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How Can You Be Sure You Hire the Right Person for the Job?

Having open positions that need to be filled in your company can bring on a certain level of stress for your Human Resources team. Regardless of the industry, the onboarding process of recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and training is extensive. It takes time, uses valuable resources, and costs money. You want to make sure you get it right, but how can you be sure that you hire the right person for the job? It may be easier than you think. There are five surefire ways you can be sure you made the right choice.

1. They Are Eager to Learn
When a candidate shows that they are open to learning new things and are willing to participate in projects outside of their direct position, this shows they are go-getters that care about the company as a whole. They are likely to set goals that are good for the entire team, not just for their own personal growth.

2. They Are Flexible
Candidates that are capable of ‘going with the flow’ tend to be more open to change. This flexible attitude typically translates into an even-keeled personality that is able to compromise and change directions when needed. These candidates are easier to coach and are more receptive to moving in a different direction than expected if it is best for the company. More rigid candidates who are set in their ways can be a barrier to your more forward-thinking employees.

3. They Show Enthusiasm
Candidates who have energy and show passion for their job are generally the employees who bring new ideas to the table. If they identify a problem, they are usually the ones who have already thought of a possible solution. Enthusiastic employees are well-liked by their peers, too, which creates a more pleasant work environment for the entire team.

4. They are Honest
A telltale sign of a great candidate for any position is their openness and honesty during the interview process. Be aware of a candidate who paints a perfect picture of their work experience and is unable to describe their weaknesses. Someone who is able to honestly explain a weakness or an error that they have made in the past and how they were able to recover from it shows that the employee possesses self-awareness that is a skill that stands out as a strength and should be valued.

5. They are Capable of Communicating Clearly
How well a candidate can communicate and how important communication is to that person can actually be identified during the earliest part of the hiring process. During recruitment, if a candidate responds quickly and clearly, it’s a very good sign that they will carry those communication skills with them into their new position. During the actual interview, if a candidate is direct, organized, and transparent, this likely is indicative of their communication style in the workplace.

 

If you have open positions and are looking for great candidates to fill them, let Stang Decisions Systems help. Our HireScore Assessment Platform is responsible for countless positive outcomes in the hiring and development of employees in all types of career fields. Contact us today to see how we can serve you. 

 

Source: https://www.thepanthergrp.com/2019/04/03/how-to-know-you-hired-the-right-person/

https://www.glassdoor.com/employers/blog/signs-youve-found-the-right-candidate/

https://dandoadvisors.com/hiring-the-right-person-3-steps-to-hire-right/

By |2021-04-26T14:54:21-04:00May 1st, 2021|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Seven Tips to Reduce Employee Turnover

You know better than anyone the impact a high employee turnover rate can have on your business. However, reducing additional recruitment and training costs, maintaining productivity, and boosting employee morale begins with addressing the cause rather than mitigating the effects. In other words, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

Preventing employee turnover before it occurs is all about whether your staff generally enjoys a positive work experience. Do people like their boss and feel valued and feel a connection to their work? Establishing a way for your employees to thrive in their jobs is not rocket science; however, some employers still find it challenging to see the benefits of creating a culture that emphasizes employee satisfaction—until the floodgates open.

Tips for Decreasing Employee Turnover
These seven quick tips will help you spring into action, decreasing your employee turnover and avoiding the issues that come with it:

  1. Set A Clear Precedent from the Start
    Communication is vital, especially when introducing a new employee to your team. Be upfront and honest about your expectations and offer the new hire an opportunity to share their professional goals and discuss their preferred work style. While you’re communicating, take the opportunity to share how much you value them as part of your workforce.

  2. Provide a Competitive and Desirable Benefits Package
    Most employees would agree that fair pay is just part of the reason they accept a position. A complete benefits package is more important to many employees, especially during trying times. Consider including 401k or SIMPLE matching programs, life insurance, disability insurance, and flexible hours in addition to traditional benefits.
  3. Involve Employees in Decision-Making Processes
    Afford your employees with the opportunity to engage in decisions on multiple levels. This relatively simple concept connects the employee to your company’s mission. The buy-in created promotes a feeling of ownership rather than simply following a set of rules established by someone else.

  4. Recognize and Celebrate Employee Success
    A job well done or a life milestone is a reason to celebrate. Many employees cherish even a tiny gesture that recognizes excellent job performance. Also, encouraging employees to honor special occasions helps inspire interpersonal relationships that, in turn, will increase employee commitment to the team.

  5. Balance Work-Life with Life Outside of Work
    Allowing flexible start times and comp time establishes trust and responsibility that translates into employee satisfaction. Recognizing that your employee’s time outside of work is just as important as the time they spend working sends the message you understand and care. More importantly, they’ll know you have confidence in them to manage their own time.
  6. Use Performance Reviews as an Opportunity to Coach but also Listen
    Only 14% of employees say they are strongly motivated to improve after a performance review. Start looking at these year-end reviews as an opportunity to build your relationship with employees by coaching them on how to remain strong in their performance. Then, hear them out—taking the time to listen to your staff makes an enormous impact on their job satisfaction. While it seems that annual reviews are a necessary evil in the business world, the research suggests that reviews could be dropped altogether and replaced with just-in-time feedback less formally. Regardless of timing or formality, it is critical to have a meaningful, ongoing, two-way conversation with all of your employees.
  7. Select the Right Person for the Job
    Building a great hiring process is the first step in reducing turnover. Ensure you are hiring candidates who demonstrate the ability to be versatile and possess the talent necessary for success. The key is to find the near-perfect fit team by using science and technology to match people to jobs. The easiest and most effective way to do this is by starting with the HireScore Talent Portal to help you find and filter candidates that fit each of your roles and are likely to stay with your organization.

    Contact Stang Decision Systems today for more information.

 

Sources:

https://www.thebalancecareers.com/tips-to-reduce-employee-turnover-1919039#:~:text=Tips%20for%20Reducing%20Employee%20Turnover%201%20Offer%20an,employees%20at%20all%20times.%20…%20More%20items…%20

https://www.asaecenter.org/association-careerhq/career/articles/recruitment-strategies/cross-train-employees-to-improve-morale-and-retention

https://www.bizlibrary.com/blog/training-programs/cross-training-employees/

https://www.recruiter.com/i/how-to-cross-train-every-employee-and-why-you-should/
https://www.gallup.com/workplace/249332/harm-good-truth-performance-reviews.aspx 

By |2021-04-01T11:06:42-04:00April 1st, 2021|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Human Resources in 2021 – What to Expect in a Time of the Unexpected

Finding Your New Normal for HR in 2021

With an ever-changing global landscape, it can be even more challenging to figure out exactly what to expect from the HR world. However, while much about 2021 remains to be seen, there are a few things we can confidently say will be huge factors for hiring and retaining employees as the year progresses.

Remote Work is Here to Stay

Since COVID-19 forced more workers than ever to complete tasks remotely, employers are finding remote work to be more effective than they’d once believed. Still, many employers continue to experience a steep learning curve. For some it can be hard to believe that employees are actually getting things done if their workday goes largely unmonitored. However, at this point in quarantine 2021, it has become clear that the majority of remote employees are more capable than employers (and even other workers) have given them credit for in the past.

If you’re still finding yourself resistant to utilizing remote work, take a moment to reflect on your reasons. While you may find that it just doesn’t work for you, some reconsideration may be in order when you learn that over 70% of employees expressed a desire to continue working from home.

Employee Engagement is More Important than Ever

From virtual happy hours to scheduled coffee breaks, workers are getting creative to stay connected throughout the pandemic. But, while regular communication and post-work activities go a long way toward strengthening relationships and boosting employee satisfaction (both important factors in preventing turnover), they are more of a Band-Aid than a solution to employee engagement. Add COVID-19 to the already present employee engagement problem affecting up to 66% of Americans, and you can see why your engagement efforts matter.

Though certain programs, celebrations, and other regular activities have been dropped “temporarily” in the abrupt shift to remote work, the longer you wait to reinstate them, the larger the hole they leave in your employee’s lives.

Employees Grow When Employers Lead the Way

Of course, rushing to return to in-person activities may not be the answer. As a result, 2021 is the year to get as creative as your workforce. While it isn’t easy to hold holiday parties or volunteer events over Zoom, or organize employee training remotely, the challenges are not insurmountable. You’re most likely much more comfortable operating new technologies and finding HR workarounds today than a year ago, and your technological competence and creativity will continue to grow.

In periods of uncertainty like the one we’re currently experiencing, it can be tough to predict outcomes or anticipate when things will return to normal. Until then, get comfortable being uncomfortable while you wait to restore old systems. Maintaining your company culture, despite the extra work it may require in 2021, is key to fostering a sense of normalcy with your workforce. Re-engage your employees with the company and help them remember some of the reasons they loved their job in the first place.

Resources:
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/benefits/pages/despite-reopenings-many-employees-will-keep-working-remotely.aspx
https://www.thebalancecareers.com/incentives-and-benefits-for-greater-employee-engagement-4003007
https://www.forbes.com/sites/tracybrower/2020/05/25/how-to-sustain-and-strengthen-company-culture-through-the-coronavirus-pandemic/?sh=7abb3d6e3ce9

By |2021-02-26T13:56:24-05:00March 1st, 2021|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Three Reasons to Break Up With Your Current Hiring Process (and Three Things to Love About Your New One)

In business, as in life, there are many situations that appear much simpler in theory than in practice. In fact, some of the most important interactions you’ll have on a personal level and within the business world – developing a personal relationship and hiring an employee, respectively – seem straightforward on the surface, but are ultimately rather complex. 

Hiring the right employee, with the right skills, the proper certifications, and the ideal attitude for the job is the goal of any hiring process (to continue our relationship analogy, finding the ideal person that can mesh with you on a personal level is the ultimate goal of the dating process). However, in a world where the average new employee failure rate hovers around 50%, finding the best-fit employee can be just as elusive as finding your ideal match. When your success – and your bottom line – depends on the hiring process you’ve put into place, it’s crucial to look beneath the surface of your old standby and determine if your system is really working for you. 

Signs It’s Time for a Change

So, how do you know when it’s time to let go of your current hiring process and open your heart to something new? Take an honest look at your hiring process, and watch for these signs:

  • When to Leave #1: You’re not finding quality candidates. While any job listing has the potential to attract a wide range of skill levels, a continuous lack of talented candidates is a sign of a broken hiring process. Attempting to appeal to the masses to widen your pool can result in an influx of poorly qualified applicants.

  • What to Love #1: Cast a wide – but targeted – net. Instead, utilize a hiring process that widens your pool by recruiting across a wide variety of job listing sites, publications, and services. Then, be sure to develop a list of qualities and qualifications for potential employees, and selectively recruit finalists who closely match them.
  • When to Leave #2: Slow time to hire. While it isn’t unusual to keep a position open for a few weeks until you’ve found the perfect fit, openings that remain empty for months is a sign your hiring process needs updating. Worse, those open positions can decrease your efficiency and cost you valuable time and money. If you’ve noticed these signs, passive recruiting could be the culprit.

  • What to Love #2: Look for an active recruitment process. Instead of posting a job listing and waiting for employees to come to you, market your brand to your employees – what do you have to offer your potential talent that other companies don’t? Alternatively, begin a referral program to encourage your employees to help you select recruits that could prove a great fit.

  • When to Leave #3: You’re stuck in your ways. While you may be under the impression that your hiring process has worked for you for the past few decades, one look at your employee turnover rate just might prove you wrong. Even if you’re right, what worked five years ago may no longer be relevant for the candidates and the recruitment climate of today.

  • What to Love #3: Utilize modern hiring tools. Instead, consider ditching the standard resume-interview-handshake routine and incorporate some insightful, modern hiring tools into your process. Social hiring on the world’s most accessed social media and job listing sites can help you widen your pool, while online screening and assessments can help you choose the finalists that most closely match your qualifications, culture, and more. 

If you need to leave your current hiring process behind, implementing new tools like the HireScore Assessment Platform can help you locate more, highly qualified employees that are likely to fit your workplace culture. Contact Stang Decision Systems for more information and start your search for candidates you’ll love. 

Resources:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/youre-kidding-right-50-new-hires-fail-roberta-chinsky-matuson/

https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/7155-startup-hiring-tips.html

https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2019/09/29/five-warning-signs-that-your-hiring-process-is-broken/?sh=3e3c7e5f3cbd

https://workology.com/3-signs-its-time-to-pivot-your-hiring-process/

By |2021-01-26T14:19:31-05:00February 1st, 2021|Uncategorized|0 Comments

How to Prevent Employee Burnout

Help Your Staff Avoid Work-From-Home Burnout

As we enter the new year, it will be nearly eight months since much of the American workforce has transitioned to working from home. In many states, this trend may continue indefinitely and will certainly follow us into 2021. The transition to working away from the office continues to present challenges. Balancing work-life and home-life can be difficult, and people often have trouble establishing new routines and creating boundaries and healthy work habits. As a result, many workers suffer from work-at-home burnout, which can hurt your business. Here are some ways to avoid it.

Value Communication

Fostering good communication habits between you and your team is more important than ever. Many workers feel that they do not receive clear enough instructions. That doesn’t bode well for managers who don’t feel comfortable communicating with their team. It can be harder for workers staying at home to feel connected with their team leaders and each other, which often leads to a sense of isolation. To keep their team members feeling more connected, managers can encourage daily or weekly huddles and instant messaging or video calls through apps such as Zoom, Slack, and Google Chat. Encourage workers to reach out to you and each other often. Use video and voice calls to keep staff up to date and offer guidance on a regular basis.

Demonstrate Trust

The lack of a normally structured workday and the knowledge that managers are not there to oversee progress and performance can lead to employees overworking themselves because they doubt their performance is recognized. To help your team avoid feeling unnecessarily stressed, overworked, and critical of their productivity, let them know that you trust them by being flexible and supportive. Set attainable deadlines and due dates, maintain a positive and trusting attitude during meetings, and deliver feedback and instructions.

Clearly Define Purpose and Priorities

Be clear about project deadlines, as well as the order of priorities. In an office environment, workers can lean on their peers. They may feel more comfortable asking questions and getting clarification as needed. Newer members of your team take a special hit when working from home, as they miss out on the huge impact that being in the office can have on their development and ability to pick up job skills. As a team leader or manager, the clearer you are about your team’s goals, expectations, and priorities, the better. Ensure that every team member is clear about the purpose of a given project or task and their role within it. Clearly defining purpose can make workers feel more important and give them a greater sense of direction.

Encourage Movement

According to many studies, regular exercise can lower stress, improve memory, concentration, creativity, and prolong mental stamina. Encouraging your team members to go for a short walk or get up and stretch could improve their performance and keep them feeling motivated. Try implementing movement-based games like step counting competitions.

Following these tips can help ensure your staff maintains a positive work-life balance and stays motivated so that you can retain your talented, best-fit staff through these challenging times.

 

Resources:

https://review42.com/remote-work-statistics/

https://hbr.org/2014/10/regular-exercise-is-part-of-your-job

https://theundercoverrecruiter.com/

https://timeqube.com/blog/tips-to-avoid-wfh-burnout/

https://www.researchgate.net/publication/235275530_Exercising_at_work_and_self-reported_work_performance

https://www.wellsteps.com/blog/2020/01/02/office-challenge-ideas-office-fitness-challenges/

https://www.flexjobs.com/blog/post/remote-work-statistics/

https://connecteam.com/communication-in-the-workplace-the-complete-guide-tips-to-improve/

By |2021-01-25T15:23:52-05:00January 4th, 2021|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Five Dos and Don’ts of Utilizing Social Media in Your Hiring Process

Are You Tempted to Scan Candidate Social Media Profiles? Keep These Dos and Don’ts in Mind

Today, business owners and recruiters can access more information about candidates in their talent pool than ever before—much of it shared willingly by the candidates themselves via social media. Seventy-nine percent of the population has a social media account, according to a recent Statista poll. In comparison, 84% of companies hold social media accounts of their own. Another 70% of recruiters admit to using them to view candidate profiles in the hopes of learning more before proceeding with the hiring process.

Viewing a candidate’s social media profiles can give you details beyond what they’ve put in a resume, cover letter, or list of references. It can even warn you about problematic behaviors before you make a hiring decision—but it’s important to leverage this access wisely. To be sure you’re utilizing social media effectively—and legally—we’ve compiled some dos and don’ts of incorporating social media into your hiring process:

DON’T screen for protected groups. While viewing a candidate’s social media profile can give you access to information you wouldn’t see on a resume or application—such as membership in protected groups like race, religion, sexual orientation, disability status, and more—you cannot legally screen potential employees for these groups. For this reason, wait until after an interview has taken place to utilize social media.

DO treat each candidate equally. If you choose to scan one candidate’s LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook accounts, do the same for the remaining candidates. Ideally, develop a process—check to ensure the candidates’ resume claims line up with their public profiles and scan for any alarming content—and stick with it for each candidate.

DON’T ask for passwords or send friend requests. Asking for passwords violates the law in many states. View only what’s publicly available and relevant to the candidate’s professional life, and remember that not all information provided online is factual.

DO utilize your HR professionals. If you’re a business owner, it can be difficult to remain unbiased—say, when you learn a favorite candidate follows your alma mater’s football team or does not hold to your political views. Utilize your HR department or an outsourced firm to conduct screenings for you to avoid any chances of bias and ensure your company is considering only what’s legal.

DON’T forget to document your findings. If you find something alarming on a candidate’s social media that leads to a hiring decision, print the item in question, date it, and note the (legal) aspects that went into the decision. If the post is later removed and the candidate attempts to claim you were discriminatory against their protected status—when a public post about ongoing participation in illegal acts was the true culprit—you have documentation.

While social media can provide you with valuable insights you can’t glean from a resume or interview, you must use it carefully to avoid bias and potential legal complications. In addition, social media screenings should not be your only method of screening potential employees before hiring. For a full picture of the hiring tools available to you on the HireScore Assessment Platform, reach out to Stang Decision Systems today.

Resources:
https://www.careerbuilder.com/advice/social-media-survey-2017
https://businesstown.com/4-ways-use-social-media-hiring-process/
https://www.statista.com/statistics/273476/percentage-of-us-population-with-a-social-network-profile/#:~:
https://www.shrm.org/hr-today/news/hr-magazine/pages/0914-social-media-hiring.aspx#:~:text=Employers%20can%20use%20social%20media,candidate’s%20qualifications%20for%20a%20position.

By |2020-10-30T15:00:30-04:00November 1st, 2020|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Three Steps to Humanizing Your Hiring Process

“Genius is the gold in the mine; talent is the miner that works and brings it out.” —Lady Marguerite Blessington

Lady Blessington—An Irish child of poverty who became a successful author—was no stranger to hard work and perseverance. She was a firm believer in using her natural and painstakingly developed gifts to improve her situation. The parallels between Lady Blessington’s motivations and the mindset of today’s top workforce talent are apparent, as is the need of businesses of all shapes and sizes to attract these individuals.

However, it’s one thing simply to attract talent and quite another to hire (and retain) talented individuals.

Humanity Wins Out Over Salary

If you’ve found success finding and bringing plenty of potential recruits and talented individuals to the hiring table, but have struggled to make the hires, it’s time to take a look at what’s preventing talent from committing to your company. While insurmountable differences regarding salary and benefits can certainly be a factor, it’s not the most important indicator of a good fit for your prospects. A lackluster recruiting experience is a top reason talented individuals turn down a job. Company culture is the number one reason talent chooses one position over another.

If all this points to improving your hiring techniques and showcasing company culture in the process, the question remains—how can you humanize your hiring (and your company), and increase your odds of recruiting talent? In the digital era, it’s likely no surprise; the process starts with technology.

  1. Utilize hiring technology. While meshing technology and humanity can seem counterintuitive, using technology to ensure the best-fit potential employees enables you to hire talent that’s right for the job. Better yet, they’re more likely to feel a personal connection to their work—a factor the average office worker would give up $9,000 in salary to achieve. Include company culture items in your hiring platform assessments to put a human face on your company—and ensure you’re hiring employees who identify with you.
  2. Stay connected during hiring and onboarding. Even if you use technology for recruiting, hiring, and onboarding, you still need to make an effort to build a connection with your potential hires. You can use automation to ensure timely responses to emails and completion of training but ensure all your outreach reads as if it’s crafted for each potential hire.
  3. Involve your current employees. Whether you’re still on the hunt or onboarding newly hired talent, utilize your current hires to put a warm, welcoming face on your business. Invite them to share their opinions on working for your company via sites like GlassDoor and Indeed, and involve their friendly faces (and yours) in training literature and reach outs via sites like LinkedIn—provide them with a framework, first. Finally, after the hire, consider beginning an employee mentorship program, so your new talent doesn’t feel adrift within your organization.

Even if you offer an excellent salary package and remarkable benefits, real talent isn’t likely to stick around if your company comes off as cold, sterile, and uncaring. Do your best to put a human face on your recruiting, hiring, and onboarding processes—and increase your chances of obtaining talent that sticks.

Need more information about how to incorporate HireScore hiring technology into your hiring process? Speak with the team at Stang Decision Systems—call 906.226.2829 or request a free consultation today.

Resources:

https://www.hcamag.com/ca/news/general/forget-money-and-power-employees-want-meaningful-work/163438
https://www.britannica.com/biography/Marguerite-Gardiner-countess-of-Blessington
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/28/half-of-job-seekers-rejected-a-job-offer-after-an-interviewheres-why.html
https://www.pwc.com/us/en/library/workforce-of-the-future/hr-recruiting.html
https://www.cnbc.com/2020/01/28/half-of-job-seekers-rejected-a-job-offer-after-an-interviewheres-why.html
https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/335609

By |2020-09-14T14:27:12-04:00September 14th, 2020|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Health & Wellness Has Never Been More Important for Retaining Talent

Is your workplace stressful?
No matter your sector, chances are, the answer is “yes” for many of your employees. In fact, in a recent survey published by the American Institute of Stress, as many as 83% of American workers say they suffer from workplace stress. 

What are the impacts of workplace stress? 

While you’re likely feeling the pressure associated with the everyday stresses of operating your company, it’s crucial to recognize just how much a stressful work environment can affect your employees. Heightened stress levels can cause weight gain, high blood pressure, sleeplessness, fatigue, and anxiety—and result in absenteeism, poor performance, and even resignation. In short, workplace stress could be costing you money and talent.

As a result, the price of a stressful workplace is real in many ways—which has led more companies to institute health and wellness programs to help employees manage stress at work. Unfortunately, only 41% of workers report that their employers offer any health and wellness resources at all—and only 35% of those believe the resources are sufficient. If you’re a manager or business owner, however, you need a staff that is as physically and mentally healthy as possible, and a health and wellness initiative is an excellent place to start.

How Can You Incorporate Health and Wellness?

While companies like Chesapeake Energy, Google, and Coors are famous for providing employee wellness perks like an Olympic-sized swimming pool, massages, cooking classes, and even beer on tap—most businesses don’t have the resources to match them. Still, making an effort to be mindful of your employees’ health and wellness can help you attract talent like these major brands. Whether it’s offering a flexible schedule or allowing people to occasionally bring their dog to work, there are many low-cost ways to accommodate your workforce and make your organization more appealing. Until you’re ready to roll out a comprehensive health and wellness program for your workplace, here are some tips you can use to help you ensure you’re providing your employees with valuable perks that have little relative cost: 

  • Raise awareness. Acknowledge the common sources of workplace stress and encourage employees to help plan ways to alleviate them. A sense of preparedness can help nip stress in the bud and improve response from both you and your employees.
  • Focus on fitness. Fitness in the workplace can take on different forms for different businesses. You may consider beginning a socially distanced yoga program, providing a gym membership, or even offering free or reduced-cost wearable fitness bands so employees can track their efforts.
  • Promote rest. Employee productivity is vital, but work performed while fatigued or unfocused can turn out to be of low quality. Encourage employees to take provided breaks during the workday, and make the most of leave time and other time out of the office.
  • Try meditation. It’s an activity that incorporates both mind and body and does not necessitate close contact. Meditation is a simple, virtually cost-free way to relieve stress. Try a shared app or begin a program that your employees can use when the need strikes.
  • Facilitate employee connections. Especially challenging to do in the remote work era, the above activities can be performed remotely and individually—but can also be a part of a larger group wellness effort. Employees who feel connected at work are more likely to feel satisfied with their employment and show 41% lower absenteeism
  • Educate yourself. In the current era of information, there is an endless supply of extremely high-quality information that 20 years ago would either not have existed or only would have been available to the very wealthy. Unfortunately, there is also a tremendous amount of misinformation. Below are a handful of people that we have grown to trust over the years. The importance isn’t on the specific sources of information so much as it is on showing that there is an amazing amount of information that can easily be shared and discussed at work.

Implementing one or more of the above tips can help you ensure your employees can achieve a healthy work-life balance, and—more importantly—feel you are invested in their health and wellness. Then, work to develop a full-scale health and wellness program to continue addressing these concerns. With some effort, you can ensure the best-fit, talented staff you’ve hired remains with your organization long-term.  

Resources:

https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/employee-relations/pages/how-managers-can-help-stressed-workers-.aspx

https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-samples/how-to-guides/pages/howtoestablishanddesignawellnessprogram.aspx

https://www.stress.org/42-worrying-workplace-stress-statistics

https://www.gallup.com/workplace/236366/right-culture-not-employee-satisfaction.aspx

By |2020-07-27T16:32:33-04:00August 3rd, 2020|Uncategorized|0 Comments

Four Turnover Triggers That Could Be Hurting Your Bottom Line

It’s normal to have employees leave your business on occasion. People often need to leave due to relocation, familial responsibilities, and other life events that may be completely unrelated to your business. However, if your employee turnover rate (calculated as the percentage of employees who leave in a given time frame) has begun to skyrocket, you likely have a problem.

The financial cost of a high turnover rate can be substantial, with some estimates exceeding $4,100 per hourly employee or as many as 9 months of a salaried employee’s pay. Worse, you’ll need to spend additional time focused on hiring and your employees often wind up shouldering the additional responsibilities and stress of fewer employees. To combat high turnover, however, you’ll need to find out why so many of your employees are leaving.

Why Do Employees Leave?

A high turnover rate can be indicative of a number of issues within your organization. Though these issues can – and do – vary by industry, there are multiple common factors most businesses with high turnover rates share. We’ve compiled a list of the top major causes of employee loss and what you can do to remedy them:

  1. Employees feel burned out. A recent survey by Asana found 82% of employees felt overworked and burned out. Even if these employees don’t choose to leave your organization, overwork can lead to increased absenteeism and declining productivity. To fix it, pinpoint the cause of overwork, whether it’s understaffing, poor training, or volume; then, determine if you need to increase hiring efforts or simply offer help to struggling employees.
  2. Employees feel unengaged or unchallenged. Sometimes, employees experience the opposite effect – a lack of challenging work or even a disconnect with the purpose behind their work. If your employees don’t feel their work has meaning for your organization or feel their skill set is underused, they may seek employment somewhere that engages and appreciates them more. Check-in with employees frequently to assess their level of engagement with their current duties and recognize achievements as they occur.
  3. Negative workplace culture. While culture can be a difficult aspect to nail down, it’s at its most apparent when it’s driving your employees away. If your culture doesn’t fit your employees, morale will dip, current talent will leave, and new hires won’t last. Actively address signs that your workplace culture is veering toward the negative, re-evaluate the way you and other managers engage with staff, and endeavor to truly listen to each and every employee and their concerns.
  4. Hiring ill-fitting employees. Poorly matched employees can come in many forms – sometimes they just don’t mesh with your existing culture. Sometimes, employees don’t have the skills, drive, or personality fit necessary to be successful on the job. If your employee selection process doesn’t include fully validated measurement tools customized for each job, you are missing an opportunity to maximize employee fit for each role.

Turnover rates don’t have to damage your bottom line. Making changes to the way you handle your current employees as well as search for and screen for qualified hires can help you find and retain employees who will do their best work for your business. On many occasions we have seen motivated clients reduce turnover by 75% or more in a matter of months. It’s not easy, but it’s well worth the effort.

Resources:
https://www.shrm.org/about-shrm/press-room/press-releases/pages/human-capital-benchmarking-report.aspx
https://www.dailypay.com/business-resources/employee-retention-rate/
https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/tools-and-samples/how-to-guides/pages/determineturnoverrate.aspx
https://smallbiztrends.com/2019/08/small-business-burnout.html

By |2020-07-13T11:04:28-04:00July 13th, 2020|Careers, Research|0 Comments

COVID-19’s Impact on the Hiring Industry

HOW THE HIRING INDUSTRY IS ADAPTING TO THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC

To say that the Coronavirus pandemic has rocked global industry would be a massive understatement. Companies around the world are scrambling to develop new remote-based workflows to limit the potential for exposure to the virus, and many service-based businesses have had to close down entirely. The hiring industry has also felt the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and many companies are overhauling their hiring practices in light of this new reality. 

Hiring in China has plummeted to about -45% year over year following the outbreak. In Italy, Europe’s hardest hit country to date, hiring is well below zero, reaching a low of -40% during the lockdown. The US will likely see a similar trend in the near future, at least temporarily, but many companies have already been adapting their practices to take the hiring process into the digital realm without becoming impersonal. 

New Online Assessment Practices

If you are reading this post you are surely doing your application process online (you are, right?). Ideally you are using a process that automatically ranks candidates based on their probability of success so you don’t have to screen 100s or thousands of resumes/applications. Regardless, at a minimum people are able to apply online.

For many roles, after people have applied you are likely to want custom problem solving assessments that match the job. For companies that wisely rely on testing to identify and hire top candidates there has been a dramatic shift away from large group test sessions with “bubble sheet” test forms to completely online, but still proctored, testing.

The proctoring is done via some amazing technologies that allow the user to be monitored to ensure they are not cheating while they take the exam. These include screen monitoring, facial tracking, audio flags and statistical techniques to mitigate cheating. Bottom line, testers who used to have to test in a group setting, at a specific time and place, using a clunky technology (scantron scoring) are now able to test at their leisure in a secure setting using state-of-the-art technology.

This shift not only limits social exposure and slows the spread of COVID-19, but it also ensures a higher level of test security, better scheduling options, faster turnaround of test results, less testing time and more creative and job-related test content. While the online testing protocol has been standard procedure for many businesses, in light of current events, almost 100% of our clients are now choosing to streamline their pre-employment assessment processes with secure online assessments.

Videoconferencing is the New Norm 

While many companies are slow to hire new employees during such a tumultuous time, others are going to need to continue their recruitment practices under different terms. Additionally, once the worst phase of this disease has passed, there will be an incredible influx of available talent the likes of which hiring managers haven’t seen in a lifetime. As people who have lost their jobs or parted ways with companies that have permanently shuttered look for new work, the hiring industry will need to adapt quickly and adeptly to the forthcoming surge of employment candidates.

One of these adaptations will be video conferencing technology which is quickly becoming the go-to method for companies to interview job applicants, conduct Q&A sessions with potential recruits, and handle the onboarding process without risk of spreading COVID-19. Video conferencing tools are also useful in many cases for new hire orientation, training, telecommuting, sales, and many other aspects of modern business. To this end, we highly recommend the Zoom platform, but we also have utilized Skype, Gotomeeting, Facetime, Google Hangouts and other platforms successfully. For early adopters, we’d recommend checking out https://www.around.co/.

Adapting for the Future

These new hiring practices may seem like temporary stopgaps, but they are actually improvements to the business-as-usual resume/interview approach to hiring, which is far from optimal. The decisions companies make during the current epidemic will have a profound impact on the future. By making the right call now you will help the country quickly get our talented workforce back in the game. 

Resources:

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/how-covid-19-impacting-hiring-around-world-karin-kimbrough/ 

https://www.techrepublic.com/article/how-covid-19-is-impacting-job-seekers-and-hiring-managers/ 

By |2020-06-04T19:16:58-04:00March 25th, 2020|News|0 Comments
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