Work Babble

The Field of Human Resources and the Value of SHRM

Guest post by Cyndy “C.T.” Trivella, NAS Recruitment Communications

I’ve seen some updates lately on Twitter that made me stop and take pause. The updates to which I’m referring were targeted at SHRM, and more specifically some of the pricing around the national conference being held in San Diego this year. It appears that SHRM is charging a fee similar to a concierge fee to anyone needing a guide during the event. I’m not sure I see the point of this, but it’s interesting. Some of the Twitter comments were harsh, but hey, we’re all adults and we should be able to withstand a few hits. Of course the stream of consciousness kicked in and brought me to thinking about SHRM, but in a different way than the Twitter comments.

I, along with a few hundred people from across the country, am a participant in a three-year initiative with SHRM to update, enhance, re-evaluate, and recommend changes to the current HR Standards currently advised by the Society of Human Resource Management. This is a big effort, and one that requires diligent dedication, unwavering participation and a sincere interest in the field of human resources. I admire and respect the effort that key individuals at SHRM in D.C. are putting forth to make this initiative a success. It’s a monumental task just to coordinate our meeting times, which require a minimum number of people to make quorum.  Nevertheless, our committee leader from SHRM always seems to get it done.

It is an honor to be a part of this group and to serve on one of the many committees (mine is the HR Standards Workforce Planning Taskforce) which were formed last year. I am proud to be in the company of some very impressive HR practitioners who are not afraid to defend a position or state an opinion, even if they come up against opposition. And, by the way, there are some very notable names involved in these committees. I should also mention that our meetings are held during “standard” working hours, so our employers are also supporting the initiative by providing us the time for our involvement. It really is a team effort.

So what’s my point? SHRM gives us a backbone of knowledge to forge ahead in our field. It serves as the Oracle for all that is HR and serves as a point of reference that helps give our field credibility.

I have been in the field of human resources, in some capacity, for over 17 years and have seen a lot of changes.  Still, it “feels” different this year. Maybe that’s because the past few years have dealt us an economic blow that has made us re-think things.  I’m not sure, and won’t pontificate on that, but the one thing I am seeing more and more is this: Human Resources is getting a seat at the table… and that’s a very new, but very good, thing.

So for my soapbox… to those HR professionals who are members of their local chapter, but not a member of the national chapter:  you need to be a member of both to get the most benefit. To those students majoring in human resources:  join your local student SHRM chapter.  You’ll advance your HR knowledge and networking opportunities by doing so. If you don’t have a local student group, start one. To anyone who has not attained a PHR, SPHR or GPHR, please consider it.  The rules on eligibility are changing next year, and it will be increasingly difficult to qualify.

There is so much to be gained by being actively involved with SHRM. My fervent hope is that all human resource professionals, regardless of discipline, will remain, renew or elect to become both local and national members in the pursuit of personal development and professional excellence.

About Cyndy
Cyndy is the Director of Business Development in Kansas City for NAS Recruitment Communications and a Director on the Board for SHRM of Greater Kansas City. Cyndy began her career in Human Resource Communications on Madison Avenue in New York City over 12 years ago. Prior to that, she worked in corporate human resources as a recruiter and as a training and development coordinator.

Getting Better Feedback – A review of BetterMe.com

By Tony Deblauwe

One of the most powerful methods of personal development is feedback. Feedback about behavior, work performance, ideas, or specific skills, provides valuable insight into your thinking, judgments and actions. Feedback is a common tool at work. Both managers and employees seek feedback on a variety of projects and programs to ensure the right decisions are made.

Problems can occur, however, when the feedback is developmental. When the shift is made from the abstract (e.g. strategy, vision, work process, etc.) to a person, people may not be as honest for fear of hurting the person’s feelings or creating conflict.

Assessment tools like 360 reviews exist to help deliver feedback anonymously but the process can be cumbersome, time-consuming, and unreliable. Anonymous feedback is a vital tool in building a holistic view of how others perceive you. Luckily, collecting anonymous feedback just got easier thanks to BetterMe.com.

BetterMe.com, run by CEO Sterling Mace, provides a fast and simple way to ask, get, and give private anonymous feedback online. Not a multi-layered assessment tool, BetterMe allows you to get feedback on anything you choose be it work or personal related. It’s as easy as sending email. Here’s how it works:

 

Giving Feedback:

* Write the feedback, enter an email, and send it
* Recipient gets an email with a link to your feedback
* The recipient reads the feedback and rates its usefulness

Getting Feedback:

* Send the feedback request form to people
* Recipients get an email with a link to the feedback form
* Recipient provides feedback, submits it, and you see the results

You can’t get easier than that! BetterMe has a dashboard that shows the feedback you’ve sent and received. The data allows you to see trends that can help you develop an action plan to improve your communication, presentation skills, collaboration – just about any area you want input from others on. After spending some time in the tool, I found the experience was great and several people I used to capture sample feedback data also commented on the ease of use of the interface.  

Depending on the research you find, feedback, given properly, can improve performance by 39%. That means feedback is an essential component for everyone to reach optimal personal and professional performance. Thanks to BetterMe, now it’s very straightforward and easy to get the data you need when you need it.

Sterling was kind enough to leave a welcome message (below). Check out www.betterme.com – membership is free, and an enterprise version is coming soon. Email Sterling directly to inquire about having your organization considered as a pilot site (sterling@betterme.com).

HR 4620 Jobs Bill

By Tony Deblauwe

To ease the burden of long unemployment periods, Congress is working to help stimulate job growth. The HR 4620 bill, or Small Business Job Creation Act of 2010, helps small business in areas that have high unemployment. Basically through a series of tax breaks, the goal is to encourage small business owners to hire workers or re-hire workers that were laid off.

Specifically, the proposal would provide a tax credit of 20% for small employers and 15% for large employers – those with more than 100 full-time employees. Under the proposed legislation, the credit would only apply to an employee’s wages up to the Social Security wage base of $106,800. The employer would be eligible to receive the tax credit for one year.

Do you think this bill will do the trick and stimulate jobs?

Full story

http://www.ibabuzz.com/politics/2010/02/10/mcnerney-introduces-jobs-bill/

Newsweek article on Layoffs

By Tony Deblauwe

This is a powerful image for those impacted by recent layoffs. The article published in the Feb 15 edition discusses why layoffs are bad for business. In particular the author, Stanford professor, Jeffery Pfeffer summarized a few top reasons why layoffs don’t work.

Doesn’t give the returns expected. In terms of stock, Pfeffer points to research that shows stock prices go much lower compared to peers who struggled but did not layoff. The cost of rehiring and retraining employees down the road, plus the severance packages awarded, also don’t reduce the overall cost of the action.   

We export jobs as a result. Many countries grow as a result of taking down our workforce. India has seen this the most. Often it’s a 3-1 fill rate for a given job requisitions. It used to be six, but the gap is narrowing. Pfeffer explains that many companies are looking to model our tactics.

Morale and productivity shifts. For those that have to stay and take on extra work, or deal with the emotional loss of co-workers, has a big impact on business operations. How businesses handle layoffs is key as well as how expectations are set with those who stay. Pfeffer also mentioned research that shows benefit costs increase as a result of layoff.

The big point Pfeffer mentions is that layoffs have become part of doing business – not as survival tactic, but as a matter of regular cost reductions. The myth that companies are immediately better off due to layoffs has grown so widely that the practice is considered normal even if the business is doing ok. Furthermore, in the last year due to so many business closures, companies felt the pressure to copycat and have some kind of layoff to show they are “with the times.” No matter how you look at it – layoffs should remain as they always have been – a last resort to keep a business afloat, not a feeble attempt at strategic ROI.

 

Click here for full article

Four Reasons to Dump Your Open Door Policy

Guest post by Dr. Alren Burger
The open door policy came into being when the empowerment movement was gaining momentum. It was designed to combat the rising tide of employee dissatisfaction and cynicism that resulted from waves of layoffs and corporate restructurings. Over time it became one of the sacred cows of management practice and was seen as one of the foundations of being an effective manager. Today, the vast majority of managers have some type of open door policy because they either think it is a good idea or it is expected of them.

Like many management practices that get adopted into popular practice, the open door policy has good intentions. The basic structure of an open door policy is that an employee can drop in on a manager and talk about whatever is on their mind. Managers demonstrate their accessibility to employees by being available whenever the employee wants to talk. By making time for employees and listening, leaders demonstrate that they value what employees have to say. What could be wrong with a policy that has such positive aspirations?

My fundamental problem with the open door policy is not with its intentions, but rather with its implementation and practice. I find that very few managers can successfully pull off an open door policy. The reality is that having an open door policy causes more problems than it is worth for a manager and can lead to an erosion of credibility with employees. Here are four problems that plague the open door policy.

Problem #1: Not enough time

The open door policy came into practice and gained popularity when the time demands on managers were much less than today. The pace of work has become so great that many managers have difficulty accomplishing what is expected of them and end up practicing a sort of triage-what is most urgent or loud gets attention. Most managers simply don’t have the time flexibility in their daily schedule to make the open door policy work.

Imagine yourself in this situation. You are racing to meet a deadline and are really behind. An employee drops by to discuss something on their mind. You have an open door policy and feel the pressure to listen. You would like to put the employee off to another time but feel you can’t. So you allow the employee to talk but your mind is elsewhere on the deadlines and tasks that are piling up. Or, even worse, your frustration and impatience show through. The employee picks up on your emotions or distraction and leaves feeling dissatisfied and dismissed.

Problem #2: Inconsistency

You say you have an open door policy and it is part of your stated management philosophy. But sometimes when someone drops in you put them off to another time. Other times you drop what you are doing and turn all of your attention to the employee. Here is the problem with being inconsistent on the open door policy; it becomes an issue of credibility. Do you do what you say? Employees will test you and your commitment to anything you say. Employees are used to management saying one thing and doing another, and are quick to jump on the distrust bandwagon. Even one violation of a stated policy starts to erode credibility. Once you formally commit to a practice-you must follow it to the letter. This is what I call the 100% Rule. Don’t commit to something if you can’t practice it consistently.

About Arlen
Dr. Arlen Burger has been a leadership coach for over 20 years. He is CEO of Leadership Coaching, Inc., a Silicon Valley-based consulting firm specializing in organizational and leadership development. If you would like more information on how to apply the RCI (TM) Model or Dr. Burger you can visit his website at www.leadershipcode.com or contact him at arlen@leadershipc.com. He is available for one on one coaching sessions, team workshops, or speaking engagements. He is a certified Vistage International speaker. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/DrArlen or check out his Linkedin profile at www.linkedin.com/in/arlenburger