Don't trade candidate experience for recruitment efficiency

Holding your interviews by video may appear to improve the efficiency of the recruitment process, but in fact most candidates prefer more face to face contact.

The majority of candidates would rather have an in person or telephone interview to a video interview, according to research from ManpowerGroup Solutions.

Video interviews may be more efficient and time savvy but employers must be careful to not make the candidate feel uncomfortable. Research has revealed that job applicants interviewed through video conferencing come across as less likable, while those doing the hiring are viewed as less competent.

In the last 12 – 18 months video interviewing has become more common but realistically it should only be used when absolutely necessary and other options are not available, it should not be the means to an end.

Video recruiting can be useful at the beginning of the recruitment process when screening candidates but as the recruitment process progresses you should not underestimate the value of sitting with a person face to face and having a conversation with them.

In some respects, by trying to speed up the hiring process you may actually be reducing the quality of the candidates.

The research carried out by the ManpowerGroup also reveals how much the recruiter’s personality in an in-person interview influences the outcome of the hiring process.

Candidates that cannot relate to an interviewer may look elsewhere or accept an offer from a competing organisation.

A recruiter’s personality should portray the company brand, culture and values. They are the first impression a candidate gets of a company or organisation and this initial contact is absolutely crucial for a candidate to form their own opinion about whether or not they would like to work there.

Employers should utilise recruitment technology that suits their intended talent pool, tailoring their hiring approach to candidate profiles.

It is important not to view the interviewing process as a transaction. At the end of the day you are hiring a person whom you wish to embody your brand, so you must try and engage them and make them feel connected – not part of a transaction.

If your hiring someone to fill a position that may involve interacting remotely with clients or team members a video interview may give you some insight into how well a candidate may perform when they are needed to conduct a video conference.

Tips for Implementing a Performance Management System

The basic theory behind a performance management strategy is that if employees know what is expected of them, they are more likely to excel at their jobs. This is also a vital aspect of employee engagement.

By implementing a system like this you will see improved individual performance, greater employee engagement and overall better organisational performance.

Here are some keys steps to implementing a successful performance management system.

1. Clarify Objectives

An important first step is identifying some major objectives for the program and refining the need for a performance management system. What should be included within the system? You can choose to get input from your employees when trying to define the parameters of your performance management system or you can delegate it to your HR department. A good place to start is to use the definition of improving performance and satisfaction.

Some helpful things to include in a performance management system are:

• A clear company vision
• Documented and communicated core competencies
• Formal and Informal rewards which are seen as consistent and fair

2. Support of Your Managers

Once your objectives have been identified along with your expected business outcomes, you have to ensure that your managers are on board. The agreement of the senior management team is needed before any implementation steps are taken. Many systems fail because they are not seen to be included in a managers basic day to day responsibilities. Senior Managers must be seen to be actively supporting the process.

When training your managers in the implementation of a performance management system it is important that they understand:

• How much time is required to implement the system and maintain it on an ongoing basis?
• How the system works and what it will deliver if its implemented successfully
• And developing the skills necessary to carry our effective performance management often take time – more time than expected.

3. Prepare system and supporting materials and documentation
                            
Develop a process and documentation to support the system. Ensure core competencies are defined with associated behaviours and are communicated to all staff.

Included in the documentation should be:

• Review performance against the key parts of the job
• Review performance against any specific goals or objectives which have been set
• Review performance against the organisation’s core competencies if they have been defined
• Identify any learning and development needs for both short and longer term
• Allow for feedback on progress on an ongoing basis
• Ensure job descriptions are current and in a form that provides clear and measurable results required

3 Common Employment Law Questions Answered

Sometimes employment law can be difficult to comprehend. Here are three common work place situations and their legal ramifications.
 
1: DISMISSAL DUE TO ILLNESS

There are three potential areas of legal exposure:

•    unfair dismissal;
•    unlawful termination; and
•    discrimination

From time to time an employee will have to leave your employment due to long term health issues. They may decide to resign or you may have to eventually consider dismissing them. It is beneficial to consider as many ways possible to help them back to work – dismissal should be a last resort and could be deemed unfair if not managed properly.

If continued employment is no longer achievable because there are no reasonable adjustments that can be made, it may be fair for you to dismiss them.

The Fair Work Act 2009 states that an employer must not dismiss an employee because the employee is temporarily absent from work due to illness or injury.

The Fair Work Regulation 2009 provides that it is not a “temporary absence” if the employees absence from work extends for more than 3 months , or the total absences of the employee , within a 12 month period , have been more than 3 months. The employer still requires a valid reason to dismiss the employee, even if the employee has been absent on unpaid leave for three months or over.

We suggest you ask the employee to provide medical information on his capacity for work and what support he might need to return to work.

2: EVIDENCE OF ILLNESS

You can insist on employees providing evidence that would satisfy a reasonable person that they are entitled to sick leave, for example, a medical certificate or statutory declaration. That being said there is no specific timeframe as the timeframe required is “as soon as practicable”.

For this reason you should devise a written policy that stipulates that your employees provide such information within a specific timeframe. Your policy should also specify that your employees inform their manager directly of their absence (when possible), or phone their manager within a certain timeframe to explain why they cannot make it to work and when they expect to return.

3: NOTICE OF REDUNDANCY

When dismissing an employee it is necessary to give them notice. The notice commences when the employer tells the employee that they want to end the employment. If you notify them of their redundancy just before leave, the time spent on annual leave will count towards their notice period.

Real Life Case Study - End2end Health Check

In this month’s real life case study, we are talking about how the End2end Health Check can have measurable benefits to your business. I have recently been working with an event company who wanted to ensure that its’ staff are motivated to go above and beyond to deliver large event jobs.    

The first step in the process was to complete an ‘End2end Health Check’ to identify what was currently in place, what was missing and what needed to be done.  

The business has cycles where it is quiet early in the year, with its busy period covering July to December, and has recently had a number of key staff poached by a larger event company at a critical time.   Additionally, through our Health Check, we have discovered that there is a perception within the business that one employee is viewed as a ‘superstar’, however , with closer assessment of this employee’s bottom line, it became evident that the net profit this employee was bringing in to the business certainly did not warrant this status.    

After analysis of the Health Check results, it was evident that the business wasn’t properly calculating and charging for all areas of labour required in planning and delivering an event. So, we began by working with the employer to identify a complete labour cost rate incorporating all facets of planning an event.  Then we consulted each team member, and gathered feedback to accurately determine how they spent their time, and identify any previously unaccounted or incidental expenses that should in future be included in the total event cost.   

Next, we met with each event manager to review their past performance and achievements, and discuss and agree on KPI’s  for the year ahead.   Additionally, incentives were reviewed and slightly modified to reflect the new format.   

In the course of this process, the employer raised the suggestion of creating a team manager position to oversee and run the team, however, our analysis reflected that the cost wouldn’t justify the increased savings and sales.  We then considered if the use of interns could be a cost effective tool to allow the event managers time to not only deliver on their jobs, but also to gain new business. This will be further investigated and trialled, in the coming months.

We have instigated a quarterly review meeting where each event manager meets with the employer to track their performance against budgets and KPI’s,  and to discuss and identify how they can gain more time to do their roles.  Each team member brings to the meeting details of their workflows for the past quarter and in their upcoming pipeline, and additionally is asked to compile a list of the top 5 things they wish to discuss with the management, so that the conversations are two way rather than just one way.  

As a result of our process, the event managers are now able to identify where they need to spend more time and how to use their time, and the new interns, effectively.     The net profit margins are starting to improve, as the staff are more cost conscious of exactly what is involved in delivering an event, and are ensuring that this is appropriately passed on to the clients.     

All of the above has helped the employer gain a great measure of clarity and take back control of the business and staff, rather than the business controlling the employer.   The clearer you are about what is expected from your staff, the better they will understand ‘the big picture’ which will flow on to create an engaged work force who will deliver the profit expectations.

If you would like to find out more about our End2end Health Checks for your business, please contact Annette today on 02 8977 4002

Employee handbooks: what are they and does my business need one?

Employee handbooks: what are they and does my business need one? - See more at: http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/small-business-resources/managing/employee-handbooks-what-are-they-and-does-my-business-need-one-18092013.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=19466889&utm_campaign=Revolutionary%2520plan%2520to%2520rid%2520Oz%2520of%2520asbestos%2520%257C%2520Fierce%2520competition%2520in%2520taxi%2520apps#sthash.rDAvQS3E.dpuf

Employee handbooks: what are they and does my business need one? - See more at: http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/small-business-resources/managing/employee-handbooks-what-are-they-and-does-my-business-need-one-18092013.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=19466889&utm_campaign=Revolutionary%2520plan%2520to%2520rid%2520Oz%2520of%2520asbestos%2520%257C%2520Fierce%2520competition%2520in%2520taxi%2520apps#sthash.rDAvQS3E.dpuf

A recent article by Lachlan McKnight at Dynamic Business discusses Employment Handbooks and explains why you should have them!

Every business owner with employees knows they need an employment contract for each employee. Many of the same business owners don’t, however, realise that they also need an employee handbook.

An employee handbook sets out all the standards of behaviour expected of a company’s employees and the policies that apply to the company’s employees. An employer should provide a prospective employee with the employee handbook as part of their induction pack upon commencement of employment.

This article sets out some of the important issues an employee handbook should cover, explain why every business needs one and discusses how an employee handbook interacts with an employment contract.

Why do I need an employee handbook?

An employment contract sets out the most important terms under which an employee is employed, including pay conditions, leave conditions, non-compete issues and the like. It is, however, impossible to cover absolutely all the policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices of a company in an employment contract.

You would be using an overly cumbersome contract, and every time you wanted to change your company’s internal policies as they related to employment you’d have to change every employment contract in the company. This would obviously waste a lot of time.

A cost effective solution is to provide your employees with an employee handbook, which sets out all of the above mentioned polices, rules, regulations, procedures and practice of the company.

What should be included in an employee handbook?

There’s a wide range of policies and procedures that should be included in your employee handbook. The most important of these are set out below:

    Dress Code and Personal Appearance Policy
    Attendance and Punctuality Policy
    Annual, Personal/Carer, Parental, Jury (or Community Service) and Long Service Leave Policies
    Email and Internet Use Policies
    Equal Opportunity Policy
    Bullying, Discrimination and Harassment Policy
    Complaint Procedures
    Disputes, Complaints and Grievances Policy
    Workplace Health and Safety Policy
    Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking Policies
    Disciplinary Policy

Each individual business should also include further company or industry specific policies in its employee handbook. A good contract or employment lawyer will be able to advise on the insertion of additional clauses.

How should an employment contract and employee handbook work together?

It’s a relatively simple job to make sure your employee handbook works in conjunction with your employment contracts. Simply ensure that each employment contract contains a clause which requires the employee to agree to obey and comply with all the company’s policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices as set out in the employee handbook.

Obeying those policies therefore becomes one of the employee’s employment obligations. This obviously works both ways; as an employer it’s also your responsibility to comply with the policies set out in the employee handbook.

- See more at: the Dynamic Business website

Every business owner with employees knows they need an employment contract for each employee. Many of the same business owners don’t, however, realise that they also need an employee handbook.

An employee handbook sets out all the standards of behaviour expected of a company’s employees and the policies that apply to the company’s employees. An employer should provide a prospective employee with the employee handbook as part of their induction pack upon commencement of employment.

This article sets out some of the important issues an employee handbook should cover, explain why every business needs one and discusses how an employee handbook interacts with an employment contract.

Why do I need an employee handbook?

An employment contract sets out the most important terms under which an employee is employed, including pay conditions, leave conditions, non-compete issues and the like. It is, however, impossible to cover absolutely all the policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices of a company in an employment contract.

You would be using an overly cumbersome contract, and every time you wanted to change your company’s internal policies as they related to employment you’d have to change every employment contract in the company. This would obviously waste a lot of time.

A cost effective solution is to provide your employees with an employee handbook, which sets out all of the above mentioned polices, rules, regulations, procedures and practice of the company.

What should be included in an employee handbook?

There’s a wide range of policies and procedures that should be included in your employee handbook. The most important of these are set out below:

• Dress Code and Personal Appearance Policy
• Attendance and Punctuality Policy
• Annual, Personal/Carer, Parental, Jury (or Community Service) and Long Service Leave Policies
• Email and Internet Use Policies
• Equal Opportunity Policy
• Bullying, Discrimination and Harassment Policy
• Complaint Procedures
• Disputes, Complaints and Grievances Policy
• Workplace Health and Safety Policy
• Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking Policies
• Disciplinary Policy

Each individual business should also include further company or industry specific policies in its employee handbook. A good contract or employment lawyer will be able to advise on the insertion of additional clauses.

How should an employment contract and employee handbook work together?

It’s a relatively simple job to make sure your employee handbook works in conjunction with your employment contracts. Simply ensure that each employment contract contains a clause which requires the employee to agree to obey and comply with all the company’s policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices as set out in the employee handbook.

Obeying those policies therefore becomes one of the employee’s employment obligations. This obviously works both ways; as an employer it’s also your responsibility to comply with the policies set out in the employee handbook.

- See more at: http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/small-business-resources/managing/employee-handbooks-what-are-they-and-does-my-business-need-one-18092013.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=19466889&utm_campaign=Revolutionary%2520plan%2520to%2520rid%2520Oz%2520of%2520asbestos%2520%257C%2520Fierce%2520competition%2520in%2520taxi%2520apps#sthash.rDAvQS3E.dpuf

Every business owner with employees knows they need an employment contract for each employee. Many of the same business owners don’t, however, realise that they also need an employee handbook.

An employee handbook sets out all the standards of behaviour expected of a company’s employees and the policies that apply to the company’s employees. An employer should provide a prospective employee with the employee handbook as part of their induction pack upon commencement of employment.

This article sets out some of the important issues an employee handbook should cover, explain why every business needs one and discusses how an employee handbook interacts with an employment contract.

Why do I need an employee handbook?

An employment contract sets out the most important terms under which an employee is employed, including pay conditions, leave conditions, non-compete issues and the like. It is, however, impossible to cover absolutely all the policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices of a company in an employment contract.

You would be using an overly cumbersome contract, and every time you wanted to change your company’s internal policies as they related to employment you’d have to change every employment contract in the company. This would obviously waste a lot of time.

A cost effective solution is to provide your employees with an employee handbook, which sets out all of the above mentioned polices, rules, regulations, procedures and practice of the company.

What should be included in an employee handbook?

There’s a wide range of policies and procedures that should be included in your employee handbook. The most important of these are set out below:

• Dress Code and Personal Appearance Policy
• Attendance and Punctuality Policy
• Annual, Personal/Carer, Parental, Jury (or Community Service) and Long Service Leave Policies
• Email and Internet Use Policies
• Equal Opportunity Policy
• Bullying, Discrimination and Harassment Policy
• Complaint Procedures
• Disputes, Complaints and Grievances Policy
• Workplace Health and Safety Policy
• Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking Policies
• Disciplinary Policy

Each individual business should also include further company or industry specific policies in its employee handbook. A good contract or employment lawyer will be able to advise on the insertion of additional clauses.

How should an employment contract and employee handbook work together?

It’s a relatively simple job to make sure your employee handbook works in conjunction with your employment contracts. Simply ensure that each employment contract contains a clause which requires the employee to agree to obey and comply with all the company’s policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices as set out in the employee handbook.

Obeying those policies therefore becomes one of the employee’s employment obligations. This obviously works both ways; as an employer it’s also your responsibility to comply with the policies set out in the employee handbook.

- See more at: http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/small-business-resources/managing/employee-handbooks-what-are-they-and-does-my-business-need-one-18092013.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=19466889&utm_campaign=Revolutionary%2520plan%2520to%2520rid%2520Oz%2520of%2520asbestos%2520%257C%2520Fierce%2520competition%2520in%2520taxi%2520apps#sthash.rDAvQS3E.dpuf

Every business owner with employees knows they need an employment contract for each employee. Many of the same business owners don’t, however, realise that they also need an employee handbook.

An employee handbook sets out all the standards of behaviour expected of a company’s employees and the policies that apply to the company’s employees. An employer should provide a prospective employee with the employee handbook as part of their induction pack upon commencement of employment.

This article sets out some of the important issues an employee handbook should cover, explain why every business needs one and discusses how an employee handbook interacts with an employment contract.

Why do I need an employee handbook?

An employment contract sets out the most important terms under which an employee is employed, including pay conditions, leave conditions, non-compete issues and the like. It is, however, impossible to cover absolutely all the policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices of a company in an employment contract.

You would be using an overly cumbersome contract, and every time you wanted to change your company’s internal policies as they related to employment you’d have to change every employment contract in the company. This would obviously waste a lot of time.

A cost effective solution is to provide your employees with an employee handbook, which sets out all of the above mentioned polices, rules, regulations, procedures and practice of the company.

What should be included in an employee handbook?

There’s a wide range of policies and procedures that should be included in your employee handbook. The most important of these are set out below:

• Dress Code and Personal Appearance Policy
• Attendance and Punctuality Policy
• Annual, Personal/Carer, Parental, Jury (or Community Service) and Long Service Leave Policies
• Email and Internet Use Policies
• Equal Opportunity Policy
• Bullying, Discrimination and Harassment Policy
• Complaint Procedures
• Disputes, Complaints and Grievances Policy
• Workplace Health and Safety Policy
• Alcohol, Drugs and Smoking Policies
• Disciplinary Policy

Each individual business should also include further company or industry specific policies in its employee handbook. A good contract or employment lawyer will be able to advise on the insertion of additional clauses.

How should an employment contract and employee handbook work together?

It’s a relatively simple job to make sure your employee handbook works in conjunction with your employment contracts. Simply ensure that each employment contract contains a clause which requires the employee to agree to obey and comply with all the company’s policies, rules, regulations, procedures and practices as set out in the employee handbook.

Obeying those policies therefore becomes one of the employee’s employment obligations. This obviously works both ways; as an employer it’s also your responsibility to comply with the policies set out in the employee handbook.

- See more at: http://www.dynamicbusiness.com.au/small-business-resources/managing/employee-handbooks-what-are-they-and-does-my-business-need-one-18092013.html?utm_source=streamsend&utm_medium=email&utm_content=19466889&utm_campaign=Revolutionary%2520plan%2520to%2520rid%2520Oz%2520of%2520asbestos%2520%257C%2520Fierce%2520competition%2520in%2520taxi%2520apps#sthash.rDAvQS3E.dpuf

Contractor or Employee? Tips for Employing Contractors

Engaging contingent labour purely to save costs is fraught with risks, so employers should ensure they use contractors for the "right" reasons, and take adequate steps to protect themselves against potential claims. For some employers, they can face a significant risk of being deemed the "employer" of a contractor if care is not exercised.  

 

Of concern to many businesses is being found liable for entitlements associated with employment, including annual leave, superannuation and personal leave, along with exposure to unfair dismissal laws, and longer notice periods.
It doesn't matter whether your business has explicitly engaged a worker as a contractor, the law will disregard that if the nature of the relationship otherwise bears the features of an employment relationship.

To minimise risks in this area it is recommended  to ensure that contractors are engaged "for the right reasons. One of the "wrong" reasons is to save on rates of pay, a common example of this is the engagement of contract cleaners. Contract cleaners have specific minimum rates of pay under applicable modern awards . There have been businesses found attempting to save money by engaging their cleaners as contractors, so as to avoid the minimum hourly rates of pay under awards. 

Another “wrong” reason is simply because ‘that's what the worker wants’. It can be attractive from a taxation view to be engaged as a contractor, as opposed to an employee, but a worker who at the commencement of a relationship requests to be regarded as a contractor, may change their mind at a later date and  attempt to subsequently claim the entitlements associated with permanent employment.

Employers should always record the nature of engagement in a ‘solid’ contract that sets out and provides evidence in relation to why it is a contractor arrangement as opposed to any other sort of arrangement, and details of how the contract came about.

Another critical mistake that businesses can make in written contracts is to use the word 'employment' or 'employ' when they're talking about someone who they've deemed to be a contractor. A business that engages contract labour is not an ‘employer’; they are a ‘principal’. Someone who works under those arrangements is ‘engaged’, not ‘employed’, and not an ‘employee’;  they are a ‘contractor’.  Inadvertent use of the wrong terminology can cause issues should the matter be investigated.

Further tips for minimising liability include:

• Avoid giving contractors entitlements associated with an employment relationship such as 4 weeks annual paid leave. This is an employment entitlements and can cause the relationship to look like an employment relationship.
• Try to avoid specifying an hourly rate, as being paid an hourly rate is regarded to be consistent with being an employee
• Avoid long-term arrangements, as when an arrangement continues for several years, and that work is of a sort that you would get from an employee then you could wind up with the types of liabilities associated with employment
• Always review the arrangement on a regular basis – there is no ‘set’  amount of time when a contracting arrangement should be reviewed, but reviews should take place.

Managing High employee sick leave

Real Life Case Study - Managing High Employee Sick Leave

In our latest December newsletter we were excited to add a new section -  a real life case study of an End2end Business Solutions success story.

Managing High employee sick leave

I am currently working with a client who has an employee who is constantly taking sick leave and obtaining doctors certificates.  The employee is part of an administrative team who all share the business' administrative tasks.  In addition to having high sick leave, the employee isn’t a team player, only completes the bare minimum of work and the work is of poor quality.  Left unchecked, this has caused angst and low morale with the other workers.    Initially I thought this was a training issue, however, I decided to investigate the sick leave records to determine if I could find a pattern.   Sure enough, this part-time employee would fall sick on the last 2 days of a period, often just before long weekends or end of month when it was busy, creating a week's leave regularly for themselves. 

My next step was to organise a meeting with the employee to present my findings and gain input from them on how this situation could be satisfactorily resolved, with the ultimate aim of the employee taking ownership of the medical condition instead of making it a problem for the employer.   In this meeting I found that the employee needed to work, but was not completely happy in this job. 

The solution has been that the employee will be returning to the doctor to have the medical condition managed properly and action taken.  The worker is also working to make up for time lost and help their fellow team members.  The final step will be to get the employee feeling engaged as part of the team and not as though it is a chore to be at the employer.   Regular communication with this employee has helped in letting the employee know that someone is aware and is ready to help. 

As an employer, don’t leave high sick leave unchecked, there may not always be a pattern, however, it is important to address it with the employee by offering to help solve the issue they may have, and getting the employee to take ownership of the problem.   If it is an attitude problem that is causing the high absence level, work to find out what the underlying issue is and take steps to re-engage the employee.