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Three Simple Steps in Preparing to Write a Performance Review

October 12, 2015/in Blog/by Inspiring HR

Writing an employee’s performance review or an evaluation is one of the most important responsibilities for a manager. Why?

This commitment helps motivate employees, increase engagement, enhance accountability for results and support professional and career growth. However, do you find yourself to placing the task of writing an employee’s performance evaluation at the bottom of their priority list?

There are various reasons for this type of reaction:

The requirement to meet other departmental and/or organizational project deadlines;
Participation in organizational functions and/or events;
Conflict with training and development programs;
It is more important to respond to customer, client and staff needs;
And, the list goes on.

Some reasons may be very personal:

You don’t feel like you have gained enough experience writing performance evaluations, or
Deep down, you don’t feel confident about your writing capabilities.

In turn, you are experiencing a writer’s block and you simply do not know how to get started—this task has become very stressful and a big hassle to you. Sound familiar?

Here are three simple steps on how to prepare to write a good employee’s evaluation without any hassles. The key to writing a good employee evaluation is in the preparation and planning.

– Start with the Job Description. If there isn’t one, create one. Meet with each employee individually to review and answer questions pertaining to their job description on or near their first date of hire, transfer or promotion to your department. Make sure the employee understands his or her essential duties, job requirements and expectations in his or her role.

– Create a file for each employee that reports directly to you. This file folder is commonly called a “working file”; completely separate from a primary or main employee file. During the review period, you should document the employee’s performance. Example: If the employee exceeds expectation for a writing assignment, document this information in the employee’s working file–make sure you include the date, the project name and your evaluation rating (“good”, “excellent” or “outstanding”). If you determine areas of weakness, you should document this information as well.

– Meet and provide feedback with the employee throughout the performance evaluation period. If the performance evaluation period is initially 90 days, and then annually, you should meet with the employee routinely during these review periods to answer questions and address any concerns. As a reminder, the written evaluation is only the end of an ongoing process—not a finish line. An effective Performance Evaluation system is a constant, interactive, year long process. It is recommended that you can set regular 10 – 15 minute “Employee Development Meetings”, also known as one-to-one, weekly, bi-weekly or monthly.

As a manager it is your responsibility to make sure your employees are successful in their roles. Great leaders help other people succeed. You may determine in your evaluation that you can help improve an employee’s performance rating from “good” to “excellent” by providing mentoring, training and/or development. In doing so, this is a win-win situation for you, the employee, your department and the organization.

Communication and documentation throughout the employee’s performance evaluation periods, eliminates the need to rush at the last hour gathering information about your employee’s performance. Preparation throughout the year, allows you to be well organized and effective at writing a good performance evaluation. You have plenty of information to support your rating of the employee’s performance, you can determine if mentoring and training is needed, and if the employee and the job are a good fit. In other words, there are no surprises for you, the organization or the employee—it is a hassle free process!

Click the link to view our recent blog: Compliance Plans – A Worthwhile Investment or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance and benefits.

Digital Forensics – A Great HR Resource

April 9, 2015/in Blog/by Inspiring HR

By: Patrick Siewert, Owner & Lead Forensic Examiner, Professional Digital Forensic Consulting, LLC

If you normally follow this blog, you know Infiniti HR’s line of business and the employee management services they offer to small business owners. My line of work and expertise in digital forensics is somewhat different. Some would say vastly different. This blog is intended to shed light on how digital forensics can benefit the HR systems and processes any business has in place. My goal is to help bridge the gap between human resources and IT.

Full disclosure: I am not an IT professional. I’m a retired detective. However, I had the fortunate experience of bridging the gap between the legal community and IT as a digital forensic investigator for a number of years. gained some excellent training and experience in that role.

What is digital forensics? In a nutshell, we look at data in the purest form possible to try and determine if an incident has (or has not) taken place involving a computer, smart phone, tablet, etc. And, if evidence exists of an incident, we compile that data and present it in a format the helps “put the pieces of the puzzle together”. In law enforcement, we would use this skill set for any number of crimes ranging from embezzlement to child exploitation. In the business world, a digital forensic expert may be used to help solidify a case for disciplinary action involving misuse of company computers or to help prove that a former employee stole intellectual property before leaving and going to work for a competitor.

Small-to-medium sized businesses often have executives and managers who wear multiple hats. In fact, it’s not uncommon for a smaller startup to have one person who deals with account management, IT and human resources. And while companies such as this may not have the full-time staffing to deal with issues like information security, misuse of company networks, data breaches or intellectual property theft, rest assured these issues are ongoing within companies at all levels.

What tends to be most lacking when facing an information security breach is the policy in place prior to an incident. I urge every company to get the proper employee management tools, such as new hire agreements and a handbook in place, to minimize risk as much as possible. After all, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.

But what happens when an incident takes place? For example, let’s say the Acme Construction Company has an office employee who is using his down time to gamble online on the company computer. Don’t laugh! Things like this happen all the time). The manager at Acme discovers the employee is engaged in this activity and decides it is against his company policy and culture and wants to terminate the employee. But, there may be an underlying challenge to consider: How does Acme minimize the risk of the soon to be ex-employee challenging the company for wrongdoing (aka legal challenge/lawsuit)? Should an HR decision maker call in the IT gurus to help prove the case? Sounds like an HR issue, right? Well, it’s not that simple and may require a more global approach.

IT and information security professionals often don’t have the requisite training and expertise to conduct these types of investigations while preserving the evidence. This is the point at which Acme should call in a digital forensic examiner to help build the case against the employee. Through incorporation of best practices, a digital forensics specialist can acquire the data on the employee’s work station and bring that data back to a lab to conduct a thorough examination. This will likely include internet history, email history, document history and even deleted data. Yes, deleted data! This can help a company illustrate how long the activity has been ongoing and pinpoint exactly how much company time has been spent on the activity. Be warned. A digital forensics specialist may not always find what you want them to. Sometimes a thorough investigation may prove there is no issue at all.

This illustration is very basic and, as you can imagine, could get much more complicated if the issue involves embezzlement, hacking or theft of intellectual property. Regardless of the scope of the incident, companies of all sizes need to bear in mind three basic principles when dealing with suspected misuse of digital assets,

Make sure your company has a signed Acceptable Use Policy for all company-owned computers, cell phones, tablets, etc. for all employees. This “ounce of prevention” goes a long way toward preventing litigation down the road after disciplinary action takes place (including termination).Template policies, which can be customized further specific to your own business, are available through many HR professionals.
As soon as wrongdoing is suspected, isolate the digital media (computer, tablet, smart phone, etc.) involved in the incident and lock it down as much as practicable. Ideally, if a work station at an employee’s desk is suspected, request that IT seize, secure and replace the workstation after hours when the employee is not present. Seek HR guidance on what steps are necessary to follow when an employee inquires as to why the workstation has changed or is being investigated.
Don’t assume your IT staff knows how to retrieve digital evidence in an acceptable format for presentation at an administrative hearing, deposition or court hearing. Evidence-based practices are always the best option for seizure and collection of data that may be used in later proceedings.

In summary, lock down the suspected device(s), call in a digital forensic professional and don’t try to conduct your own examination. The digital forensic expert offers the benefit of impartiality, which you may not be operating under as a manager or owner of a company who just discovered your employee is stealing from you.

Seems a little overboard? Not when you consider that when employees get disciplined or terminated, emotions begin to factor in and that’s when lawsuits and labor complaints are filed. Will your mind be more at ease if you take all the appropriate steps available before discipline or termination? As opposed to sitting in a deposition wishing that you had?

The name of the game is to minimize risk. That takes teamwork! HR, IT and a digital forensic expert can work in concert to help respond more effectively, should some form of an information security breach occur.

Click the link to view our recent blog: Increase Profits Through Appreciation or check back for more on human resources, payroll, insurance and benefits.

New Hire Onboarding That Motivates

October 3, 2013/in Blog/by Mindy Flanigan

Contractor Dan; he’s beyond frustrated. More than half of the employees he has hired in the last year have been let go – most of them in the first 90 days. Yikes! If a terminated employee costs the company at least one times the position’s annual salary, that’s a big loss to the P&L.

So, what’s gone wrong here? Contractor Dan decided to ask us before he was ready to hire his third office manager in three years. As we discussed his hiring process, we only noticed a few missteps. For the most part, Contractor Dan had an effective hiring process in place. He looked and listened for red flags, asked good behavior-based interview questions and even followed through with reference checks.

During this discovery period, Contractor Dan frequently told us that everyone he fired “didn’t get it”. They turned out to not be nearly as motivated post-hire as they were pre-hire. We wondered, what “didn’t they get”? Then the ah-ha moment.

Engagement! Yes, that is an HR buzz word these days. What does it mean to the average small business owner? Involvement. If you want passionate employees, who work with a purpose, get them involved. How? Does your new hire onboarding process:

Fully educate your employees on the company, its mission, its values and how it makes money? If your employees don’t know how the company earns revenue, will they understand how they contribute?
Outline for your employees where they fit in? Yes, even small businesses should have an organizational chart. It isn’t meant to demonstrate a chain of command; it is a visual tool for new employees to see all the pieces of the puzzle.
Illustrate how essential duties of a job tie to business success. If you are hiring an office manager, do they understand why they are to limit access to postage or petty cash? Don’t assume they understand how much cost containment can positively affect the business.
Communicate what you expect? Not output! What you expect in terms of the soft skills and behaviors. How to interact with peers and customers, for example? That you expect everyone to work with a sense or urgency?

Contractor Dan revealed that he was using somewhat of a sink or swim model for new hire onboarding. New employees were given an employee handbook and a non-disclosure to sign. After that, they needed to work! Before you do that, put yourself in their shoes. How would you feel about taking incoming calls before you understood who the customers were and how the company makes money. Remember, new employees aren’t mind readers. Provide examples and lead by example.

Contractor Dan is giving a SIMPLE new hire onboarding process a test run. It consists of a ‘welcome new employee powerpoint’, an orientation and training schedule to follow, organizational chart review, job description review, employee handbook script and a 90 day performance review template. ALL of these documents are designed to get new employees to ask questions and participate in their development, so they can stay involved, engaged and motivated.

When new employees swim, rather than sink, you’ve got your ROI.

Click the link to view our recent blog: HR Due Diligence When Buying a Franchise or check back next week for more on human resources, payroll, insurance and benefits.

Source: http://inspiringhr.com/new-hire-onboarding-that-motivates.html

The ROI of an Employee Handbook: Does My Company Really Need One?

July 24, 2013/in Blog/by Mindy Flanigan

As the business owner, you probably know the basic policies and practices you want included in an employee handbook so that current and future employees follow. But do you know what labor laws you are required to comply with, and what optional policies might benefit your organization? As a national professional employer organization (PEO), one of the most common questions we get asked by small business owners and clients is how much does an employee handbook cost. In short, the answer is that it depends. Books or software can run anywhere from $50 to $100, and then you must decide whether to do the work yourself or delegate to an administrator who may or may not know appropriate content for the handbook.

Several often ask if it would be more efficient or effective to hire a consultant to aid in the process of creating an employee handbook. Experienced human resources consultants run from $80 to $120 per hour, and legal counsel costs can tend to run much higher than that. So, is the cost worth it? YES! Here is why.

Time is Money

First, let’s evaluate how much your time is worth. On average, it is likely that your time or that of other senior managers is worth at least $100 per hour. You and these other senior managers likely handle day-to-day employee questions and spend time focusing on revenue generating activities such as sales or business development. So if you spend just 15 minutes, four times a month answering the same company policy questions over and over, you are losing $100 a month or $1,200 a year. Not to mention diverting attention away from generating more revenue for your business. To avoid this, simply invest in getting an employee handbook created so the answer to these questions can easily be found and accessed. While an employee handbook project may initially cost $800, in just one year (in this scenario), you would save $400.

Consistency and Accountability

There is no better way to create an equitable, non-discriminatory organization where employees are held accountable for their conduct and performance, than through the implementation of a compliant and thorough employee handbook. It clearly informs your employees of the rules and provides a roadmap for managers and supervisors on how to handle policy violations, performance concerns and other employee management challenges. This roadmap will save you time and money; allowing you to comfortably delegate to your supervisors. Without an employee handbook in place, it is likely that you would be called on to address an employee management concern. Perhaps this occurs just once a month for a 30 minute session. But wouldn’t you rather save the $600 of your time for more productive activities?

Wage and Hour Guidelines – Cost of Overtime

Do you have hourly employees who are bleeding you dry in unnecessary overtime? Do you have to pay them if the overtime wasn’t approved? While the answer is yes, why not let a policy in your employee handbook address how to handle the matter? The compensation section of your handbook should not only include paycheck and payday information, but also a very clear policy on non-exempt overtime and that supervisor approval is required before working overtime. If an employee continues to violate that policy, it is grounds for corrective action–including termination–if repeated.

Employee Conduct and Performance

Did you make a bad hiring decision? Has a complaint about harassment or a hostile work environment landed on your desk? Whatever the challenge, don’t delay in correcting the situation and taking appropriate action. An employee handbook should always include a section on standards of conduct, clearly state zero tolerance in regard to harassment and outline your right as an employer to correct the situation with the appropriate disciplinary action–up to and including–termination. Let an employee handbook give you peace of mind that you can trust your supervisors to handle any type of misconduct properly. A charge of discriminatory treatment from the equal employment commission or a complaint of harassment is a huge hassle and can be very expensive. The contents of your employee handbook are your best assurance and best defense that a situation has been handled in a fair, consistent and compliant manner.

Get a Signed Acknowledgement

Addressing employee misconduct or poor performance is never easy and is often dreaded and avoided by those of us who don’t like confrontation. But that underperforming employee may be costing you money; directly or indirectly. If the situation has been properly addressed, you’ll have the documentation to show for it. This will include proof that the employee handbook has a policy regarding conduct and performance and discipline, along with signed acknowledgement by the employee. If you can show both of these things and the problem hasn’t been resolved or continues, don’t be afraid to terminate. When you do decide to terminate, you don’t want the employee collecting unemployment benefits. Protect yourself from an unemployment rate increase with good documentation and a signed employee handbook acknowledgement.

In conclusion, you may also want to consider an employee handbook in order to better communicate attendance standards, update your email and internet policies, add a privacy policy, or amend your family and medical leave information to include military Leave changes. Whatever the reason, the costs of creating or updating an employee handbook are far outweighed by the return on investment.

Click the link to view our recent blog post The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA): Four Things Every Business Should Know or check back next week for more on human resources, payroll, insurance and benefits.

Original Source: http://inspiringhr.com/the-roi-of-an-employee-handbook-does-my-company-really-need-one.html