“I hope I made the right decision.”
“What was that person’s name again?”
“Where will I sit?”
“Will I be able to make friends?”
“What should I wear?”
“I really want to make a good impression.”
Anyone who has started a new job knows what it feels like to be the “new person.”
As managers, we sometimes forget how stressful it can be for the new employee. We almost immediately start thinking, “I need this person brought up to speed as soon as possible. We have work to do!” Your new employee’s first thought is “Can someone please show me where the rest room is?”
The good news is companies are starting to hire again. The bad news is companies are out of practice.
Here is a refresher for those companies who haven’t done a lot of hiring:
• Be ready – Make sure new employees have business cards, a desk, a computer, a phone, server access, keys, and whatever else they need to be self-sufficient. Show them you took the time to get ready for them.
• Create a plan – Before an employee is hired, all of the key players need to work together to develop a meaningful plan on not only how employees are introduced to their job, but also to the company.
• Create a checklist – Designate who is responsible for each training aspect you want your new hire to know and by what date it is expected. Share this with the new hire so he is involved and can see who is helping him through this transition. Give him a copy of the job description.
• Give each new employee a mentor or a buddy – A mentor helps connect the new employee with her team. This person gives the new hire a place to ask questions and helps define your culture: acceptable work hours and dress, how to get supplies, where to get lunch, etc.
• Make it ongoing – What happens next week or next month? Don’t forget about the new employees. Maybe have a “new hire lunch” once a quarter for all new hires to get together and meet with management to ask questions.
• Give the employee something meaningful to work on during his first day – This gives the new employee a sense of accomplishment and a readiness to take on more.
• Let new employees learn about other teams – Create a job-shadowing program where new employees spend an hour with another team so they can fully understand their role within the organization.
• Give them a map – Give new employees a floor plan of the work area that includes names of co-workers; this gives them names to go with faces.
• Follow-up – At the end of the new employee’s first week, set aside some time to talk with her about how she is doing so far. What else does she need?
• Develop a list of FAQ’s – Instead of having new employees figure out what questions to ask, be prepared. Employees tend to ask the same questions when they start: Where can they find those commonly-used files? Who places supply orders? What about expense reports? Where are those restrooms? Have a list of definitions if your firm uses a lot of acronyms.
• Wrap up their new office supplies like a gift basket – It makes their first day a bit more "celebratory” and is a fun, inexpensive way to liven up an empty office or cubicle.
• Say "hi" – It’s the fastest and easiest way to make a new person feel welcome and wanted.
• Introduce the new employee to everyone – Instead of sending out an announcement, have a new hire breakfast or lunch. Give everyone at the company a chance to come together to meet the new employees.
Taking care of our new hires means new employees feel welcomed and engaged faster. They will be productive more quickly and hopefully become key players within our organization.
If you need assistance in this area just let us know.
Every year at this time, our phones ring with questions such as “How long do I have to keep these personnel files?” Or “Do we really need to hang on to these time cards?”
How about some guidelines?
Below is a short list to guide you in your year end cleaning. Remember that many federal and state laws include provisions related to record retention. While the following does not anticipate every piece of paper, these general, and usually generous, guidelines anticipate the most common record retention questions.
Employee Compensation: Your payroll department should keep payroll records (including records of wages, hours, collective bargaining agreements, employment contracts, date of payment, amount of payment, record of straight and overtime earnings etc.) for three years. The actual time cards can be discarded after two years.
Leave of Absence Records: FMLA wants you to retain records related to leaves of absence for three years. This includes basic payroll data, FMLA leave dates, and copies of leave notices.
I-9 Documentation: Employers must retain completed I-9s for three years after the date of hire or one year after the date employment ends, whichever is later.
Pre-Employment Records (i.e. job postings, ads, applications, resumes): The Age Discrimination in Employment Act requires you to keep advertisements, job applications, and resumes for one year from the date of the event.
OSHA Logs: This law mandates that logs be kept for five years following the end of the year to which the records relate.
Employment Records (including promotions, demotions, transfers, terminations):
Companies must keep these records for one year from the date the record was made or the termination action was taken, whichever is later.
EEO-1 and Affirmative Action Plans: These retention requirements are not specified by law. However, EEO-1’s and AAP’s must be updated annually, and the most recent version must be available for review.
Documents Related to Enforcement Actions: If your company is being investigated for some reason, you should retain everything until the action is completely finalized. For example, if you are audited for alleged wage and hour violations, you must not discard wage information related to the time period being audited. If you are responding to an EEOC complaint, you must retain all the documentation related to that complaint and employee.
What about electronic documents?
The Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (FRCP) were recently revised to address issues of discovery as they relate to electronically stored information. (Basically, the FRCP are the court rules and procedures attorneys follow when conducting civil suits.) The FRCP always included rules related to the retention and discovery of documents relevant to litigation. However, because so many documents are now stored electronically, the rules needed to be updated.
• Talk with your IT department to determine what your company policy or practice is related to data storage and retention.
• If not done already, draft a Document Storage and Retention policy. This policy will set out procedures for scheduled destruction of documents and electronically stored information. Have your attorney review your policy.
• Draft a policy to address document preservation should litigation be threatened. The rules change if you think you will be sued.
• Communicate your policies to all employees who may create or have access to electronic data.
If you are like most businesses, you create and save an enormous amount of data – both electronically and hardcopy. This is a good opportunity to review and update your policies related to retention; it is a good preventative measure to save time and expense should your company ever, unfortunately, be named in a lawsuit.
How do we get rid of it?
Please be careful when disposing of documents. Imagine the outcry if you simply put in the dumpster documents listing employees’ social security numbers, addresses, or private medical information. Many states have laws requiring organizations to carefully maintain security and confidentiality when disposing of files - generally requiring that you render the information unreadable or undecipherable.
Office shredders are appropriate for daily use but not very efficient for large volumes or documents. A better solution is to utilize a document management company. We recommend DataSite Business Archives, one of our favorite clients. All your file boxes can be stored in the secure DataSite warehouse, and they even have an online retrieval and inventory system. Any file box in storage can be retrieved and delivered directly to your office – on very short notice. DataSite will also purge and destroy old records on a schedule that you determine - easy and efficient. For more information see www.datasitenw.com or contact Dave Heric at (206) 859-2800, dheric@datasitenw.com.
Whether you are still working on your end of the year file purges or are anticipating office spring cleaning, we hope you will refer to these guidelines. If you need further assistance on this or any other Human Resource issue, call on Personnel Management Systems.
Hundreds of thousands of Military Veterans will be soon be reentering the civilian workforce. It’s time for the private sector, companies both big and small, to step up and provide this group with employment opportunities. Military veterans are well disciplined, trained, dedicated and hard working. They deserve our support.
However, hiring military veterans can pose some challenges for employers. For example, how do you translate military experience to the civilian job market? How do you reach out to the veteran workforce? What about the special needs veteran – those with injuries or disabilities? All good questions and ones that sometimes cause employers to unfortunately shy away from actively recruiting and hiring veterans.
How do you translate military experience to civilian jobs?
The best answer is a little creativity and research on the part of the hiring manager and/or recruiter. For example, if you see “Quartermaster” on an Army veteran’s resume, you should know that this person was responsible for logistics support of soldiers and operations. This person was probably responsible for providing support for thousands of soldiers and equipment around the world! If he could do that, he could probably handle your warehouse in Redmond! If you are a civilian employer, translate “Quartermaster” or “Supply” to jobs like Warehouse Manager. (By the way, Quartermaster has a different definition if the person was in the Navy.)
Simply do an internet search for “military job titles” to find lots of handy sites that will help you translate military job titles to the more common civilian job titles.
Reaching veterans is actually fairly easy.
There are many job sites where you can post your jobs. Here are a couple of job board sites targeting veterans that we at PMSI have used:
www.hirepatriots.com
www.recruitmilitary.com
Of course you can reach out to your local military base directly. In the Seattle area you can contact:
Joint Base Lewis-McChord ACAP Center (ACAP stands for Army Career and Alumni Program), Phone (253) 967-3258, Fax (253) 967-4416 or email acap.lewis@serco-na.com.
If you are a leader, there is just one thing that you can count on - Everyone has an opinion on how you can do your job better than you currently are. Thousands of books are published every year aimed at telling you what you should know, why you should know it, and how very important it is that you change. Like esteemed General Colin Powell said, "Don't chase the latest management fads. The situation dictates which approach best accomplishes the team's mission."
That's not to say that high quality books aren't hitting the shelves all the time. Much of the information churned out by true experts is solid.
Here are some non-fad managerial skills you can work on right now:
Focus on Productivity
You walk through the office checking on your employees. Some seem extremely busy; some seem overly relaxed. Some seem to be bogged down and stuck under a dark cloud, and some seem perfectly content. Outwardly you are drawing conclusions on who is being productive and who isn't, and most times you're judging the happiest, most contented employees to be the most productive.
But don't be fooled by appearances. Satisfied employees don't necessarily equate to productive employees. Oftentimes managers are asked to "boost morale" in an effort to increase productivity – but that is putting the cart before the horse. Focus should be on increasing productivity which has a much better track record of showing itself to be a precursor of increasing morale. Take steps to ensure that your own efforts are focused on employee production, not employee satisfaction – done properly this will leave you with increases across both spectrums.
Build Rock Solid Trust
Your employees' trust doesn't simply "come with the job". If you are to gain the buy-in that is the yardstick of your managerial abilities and successes, you need to hold the trust that they have for you with care. Abused just once, this trust can be impossible to get back. Research on gaining employee trust shows that the highest focus should be on:
• Telling the Truth – Nothing crumbles the foundations of trust like lying. Be true to your word.
• Equitable Treatment – Don't play favorites. Keep everyone in the same loop.
• Don't Keep Secrets – Many times trust is lost based on what employees aren't told.
• Show Emotion – Remind employees that you are human too. Express feeling when appropriate.
• Be Predictable – Whether they like it or not, they'll trust you when they know what to expect.
• Be Trustworthy – Always keep your employees’ confidential information private.
Show Your Charm
Think of the managers and leaders who have made an impact on your life. The most successful managers are confident, visionary, and have something to offer beyond the day's work. Managers are change leaders and are most effective when they show a charismatic side of themselves that spurs people toward action. Research shows that with just a few simple and trainable adjustments, anyone can significantly boost their "Charisma Quotient" quickly, simply, and powerfully.
• Announce Their Importance – Disengaged employees need to hear that you need them.
• Increase Your Animation – Practice a more engaging vocal tone and better body language.
• Tap Their Emotions – Showing passion for your work is a great way to help them generate passion in theirs.
• Brainstorm Often - Foster interest by discussing unconventional solutions to achieving goals.
• Stay Positive – Boost your own optimism and watch confidence and productivity grow.
Remember, fads don’t last. Solid management and leadership practices do.
Republication permission: Carl Robinson, Ph.D., Advanced Leadership Consulting, Seattle, Washington. www.leadershipconsulting.com carl@leadershipconsulting.com (206) 545-1990.
You did everything right. You posted the ad, reviewed resumes, conducted interviews, and checked references. Now, you are ready to offer your #1 candidate the job. After expending the considerable effort put in to screening and selecting the right candidate for the job, your impulse may be to quickly pick up the phone and make the job offer. However, you, the applicant, and your company will benefit if you stop, organize the offer, and anticipate your response to any questions or complications.
Know Your Facts
Before contacting the applicant, know all the facts about the position and the offer. Regardless of the position’s level in the organization, the applicant will have questions, and you need to know the answers (e.g., How much will I be paid? When do I begin earning vacation time? What about medical insurance? Will I receive a relocation allowance?). Even if you covered the questions during the interviews, make sure you tell the applicant the following:
Compensation (including any variable compensation)
Job title
Proposed start date
Location
Job duties
Benefits (cost, start dates, etc.)
Reporting relationships
Expected hours of work
In addition to these basic issues, be ready to address any particular concerns the applicant may have raised during the interview (e.g. flex-time schedules, opportunities for pay increases, relocation assistance). For some positions, you’ll have to discuss stock options, other benefits, and any other special accommodations made for that applicant.
If you know the applicant is evaluating other job opportunities, be ready to remind the applicant why your organization is a great place to work and why the position fits with the applicant’s long-term goals. You can also explain why the applicant was selected and how his or her skills fit the position.
Find a Convenient Time
You cannot assume your first offer will be accepted, so set aside enough time to discuss the job with the applicant and answer any questions. Make the offer when the applicant can give you his or her full attention. When you call, ask if the applicant has time to talk to you then or if you should call back at another time. Consider making the job offer on a Friday so the applicant has the weekend to talk to friends and family without the distraction of his or her current job. In some cases, you may want to make an appointment with the applicant to discuss the offer in person.
Put It in Writing
It helps both the applicant and your organization if you put the offer in writing. A written offer gives the applicant something to review and to compare to any other offers he or she may receive. The written offer helps your company by standardizing your offers, ensuring that all necessary information is conveyed, and eliminating future disputes about what was offered. A well-written job offer will include the following:
The facts, listed above
Any legal documents that will be required (e.g., information necessary to complete an I-9)
At-will employment statement (if applicable)
Statement that the written offer is complete; no other promises have been made to applicant
Any contingencies to the offer (e.g., a non-compete or a pre-employment drug test)
Know Your Limits
Be ready to negotiate, but know the limits on what you can or want to add to the offer. It is easy to make promises that the company might not be willing or able to keep.
If the applicant requests a larger base salary, a different commission schedule, or other variable compensation, do not agree without thinking it through. Exceeding your logical limits at the start can cause problems later on. If you exceed the pay range for the position, you have hindered your ability to give this person future increases in the position. Or, you may set up a bad situation with others who hold the same position. Further, you go against all the quantitative data you relied on to establish the pay range initially.
Your company’s benefit package is established by contract between your company and the benefit provider. You probably do not have much control or flexibility on benefit eligibility issues. If a question related to benefits is important, tell the applicant you need to check before you can agree; do not make exceptions to benefits unless you know you can deliver.
While the applicant may focus on money or healthcare benefits, you may be able to use other benefits to persuade him or her to take the position. Determine what is really of value to the applicant. A flexible work schedule or a week added to his or her annual vacation allowance may be the key. Or, an applicant who has expressed interest in continuing his or her education may be persuaded by an education reimbursement plan.
Just remember not to jump the gun when you’ve found the perfect fit for your open position. Remember to plan the offer in advance. Know what information you need to convey and how you want to convey it. Have answers to questions the applicant might ask, and know your limits on negotiating changes to the original offer. You want to offer the job in a well-organized, thoughtful manner. If you would like additional information on good hiring practices, contact PMSI.
Perhaps employee turnover is not as bad as we think. Maybe, just maybe, some turnover is good.
I recently attended a seminar on employee morale. The basic premise was that employees who are “happy” are better workers; they are typically more productive and stay in their jobs for a longer period of time. It seems that the basic measure of success or failure had to do with employee turnover. The implication being that if employees are unhappy, they leave. If they are happy, they stay. As business leaders we are told that turnover is a measurement of failure and an indication that something needs to be fixed. But we know that many times this premise doesn’t hold up. Employees leave for a whole host of reasons – sometimes for reasons that have nothing to do with the employer and/or the employees’ “happiness”.
Truth be told - turnover can be an indication that something is wrong, and of course, it is expensive. Some say turnover costs between 10 and 20 times the employee’s weekly wage.
However let’s balance out the negatives with the potential benefits. It can be difficult losing people, particularly people in key positions. There are though, some good things that can happen when you bring in a new employee. For example:
• New Ideas. The new person may be able to bring new ideas, fresh thoughts, and a different way of looking at things.
• Diverse view points. Sometimes, over time, companies can become homogenous - same age groups, same interests, same habits, etc. A new person can “mix it up” a bit, even unintentionally bringing a new perspective to the group.
• Increased productivity. This seems counterintuitive, but oftentimes once the new employee learns the job, he or she actually performs better than the employee who left. The prior employee may have become complacent or just continued to repeat poor work habits.
• Industry Knowledge. Turnover sometimes allows us to hire people from our competitors or related industries. Oftentimes these new employees can be a great resource for industry knowledge and trends.
• New Customers. Depending on the type of position, sometimes customers want to “follow” the employee to his or her new company.
• New Skills. A very common phrase from a new employee is “why do you do it this way?” Oftentimes the new employee brings new skills and experiences that help us do it better.
• Competitive Salary. Usually when we hire new people we have to re-examine and assess the salary level. Sometimes (not always) we find that we can get the job done for less. Over time, salaries can creep up beyond the “market rate”.
• Upgrades. Most businesses have “A” players and “B” players. Turnover gives us the opportunity to try and hire “A” players.
So, yes employee turnover can be disruptive and suggestive of problems. But, it can also create opportunities - opportunities that can create real value for a company.
At PMSI, we only have only “A” players and very little turnover. But, it does happen; employees sometimes leave. We always wish them the best and then always strive to make the best out of a difficult situation.
Hiring the right person for the job can be difficult. If you need help, call us.
According to the Washington Restaurant Association (WRA) the Seattle Paid sick leave ordinance is one step closer to passage.
On Wednesday, a subcommittee of the Seattle City Council approved a measure that, if approved by the full Council, will require most businesses in the city to give employees paid sick time. The legislation, which was amended to exempt the smallest businesses, will likely receive a vote during the Council's Sept. 12 meeting.
Click the link below to read the article:
http://blog.seattlepi.com/seattlepolitics/2011/08/10/mandatory-sick-leave-bill-okd-by-council-panel/
How to get more bang from your Benefit Plan, and it won’t cost you a thing.
Group benefit plans (medical, dental, vision, etc.) continue to increase in cost every year. This is a reality that most businesses have come to begrudgingly accept. In response, many companies have deployed a variety of tactics to either shift or reduce the increased cost. These tactics often include shifting premiums from the employer to the employee and/or reducing or eliminating coverage. Frequently, these tactics result in decreased overall employee satisfaction with the company benefit plans. Essentially, companies are spending more and more money on something that employees are becoming less and less satisfied with. Truly a no win situation for both employees and employers.
Here is a secret known only by wise and experienced HR people:
Employee-perceived value and satisfaction with their company benefit plans goes up in relationship to the amount of communication they receive.
Simple - the more information employees receive, the more satisfied they are with their plans. The converse is also true. The less information they receive, the less satisfied they are.
Experienced HR people have known this for years. In fact, you can take a mediocre medical plan and have employees rate it higher than a more expensive plan, simply by doing a good job communicating. Of course this makes sense if you think about it. A company could have a very expensive, high quality “Cadillac” medical plan but do a poor job telling employees about the plan and end up with employees being very dissatisfied. Basically, the employees don’t know enough about the plan to feel good about it. Plans are complicated enough. Without good communication employees are often confused and frustrated. The result is often poor employee satisfaction.
If you are one of those employers with really good benefits, but do a poor job with communication, then you may be wasting your money!
Companies that understand this relationship between satisfaction and communication spend the time to make sure employees understand their benefit plans. Communication does not have to be complicated or expensive. In fact, like most forms of communication, the simpler and more frequent, the better. Think - “how can we better market our company benefit plans?”
Ideas include:
• Quarterly or semiannual benefit meetings. Invite the broker, carrier or 401(k) advisor to do an in-person quarterly review and answer employee questions.
• Posters. Carriers can often provide posters educating or informing employees on some element of the plan. Change them frequently.
• Resource List. Make sure every employee has a simple resource list of who to call with questions.
• New Employee Orientation. A thorough discussion of the company benefit plans should be a part of every new employee orientation. Simple, concise plan descriptions should be developed and given to every employee.
• Flyers, monthly emails or payroll stuffers. Short and simple messages with ideas on how to save money with co-pays, deductibles, emergency room visits, etc.
• Benefit Open House. If you are a large employer, you may be able to get all the carriers together to provide an Open House, Benefit Fair or Wellness Day at your place of business. Invite spouses and/or significant others.
• Staff Meeting. Get in the habit of mentioning some element of the benefit plan at your regular staff meeting. For example, remind employees that the medical plan has an afterhours consultative 800 number or that there is a mail order prescription drug option.
Also, remember to talk about and include all your company benefits. Don’t just think about the medical and dental plans. You may have other employee benefits including 401(k) retirement plans, Section 125 Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA), Disability, Long Term Care (LTD), Employee Assistance Plans (EAP), Health Reimbursement Arrangement (HRA), and Voluntary Benefits and Heath Care Savings Accounts (HSA). And don’t forget the other non-medical and retirement benefits that your company may offer such as vacation, sick leave, personal time off (PTO), bus passes, discounted products or services, parking, gym memberships, subsidized meals, free snacks, flexible hours, etc.
Employee satisfaction will increase if you do a better job communicating all of these benefits - and it won’t cost you a thing!
If you need further assistance on this or any other Human Resource issue, call on Personnel Management Systems.
HR people are often asked, What's the most common compliance mistake that companies make?
I would have to say that the answer is not complying with the wage and hour laws. In some ways this is strange because the federal wage and hour laws have been around since the 30s. The only explanation is that the laws are confusing and in some cases counterintuitive.
Unfortunately, like them or not, the FLSA is the law of the land and companies must comply or expose themselves to serious consequences. Smart business owners know not to try and figure this stuff out alone and get help from a competent HR Professional or Employment Attorney.
For those of you still questioning if you need help or not, consider these common Myths:
Everyone here is a Salaried employee. No one is paid overtime.
We dont need to track time. Everyone can come and go as they please.
We only pay overtime if it was approved.
Comp time is available for anyone who works extra time.
We changed employee job titles and job descriptions to make everyone exempt.
Employees are paid straight time for all hours worked.
If these myths dont cause you some alarm consider this:
Wage and hour lawsuits and compliance investigations by the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) and the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries (L&I) are on the rise. In fact, the DOL alone has recently added 250 investigators to its field offices. The DOL collects almost $200,000,000 per year in back wages. Add to this the State enforcement capabilities and any related fines and penalties and you can see very quickly the magnitude of the problem and why you may want to get help.
Here are some tips that may help add some clarity to this subject:
The wage and hour laws state that employees must receive at least the minimum wage, breaks and overtime compensation for all hours in excess of 40 hours in a defined workweek. Certain types of jobs are exempt (not entitled) to the minimum wage or overtime pay
Exempt jobs are defined by what the employee does and what and how they are paid. The wage and hour laws define these criteria. It is not up to the employers discretion.
Generally speaking, exempt jobs will fall into one of four classifications - administrative, executive, professional or outside sales. Caution, these terms can be misleading. The definitions are very specific and difficult to qualify for.
Manual labor jobs are never exempt.
Adjusting a job description, changing a title, making an employee salaried, paying them more or giving them a promotion does not make them exempt. Even if an employee agrees and wants to be exempt doesnt make it so.
Non-exempt is not the same as unprofessional. Some high-level jobs are non-exempt. Exempt or non-exempt status is not a statement of the employees value to the organization.
HR Managers and employment attorneys have excellent tools to conduct an internal wage and hour audit of your companys jobs. This may be particularly timely if your organization has gone through any recent reorganizing. The process is fairly straightforward and will bring you relief knowing that you havent inadvertently exposed your organization to back wages, fines and penalties.
Let us know if we can help. Weve been assisting our clients with these and other HR related issues for almost 30 years.
I must admit I was intrigued after watching CBS new reality show Undercover Boss. The show basically follows high level CEOs as they go undercover in their own companies to discover what it means to be a rank and file employee.
As an HR person, I thought the idea was pretty slick. We are always looking for ways to get honest feedback from employees and for management to learn what is really happening in the trenches. We currently have at our disposal a number of tried and true techniques ? suggestion boxes, 360 degree performance reviews, surveys, and exit interviews. These all seem to pale in comparison to a CEO actually going undercover and learning firsthand ? in real-time and unfiltered.
Now, realistically, most of us dont work in companies that are large enough where we would just blend in and not be recognized. This doesnt mean though that we still wouldnt benefit from the experience. True, you wouldnt technically be undercover, but you could still learn some valuable things by spending a few days working in the warehouse or even sitting at the receptionist desk. What about taking some turns as a route driver or running the cash register? Instead of the front of the house what if you worked a week in the kitchen?
To do it right, you would not just be observing; you would actually be doing the job. And doing the job would mean shutting up and working - not commenting, suggesting or managing. You would clock-in and clock-out, eat, and take breaks like everyone else. No special treatment, excuses, or exceptions. If it is hard, confusing, and you are exhausted at night, then chances are you are doing it right.
Here are some areas that should be considered before undertaking this undercover operation:
? Make it as realistic as possible. Go through the experience just like a new employee would. Get the same training; do the same job; become an employee so you can experience through your own eyes what the first day on the job really looks like.
? Listen to employees. This is a listening experience not a talking experience. Listen to what other employees say about the company and the job. Yes, you can ask a few questions, but mostly you are observing and listening. The small stuff matters too. Is the order processing paperwork confusing? Is the warehouse cold? Is the equipment old and broken? Is the lunch room clean? Do you feel safe?
? Listen to customers. Chances are the customers dont know you are the boss. In this case you really can be undercover. What do the customers really think about your products and services? If you were a customer, would you enjoy the experience of doing business with your company?
? Is the job hard? This seems like a silly question, but one of the comments often made by the CEOs on the show is that the jobs are much more difficult that they thought. Is this true in your case? Do your feet hurt at the end of the day? Is the job perhaps more difficult than it needs to be? Has the company inadvertently done things (i.e. established policies) that just make the job more complicated than it needs to be? Do employees have all the tools and training to do the job as productively and safely as possible?
? Look for Recognition. Pay attention to how the employees around you are being recognized for their work. Is there a feedback system that is positive and rewarding, or is the work environment threatening and intimidating? Are people working hard because they care about the company, or are they just grinding it out until quitting time? Is morale good or are people afraid?
? Evaluate the Training. Even though you technically are not undercover, someone still had to train you on a front line job. Was the training well organized and effective, or was it more of a sink or swim situation? Were you confident in your newfound skills or overwhelmed and confused?
? Give Feedback. This part can be a little tricky, but once you finish your undercover work you are going to want to provide feedback to your management team and to your employees. Just like when we do surveys, if you ask people for feedback (and they provide it) you are going to have to act on it. This means publicly taking some concrete initiatives based upon what you learned. For some this may even be a bit humbling. Things may not be as good as you thought or were told. Either way, use the feedback constructively and follow through with improvements.
Yes, HR people will still want to do surveys and exit interviews to find out what employees think, and I suppose even the old suggestion box has a place. But todays CEO can perhaps get a little more creative and spend a week or so in someone elses shoes. Make it as real as possible. Listen more than talk. If you have some sore muscles, you are probably doing it right. Pay attention to how people are rewarded and trained and if you do it right, you may even learn something.
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