SMALL BUSINESS HUMAN RESOURCE MANAGEMENT AUDIT

As a small business enterprise owner, it is All-4-HR & Business Solutions, LLC’s testament utilizing human resource management (HRM) tools are key to aligning HR strategies with other business strategies to achieve organizational growth. Once must first identify what areas of the organization are weak and need strengthening. Many small business enterprise owners do not believe they are large enough to have an HRM audit performed on their organization. As a small business enterprise owner, it is critical that HRM strategies are streamlined in order to achieve organizational growth.  In fact, it is all the more critical for small business enterprise owners to determine the weak areas of the organization. When thinking about it, if there are areas of the organization that are less efficient, these areas are wasting more company funds, contributing to unhappy employees and contributing to unhappy customers.

What is a Human resource (HR) audit? A Human Resources Audit is a comprehensive method (or means) to review current human resources policies, procedures, documentation and systems to identify needs for improvement and enhancement of the HR function. A Human Resource audit further ensures compliance with ever-changing rules and regulations. An Audit involves systematically reviewing all aspects of human resources. An efficient manner to accomplishing this is utilizing a checklist.

Organization sections of review include:

• Hiring and Orientation
• Benefits
• Compensation
• Performance evaluation process
• Termination process and exit interviews
• Job descriptions
• Form review
• Personnel file review

The purpose of an HR Audit is to recognize strengths and identify any needs for improvement in the human resources function. A properly executed Audit will reveal problem areas and provide recommendations and suggestions for the remedy of these problems. Some of the reasons to conduct such a review include:

• Ensuring the effective utilization of the organization’s human resources
• Reviewing compliance concerns with a myriad of administrative regulations
• Instilling a sense of confidence in management and the human resources function
• Maintaining or enhancing the organization’s and the department’s reputation in the community
• Performing “due diligence” review for shareholders or potential investors/owners
• Establishing a baseline for future improvement for the function

Because of the multitude of laws affecting each stage of the employment process, it is extremely important for an employer to regularly review their policies and practices to ensure regulatory compliance in order to avoid potentially costly fines and/or lawsuits. An employer overlooking regulatory compliance with their human resource practices could face:

• A fine of $1,100 for any violation of the appropriate payment of overtime for non-exempt
  employees in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act.
• Penalties as high as $10,000 each occurrence for failing to post required safety notices or
  keeping accurate records.
• Fines up to $1,000 per employee for non-compliance with the Federal Immigration Reform Act.

While penalties such as these help define the risk of non-compliance and signify the importance of conducting periodic HR Audits, an Audit can also ensure that policies and procedures are fair and consistent across the organization and strengthen employee satisfaction. By maintaining a satisfied and productive workforce, an employer lessens the expense associated with costly turnover of staff.

Losing one employee is estimated to cost a company 50 – 150% of the lost employee’s salary in time and money spent to replace that employee.

SMALL BUSINESS ENTERPRISE OWNER UTILIZING HR TOOLS

     In utilizing tools to assess and gauge the need for change, it is important that small enterprise owners think strategically.  Small- medium- sized enterprises (SMEs) are seen to have an important role in the U.S. economy, indeed it would seem that both and local economies are largely constituted of smaller enterprises, with the addition of a minority of larger enterprises. A number of problems emerge from assuming that small firms are the same as large firms. The very size of a small enterprise creates special conditions. Some practitioners argue Human resource management (HRM) functions have failed in the workplace, specifically in SMEs.  

Some reasons for failure of human resource management functions include: only a small amount of SMEs adopt HR functions. SMEs adopt HR functions and discontinue utilizing the HR functions after a few years. Consistency is significant to achieving organizational goals when once implementing and utilizing new or modified HR functions. Once HR functions have been implemented and modified, the HR manager must monitor and track the results of the implemented or modified HR function. Monitoring and/or tracking the results will ensure the implemented or modified HR function(s) is producing positive results. 

For example, if you have changed your method for tracking applicants by perhaps utilizing a new job board, or you receive a referral, track that information so that you are aware of the tracking methods that are producing the best results of qualified applicants or producing little or no qualified applicants. 

When reviewing resumes, be sure you are checking applicant qualifications against the job description for the vacant position. An applicant may be highly qualified and exhibit an excellent resume. However, is that highly qualified applicant a good match for your vacant position? Finally, when filling a vacant position, be sure to audit the job description as the job duties could quite possibly have changed since the position was last filled.  You want the best qualified candidate for the position. 

I hear some employers complain and some employers praise job fairs. Have you thought of holding your own job fair? An employer may also consider partnering with other employers in the same industry to host a job fair. This is a good way to target and attract the candidates you are looking to attract, as well as network with other industry employers in terms of attracting qualified candidates. 

Finally, how many small enterprise owners practice employment planning? This is a means of preparing yourself to attract qualified candidates. The process of employment planning encompasses some variables that once implemented; you should be consistent with the policies and functions so as to maintain organization during this the employment process period.  There are aspects that have to be updated such as job descriptions, etc.  If you have questions, I will happy to answer them. 

The employment planning process involves establishing an employment planning realistic budget based on projections for new employees and compensation. How has employment planning been in the past? Has it produced positive results and qualified candidates? If not, have you made changes to address any challenges? The process is not simply: “We need to hire someone for this position; start combing the job boards and see what we come up with.” Are the current job boards producing lucrative candidates? If not, you should consider other job boards, word of mouth, agencies, etc.  Be sure the job description matches the vacant position so that you are attracting applicants possessing the right skills.

          Is there one person responsible for employment planning? Is that person included in evaluating the individual or department? Does this person know the job description and duties for the vacant position? These are questions you must answer in order to save yourself time and the hardship of hiring unqualified candidates. This is an area that is instrumental in searching and attracting qualified candidates to fill vacant positions.  

          Stay tuned for a free 1-hour webinar that will be hosted in the coming weeks. If you are interested, you can email me at aprilh@all4hrbiz.biz and I will let you know as soon as it is scheduled. You may also go through the website: http://www.all4hrbiz.biz and I will send you an invite as soon as it scheduled. 

          Thanks April,

Small- medium- Size Enterprises Strategically Moving Forward

A CALL FOR ACTION!!

While studying the effects and results of organizational management from a human resource management perspective, my premise has been to do one simple thing! HELP small- medium- size enterprises grow to their full potential.You must realize that I am growing with you! While I can speak on human resource management policies, practices and procedures, my help comes from YOU! Essentially, that means my premise is not to throw rocks out in hopes of hitting the nail on the head and touching on the issues. While information is the key, communication is the key that unlocks the door. In other words, I can have the key, but the door lays in communication between small- medium-size enterprise owners and HR resources.

What I am saying is Talk to Me! Tell me what HR issue or issues are challenging you and hindering you and/or your employees from achieving optimal growth?

 Employee relations: I have employees. Why are my clients unhappy?

 High employee turnover.

 Labor relations issues

 Ineffective/outdated human resource management policies

I am waiting for your Call!

April D. Halliburton

(313) 523-8090

aprilh@all4hrbiz.biz

Business Strategies

In today’s business the adage one does not plan to fail; one fails to plan is more IMPORTANT than ever!! Business strategies, business plans, human resource management strategies, marketing strategies, marketing plans… While it may sound like a lot, it is not as complicated as one would like to think.

I read somewhere a gentleman indicated you cannot write a business plan if you have never been a business owner. I have to disagree with this gentleman. A business plan is a strategy on paper. It is a road map. It is a guide. It is a map that details the business trip; your company business trip. While a business plan is the map to a successful business, it is important to also develop a strategy. Porter (2008) asserts the job of a strategist is to understand and cope with competition. As an Entrepreneur, the absence of a strategy can be detrimental to the success of an organization. As a small/medium size business owner, one of the most important roles is growing your business.

Porter (2008) also identifies five forces that shape a business strategy: bargaining power of suppliers, threat of substitute products or services, bargaining power of buyers, threat of new entrants, rivalry amount existing competitors. Assessment of these aspects of one’s environment can position a small/medium sized business to be competitively advantageous in its industry. Drucker (1985) identifies these Entrepreneurial Strategies:

 The Futest with the Mostest strategy focuses on building big businesses and dominating a new market or industry. The Futest with the Mostest strategy is applicable to businesses and institutions.

 Creative Imitation – The Creative Imitation is contradictory to “imitation”. In, the creative imitation strategy, the entrepreneur applies their own strategy to another company’s idea. The entrepreneur revises and implements its own innovative ideas, making the product its own. The strategy was utilized successfully by IBM and Proctor & Gamble.

 Entrepreneurial Judo is wherein a company exploits the bad habits of a competitor to get ahead. It is a market-driven strategy and also the less risky strategy. The entrepreneurial strategy was utilized by Xerox.

As an entrepreneur one may also research the niche strategy or changing economic characteristics of product or service. I speak of these strategies simply because as Entrepreneurs, we sometimes have to back up and reassess the current business strategy to assure that it is working effectively in growing your business.

We’ll talk strategy again.

You can email me at aprilh@all4hrbiz.biz to find out more about these and other strategies.

April, All-4-HR & Business Solutions

Small- Medium- Size Enterprise (SMEs) HR Analytics/Metrics

The purpose of HR analytics/metrics is to valuate human capital and human resource measurements to determine how effective your organization is operating. Past practices have involved organizational leaders evaluating finance, always finance. While finance is an intricate portion of HR analytics/metrics, it is the end results. How? Think about it! Finance presents the end result of the where the organization stands. HR analytics/metrics explains how the organization arrived there! As a small- medium-size enterprise (SMEs) owner/founder/manager, the journey to achieving organizational growth and achieving organizational goals is STRATEGY! STRATEGY! STRATEGY!

Plan-do-check-act (PDCA) is a management review process that can help you assess and focus on specific organizational HR needs. Human Resource Analytics are the tools for this process.

List of Reports for assessing and reporting on HR functions

• Ad Source Reports: This report tracks how applicants have heard about your organization, i.e., ERP (Employee Referral Program).

• HR Data Reports: This report covers 4 main areas: Candidates Interviewed; Candidates Hired; Candidates Terminated; and those who are eligible for rehire.>P> • EEOC Reports: This report reflects compliance with current laws surrounding diversity topics and hiring practices.

• Traffic Reports: This report provides results on where people are coming from and the top 5 keywords candidates are typing in the search engines to find your open jobs.

The key here is to make sure that the metrics you decide to use are those that will truly have a business impact on your organization.

List of Human Resource Metrics

• Productivity/Employee Relations: Employees surveys: Be ready for employee feedback; and be prepared to show employees most pertinent results of survey

• Recruiting/Retention: Obtaining statistics - Turnover rate of new hires; Average performance measures on new hires; Time to fill positions; Percentage of diversity in your hiring; and dollar impact on bad hire decisions.

• Benefits/Compensation: Depending on the size of your organization you need to look at those areas as well as the overall feel of how employees view the benefits and compensation.

• Training and Development: Development and growth are important for employee retention.

• Goals: Percentage of goals that were completed (met or exceeded) for the year.

April D. Halliburton, CEO

All-4-HR & Business Solutions, LLC

http://www.all4hrbiz.biz

aprilh@all4hrbiz.biz

Small- Medium- Size Enteprises (SMEs) Evidence-based management (EBMgt) HR Metrics

April D. Halliburton Evidence-based management (EBMgt) establishes the difference between research and practice. It is imperative in the human resource arena that when creating, changing and implementing organizational changes, such decisions are done based on evidence; not speculation and experience. Many HR Practitioners have consistently held the importance of reviewing past and present HR metrics of policies, procedures and practices in the workplace to determine the effectiveness of a particular organizational change.

Evidence-based management (EBMgt) is the systematic use of the best available evidence to improve management practice. Under the Evidence-based theory, management science must arm the manager’s imagination and supply him with the vision needed to make rational decisions in respect to the business enterprise. Management should not serve as a substitute for decision and judgment but should supply methods for making possible more effective decisions and more informed judgment.

As a small- medium- size enterprise owner, a great start is the utilization of human resource metrics in your organization. The fundamental decision every enterprise must make, no matter what stage of maturation, is the allocation of its capital and resources. When choices of strategy, expansion, acquisition, new products, and the like are reviewed, they are supported by detailed financial metrics that show the expected returns. More often than not, only those ventures that demonstrate the highest return are selected. This calculation is referred to a return on investment (ROI). As a small- medium-size enterprise owner-founder-manager, how are you setting, benchmarking and achieving your company’s growth? In 5 years, where will your Company be?

What are your thoughts and views on evidence-based management?

All-4-HR & Business Solutions is committed to helping your organization reach its long-terms goals (HRM).

April D. Halliburton

Biggest threats small- medium- size enterprises should be concerned in 2012…

1. Retaliation is becoming one of the biggest threats in the Workplace to Employers All are forms of employment discrimination that is prohibited under relevant laws, when employees reasonably exercise their rights under the laws.

Employees who cannot win a discrimination, harassment or other suit against you are finding it much easier to win retaliation claims, making retaliation the most frequent and costly case companies lose. Do not be haste, get made and institutionalize a cooling-off period after anyone’s made a charge. Bonus tip: You have a whole new class of potential retaliation “suers” to worry about: those within a “zone of interest” of those making a charge, like significant others or family.

2. Update Harassment Policy Harassment covers a wide range of behaviors of an offensive nature. It is commonly understood as behavior intended to disturb or upset, and it is characteristically repetitive. In the legal sense, it is intentional behavior which is found threatening or disturbing. New types of harassment claims such as workplace bullying are exploding. It is important to be sure your policy is updated and current. Then republish it to remind people. You need to make sure the harassment policy is broad enough to encompass the non-traditional types of harassment that have caused a slew of new claims.

3. Social media can be a new nightmare Companies that already have social media policies have them updated. When implementing a social media policy, you should consider banning employees from discussing wages and other working conditions with co-workers in any forum, including on their Facebook pages.

It is however, not illegal. According to the National Labor Relations Board, its edict applies to all companies, not just union shops. Section 7: RIGHTS OF EMPLOYEES § 157. Employees shall have the right to self-organization, to form, join, or assist labor organizations, to bargain collectively through representatives of their own choosing, and to engage in other concerted activities for the purpose of collective bargaining or other mutual aid or protection, and shall also have the right to refrain from any or all such activities except to the extent that such right may be affected by an agreement requiring membership in a labor organization as a condition of employment as authorized in section 8(a)(3) section 158(a)(3) of this title. While social media is not prohibited, it is prohibited in terms of communicating regarding Company business and conduct. Additionally, when utilizing social medias, employees are expected to respect all others and refrain from insult, offensive behavior or language to any other person.

4. Performance reviews continue to plaintiff attorney’s weapon Performance reviews continue as in the past. It is reiterated the importance of being consistent and truthful process during the performance management process. Make sure performance reviews are held consistently, clear and simple and are truthful.

5. ADA is not about WHO is disabled; but HOW to accommodate The new ADA Amendments Act (ADAAA) is no longer regarding WHO is disabled. It is HOW to accommodate. The law expanding the types of disabilities in practice stands for: “Assume Disability: Always Attempt Accommodation.”

6. FMLA/ADA conflicts Once employee’s 12-week FMLA run out, you CANNOT automatically terminate because they roll over into ADA cases. The employer should start the interactive process contacting the employee inquiring about what accommodations need to be made upon return.

7. Discouraging intermittent leave Make it a priority to manage/track employee absences, leaves, etc. Be consistent and up-to-date on ALL required paperwork.

8. Avoid the new overtime trap; smartphones Avoid giving any non-exempt employees company smartphones. After hour utilization can be considered as clocking in and overtime.

9. Self-audits are key to preparing for OSHA inspections OSHA has more resources and got better at targeting inspections are becoming more prevalent and frequent. It is a matter of when. Conducting self-audits before they knock is key.

10. Constantly talk to staff to ward off union organization. Although a recent court decision has postponed the new NLR has postponed “quickie election” rules. Employers should remain vigilant about internal rumblings of union organizing and constantly talk to staff.

April D. Halliburton All-4-HR & Business Solutions aprilh@all4hrbiz.biz http://www.all4hrbiz.biz