Insights: Human Resources

When business owners and corporate leaders get together, it doesn’t take long for them to bring out the war stories of the difficulty of managing and retaining millennial employees.
We’ve all heard the complaints — They feel entitled to promotion regardless of the quality of their work.  They have no loyalty.  Their work ethic is sub par.  Blah.  Blah.  Blah.

As an HR professional, you know that successful employee onboarding is an essential part of any business strategy. It can improve retention rates and time-to-productivity for the organization.
It can make the difference between a happy and committed employee and one who feels no investment in the success of the business. 

 As a Human Resources professional, chances are you are drowning in the acronyms of workplace law and regulation.  ADA, COBRA, DOL, ERISA, HIPAA, FLSA, NRLA, etc. — They can add up to a big HEADACHE.  

Why do some employees seem always to get things done on time and as expected, while others struggle?  Is it in their DNA? Is it an organizational culture that condones missed deadlines so that some people do not feel the pressure to perform as well? Are incentives, like bonuses, or penalties, like losing a job, accomplishing their objectives?

The annual performance review is an excruciating ritual that has been around for a really long time, but, in 2017, it’s just not cool anymore.
It is a 20th century model that just doesn’t work for the 21st century.  Managers see them as time consuming and not always reflecting employees’ real contributions. Employees, especially millennials, can find them demeaning and unfair.
But how can we provide the feedback that is essential to an employee’s growth without a review?   And how can management gather and organize information on employee performance to use in human resources decisions?  

It has become the norm for businesses to incorporate a virtual workforce into their operations.  
Whether a company has geographically dispersed offices, hires employees or freelancers in different cities or countries, or just offers local employees the flexibility to work from home, more and more of us are having to manage remote teams.  
Results of a Gallup survey published earlier this year showed that 43 percent of employed Americans spent at least some time working remotely in 2016.