Resources

If you weren’t at #SHRM14 this past weekend, then you missed out. A torrent of thought-provoking insights on leadership, developing a smarter workforce, advancing technologies and other HR initiatives were buzzing on the conference floors and Twitter as well. With all of the excitement surrounding these new HR strategies and offerings comes a number of questions and concerns. If you found yourself overwhelmed by the amount of information you received at SHRM and you’re not sure how to navigate through it all, hopefully this post will help you to iron a few things out, specifically when it comes to switching providers.

Sustainable engagement is an ongoing process. You may be thinking, “Well, of course it is, so what’s your point?” Although the concept may seem obvious, it is something with which businesses constantly struggle. Engagement is a continuous process, not a one-and-done kind of initiative – a valuable lesson learned from shopping at warehouse retail stores.

Even in our digital age, paper remains a vital commodity for doing businesses. As an International Data Corporation study reported, “U.S.-based companies spend $25 billion to $35 billion processing (filing, storing and retrieving) paper.” Management of these documents pushes that figure up to $100 billion annually. As utilization of business data expands, companies are experimenting with alternate solutions to managing paper files.

Do you know that everything you do matters? Every move you make and every action you take matters, not only to you but to everyone that’s part of your life and organization today, tomorrow and even after you’re gone. Think about it for a while. Say someone creates a new accounting process, eliminating two tedious steps, essentially streamlining how your business operates moving forward. Wow, what an impact that would have on any business. See one single action can have a resounding impact on your company for years to come; this is known as the Butterfly Effect.

Employee wellness affects more than just medical costs. For companies, an unhealthy employee hinders office productivity. Often times these medical costs are caused by preventable and modifiable health concerns. Rather than risk losing thousands in productivity costs, promoting healthier lifestyles has shown to be advantageous for companies.

Some say performance reviews are a thing of the past; a waste of time for everyone involved. If you’re part of these naysayers then most likely you haven’t been part of a culture that embraces the year-round significance of performance reviews. Performance reviews are essential to workplace management yet often times they hold lower weight amidst a sea of projects, to-do lists, meetings and more. Supervisors tend to look at performance reviews through jaded lenses, but what they may be overlooking is the fact that effective performance management leads to improved productivity.

Oil and gas production contributes 7.5 percent of gross domestic product and supports 9.2 million jobs nationally. With a booming industry that continues to rise, it is imperative for the executives to curtail tunnel vision on profits and realign its focus on another essential element of the business: the wants and needs of employees.

With Baby Boomers on the brink of retirement, one of the impending issues facing organizations today is the ability to identify leaders. This could be partially blamed on the fact that less than half (48 percent) of UNC’s Leadership Survey respondents reported that their companies have a formal process for developing high-potential employees. Companies looking to accelerate employees to leadership positions should seriously consider developing a formal process.

It’s always tough to lose a good employee especially when it’s a member of your executive leadership team. However, over the next five years losing top talent will become nearly impossible to avoid as 20 percent or more of senior leaders will be eligible for retirement. So how do businesses move forward and what can be done to hang on to these valuable employees, even if it’s only for a little while longer?

For years now, members of the Baby Boomer generation have been running operations at major corporate entities, but recent data suggests that the workforce is changing and so too is its leadership. According to a recent Gallup poll, 31 percent of today’s workforce is approaching or reaching 61 years of age – the average age of retirement – or 65 – the traditional retirement age. With impending retirement threatening the frontlines, businesses need to prepare for new leadership to take reign. Enter Generation X.

From workplace politics to government compliance issues, businesses are presented with a slew of challenges, but one that often times goes unnoticed is the health of your workers. Did you know that the Health and Safety Executive reported around 27 million working days were lost in 2011 and 2012? Of those missed days, 22.7 million were due to work-related illness and 4.3 million were due to workplace injuries. How is a business supposed to stay in the black, improve their bottom lines and increase employee retention?

Do you know what your employees really want from your organization? You should, and it pays to find out. A 2013 Gallup study shows that companies in the top quartile for employee engagement outperform their bottom 25% competitors with: 147% higher earnings per share (no, that’s not a typo), 22% higher profitability, 21% higher productivity and 41% fewer quality defects.