Back in February I wrote a blog about a potential new NLRB posting requirement. At the time the NLRB was seeking comments on the new posting prior to implementing it. Now that the commenting process is complete, the NLRB has announced that all companies, with an impact on interstate commerce, post the new requirements titled “Employee Rights Under the National Labor Relations Act.”
In the February blog, one of my concerns was that the draft version of the poster featured 15 bullet points that were pro-union and 4 bullet points that were pro-company. The final version is somewhat improved. There are now 14 pro-union bullet points and 5 pro-company bullets.
On one side, there really isn’t any new information here and all of it is easily available on the internet. An article on this new requirement in the Huffington Post states:
“The National Labor Relations Act is a 76-year-old law that outlines workers' rights to unionize and bargain collectively in most private-sector workplaces. The fact that the board would want Americans aware of these rights is apparently seen by some as catering to labor unions.”
While it is true that this notice doesn’t include anything new and is likely to get lost on the already overflowing bulletin boards of most employers, it has phenomenally bad timing. Republican congressional leaders are now threatening to defund the NLRB over this and other recent actions (like the Boeing case), and this can’t look good for President Obama as he advocates for the reduction of anti-business regulations.
Politics aside, employers must follow the requirements of the new law by November 14, 2011. The requirements are simple: Go online, find the new posting, print it and put it on your bulletin board. To do this, the NLRB has provided two options, one is 11x17 or if you have a small printer, you can print the two page 8.5x11 version and tape it together. In an amazing show of compassion, the NLRB will also allow those without internet access (or maybe a lack of paper) to go to the nearest NLRB office where they can receive their free copy.
In a nod to the fact that some companies utilize the internet, if you normally post your employee information on line, then you need to provide a link to this posting. To make it easier on our friends, we’ve included the following links:
NLRB posting 11x17 version
NLRB posting 8.5x11 version
Again, the due date for this new posting is November 14th and we’re looking forward to seeing it the next time one of us stops by to visit you. HRM Innovations, LLC is available to help with any questions you may have on HR or Management related topics and can be contacted at: Kevin@HRMInnovationsllc.com or 269-615-4821.
Showing posts with label Employee Relations. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Employee Relations. Show all posts
Thursday, September 15, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
How to Sucessfully Drive Change
I’m always fascinated by the dynamics of leaders and their organizations. Some leaders are able to successfully drive major changes without a backlash and others simply can’t. This past week, there was a local organization that handled some changes exceptionally poorly. Here’s the background:
A local church implemented sweeping changes which included the firing of half of its employees and the elimination of music during services. In communicating this, the Bishop sent a five page letter to the congregation. According to the Kalamazoo Gazette, the letter “rebukes the church community for retribution, name-calling and dissent.” The letter also stated, “Some of you might feel compelled to leave the congregation and, if that’s what you choose, may God bless you on your journey.”
The result? The letter ignited a long simmering conflict and subsequently resulted in an assault charge filed with the police after a 78 year old member of the congregation claimed she was shoved by the priest. The priest has since resigned.
Certainly there are times when leaders can and must make tough calls. However, when you do, there are some steps you can follow to minimize the disruption and bad feelings, including:
• Communicating the problem in advance: Chances are your employees already know what’s happening. Keeping them in the communications loop will ensure that they perceive the problem the same way you do.
• Asking for suggestions: There are several advantages to this:
1. You might just find a great idea you hadn’t previously considered.
2. People will be more willing to accept change if they have a voice in making those changes – even if you don’t pick their suggestion.
If you have to do something really unpopular, try this:
• Explain why the change is necessary
• Apologize for the necessity of the action
• Whatever you do, don’t blame the members
• Do provide an opportunity for them to vent and provide feedback (small groups or individual discussions are best for this)
• Communicate a plan for moving forward to better times
The moral of the story? When you lead or have responsibility for controlling an organization, you can’t make arbitrary decisions without negative fall-out. If you attack and blame your members, they will fight back. It’s always better to engage them in implementing the solution than to arbitrarily force a change. That’s a waste of everyone’s time and energy and just might be enough to force your calmest employees to lose control.
A local church implemented sweeping changes which included the firing of half of its employees and the elimination of music during services. In communicating this, the Bishop sent a five page letter to the congregation. According to the Kalamazoo Gazette, the letter “rebukes the church community for retribution, name-calling and dissent.” The letter also stated, “Some of you might feel compelled to leave the congregation and, if that’s what you choose, may God bless you on your journey.”
The result? The letter ignited a long simmering conflict and subsequently resulted in an assault charge filed with the police after a 78 year old member of the congregation claimed she was shoved by the priest. The priest has since resigned.
Certainly there are times when leaders can and must make tough calls. However, when you do, there are some steps you can follow to minimize the disruption and bad feelings, including:
• Communicating the problem in advance: Chances are your employees already know what’s happening. Keeping them in the communications loop will ensure that they perceive the problem the same way you do.
• Asking for suggestions: There are several advantages to this:
1. You might just find a great idea you hadn’t previously considered.
2. People will be more willing to accept change if they have a voice in making those changes – even if you don’t pick their suggestion.
If you have to do something really unpopular, try this:
• Explain why the change is necessary
• Apologize for the necessity of the action
• Whatever you do, don’t blame the members
• Do provide an opportunity for them to vent and provide feedback (small groups or individual discussions are best for this)
• Communicate a plan for moving forward to better times
The moral of the story? When you lead or have responsibility for controlling an organization, you can’t make arbitrary decisions without negative fall-out. If you attack and blame your members, they will fight back. It’s always better to engage them in implementing the solution than to arbitrarily force a change. That’s a waste of everyone’s time and energy and just might be enough to force your calmest employees to lose control.
Tuesday, November 23, 2010
Talent Management and the Bottom Line
For years enlightened business leaders have recognized the obvious: Hire great people, treat them well, and your business will flourish. For those leaders who haven’t recognized this yet, there may be a new motivation to get on the bandwagon.
Moody’s Corporation, the bond rating service, has started recognizing “a direct connection between financial performance and success in recruiting and retention.” Knowing this, they are now starting to use talent management as a factor in the process of rating companies. In addition, Watson Wyatt has developed a “human capital index” and has found that good people practices can increase a company’s value by as much as 30%.
What does this mean to you? Picture the CEO of a publicly traded company explaining what he plans to do to improve the retention of employees at a shareholder meeting, right after he explains his plans to grow revenue. Suddenly those employee relations activities that are often delegated to the lowest levels of the organization are now in the limelight.
This doesn’t mean that my humorous attempt to improve employee morale by including a wet bar, hot tub, and masseuse in my department budget proposal years ago is any more likely to get approved now than it was then. However, there should be more scrutiny of those items that truly do impact the selection and retention of a company’s most valuable asset.
HRM Innovations, LLC is available to help with any questions you may have on HR or Management related topics and can be contacted at: Kevin@HRMInnovationsllc.com or 269-615-4821.
Moody’s Corporation, the bond rating service, has started recognizing “a direct connection between financial performance and success in recruiting and retention.” Knowing this, they are now starting to use talent management as a factor in the process of rating companies. In addition, Watson Wyatt has developed a “human capital index” and has found that good people practices can increase a company’s value by as much as 30%.
What does this mean to you? Picture the CEO of a publicly traded company explaining what he plans to do to improve the retention of employees at a shareholder meeting, right after he explains his plans to grow revenue. Suddenly those employee relations activities that are often delegated to the lowest levels of the organization are now in the limelight.
This doesn’t mean that my humorous attempt to improve employee morale by including a wet bar, hot tub, and masseuse in my department budget proposal years ago is any more likely to get approved now than it was then. However, there should be more scrutiny of those items that truly do impact the selection and retention of a company’s most valuable asset.
HRM Innovations, LLC is available to help with any questions you may have on HR or Management related topics and can be contacted at: Kevin@HRMInnovationsllc.com or 269-615-4821.
Thursday, August 26, 2010
Are You a Visionary Leader?
Recently a client asked me to prepare a presentation on visionary leadership. Hopefully by now my regular readers will know that I strongly advocate that leaders work with their employees to create a vision and set challenging expectations for each individual in support of that vision.
Now, I do admit to being a little spoiled here. Between reporting to a series of presidents who spoke limited English, to owning my own firm; I haven’t had close supervision in a very long time. And, I will admit that there are times (like when training someone new) when close supervision is a really good thing. But after that, if people know what you expect and are bought into your vision, micromanagement will only serve to encourage them to limit taking ownership of their work.
At one end of the spectrum, Netflix has established themselves as the master of a no policy workforce. Being in a creative industry where the opportunity for damage due to the quality of their products is limited, they have taken visionary leadership to a new level. Netflix does not have a policy for vacation time. Their entertainment and business travel expense policy is simple: ”Act in Netflix’s best interest.” But my favorite is this comment on their dress code:
“There is also no clothing policy at Netflix, but no one has come to work naked lately.”
We’ve all heard the horror stories of the leaders that slow progress and frustrate their employees by reviewing every minor decision. Does this sound like you? If you are a control freak who needs to be involved, then identify the key things that are most important to your business, like product innovation, service quality, or quantity produced. Get your employees excited about your vision for those areas and leave the rest up to them. There’s a good chance that they will come up with suggestions for doing things better, faster, and will have more fun along the way. Process improvements can be a really great thing – and they rarely come from the top down, but rather the bottom up.
Visionary leaders focus on the big picture and the end results. They trust their staffs to handle the details. If you are a leader who can’t trust your staff to come to work wearing clothes, then you don’t have the right staff.
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the people to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.”
- Antonie De Saint-Exupery
Now, I do admit to being a little spoiled here. Between reporting to a series of presidents who spoke limited English, to owning my own firm; I haven’t had close supervision in a very long time. And, I will admit that there are times (like when training someone new) when close supervision is a really good thing. But after that, if people know what you expect and are bought into your vision, micromanagement will only serve to encourage them to limit taking ownership of their work.
At one end of the spectrum, Netflix has established themselves as the master of a no policy workforce. Being in a creative industry where the opportunity for damage due to the quality of their products is limited, they have taken visionary leadership to a new level. Netflix does not have a policy for vacation time. Their entertainment and business travel expense policy is simple: ”Act in Netflix’s best interest.” But my favorite is this comment on their dress code:
“There is also no clothing policy at Netflix, but no one has come to work naked lately.”
We’ve all heard the horror stories of the leaders that slow progress and frustrate their employees by reviewing every minor decision. Does this sound like you? If you are a control freak who needs to be involved, then identify the key things that are most important to your business, like product innovation, service quality, or quantity produced. Get your employees excited about your vision for those areas and leave the rest up to them. There’s a good chance that they will come up with suggestions for doing things better, faster, and will have more fun along the way. Process improvements can be a really great thing – and they rarely come from the top down, but rather the bottom up.
Visionary leaders focus on the big picture and the end results. They trust their staffs to handle the details. If you are a leader who can’t trust your staff to come to work wearing clothes, then you don’t have the right staff.
“If you want to build a ship, don’t drum up the people to gather wood, divide the work, and give orders. Instead, teach them to yearn for the vast and endless sea.”
- Antonie De Saint-Exupery
Thursday, August 5, 2010
What’s the Biggest Issue Facing HR Today?
In my efforts to keep up with the latest, I was reading some online articles. One article in particular caught my eye. In it, the author challenged the results of a recent survey by ComPsych (www.ComPsych.com) that states HR Managers are more concerned about morale than any other issue, even healthcare reform.
Here’s the survey breakdown of what HR Managers are most concerned about according to the ComPsych survey.:
31% - Maintaining employee productivity and morale
26% - Dealing with healthcare costs and new legislation
16% - Finding qualified candidates
14% - Handling organizational change
13% - Retaining top performers
In talking with my clients, I believe the survey is correct. Here’s why: Last year, people feared for their jobs, unemployment was high, and companies were downsizing. Throughout 2009, we saw fewer employee relations concerns, lower turnover, and a general decrease in “boat rocking.”
Last fall, a recruiter friend of mine predicted companies that didn’t treat their employees well during the recession would experience significant turnover at the end of it. I’m sure she was right. Now, the job market is opening back up. Companies are hiring, but on a limited basis. Workloads are higher than ever. As a result, turnover is creeping back up. Regardless of what happened during the past year, there are some things you can do now to reduce the risk of losing your best performers. Try these steps:
▪ Provide recognition for your top performers and for anyone who has gone above and beyond during this period. Let them know you appreciate their efforts.
▪ Make certain that their current workloads are manageable. People will work extended hours for short periods of time, but it’s not sustainable unless there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
▪ Open up those lines of communications. People want to feel in on the things that matter. Even if you can’t give them what they need now, let them know you’re aware of their needs and are planning for the future.
▪ Don’t subscribe to the “Employees should be thankful for a job” management theory. That’s a sure recipe for the need to recruit replacement employees.
What about Healthcare reform? I predict that the biggest healthcare challenges for HR professionals are 9-12 months away. That’s when our employees will be looking at neighboring companies and asking: “Why didn’t we handle the healthcare reform implementation like they did?” Of course, if we don’t take steps to retain our best employees now, we won’t need to worry about providing medical benefits later.
Here’s the survey breakdown of what HR Managers are most concerned about according to the ComPsych survey.:
31% - Maintaining employee productivity and morale
26% - Dealing with healthcare costs and new legislation
16% - Finding qualified candidates
14% - Handling organizational change
13% - Retaining top performers
In talking with my clients, I believe the survey is correct. Here’s why: Last year, people feared for their jobs, unemployment was high, and companies were downsizing. Throughout 2009, we saw fewer employee relations concerns, lower turnover, and a general decrease in “boat rocking.”
Last fall, a recruiter friend of mine predicted companies that didn’t treat their employees well during the recession would experience significant turnover at the end of it. I’m sure she was right. Now, the job market is opening back up. Companies are hiring, but on a limited basis. Workloads are higher than ever. As a result, turnover is creeping back up. Regardless of what happened during the past year, there are some things you can do now to reduce the risk of losing your best performers. Try these steps:
▪ Provide recognition for your top performers and for anyone who has gone above and beyond during this period. Let them know you appreciate their efforts.
▪ Make certain that their current workloads are manageable. People will work extended hours for short periods of time, but it’s not sustainable unless there’s a light at the end of the tunnel.
▪ Open up those lines of communications. People want to feel in on the things that matter. Even if you can’t give them what they need now, let them know you’re aware of their needs and are planning for the future.
▪ Don’t subscribe to the “Employees should be thankful for a job” management theory. That’s a sure recipe for the need to recruit replacement employees.
What about Healthcare reform? I predict that the biggest healthcare challenges for HR professionals are 9-12 months away. That’s when our employees will be looking at neighboring companies and asking: “Why didn’t we handle the healthcare reform implementation like they did?” Of course, if we don’t take steps to retain our best employees now, we won’t need to worry about providing medical benefits later.
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Good HR Could Have Saved Shirley Sherrod’s Job
You may have seen the news about the USDA employee, Shirley Sherrod, who was asked to resign on Monday. In a nutshell, a video of a presentation she gave was edited to appear that she denied aid to white farmers based on their race. In a matter of hours after the firestorm started on Monday, she was suspended. She was then told to resign and, before the day was out, was told to leave immediately and to return her government car. On Tuesday, they found out that she hadn’t actually done anything wrong…
This is where good HR practices come in. Firing people is a highly emotional business, but it never has to be immediate. When training leaders I always advocate taking the time to thoroughly investigate a situation. After all, what’s the rush?
There’s a simple tool, called a “suspension pending investigation,” that leaders should always use prior to rule violation terminations. The USDA started there. Unfortunately, they rushed past the investigation process on their way to the firing line.
Temporarily removing the person from the organization gives you time to do a thorough investigation. It should include: interviewing the person, their co-workers, the supervisor, and reviewing your policy on the violation. It also provides time to allow cooler heads to prevail.
As of this morning, the USDA has offered Shirley a new position. The verdict is out on whether she will accept; unfortunately the damage has already been done. Firing is a last resort action for employees that can’t or won’t positively contribute to an organization. Before you fire someone, make certain that you get ready, take aim, and then fire.
This is where good HR practices come in. Firing people is a highly emotional business, but it never has to be immediate. When training leaders I always advocate taking the time to thoroughly investigate a situation. After all, what’s the rush?
There’s a simple tool, called a “suspension pending investigation,” that leaders should always use prior to rule violation terminations. The USDA started there. Unfortunately, they rushed past the investigation process on their way to the firing line.
Temporarily removing the person from the organization gives you time to do a thorough investigation. It should include: interviewing the person, their co-workers, the supervisor, and reviewing your policy on the violation. It also provides time to allow cooler heads to prevail.
As of this morning, the USDA has offered Shirley a new position. The verdict is out on whether she will accept; unfortunately the damage has already been done. Firing is a last resort action for employees that can’t or won’t positively contribute to an organization. Before you fire someone, make certain that you get ready, take aim, and then fire.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Creating Caring Communities
Recently, the son of a neighbor was diagnosed with cancer and our neighborhood support network immediately sprang into action. Family support was coordinated, communication channels were set up, and trees throughout the neighborhood were decorated with ribbons.
Surprised? We weren’t. This is standard fare for our neighborhood. It’s just that kind of place. But can employers create these types of caring communities in the workplace? Absolutely they can, and here’s how great leaders do it:
1. Know your employees: Make it a priority to know your employees, by name, and to know something about them personally. If yours is a small organization, this part is easier, but the need doesn’t go away for larger groups. Maybe you can’t know everyone, but you should certainly make the effort to try. Set aside time every week to go talk with them.
2. Be human: While they don’t want you to share every detail, people will feel closer to you if you open up to them about your personal life. Sharing key milestones and proud moments helps to create a bond and build trust.
3. Lead by example: If you want your employees to care about each other, start by caring about them. Provide support for them when they are in a difficult situation. Attending the funerals of employee’s loved ones and celebrating their milestones will send a strong message about your concern for them.
4. Don’t start a committee: Having a person to coordinate support in a crisis is a good thing, having a committee that provides flowers for every special occasion is generic and half hearted. Keep it genuine, keep it unique. Does this mean everyone will get the same treatment? Probably not, but what two situations are the same?
5. Focus on the positive: Look for the good things that happen everyday and your employees will start doing the same. If they feel good about the work they are doing and aren’t afraid of being punished for mistakes, they will be more likely to apply energy to helping others.
Surprised? We weren’t. This is standard fare for our neighborhood. It’s just that kind of place. But can employers create these types of caring communities in the workplace? Absolutely they can, and here’s how great leaders do it:
1. Know your employees: Make it a priority to know your employees, by name, and to know something about them personally. If yours is a small organization, this part is easier, but the need doesn’t go away for larger groups. Maybe you can’t know everyone, but you should certainly make the effort to try. Set aside time every week to go talk with them.
2. Be human: While they don’t want you to share every detail, people will feel closer to you if you open up to them about your personal life. Sharing key milestones and proud moments helps to create a bond and build trust.
3. Lead by example: If you want your employees to care about each other, start by caring about them. Provide support for them when they are in a difficult situation. Attending the funerals of employee’s loved ones and celebrating their milestones will send a strong message about your concern for them.
4. Don’t start a committee: Having a person to coordinate support in a crisis is a good thing, having a committee that provides flowers for every special occasion is generic and half hearted. Keep it genuine, keep it unique. Does this mean everyone will get the same treatment? Probably not, but what two situations are the same?
5. Focus on the positive: Look for the good things that happen everyday and your employees will start doing the same. If they feel good about the work they are doing and aren’t afraid of being punished for mistakes, they will be more likely to apply energy to helping others.
Friday, April 2, 2010
Change is Inevitable
There’s an old saying that “Change is inevitable except from vending machines.” While change certainly is inevitable, it isn’t something that comes easily. Change is coming at businesses faster and more frequently than ever before. Unfortunately, people usually react poorly to change. The question for us is: “How do companies implement change without scaring employees and losing valuable productivity?”
A few years ago, the company I was at had a recreation committee which organized company events. The Christmas party was traditionally the best attended event and the format had remained basically unchanged for several years. The committee, of which I was the treasurer, decided to change things up and go with a disco theme. When the disco theme was announced, people were angry. Letters were sent to the president and some employees promised to boycott the party.
The anti-disco rebellion reached the executive committee and I was asked to defend this particular party plan. Being a relatively well organized pack rat, I brought with me the letters that had been written to the president about the party. Not the disco version, but the five year old letters from the last time the party format was changed. Interestingly, they contained the same themes: This idea is bad, no one will come, why would you change our party?
So how can employers make change go smoother? First, the topic matters. Ironically, areas that I call “comfort items” like the cafeteria, company events, office arrangements, and the dress code bring forth the most emotional responses. Business plans? Not so much. Here are a couple of tricks for successfully communicating change:
• Share information about potential changes in advance
• Ask for employees to provide feedback
• Actually listen to employee concerns
Then, pick the right thing (not necessarily the most popular) and do it. Communicate how you came to that decision and don’t waiver once you’ve done it. Remember, being a leader isn’t a popularity contest, but it is about leading, listening, and setting a vision.
Curious about what happened with the party? After it was over, our executives said it was the “best ever”. So, put on your tight pants, unbutton your shirt, and play that funky music. Change can and should be fun.
A few years ago, the company I was at had a recreation committee which organized company events. The Christmas party was traditionally the best attended event and the format had remained basically unchanged for several years. The committee, of which I was the treasurer, decided to change things up and go with a disco theme. When the disco theme was announced, people were angry. Letters were sent to the president and some employees promised to boycott the party.
The anti-disco rebellion reached the executive committee and I was asked to defend this particular party plan. Being a relatively well organized pack rat, I brought with me the letters that had been written to the president about the party. Not the disco version, but the five year old letters from the last time the party format was changed. Interestingly, they contained the same themes: This idea is bad, no one will come, why would you change our party?
So how can employers make change go smoother? First, the topic matters. Ironically, areas that I call “comfort items” like the cafeteria, company events, office arrangements, and the dress code bring forth the most emotional responses. Business plans? Not so much. Here are a couple of tricks for successfully communicating change:
• Share information about potential changes in advance
• Ask for employees to provide feedback
• Actually listen to employee concerns
Then, pick the right thing (not necessarily the most popular) and do it. Communicate how you came to that decision and don’t waiver once you’ve done it. Remember, being a leader isn’t a popularity contest, but it is about leading, listening, and setting a vision.
Curious about what happened with the party? After it was over, our executives said it was the “best ever”. So, put on your tight pants, unbutton your shirt, and play that funky music. Change can and should be fun.
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