors of top talent know?

1.They determine the very specific critical skills needed for their organization today and tomorrow.

2. They develop a recruiting plan that specifically targets the market they need to tap. Where are these talented professionals eating, living, reading, hanging out? Does the firm have the resources and expertise to find them or should they enlist an outside expert?

3. Successful firms match their assessment process to the outcome they desire. Hint: an interview is one of the least predictive assessment “tools.”

4. They know that a skill match is only half of the formula. Common values or lack thereof will make or break the relationship.

5. They carefully assess the candidate’s track record. Past performance in a similar environment or role is a strong indicator (not a promise) of future success.

6.They understand the need to put their best foot forward. These organizations understand that the hiring process is a two way street —both parties are making a very important decision.

7.They understand the cost associated with the wrong hire. Estimates range from one to five times annual salary (including training time, lost productivity, service interruption, poor morale, legal risk, and more).

8.They are patient. Hiring the right person for a position can take time, especially in sectors where the demand for talent outweighs the supply.

9. They do not settle and sell themselves short. Many small firms recognize that they can compete successfully with the largest of employers. Startup or small companies often provide a refreshing and exciting environment and the ability to “make a difference” not often found in other places.

10. Once the decision is made, they nurture the relationship. Your organization and the newly hired employee will benefit from a deliberate onboarding process. Laurence Peter adapted the famous Lewis Carroll quote (from Alice in Wonderland) by saying, “If you don’t know where you are going, you will probably end up somewhere else.” Given today’s competitive market, your business cannot afford to end up anywhere else! Stop now and determine what is most important for your long term success before you risk being charmed by anyone other than your best possible match. (Boys, did you hear that?)

As a difficult 2009 came to a close, I was more excited than ever to turn the calendar to 2010. Understandably, a keen focus on operational issues took second row to survival for many businesses. I will share a few suggestions based on my own HR New Year’s resolutions in the hopes that it will motivate you to continue to make a few of your own throughout 2010!

1. Commit to your own professional development goals! If you are not already a member of your local SHRM (Society for Human Resource Management) chapter, join now. Local SHRM organizations provide their members with legislative updates, opportunities to benchmark best practices, and benefits of networking with other HR professionals. What skills are you missing to stay on top of your game? A good way to understand your skills gap is to survey the market—read business books, review online HR job postings for skills in demand, sign up for HR newsletters, and attend local legal updates. Your training budget isn’t a factor in taking advantage of most of these opportunities.

2. Get involved! Keep abreast of pending legislation related to your field, and give your legislators your opinions. So often, legislation is passed that doesn’t take into account the practical impact it will have on business operations. SHRM reports that we are “on the brink of the greatest change in labor and employment law in over 20 years.” It is our duty to be aware and to remain an active influence on these matters.

3.  Self-audit your HR files more regularly. We all dread the possibility of any type of audit or investigation often beacuse audits are time consuming and divert our attention away from other duties. If every HR professional would schedule a monthly or quarterly self-audit of state and federal immigration requirements, benefits records, personnel files, and hiring/promotion/termination processes, we would sleep better at night. If you have deficiencies, wouldn’t you rather find them before an outside agency arrives?

4. Review salary structure and total benefits to ensure every dollar is being spent wisely. Many companies have maintained roughly the same salary plan and benefits for years, though the workforce they hope to attract and keep has changed. Work with an outside expert to review your spending and make sure you are getting an optimal ROI (return on investment).

5.   Focus on “topgrading” your talent!

Hiring, developing, and retaining top performers is the key to success in any business environment. Review your recruiting practices including an evaluation of your company’s reputation in the marketplace. What can your organization do to ensure that you will attract top talent? (By the way, talented professionals are not often actively seeking a

new position, they are most often methodically recruited). How can you best develop your talent and keep them engaged? Human Resources professionals have the opportunity to affect the future success of their organization by proper planning and execution in this area.

Regardless of your political persuasion, every business person recognizes that the regulatory environment is becoming ever more burdensome on business. As difficult as it is for Human Resources professionals to keep up with changing regulation, consider how much more difficult it has become for smaller businesses without a professional HR department.

In the effort to help you navigate the ever-changing world of HR, here are a few tips for managing the overwhelming HR role of today’s business leader:

1. Document, document, document. Discrimination claims have increased over the past few years. Additionally, defending such claims has become more burdensome. For example, to defend an age-based discrimination claim, an employer used to have to prove that age was not the determining factor in an adverse employment; in July of this year, a mixed-motive case was allowed where age may be one of several factors for the decision.
2. Train supervisors on the fundamentals of employment law. Supervisors and managers are legal representatives of your firm—both when they do smart things and when they do not-so-smart things. Although the law may be a matter of common sense in many cases, expensive litigation can often result from following “common sense” rather than the letter of the law. Supervisors should be trained on interviewing and selection, harassment and equal employment opportunity, employee and labor relations, as well as documentation procedures, to name a few.
3. Always be ready for an investigation. Though most employers recognize the need to follow immigration law, very few perform self-audits of their processes. Doesn’t it make more sense to find your own mistakes rather than allowing an investigator find gaps in the process?Effective July 1, 2009, all S.C. employers of 100 or more workers must verify the legal status of new employees by one of two processes, in addition to the current federal I-9 requirement. Many felt that enforcement of this legislation would be difficult in our current economic environment; however, many S.C. businesses have already been audited since July. Even more, businesses with fewer than 100 employees will be covered July 2010. Make sure to audit yourself before they come to you.
4. Communicate company policies regularly to all employees—not just supervisors. All employees should be regularly trained on the company’s policies, including harassment/sexual harassment and the company’s policy on discrimination. When employees understand top management’s stance on important issues, they are more likely to report problems rather than letting issues get out of hand.
5. Keep up! Regardless of the size of your company, someone should be designated as the HR “leader.” As a small business owner, the responsibility has predominantly been mine—and I’m sure that I am not alone. The burden of keeping up with the ever-changing legal landscape can be made lighter by developing a relationship with an excellent employment law attorney, subscribing to an online HR newsletter, or joining a national or local HR group such as the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM) or an HR forum at your Chamber of Commerce.As we focus on the primary job of serving our clients and building a financially secure future for our employees and ourselves, it can be frustrating to deal with increasing regulation. Developing tight HR processes and training our employees to those processes will ensure that we are here for our clients for years to come!

After many months of holding onto our wallets, most economists agree that businesses will soon begin hiring again. The American Staffing Association recently reported the longest upward trend in temporary employment since 2007. (Temporary employment figures have long been considered a leading economic indicator.) Additionally, other major economic indicators consistently point to a recovery.

Now that the pendulum is swinging back in the other direction, it is a logical time to consider a few questions regarding how your company is perceived by top talent—the talent that your business needs to be successful in the future.

1. Does your hiring process mirror your best business practices? We tell candidates that they only have one chance to make a first impression. In a “candidate’s market” it is also important that your company makes the best first impression to the candidate.

Even the most complex, multi-step hiring process can be perceived as professional and efficient, whereas, an inefficient, unresponsive hiring manager is also the face of your company to top candidates who apply. Consider ways to improve your first impression to candidates.

2. Is your company’s brand, including your core values, communicated to your target candidates? Small businesses can take notes from larger ones—the same brand that supports sales of your product or service to your customers can also sell your company to top candidates. If you have a strong brand—even locally—use it. Everyone wants to work for the best, and the best may not be the biggest. How do your target candidates perceive your firm?

3. How do your employees feel about your company? Are they eager to tell others about the place they work? Top talent knows top talent, and they can also help you recruit top talent. With the advent of social media, word travels fast. Your current employees are the key to your reputation as an employer of choice!

4. How is your PR? Take advantage of every opportunity to toot your own horn! If your firm wins an award, sponsors an event, if an employee receives a certification, or you land a new contract, get the word out. Prospective employees want to work for a company that is experiencing exciting things.

Consider the impact of PR not only on prospective clients, but on prospective employees. Is your firm known as an expert in the field? Many opportunities exist to speak at community events and industry forums. Not only will your firm benefit from the goodwill you are providing to others, but your team will also be considered as the experts in your field—priceless! Remember: “A” players want to play on an “A” team!

5. Are you doing everything you can to ensure the success of your new hires once they sign on? Make sure that your goals for the new employee are clear. Do they understand what it takes to be successful in your company’s unique culture? Little things count: have their office space ready, order business cards ahead of time, pair them with a mentor for the first weeks or months, assign someone to take them to lunch the first day. Make sure that your company allows them every opportunity to be successful.

Top talent is hard to find and hard to keep regardless of economic conditions. Given the inevitable shift to a “candidate’s market,” prepare your company to be the employer of choice for top talent.

Hiring the perfect employee is not an exact science and probably never will be. Utilizing the best practices in screening job candidates will improve your odds of finding Mr. or Ms. Right tremendously and will help you properly navigate the increasingly complex web of employment laws. Here are a few steps that are easy for any business to implement.

#1. The past DOES predict the future.

If you offered me only one method to select a new hire, it would be the past employer reference. It is of utmost importance to communicate with the former supervisor so you can best understand how this person will succeed in your specific position and overall environment. Confirming dates of employment will not provide what you need to assess their future performance.

There is a misconception that references are impossible to get in our “sue-happy” world. Hear this: it is perfectly legal to request and give an objective, proper reference.

#2: Background Checks. The information available from vendors ranges from a basic database search of criminal history for less than $10, to a detailed investigation that will cost several hundred dollars. Depending on the position for which you are hiring, consider the relevance of the information and the risk of not obtaining it. Though controversial, I recommend credit checks on candidates for positions in which cash handling, negotiable instruments or accounting is involved. Fair Credit Reporting Act rules apply to both credit and criminal background investigations.

#3: Behaviorally- Based Interviews. Before considering a candidate for your team, don’t you want to know if this person is the one represented on paper? Behaviorally based interview questions are carefully structured questions that ask candidates to describe the details of work-related situations and how they actually reacted, as well as the outcome of the situation. Different from traditional open-ended questions, behaviorally-based questions should focus on past or current experiences that are relevant to what is required for success in your company’s position.

A traditional interview is actually one of the least predictive candidate screening methods. An in-depth, behavioral-based interview will provide a more accurate representation of a job candidate.

#4: Assessments/Personality Tests. More and more companies are utilizing some type of job match assessment, which may provide you with information regarding the candidate’s intellectual ability, as well as their predisposition for success in the role. Though recent court cases seem to demonstrate the court’s willingness to allow companies to adhere to the results of the tests, it is still critical to have a professional work with your firm to ensure the assessment you choose is valid for the position.

#5: Job Skills Testing. At the most basic level, job skills testing is an old-fashioned typing test when hiring an administrative assistant. Today, sophisticated testing software is available for every budget. Web-based testing is available for almost any software package, knowledge category, or skill for which you may test.

#6:Working Interview. What better way to find out if a candidate has what it takes than to have them try out the job! For example, if the position is an inside sales position, why not ask the candidate to sit at the workstation and make sales calls. You will get a feel for their ability and comfort level with the phone, and they will get a very realistic preview of the position. After all, the best time for both sides to determine whether or not there is a “match” is early in the process!

The tools I mentioned are not intended to be legal advice or an exhaustive list of screening tools, but each is free or inexpensive. Whether a company is preparing to hire its first employee or hundreth, it makes good business sense to take the time to design a process that is objective and produces the result you intend.

Some reports conclude that the average worker will work for upwards of a dozen employers before they are 50! Competitive forces are squeezing our bottom line and challenging our workforce more than ever. The Society of Human Resource Management estimates the cost to replace an employee at two to three times their annual salary (or more), meaning that we must not only hire the best, but keep the best, and train employees to serve our clients to the best of their ability. What’s a business to do?

Consider this: our grandparents often grew up working for a family farm or business. They learned their work ethic directly from their parents and other extended family members. They were loyal for a lifetime. In our parents’ generation, most individuals worked in the same profession for the same company for most of their career. From the 1960s through the 1980s, working the same profession for multiple companies throughout a career was the norm.

Yet today’s top professionals and those in the generations to come are predicted to have an “independent agent” attitude about their careers. I don’t use the term in the legal form of independent contractor but rather to demonstrate that we are hiring sharp young adults who recognize that they must take charge of their own career development and view themselves as their own agent, controlling their career destiny.

A 2006 American Staffing Association study by Steve Bertram, Vice President, estimates that growth in the contract and temporary sector has grown more than 70 percent in the past decade. This number is expected to grow exponentially during the next decade, due in part to changing attitudes towards work. Contract workers mention their own desire for skill development as a key reason for working on a contract basis. It has become apparent that our generation will not only have multiple employers, but must prepare for multiple careers in their lifetime.

This trend from a paternalistic employer-employee model to an agent model will continue to vastly change how we recruit, motivate, coach, and distribute the actual work to be accomplished. A May 2009 study completed by Thomas Britt, an industrial-organizational psychology professor at Clemson University, outlines his research in “Amplifying the Relationships Between Organizational Constraints and Outcomes,” currently under review at the Journal of Occupational Health Psychology. “Engaged workers are more likely to place importance on being able to perform well because their performance matters to them ahead of corporate loyalty,” Britt said.

In other words, engagement is only effective at retention to the extent that the engaged worker feels that they have the organizational support necessary to be successful and rewarded in their role.

We must, then, ask ourselves the following:

1. Does our company tailor its recruiting methods to attract today’s best and brightest? (Hint: your current employees want to work for a positive “brand” as well.)

2. How can we cost effectively train employees who may not be lifetime employees?

3. Have we reviewed and revised our benefit plans and policies to improve our ability to attract and retain the employees we need today?

4. Does our organization understand the full cost of turnover in a knowledge-based business environment? When we experience turnover, how do we ensure that intellectual capital does not walk out the door?

5. How do we coordinate the distribution of work so that employees are continually engaged and learning?

6. Do we have a formal or informal mentor program that provides support to high potential employees?

7. Is career development a priority or is it an afterthought?

8. Are we asking for and providing a comfortable means for feedback from our employees?

9. Do we appropriately acknowledge and reward our most valued employees?

10. Do we analyze why we lose valued employees?

Employers of choice know that keeping employees engaged, learning, supported, rewarded and growing is key to retaining valuable employees. Regardless of the economic climate, demand for top talent is always high, so to keep top performers providing value to our organizations, we must capitalize on our understanding of the evolving workforce.

During the best of times, we all tell our employees, our clients, and our business partners that “our people are our best asset”—and we really mean it. We know that the most successful firms in the world are those who hire top talent and maintain a culture that utilizes that talent to the fullest. During this recessionary period, holding on to and investing in our key employees is more critical than ever before.

Over the past decade, we have experienced an unprecedented period of “good times.”You might argue that we hit a bump in the road during 2001, but overall, we have been blessed with a very long stretch of economic prosperity. During these times, we learned a great deal about how to become an “employer of choice,” how to screen and select the “right”employees, how to properly “onboard” an employee into our organizations to ensure their success, how to retain and develop top talent, how to recruit top Gen X’ers, how to manage and excite the Gen Y’ers, and how to best utilize the fastest growing talent pool—our seniors.

Millions of dollars have been made by authors and trainers and millions have been spent by corporations to find the magic potion—all in an effort to gain, keep, and best utilize top talent.

So here we are…in one of the toughest economic times that most of us have ever experienced. Yet, our new laser focus on the bottom line does not have to negate all that we have learned about taking care of
our employees. Most businesses will do everything in their power to prevent a layoff. We see many
companies choose to implement a reduction in hours or temporary lay off rather than a permanent
reduction in force. This alternative makes particularly good sense if you feel that you may need to replace
staff within three to six months and have invested a great deal of time and money in your employees’ training.

So often, we see firms toggle between layoffs and hiring binges. But have you ever considered the cost of this type of decision making? Long and short term costs include training and recruiting dollars, reputation, morale, intellectual capital, and client service disruption, to name a few. Time Magazine recently reported a study demonstrating that reducing staff to a four-day work week led to unexpected rewards in terms of higher morale, less absenteeism, and lower turnover.

If a permanent layoff is the best choice for your firm, it is imperative to make communication with remaining employees a priority. Research has shown that “survivors” (the very marketable employees that you do not want to lose) suffer due to a layoff of their coworkers. Thus, it is critical for management to communicate openly and honestly with the remaining employees, so they understand the business conditions that led to the layoff decision and your compassion for those who were affected.

If your firm values the survivors and wants to hold on to them, there is no better time to let them know. Let the surviving staff members know that you will continue to invest in their careers and that you plan to come out of the downturn in an even stronger position. (Legal note: Do not make promises of employment that could be later construed as an employment contract and violate the “at will” status of the relationship.)

Though common sense would cause an employer to believe that survivors are happy to have their job and feel loyal to the company that has protected them, employees are often surprisingly loyal to coworkers. Survivors feel grief for their coworkers and often feel animosity towards the employer for their actions.

Rebuilding morale and loyalty takes time, yet is so important to maintaining your key employees. The truth is that your best employees are also the most attractive to your competition. Oftentimes, companies will find that a round of involuntary layoffs will eventually be followed by a wave of employees who decide to jump ship to higher ground. Morale may not seem like a hard-driving business concept; however, emotions play a large role when an employee considers a job change.

Those responsible for human resources in their firms have the opportunity to play a vital role during economic uncertainty. Communicating transparently, often, and with a consistent message at all levels is key to maintaining the morale of your employees.

When has it ever been more important to protect our most valuable assets – our employees? After all, good times are surely around the next “quarter”!

I don’t know any client that enjoys discussing payroll taxes, but they can be a dangerous trap for the unwary in difficult times. The typical scenario is a startup company or a company whose business is not going well. The company does not have the cash to pay all of its bills on time, so it has to decide which to pay and which not to pay. Unlike company suppliers, the taxing authorities usually are not on the phone to the company each week demanding payment, so there is temptation to pay suppliers and not to pay payroll taxes.

If the company ultimately does well or recovers, the company can later pay the payroll taxes and may “only” be subject to the applicable penalties and interest for late payment. The real tragedy occurs if the company fails. Under federal and state law, if a company fails to withhold payroll taxes and pay them to the government, individuals with the company who were responsible for collecting, accounting for or paying to the government the payroll taxes may be personally liable for those taxes. Few situations are more depressing than working with a client who not only has just seen their business fail but also faces personal liability for tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars of payroll taxes. Don’t let this be you.

What’s the best way to handle making a lay off in your company?

Sadly, it’s something that’s happening in today’s economy, but it doesn’t mean that it has to end on a sour note. How can you handle necessary staff reductions without everyone hating you and your company forever? (And yes, it can be done!)

Leave your comment below.  We’ll use a few in an upcoming issue!

The answer may not be as simple as you think. Some statistics indicate as many as 80% of resumes include inaccuracies–some more serious than others. Though most business owners and executives feel that they are a good judge of character (after all, isn’t that how we have gotten where we are?), traditional interviews are not the best predictor of success.

Let’s examine your current hiring process?

#1 What is your source of candidates in the “pool”? If you do not begin your process with the right fish in the pond, you cannot catch the big one, right?
#2 Does your evaluation process fit the job type? For example, if your open position is an inside sales role, do you include a role play by phone in your hiring process? Job simulations can be as simple as a role play for a sales or customer service professional to a sample correspondence scenario when hiring an administrative assistant. For higher level positions, the process will tend to be more complex.
#3 Who is conducting the interview: an individual, a future peer, a panel, managers at multiple levels? Depending on your culture and the position for which you are hiring, any and all of these options may be appropriate. Have you ever considered having a client/customer involved in the process? This is a great way to get buy-in; however, you must also realize that you must be ready to accept and be very sensitive to their feedback.
#4 Are your interviews structured adn behavioral based or “get to know you” meetings?
#5 Did you know that past success in a similar position and environment is a major predictor of future success? Do you check references? What do you ask? Are you following legal guidelines yet obtaining qualitative information?
#6 How do you know that this person is honest and truthful? It is very easy to check a job candidate’s criminal background; however, many small businesses do not bother. Personally, I feel that a firm who does not run criminal background checks on job candidates becomes a magnet of sorts for those candidates with a criminal record. Same for drug tests…do you include this step in your process and in your employment policies??
#7 Is it appropriate to include personality tests or other psychological assessments in your process. Many are available at a reasonable cost. It is certainly a valuable trend we are seeing. It is important to ensure that your assessments are valid for the position and nondiscriminatory–consult your attorney to make sure.
#8 If the position includes cash handling or involves accounting, have you evaluated the candidate’s credit? The process is heavily regulated by FCRA; however, it is permissable and important to include this in your process for specific positions. Candidates with credit issues can be a liability for your company if they are in a sensitive role.
#9 We find many small business owners who unintentionally tread into illegal areas during “meet and greet”, unstructured interviews. Make sure that anyone involved in the interview process is aware of the many legalities of interview questions. Consult the Society for Human Resource Management website for more interviews. It is truly a best practice to use a structured interview guide to stay legally safe and provide consistency in your interview process.
#10 Consult an expert. There are many experts in the community who can help you navigate these complicated waters and ensure that your hiring process is the best predictor of success possible!