Employee handbooks with clear policies that protect your business from legal risks and retaliation claims and are compliant with employment laws can be useful tools for HR. But if it's been a while since you updated your handbook, you need to listen closely to our next guest, Jake Sitman, Chair of the Employment Law and Labor Relations Group for the law firm Fitzpatrick, Lentz, and Bubba. He’ll share his insights on writing and maintaining an effective employee handbook. Highlights [3:01] The greatest risk for employers today [5:17] Understanding retaliation [8:41] The common mistake employer ..read more

HR pros often have to navigate situations where the company's interests may conflict with the needs of individual employees. HR veteran Jackie Plunkett has extensive experience as both an in-house practitioner and as a consultant. Today, she shares her insights on how to build trust and respect with employees while also reducing employer risk.  Highlights [2:46] Poor employee relations can be corrected [6:06] Building relationships and a culture of openness [14:35] Terminations and confidentiality issues [16:22] Proactive relationship building with employees [21:06] Managing up and havin ..read more

Companies are missing golden opportunities to hire high performing talent that’s being trained and certified right now by nontraditional workforce development programs. To help your organization tap into traditionally overlooked talent communities, we’ve called in Michelle Sims, CEO of YUPRO Placement. Michelle tells us, "For 40 years, the trend has been to use a four-year degree as a proxy for your skills when, really, a piece of paper and a resume don't always represent what you can actually do and what you know." Highlights [3:25] What is skills-based hiring? [4:10] A learn-and-earn, skill ..read more

For many companies, employing formerly incarcerated individuals may seem like a high-risk proposition. However, there are more people with charges and convictions than you realize. And there are plenty of moving, life-changing success stories that show that fair chance hiring can be good for your business. Ken Oliver, Vice President of Checkr.org shares his own success story and tells us that “fair chance hiring doesn’t mean hire every single person with a record. Every company has a right to hire the best person for the job. We don’t want them to lower the bar, we just want them to lower the ..read more

Although some companies have been cutting back on their DEI efforts lately, Mita Mallick, the Head of Inclusion, Equity, and Impact at financial software company Carta, says, “Now’s not the time to put DEI on the back burner. There’s a business case for creating an inclusive workplace and fostering a culture of belonging. Right now, in the US, 40% of individuals identify as non-white. That number is rapidly changing. That doesn't include individuals with disabilities, veterans, the LGBTQ+ community, and others. If you don't have those voices and talent in your organization I don't know how you ..read more

Leveraging competitive benefits that appeal to everyone is a challenge for a lot of HR pros today. According to Amy Spurling, the founder and CEO of Compt, “A lot of companies have really great programs, but when they start looking at utilization, it's usually around 3 to 5% per thing that you're offering. It is very low. And so you're spending across each individual thing and getting incredibly low utilization. The challenge is then to reach more people and keep more people engaged without cutting benefits.” A former CFO and COO, Amy shares strategies for increasing engagement while offering ..read more

Success in attracting top talent is every bit as important as winning customers, but many small businesses focus more on marketing their product than marketing their company to potential new hires. According to Thad Price, CEO of HR tech company Talroo, “Many job seekers want more; they want a career path. They want to be part of something bigger. This requires you to rethink how you attract the candidates that want to grow with you. And that's marketing, right? That's buying into the brand, focusing your energy on the right audience that's looking for an opportunity and not just this transact ..read more

HR pros in the manufacturing industry can attract and retain talent by measuring and delivering data that backs up HR’s effectiveness. Joanne Taylor, Vice President of Operations for Clear Employer Services, tells us that we need to hire not just for what we need today but for where we need to be in five or ten years. “Look at the data and the projections from a sales and marketing and business strategy and how does that shape the future of the skills that we're going to need in five years? That's where HR becomes the strategic partner that we really truly should be in an organization.” Highli ..read more

HR consultants and leadership coaches are resources that should be leveraged to help your team, reduce your workload and help you succeed. As Hema Crockett, the co-founder of Gig Talent, tells us, these skilled experts aren’t interested in taking your job and want you to tap into their knowledge. Highlights [3:42] What HR often needs help with [5:44] Sourcing HR consultants and leadership coaches [8:59] Fear of an HR consultant showing up the in-house HR talent [11:40] How an outside expert can help companies with HR matters [14:28] Does HR need outside help to persuade their executive teams ..read more

Federal laws are on the books that require physical safety and prohibit harassment and discrimination on the job. However, handling complaints that accuse managers, or even executives, of being disrespectful or abusive can be legal gray areas that leave HR caught in the middle. Dr. Gary Namie, Director of the Workplace Bullying Institute, and Suffolk University Law Professor, David Yamada, share practical ways to address these delicate situations. According to Dr. Namie: “Bullying is all about a narcissistic individual of any rank fouling up the work process and productivity and team dynamics ..read more