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• Length: 28:04 minutes (14.86 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 71Kbps (VBR)

In this week’s podcast, Brenda Perkins interviews Tim Davis from the law offices of Constangy, Brooks, & Smith. Davis has been with this prestigious firm since 1992 and is considered one of the top 100 employee relations lawyers in the U.S. With the passage of some form of the Employee Free Choice Act likely in the near future, Tim’s expertise is invaluable. Here’s some of the advice he has for HR professionals and employers who want to remain union free in the upcoming years.

Communicate Continuously

According to Davis, one of the top myths employers believe is that workers unionize mainly because of wage and benefits issues. It’s actually about something much more critical - communication. Do you think your employees aren’t invested in their jobs and just want to punch the clock each day? Think again. The people who work for you want to feel like part of a team.

When you make this happen by communicating effectively, you can often head off discontent before it turns in to union talk. Keep your workers informed of external and internal circumstances that are affecting the company. Then, invite them to be involved as part of the solution.

Strengthen Employee Relations

Do your workers feel they aren’t being listened to or treated fairly? They are more likely to turn away from management and ask a union to fix their issues when they don’t believe you care. To prevent a labor relations problem from arising, you need to take a proactive approach to employee relations. Tim recommends reviewing your strengths and weaknesses in the following areas as you develop your strategy:

• Policies
• Practices
• Manager/Supervisor Training

Supervisors really are on the front lines when it comes to both good communication and excellent employee relations. Invest heavily in whatever training programs are necessary to teach them how to lead effectively and fairly. Then, make sure they know how to identify the warning signs of discontent - these are often the precursor to unionization attempts.

Plan Ahead

If the Employee Free Choice Act passes as expected, you will have only 14 days (instead of the current 42) between a petition and a union election. This leaves you with virtually no time to form a strategy after the ball is rolling. In addition, you may be subject to strict fines of as much as $20,000 for any violation of the “union busting” rules imposed on employers during that time period. This means you need to plan now on two fronts:

• Creating a contented work atmosphere that doesn’t lend itself to unionization 
• Developing a strategy for how to respond (within legal parameters) to each stage of a possible unionizing effort

For more tips on how to achieve both of these goals, listen to the full podcast.

Additional Resources

• Length: 23:34 minutes (12.11 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 69Kbps (VBR)

Allison Darling, president of Management Concepts offers her perspective on how to create and sustain positive changes in this podcast with HR BrainBank cofounder Brenda Perkins. Darling has personal experience with building a company from the ground up, so she knows what it takes to become successful. Now, she advises other professionals on how to meet and exceed their own goals with the help of her proprietary GoalGETTERS system. The tips she gives in this interview work on both a personal and an organizational level.

Obstacles That Prevent Change

Allison points out four major obstacles that make change seem difficult. These need to be brought out into the open for examination early on:

1.    Ego - Most people don’t want to risk appearing foolish or being proven wrong

2.    Fear - Venturing out of your comfort zone into the unknown can be scary

3.    Lack of Plan - Without a strategy, attempts to change usually fail

4.    Lack of Purpose - You need a motivator to keep you going during tough transitions

Every person involved in an organization’s change process should identify the way in which these obstacles affect them. Creating a solution is a highly individualized process and must be tailored to meet the needs of each participant. 

The Power of Purpose

Motivation can take many forms, both positive and negative. Some people feel a strong sense of purpose when they consider the benefits change will bring. Others are spurred on by the thought of negative consequences failure to change will cause. Tapping into your emotions will help you figure out what motivates you most powerfully. When the work involved in creating change becomes stressful, this is what you need to focus on to get you through.

Staying Conscious

According to Darling, our culture of multi-tasking can make it difficult to engage effectively with change. This is because we generally run on autopilot and rely on habitual behaviors to get everything done in our fast-paced environment. To alter your course, you have to pay attention to what you are doing and what you are thinking. Through conscious repetition of new ways of acting and reinforcement of a positive attitude, you can eventually form better habits.

Change or Die

Allison mentions a book by author Alan Deutschman that she recommends to all her clients. The book is called “Change or Die” and it addresses three keys to creating sustainable change.

•    Relationships - Surround yourself with people who support and believe in you

•    Reframing - Gain a positive perspective on change

•    Repetition - Persevere and keep reinforcing positive behaviors

To learn more about the psychology of change and details about Management Concepts’ exciting GoalGETTERS program, listen to the full podcast. No matter what challenges you are facing, take heart from Allison’s closing words “Anyone can change.”

Additional Resources

• Length: 38:17 minutes (19.09 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 68Kbps (VBR)

In this upbeat interview with TCOY Wellness coach Lucy DelSarto, Brenda asks the question on every employer’s mind. Why should my company invest in worker wellness? DelSarto points to the high cost of disease-centered health care as a burden that is becoming untenable. Some of the largest industries in the U.S. actually spend more on health insurance for their workers than they spend on the raw materials to create their products. Imagine what your business could use those funds for if employees enjoyed excellent health through prevention rather than intervention!

Of course, saving money on skyrocketing healthcare is just the most visible benefit. Promoting and supporting workplace and personal wellness is one way to let your employees know you care about their quality of life. This positive, proactive mindset translates into higher morale and results in greater overall productivity. When your workers are truly well, you won’t just see fewer people out sick. Your company will also experience less “presenteeism” where employees show up but aren’t able to really contribute.

Top 3 Areas Ripe For Improvement

Lucy addresses several of the top wellness challenges Americans face. These are all interconnected. Improving one aspect without addressing the others won’t offer optimum benefits. As an employer, you may not be able to impact your employees’ lives in all these areas. However, your wellness program should set the stage by promoting and empowering individual change. Make this part of your corporate and HR brand!

Exercise: As a professional athlete, DelSarto places this at the top of the list of good habits we need to form. Are there ways your company can make office jobs less sedentary and activity more accessible? Maybe there is enough space for a walking trail on your property. Perhaps a conference room can be briefly converted into a yoga center once a day.

Diet/Nutrition: Today’s “convenient” and fast foods are nutritionally depleted. That’s one reason we crave more and more food - our bodies know they aren’t being fueled properly. Lucy explains why we need access to nutritional supplements in addition to fresh foods.

OTC vitamins taken for wellness aren’t reimbursable under an FSA (another example of how our government has the wrong focus when it comes to healthcare). Consider a company funded drive during which you reimburse employees out of pocket expenses for purchasing a bottle of daily multivitamins. A year’s supply only costs about $30 dollars per person - that’s money well spent.

Stress: Avoiding stress altogether is simply not possible. Lucy advocates embracing stress responses as the natural way your body prepares to face a challenge. However, she warns against letting stress turn into worry which is counterproductive.

As an employer, your scheduling and time off policies play a big role in keeping stress levels manageable. Training your managers and supervisors to create a fair and equitable work experience for everyone is another way you can help relieve stress in the workplace.

For lots of great advice on how to create wellness in your personal life, listen to the full podcast. Hear DelSarto explain what needs to happen in your mindset and your attitude before you can effectively change your habits. 

Additional Resources

• Length: 24:02 minutes (11.95 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 67Kbps (VBR)

Industry expert Lori Tritz, SPHR (Senior Vice President with FBD Consulting, LLC) focuses on the topic of strategic alignment as it applies to HR.

Lori makes an excellent point that alignment looks different for each of her clients. This is because the process is not internal to Human Resources. Instead, it requires HR leaders to fully understand their organization’s larger strategy and their place within it. The type of industry, company size, current financials, and the vision of senior executives all play an important part in determining how HR should be run.

Traditional Roles HR Fills

For example, some companies are perfectly happy with the traditional role Human Resources fills. Tritz describes this role as being:

• Reactive
• Employee focused
• Operation based
• Averse to change
• Transactional in nature

In this type of HR department, getting payroll done correctly, administering benefits, hiring and firing are seen as some of the most basic/important functions.

Emerging Role of HR

By contrast, Lori points out that the emerging/strategic role of HR is much more dynamic. This new kind of HR department adds value by being:

• Proactive
• Organization focused
• Strategy based
• Positive about change
• Solution driven

Strategically aligned HR leaders position their department as a profit generator rather than a drain. They analyze each function to improve performance and integrate HR practices with larger organizational goals. If senior management is willing to welcome HR to the planning table, your department is in an excellent position to start the alignment process.

How To Do This

Tritz warns that this isn’t something that happens overnight. It takes perseverance and a serious commitment to learning about every aspect of your organization. This includes understanding your company’s product or service, its customer base, revenue & growth outlook, cost reduction methods, and much more.

In other words, find out exactly how each aspect of the company works and get a very clear idea of what is really important. When you have a grasp of the big picture, you can more readily see how HR can improve business outcomes. Closely analyzing each function of your department (including how and why you do everything you do) will allow you to make changes as needed.

Lori goes on to discuss the importance of impressing senior management with your understanding of metrics and ROI. As she puts it, you have to learn to think “like a CFO”. She also reveals the top three HR processes that your company may want to outsource.

Additional Resources

In closing Tritz recommends the following resources for HR professionals who want to become strategically aligned:

Aligning Human Resources & Business Strategy - (Linda Holbech) - A practical handbook that offers a straightforward look at this complex topic along with real world solutions.

The Balanced Scorecard - (Robert S. Kaplan and David P. Norton) - This classic on the four aspects of successful strategic planning makes a great starting point for big picture thinking.

The Human Resources Scorecard - (Dr. Jack J. Phillips, Ron Stone, & Patricia Phillips) - This book teaches HR professionals how to clearly communicate ROI to senior management.

The HR Value Proposition - (David Ulrich and Wayne Brockbank) - A resource complete with practical tools HR leaders can use to improve the value they bring to their organizations.

• Length: 27:22 minutes (13.66 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 67Kbps (VBR)

Industry expert Paula Switzer (President of Switzer Resource Group) talks about the DISC program and how this behavioral assessment method will help you improve your own communication skills. Also discussed are the benefits this tool provides to individuals and organizations.

From the perspective of an HR professional, DISC evaluation has a great deal to offer. Understanding how behavioral tendencies affect your personal interactions is just the beginning.

Here are five ways DISC can promote productivity and decrease turnover at your organization:

1. Evaluating applicants and existing employees to match them to appropriate job categories
2. Training managers to communicate effectively with all of their workers
3. Resolving employee conflicts by identifying the underlying expectations/needs of each person
4. Building a strong development program for candidates in preparation for leadership succession
5. Removing roadblocks to teamwork so projects can progress smoothly

Use It or Lose It

Switzer stresses that taking the test and going through the training process is just the first step. Implementation is critical. She describes how DISC concepts and practices can be integrated into every aspect of your business. No organization can succeed if its members do not work well together. It is easy to see how improving communication and understanding between individuals creates a strong foundation for every business activity.

Targeted Tools

One problem with some tools is that they aren’t directly applicable to a specific situation. This means Human Resources may be tasked with customizing the program for each group that will be using it. With DISC products from the Switzer Resource Group, this extra work isn’t necessary. Instead, there are already highly targeted tools available. These are designed to meet the needs of Management, Sales, and Workplace audiences. Paula shares the exciting news that a Leadership module is currently in the works.

ROI Expectations

As Brenda points out in this interview, HR is under pressure to show a return on investment for this type of evaluation tool. As with any performance improving product, having clear expectations is vital. If you don’t know what you are aiming for, you won’t know if these
goals have been achieved. Switzer recommends using existing metrics to measure the success of DISC. For example, in Sales this could be identified as an increase in the number of contracts signed. In Customer Service, it might take the form of higher client retention levels.

Additional Resources

• Length: 28:20 minutes (14.46 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 69Kbps (VBR)

Brenda Perkins, cofounder of HR BrainBank interviews Jeff Lanza in this informative podcast. Lanza, a former FBI agent is an expert in the fields of internet security, leadership ethics, and crisis communication. In this interview, he outlines why companies must have an effective message development and information dissemination strategy in place before a crisis occurs.

Basics of Pre-Planning

Obviously, you can’t prepare for the details of every possible occurrence. However, you should develop an overall plan of action that includes:

•    Who will be involved in crisis communication - management, HR, your legal department, etc

•    Ways to rapidly figure out what went wrong, the scope of the problem, who is affected, and if your company is at fault

•    What you hope to accomplish with your communication strategy (restoring customer approval ratings, shareholder confidence, employee morale, etc)

•    Who will be in charge of speaking on behalf of the company

•    How information will be distributed - public announcement, email, press release, and so forth

•    How to address rumors and false accusations before they spiral out of control

Not having a plan in place presents an enormous risk. Once a crisis arises, there is simply no time to prepare. This is especially true now that the internet has made news delivery instantaneous (and often inaccurate).

Important Points to Cover

The goal of crisis communication is to help restore your company’s relationships with those affected by a negative event. There are several key points you should always include in your communications with employees, customers, shareholders, and any other group that has a stake in your company. Jeff describes these critical points as follows:

1.    What’s happening

2.    How it is being resolved

3.    A statement of empathy toward those affected

Dealing with the Press

As a former spokesperson for the FBI in Kansas City, Lanza understands how to navigate the minefield of media relations. He gives perceptive advice about how to work with reporters so they don’t feel tempted to present your company as the “bad guy” in a news story. He emphasizes the importance of giving the media accurate, timely information. Before you speak with the press, know what you will say, what you won’t say, and understand what the reporter wants to get out of the interview.

Jeff points out that you have to keep your answers very clear and concise - you will be lucky to end up with a couple of 8-10 second sound bites on the news. Focus on the positive messages your crisis communication team has developed and insert these into your answers.

In the full podcast, Lanza gives easy to understand examples of positive messaging. He also covers how to avoid being taken out of context, how to communicate with your employees, and much more.

Additional Resources

• Length: 25:30 minutes (12.86 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 68Kbps (VBR)

This podcast features Pam Finnell from the Morgan Hunter recruiting firm. Finnell is a corporate recruiter who matches employers with HR professionals. In this phone discussion, she talks about her specialty with Brenda Perkins. Pam has worked in management, sales, and HR, and brings a well rounded perspective to the needs of employees and the businesses that hire them.

Trends in Hiring

Finnell begins this interview by answering a question about current job market trends. She notes that contract opportunities are on the rise. Employers need to hire someone to get the work done whether they have the budget for a permanent headcount increase or not.

This means they are looking for flexible professionals who may be hired for a few months at a time to handle specific projects. Of course, some of these positions do later become permanent. Temporary work can be a good way to get your foot in the door and prove yourself instead of trying to survive on unemployment.

Pam also notes that even with the prevalence of layoffs there are some companies that will pay more to keep their top talent. She is seeing employers renegotiate salaries to keep workers from leaving for higher paying jobs.

Social networking is coming into its own as HR professionals learn to use these online tools. They are reporting finding jobs through contacts on LinkedIn and Facebook. Some are even having success with Craigslist. Keeping your professional profiles updated and posting your resume as widely as possible can improve your chances of being noticed by employers.

How a Placement Agency Can Help You

After giving some great tips on resume writing and interviewing, Finnell moves on to describing why every HR professional can benefit from partnering with a recruiting firm. With publicly posted jobs, there may be hundreds of candidates for one position. However, many businesses don’t want to handle the flood of applicants a job advertisement will bring in. Instead, they turn to third party recruiters to hand pick half a dozen highly suitable people for the company to interview.

Pam points out that all fees for these services are paid by the employer. All you invest is some of your job hunting time. You will need to an in depth interview with the recruiting firm, polish your resume and/or customize it for specific job openings, and follow up with your agent regularly.

The recruiter’s primary objective is to find the best match for the company that is paying their fee. Fortunately, this means your agent will focus on presenting you with job opportunities that match your skill set and align with your career goals. Finnell points out that you need to be able to concisely describe what you are looking for in a job to optimize your chances of getting what you want.

She also notes that a placement agency is only one of the avenues you should use when you are looking for a new job. Networking, applying for publicly posted positions, and keeping your resume in circulation are all important steps in improving your career prospects.

For even more information on how to land a job, listen to the full podcast.

Additional Resources

• Length: 25:56 minutes (6.15 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 32Kbps (CBR)

In this podcast, Brenda Perkins asks Amy Hoppenrath (president of AccelerAction) to explain the benefits of social networking tools. Have you have ever wondered why LinkedIn is making such a big splash in the business community? This interview makes it crystal clear why the site has over 40 million users including managers from all the Fortune 500 companies.

Visibility

The first advantage Hoppenrath points out is the high visibility organizations and individuals can gain from establishing an online presence. Virtually every consumer now runs an internet search prior to purchasing a product or service. LinkedIn and other social networking sites are rapidly climbing to the top of the ranks with search engines such as Google. This makes it easier than ever to gain exposure for your professional profile.
How do you make a good impression on LinkedIn? Amy’s says it is critical to have your profile completely filled out. Yes, this takes a few minutes but the results are well worth it. Don’t leave out any of your educational experience, credentials, or organizational affiliations. This information provides an avenue for people to locate you and build potentially valuable professional connections.
As an HR professional, you may not be advertising a service or product. However, this doesn’t mean you should leave the summary area on your LinkedIn profile blank. Instead, this is where you should present your skill set and accomplishments. If there is a specific aspect of Human Resources that is your forte, list it here. Use keywords such as corporate recruiting or benefits management to increase the chances of having your profile show up in a relevant search.

Credibility

Being a good networker takes some effort. However, building trust and credibility online may be easier than you think. Hoppenrath suggests using your status bar as a place to share helpful information with your network of colleagues. For example, if you read a particularly pertinent article or press release, you can provide a link in your status bar and invite everyone to check it out. This type of action positions you as a reliable resource and a team player who gives back to the larger online community.

Relationships

On a related note, following proper LinkedIn etiquette can help you build long-lasting relationships. Amy stresses the importance of saying “Thank you” at every available opportunity. She also offers advice on restricting your network to people who are interested in truly building a mutually beneficial connection. The whole interview is full of great tips; so get a pen and a notepad - you’ll need them!

Additional Resources

• Length: 22:19 minutes (11.28 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 67Kbps (VBR)

Industry expert Deborah Thorne (president of Prism Creative), discusses the concept of HR branding in this interview with Brenda Perkins. This informative talk introduces the concept of developing a brand for Human Resources communications. Her remarks on perceived value and employee retention are of special interest. Most companies spend a significant portion of their yearly budget on workforce related expenses. It makes sense to create a polished, consistent presentation strategy for vital compensation and benefits information.

Internal Advertising

Unlike marketing campaigns that focus on an external customer base, HR branding is all about serving the needs of the internal customer - the employee. This means the message really is more important than the medium. Building long lasting relationships takes excellent communication - not just a flashy logo and a catchy tag line. Although style should certainly be considered, substance is the key to actually connecting with workers. In addition, the method and content of this internal advertising must dovetail with the overall company culture. It is more complicated in some ways than other “campaigns” because it must be directly relevant to the needs and interests of the employee base and have broad appeal to reach a diverse workforce. This is in contrast to external promotions that target a niche market or demographic.

Missed Opportunities

If your company has simply been distributing benefits information provided by brokers, you have not been “selling” your company’s brand. Instead, the message of the broker is the one your employees are receiving. This literature does nothing to convey to your workers how much your company has invested in providing their benefits. Why waste this chance to show your employees how much they are really worth? Use every opportunity to advertise the true value of the total compensation and benefits package you offer. This transparency helps keep employees from being tempted to switch jobs for a perceived increase in salary. They will have a full understanding of what they would be giving up by leaving your company.

Creating An HR Brand

Any time is a good time to begin the branding process. However, it is an especially helpful tool during transitions. A cohesive brand builds confidence and allows HR communications to carry more weight. Determine the satisfaction level of your employees, evaluate your current communication practices, and outline what you want your HR brand to accomplish. Then, find the right firm to help you reach your goals. Remember that it is important to find a marketing provider who has specific experience with HR topics. After all, the complex language of compensation and benefits is different than the jargon used to sell a new car or a fast food meal.

Additional Resources

• Length: 32:14 minutes (7.71 MB)
• Format: Mono 44kHz 32Kbps (CBR)

This interview with Bonnie Hagemann (CEO of Executive Development Associates) deals with crucial leadership issues. The podcast focuses on the best actions leaders can take to maintain both forward momentum and balance during challenging times. Bonnie also gives a sneak preview of an upcoming report on executive development. Here are just a couple of the highlights from her conversation with Brenda Perkins.

Transparency - The Good and the Bad

There are two kinds of transparency that leaders need to be aware of in their dealings with employees. The first is the good kind. It deals with conveying factual information. Workers need to know what is going on during transitions, reductions in force, and any other critical
changes. This gives people the knowledge they need to make good decisions. A lack of communication in these areas leaves a vacuum that will be quickly filled with rumors and exaggerations. Strong leaders don’t shy away from telling the sometimes difficult truths about the challenges their organization is facing.

However,
there is a point at which sharing can go too far. When those in charge become transparent with their emotional reactions, this creates anxiety. As role models, executives must have the self control to remain calm under pressure. When bad news arrives, employees look to leaders for cues about how to react. It is crucial that those tasked with guiding the organization demonstrate a professional response to every challenge.

This response doesn’t cover just the words that are spoken - body language and other behaviors can be even more telling. Slamming doors, shouting at staff members, or holing up in a corner office is certain to trigger negative responses in others. This creates a domino effect throughout the organization. In contrast, when leaders radiate confidence and self assurance, everyone else starts to relax. This atmosphere of calm creates the ideal environment for short
term problem solving and long term planning.

Upcoming Special Report

EDA’s report on executive development is scheduled for release in August. The research behind this report shows that organizations are focusing on a number of vital leadership issues. This includes the current pressing need to develop new leaders quickly. There are two reasons for this urgency.

First, it is not always possible to retain executives over the long term. They may find a more lucrative opportunity elsewhere, retire, or simply decide to alter their career path. When this happens, it makes sense to have a number of people who are trained and ready to step into
positions of responsibility. This can minimize the negative impact changes in leadership often have on businesses.

Second, as a large portion of the baby boomer generation retires at once, this will cause a significant gap in the number of leaders that are available in the U.S. as a whole. It is critical for organizations to invest in candidates who show high potential. Accelerating their development through training and hands on experience will prepare a new generation of executives to fill vacancies as they occur.

This podcast is full of information on best practices, strategies, and insightful advice. Listen to the entire interview to pick up helpful tips and find out what other companies are doing to enhance their leadership potential for the future.

Additional Resources