HRCleanUp

Maytag Repairman--Way Harder Than It Looks!

Today, the Appliance Repair Guy came to my home to fix our ice maker that, wonder of wonders, stopped producing ice a few weeks ago.  Nice guy.  Normal service call.  Ended up turning the water on that had been mysteriously turned off...and I don't have children...so immediately blamed the housekeeper. 

The repair job, however has nothing to do with this post.  This post is about the fact that in my conversation with the Appliance Repair Guy, I learned about what it is like to work in what is considered a "High Risk" territory.  Because my home lies in the same zip code as several housing projects we get a "High Risk:" designation.  My guy started to share some stories with me.  And, I shall share them with you.

It is not uncommon for at-home moms to offer sex in exchange for a refrigerator repair--with their children present.

Always take the stairs in a housing project...it is much safer than an elevator.

Be careful not to get caught in any type of gun crossfire (it has happened to him twice).

Carry a wrench at the top of your bag.  It may save your life.

Pay attention to where the knives are in the kitchen.  If he get's a bad "vibe" he won't turn his back to you.

When you work in "High Risk" neighborhoods, you get to know the "ladies of the evening" and most of them are pretty nice.  He buys them a juice if they are in front of Dunkin' Donuts and it looks like they had a bad night--they occasionally buy him a juice, too.

Finally, The Appliance Company equips him a Bullet Proof Vest.  He knocked on it.  It was there.

It got me thinking about how dangerous some jobs really are when they involve going into people's homes.  You see the "hoarders" on Bravo, the junkies in all the movies, and the crazies on the bus.  We observe but we rarely participate.  These people enter their homes. They fix their appliances/cable TV/toilet, etc., and then ask for money.  You can see how it can get dangerous quickly.

So, take my advice, be nice.  Get out of their way.  Let them do their job.  Make the visit to your home normal, non-threatening, even pleasant.  Don't complain about the charge. 

THEY EARN EVERY PENNY OF IT. 

Dennis Williams

I had the pleasure of meeting Dennis Williams when I attended "bootcamp" at Profiles International almost three years ago.  We were both "newbies" just getting the hang of what it means to consult um, I mean, sell assessment tests.  We both knew the value.  We both understood how the implementation of these tools could actually drive organizational change.

What we didn't know was how damn darn hard it was going to be.

Oh, and we had no idea the economy would come crashing down like a firestorm all around us.

And perhaps that is what has made it fun (aside from the amazing Mexican Food restaurant that we found near the hotel right along I-35 in Waco, Texas).  In any event, Dennis and I have remained friends ever since we met at bootcamp and I think we've had a similar ride...driven by excitement, fear, and a need to support the people we love.  Here we both are, three years later, happy to in the place where we are.

Read Dennis' blog today and see if it doesn't shed a new perspective for you.  And who says that Networking doesn't pay off...especially when your new Networking friend becomes your friend.

http://denniskwilliams.wordpress.com/

 

A Student's Point-of-View

HRM: Human Role Model?

Human Resources has the reputation of being the role model for employees. This
is primarily because it is the department that oversees policies regarding dress code,
attendance, ethics, workplace conduct, and many others. They should embody the model of a good employee, or one would think. That’s what I thought before I started in Human Resources.

This is my first job in my HR career. I had an idea of what Human Resources entailed from my undergrad coursework. However, I was extremely surprised how my human resources manager acts, and continues to act. Especially as a manager, you would think that she would be more professional. She comes in late every day. I expect her to arrive to work anytime between 10 and 11. Per corporate guidelines, we allow for a flexible schedule start time can vary between 7 and 9:30, depending upon department and project needs. When she does have a meeting scheduled at 10 she gets in around 9:58. She doesn’t have time to even boot up her computer most days. In addition when she arrives in the early meetings (sometimes 5 or 10 minutes late) she always “huffs” and it is very disruptive to the meeting that has already been started. I also think that many days she leaves around 5 or 5:30, based on emails that I receive. In addition, she does not dress professionally. She looks disheveled and is not dressed what I deem appropriate for a manager. It has gotten to the point that the HR department is a considered, kind of a joke at my location.

She has some experience, but I do a majority of the work. Every time I go into her office she is either typing away a personal email or sitting blankly at the computer screen. Over the summer I caught her reading books in her office (not on lunch), when I was contemplating working overtime in order to get all the work done that needed to get done.

How is it that a manager can act like this and get away with not representing the company properly and not doing her fair share of work? Can I make her salary, have those hours, and do less? Where do I sign up?

A Student's Point-of-View

You’ve Been End Dated
By: Victoria Enos

Last Wednesday I was told that my position would be eliminated as of the end of the month.  This was not a shock to me because I’ve actually been expecting it to happen for over a year based on the direction the company is choosing to go in.  I was mentally prepared for this to happen so the meeting with the HR Generalist was a breeze for her I’m sure, but it left me wanting more from my HR Generalist.

In the package outlining what the severance would be it did not speak to a quarterly bonus that my department is entitled to.  This quarterly bonus is potentially a big portion of my pay.  I asked if we would be entitled to a pro-rated amount and was told she would have to look into it (thankfully she got back to me, a week later, and let me know that we are entitled to it!).  I would have thought that all aspects of pay would have been worked out ahead of time and that it would have been in the package.  I also would have hoped for a quicker turnaround time on the response…I guess I’m not a priority now that I am on my way out the door.

Secondly upon getting back to my cubicle and reading through the package I noticed a discrepancy in the number of weeks in which I would be getting severance.  The document states that I am entitled to a severance package equal to twelve weeks of pay, but where the calculation is actually done out it is only based off of eleven weeks, two weeks for every year I’ve been with the company.  Depending on how long my teammates have been with the company this could be a much larger discrepancy for them.  So off I went again to see the HR Generalist to ask about this, hoping that she would say I would get another week of severance, but that wasn’t the case.  The answer I got was “this must be a typo, you know there is a form drafted up for these that they plug information into and the twelve must have been saved in the template from the last package they put together.”  REALLY????  That made me feel special!  Basically she was telling me that the person who put this together couldn’t be bothered to look it over and make sure it was correct and that the details matched up?  Personally I think when dealing with material that is this sensitive HR should triple check it before handing it out to the employee.

Next time you are in the position of putting together a severance package or delivering one make sure to check over the information.  There is nothing more frustrating for an employee than to have incorrect or conflicting information provided to them.  This is a stressful situation for your employees and as their HR Representative you should do everything in your power to make the process as seamless as possible.  And lastly, don’t say we’ve been end dated, I’m not sour milk!

A Student's Point-of-View

I like to give my student's the opportunity to publish their point-of-view.  This post comes from Carol O' Regan.

As someone considering a career in training and development, I am concerned that in many companies, HR professionals do not embrace training and development as a strategic initiative.The training and development programs are not linked to performance management nor are metrics used to demonstrate ROI. There are key issues that quantitatively prove the value of the programs.

It is HR’s responsibility to ensure that they are used accurately and regularly. A myriad of research exists that confirms training and development to be an effective way for a company to optimize its workforce. Training engages employees by unlocking their potential and enabling them to perform at higher levels. Employees with improved skill sets benefit by advancing to higher-level positions or receiving a higher rate of compensation The company benefits by employing a more committed workforce which leads to better retention rates, better quality products, better customer service and higher productivity, all resulting in greater profits These programs enable employees to manage their own careers by identifying skills needed for different career paths.

A database of employees’ skills enables the staffing team to effectively plan and use available talent and to search outside the company for talent if need be Many companies had training and development programs in place prior to the economic downturn and enjoyed these benefits. However, all programs did not survive companies’ cost-cutting measures. During difficult times, it is easy for senior management to cut or limit programs that have not previously been proven to add value to the bottom line.

Hopefully, HR professionals will learn from this experience and take this opportunity to be more strategic and to document and present data to senior management highlighting how the existing research is validated within their own company. It is only when HR is able to show that these programs are a valued part of the system, that they will remain intact and work strategically to positively affect the company’s bottom line.

I was recently the guest writer on a great blog called "The Business Women's Finishing School and Social Club". I wrote about different types of job seekers. Come on, check it out!

http://businessfinishingschool.blogspot.com/

Five mistakes to avoid when firing an employee - Dayton Business Journal:

I was quoted in the Dayton Business Journal!  Shout out to Robin for finding it!

Five mistakes to avoid when firing an employee - Dayton Business Journal:.

Mike Smith's Job Hunt

I thought I might help MIke out, through my blog, and see if I get him on the road to a new job.  We all know how hard job searching is especially when we're good at a lot of things and not quite sure what we want to do next.  I'm a huge advocate of exploration--God knows I've done my fair share--but there are some methodologies that seem to work better than others.

First, our friend Mike isn't really interested in EVERY job out there.  There are bound to be some that he knows he isn't going to want to do.  Let's create this list so we don't waste any time in those areas.  Second, is relocation an option?  If not, let's not bother.  No intention of moving to Nebraska no matter how good the job is--then don't even consider Nebraska. Third, are there some general interest areas?  If so, let's start exploring them.

I worked with a job seeker who thought he wanted to do programming within the Microsoft Sharepoint platform.  He was very determined and convinced that was his future.  Then I asked two key questions:

1. Have you ever spoken to a Sharepoint developer?
2. Have you ever researched what type of education you need to be a Sharepoint developer?

The answer to both questions was "no".  And now we have a starting spot.

So, Mike, start talking to people, in person, and find out about interesting jobs at interesting companies.  You'll be buying a lot of coffee so fill up your Starbucks card.  Ask people about their jobs and let them talk.  Most people love to talk about themselves and rarely have the opportunity to tell you about their work.  When there is passion, you'll know it.  When the work, company, or the person gets you going on the inside you'll start to narrow your list even further.

Mike Smith's Job Hunt

I recently received this email:

Sent: Friday, October 2, 2009 2:52:59 PM

Subject:  Mike Smith's job hunt

Hi Everyone, Mike is looking to make a change in his career and is open to all sorts of opportunities. If you hear of or know of something that might be worth him exploring please let us know! He is currently applying for lots of different jobs and posting his resume on a number of websites. Also, he is planning on starting a part time MBA program with a concentration in Marketing this January. He is incredibly smart, personable and hardworking. He could learn to do anything very quickly. No pressure- just thought I would get the word out in case someone has an idea for him. I am attaching his resume here. Thanks in advance for any leads,

Sincerely

Mike's Wife

PS I got many of your email addresses from facebook :)

Here are my thoughts....

1. Can't Mike conduct his own job search?
2. Doesn't Mike have some idea of what he might like to do?
3. Hey, how about starting with some networking first...
4. Am I supposed to search Monster for his next position and let you know what I find?
5. How exciting about the MBA.  Will he be leaving the job I recommended him for as soon as it is done?
6. Really?

Check out my site www.CareerDoctor911.com and take control of YOUR OWN career search.

To Hyatt or Not to Hyatt

 
That is the question here in Boston.  So, let me tell you a story.  The Hyatt Hotel in its attempt to, I'm sure, save money recently outsourced all of its housekeeping staff.  But that isn't really the story here.  I am all for outsourcing when it makes sense but I'm more familiar with white collar outsourcing than I am with blue collar outsourcing.  This was downright mean outsourcing.

Click here if you want more details

In any event, the management of the hotels told the housekeepers that they were training new workers to fill in for vacations and to reduce overtime.  The staff, of course, was more than happy to train the relief workers and they understood that there would be less overtime.

Then, the hotel fired all of the housekeepers.  Some with over 22 years of tenure.  They had dutifully trained their replacements.  The Hyatt leadership team thought this was a great idea.  Well, it didn't please the Governor of Massachusetts, the Mayor of Boston, or the Cab Drivers.  Yep, all three threatened a boycott of the hotels. 

Yes!

They Hyatt responded.  They offered the housekeepers their jobs back with the new outsourcing company at their current wage and benefit level for one year.  Then, of course, their jobs would be eliminated and the new lower paid, crappy benefits team would rule the school.

And the Hyatt was surprised when many of the housekeepers didn't take the deal.  Why?  Hmmm, it is like a slow death--just waiting for the clock to count down the days until they are finished.  Many other hotels in town were more than happy to pick up the talent.  In fact, the Hyatt housekeepers, fully trained in working in a full service business class hotel were happy to put themselves to work at the Marriott, Hilton, Westin, and the new uber hip W.

I reflect on Ted Kennedy Jr.'s speech at his father's funeral mass.  When young Ted queried his father about why he left money for the maid when she already gets paid his father reflected back to him "Teddy, making beds all day long is back breaking work.  This woman has a family to feed and life isn't easy" (I'm sure I've butchered the quote but you get the idea).  If you want to hear the eulogy.

I think Ted Kennedy said all that needed to be said.