by: Dan Cozzi



Elite HR Team's Core Value Monthly Spotlight: Leadership

This month we explore our value of Leadership. Elite HR Team values Leadership and we express its importance by using it in one of our vision statements, “Lead with passion and integrity,” and in our core values honeycomb matrix. We define leadership as, “Demonstrating the courage to be a leader and to better other leaders.”

We include courage in our expression of leadership because it critically supports a leaders effectiveness. Courage is not being fearless, but having the ability to recognize fear and act anyway.  We spent the last week thinking about our personal definitions of Leadership and this is what we came up with. 

“A person with leadership abilities has the incredible gift of shaping the future. A leader can guide their supporters to increase their knowledge and skills; making those supporters the new leaders of the future.”
- Kristy, HR Assistant

“Leadership requires leaders to risk action, based upon the leader's vision of what the future could be and by accepting some unknowns for the sake of the betterment of their followers and to accomplish their objectives.” -Dan, Excellence Manager

“Leadership is encouraging others to work together toward a common goal, making the sum greater than the parts. A true leader inspires you to want to do your best, to impress them, to live up to the potential they see in you.” - Jodi, Business Assistant

“You cannot lead without followers. Leaders must possess the unique ability to attract and retain followers, communicate the mission of the group, and to motivate the group into action. A good leader knows their limits and builds a team that compliments their weaknesses. Effective leaders develop their followers into leaders.” - Kandi, Owner & Founder

“A true leader's goals and dreams are to help others achieve their goals and dreams.”
- Michelle, HR Consultant

Leadership involves the ability to motivate others to do something extraordinary, something they would not normally do; thereby, learning something and becoming a better version of themselves.  Whether you lead by example, by motivating, by directing, or by influencing, it takes the courage to risk rejection and accept responsibility for not only your own failure, but quite possibly the failures of those you lead.

Finally, the negative formulation of risk-taking is “With great risk comes great loss.”  However, good leaders recognize and internalize the positive formulation, “With great risk comes great reward.” They have developed their ability to discount false fears and courageously accept real ones in order to act decisively for the betterment of something or someone.

How does your organization view leadership?  Are you leading in a productive way?  We want to learn from you. Let us know what your definition of leadership is by commenting below.

"Show me the money!" What do you do when your employees start asking for raises? 

The Department of Labor recently released their 2013 average salary list along with statistics compiled from the 2013 tax season. Employees have access to  median salary information for the U.S., the median salary in their industry, and even the median salary in a long list of standard job descriptions. So, how do you handle employee requests to discuss or bargain their pay?

1. Use That Number as a Starting Point. Median doesn't mean "average." Median is the number in the exact center of the list of data. That means half of the people in that position or industry in the US make less than that amount and half make more. This information can be important to have, and if you are way off, you may need to rethink how you compensate your workers. However, you can also do some homework and research salaries in your area for more relevant numbers.

2. Cost of Living Comparisons. Someone living in West Virginia is not going to make the same amount as a worker performing the same job in California and even adjacent states like Missouri and Illinois have very different minimum wages (MO is $7.35 and IL is $8.25). The trade-off for living in a cheaper state is making slightly lower wages.

3. Provide a Benefits Summary. One of our top recommendations is that businesses provide employees with a benefits summary annually. This statement shows the employee exactly how much is being spent to employ them. In addition to their salary, it would include things like health insurance, life insurance, worker's compensation, short and long term disability, and even the costs to provide coffee and sodas in the breakroom. Essentially it is an "adjusted" salary that shows not only what the business pays them in terms of salary, but the total of what the company pays to employ them.

4. Create and Distribute a Career Map. Millennials are leaving school feeling entitled to a career. They want to start out with five weeks of vacation and fully paid benefits. If you can show them their career path within your organization and possible tracks they can follow for growth and advancement, they may be more likely to stay. It can also be a helpful tool to use with more experienced workers who may not want to start from scratch in their new position.

5. Added Value with Free and Low-Cost Benefits. We are always encouraging business owners to do more for their employees, without affecting their bottom line. There are tons of strategies you can use. Find other businesses you can partner with to offer discounts. Provide the opportunity for employees to enroll in additional supplemental benefits--they assume all the cost. Offer low-cost perks like gift cards, car washes, exercise classes--anything that will help them to fit their busy life into their work schedule. Some businesses even offer concierge services to help workers get their to-do list done!

Studies have shown that compensation is not the most important thing when it comes to retaining employees. They would rather feel valued, respected, and integral to your business. Showing them their worth will help them appreciate what you do for them.

By Jodi Tahsler

When you see Sexual Harassment cases in the news, they always seem sensational and most employers probably think, "My employees know better. They would never do something like that."

 We don't like to scare people. Unfortunately, what you don't know can hurt you in the form of costly lawsuits and government fines when it comes to operating your business without competent HR function.
 
Some of the top fines that businesses can face are obvious.
 
For example, when it comes to wrongful termination, the average defense costs are $85,000, and juries typically award $500,000. Since most states practice "at-will" employment, employers think they can let an employee for any, or no, reason. And they're right, to an extent. Unfortunately, they have to be able to prove that they didn't terminate the employee for an illegal reason, which is why proper recordkeeping procedures are so important. 
 
Sexual harassment is another hot topic that's often featured in news headlines, and payouts can rise into the millions, depending on the severity of the harassment. Even though employers may encourage their staff to treat each other with respect, they are responsible for that one employee who many think it's ok to give his female employees a pat on the back(side) for a job well done. Holding Sexual Harassment & Diversity Awareness training annually can not only train staff to avoid such issues, but reflects favorably on the company in front of a judge if an issue should arise.
 
There are other fines that may not seem so obvious. You may not realize it, but if your filing system isn't compliant, you could be facing thousands of dollars in fines. In fact, the I-9 form alone, which is required for every employee, has fines of $110 to $16,000 for improperly filling out the information.
 
Negligent hiring fines can also reach into the millions. After a deliveryman attacked a customer, the employer was held liable for $2.5 million for negligently hiring and retaining the deliveryman. No job interview was conducted; no references were requested; and he was not asked to fill out a job application. It was discovered that the deliveryman had an extensive arrest record that should have raised red flags.
 
Click here to read more about non-compliance issues. Also, sign up for our FREE 5 Costly HR Mistakes to Avoid webinar on April 16. Our passion is protecting small businesses, giving them the tools they need to protect their bottom line from costly lawsuits and government fines. Click here to sign up.