Employee Development:
Big Business Results on a Small Business Budget
Authors: Jim Guttmann, SPHR; Melissa K. Miller, PHR; Leslie T. Gordan, CPA; Candace Rorrer; Joni K. Humphreys; Ted A. Kirchharr; Melanie Rhodes; Holly McLeod, PHR; Elizabeth Oakes, SPHR
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Employee Development:
Big Business Results on a Small Business Budget
Copyright Landrum Human Resources Companies, Inc. 2010
Authors: Jim Guttmann, SPHR; Melissa K. Miller, PHR; Leslie T. Gordan, CPA; Candace Rorrer; Joni K. Humphreys; Ted A. Kirchharr; Melanie Rhodes; Holly McLeod, PHR; Elizabeth Oakes, SPHR
Published by Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc at Smashwords
6723 Plantation Road, Pensacola, Florida 32504
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Table of Contents
Chapter 3 - Training Costs – From Pricey to Priceless
Chapter 5 - Community Outreach
Chapter 6 - Personal Development Library
Chapter 7 - STEP it up Book Club
Chapter 8 - Financial Peace University
Chapter 9 - Fun in the Workplace
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Introduction
Numerous studies have confirmed what most employers and managers already know – an investment in the professional development of employees increases employee satisfaction and retention. As organizations grow increasingly more complex, it has become even more important that they retain the knowledge and experience the best employees have spent years acquiring.
It has also been demonstrated that professional development enhances employee satisfaction. We at Landrum are convinced that high employee satisfaction is an important driver of customer satisfaction.
What is often lost in discussion of professional development is the role small self-implemented programs can play in developing your staff. Many of these programs are inexpensive to operate. Certainly conferences, conventions, college courses or other professionally developed training opportunities can play an important role in your program. But we have developed and implemented a number of low-cost programs within our company. The purpose of this book is to share some of these practices with you.
These articles have been contributed by members of the Landrum team and many of them appeared on our Blog, LandrumHRBlog.com. We hope you will find these techniques useful as you look for ways to develop your own employees. We believe it is a journey well worth taking. Please don’t hesitate to contact us if we can help you along the way.
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Acknowledgements
Thank you to all those who contributed to the process of publishing our first eBook:
Ted A. Kirchharr, Editor
Holly McLeod, Copy Editor
Joni K. Humphreys, Layout and Production
Kevin Holcombe, Website Coordinator
And all of the Landrum staff members who shared their HR expertise and contributed to the writing and development of our eBook.
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Chapter 1
Mentoring Programs
By Jim Guttmann
A challenge that all employers face is how to attract and retain good employees. It is a sound business principle that if you take care of your employees, they in turn will likely take good care of your customers. Other than receiving competitive pay and benefits, employees also want to enjoy what they do and to reach their fullest potential. A mentoring program can help meet those objectives by developing employees for possible promotion or providing avenues for self-improvement to help them grow with the company. From the many positive experiences of Landrum employees, we highly encourage any company considering the implementation of a Mentoring Program.
This is a wonderful opportunity for many of your employees to enrich the lives of their co-workers by sharing information, skills and abilities. The goal of this “no cost” program is for participants to find and draw out that untapped potential that resides in each individual. Participation in the program by employees should be entirely voluntary. Those interested in being mentored (a.k.a. Mentees) come forward, often knowing of an area in which they want to further develop and improve. Areas for improvement may include Verbal Communications - persuading others or conflict resolution; Written Communications; Technical Area – such as improving computer skills; Project Management; and Personality Traits – improving self esteem and confidence.
It is ideal to find pairs where the needs of the Mentee match a competency of the Mentor; there is a high potential for success, and a positive chemistry exists between the two individuals - along with a high level of trust.
When considering the ideal qualities of a Mentee, look for someone who is enthusiastic, has a clear idea of what he or she wants to get out of the program, who shows initiative, wants to improve weak areas, is open to constructive feedback, takes responsibility, is a proactive listener and shows flexibility. These qualities are essential since it is the Mentee that drives the success of the relationship.
An ideal Mentor is trustworthy (i.e. capable of keeping things confidential), optimistic, dependable and available, a seasoned leader or contributor within the company, influential, a good listener and has excellent interpersonal skills.
There are some critical success factors that need to be covered to ensure the success of the mentoring program:
•The Program is voluntary. The mentoring relationship exists only because both participants in the relationship are truly committed to its success
•The Program’s Purpose is clearly communicated. When the program is formally “kicked off” it is important to establish its overall purpose to the staff. During introductory meetings, any potential misconceptions about the program can be addressed. No false promises are made, such as that participation ensures a promotion.
•A Steering Committee can provide the proper tools and guidelines in helping Mentee and Mentor get the relationship off to a good and productive start. Guidance may be needed in such matters as communicating expectations, involvement level and comfort zones, identifying needs, goal setting, sharing information, encouraging dialog, learning from assignments, debriefing experiences, building organizational connections and developing an action plan.
•The Mentee’s Supervisor is supportive. Mentors should be encouraged to get with the Mentee’s supervisor before the new relationship formally begins. The supervisor can provide valuable insight to the Mentor that may help in getting the mentoring relationship off to a good start.
•Mentors and Mentees are allowed the time for meetings and their time together is respected. All members of management need to take the program seriously and understand its benefit to the employees and company alike.
•Expectations on the part of Mentor and Mentee are clearly established up front. This is a vital part of the initial meeting between Mentor and Mentee. There should be a clear understanding as to roles of each party, where and how often meetings will take place, what happens when meetings have to be cancelled, what specific goals will be worked on, how success will be measured and when the relationship ends, etc.
•Confidentiality as to what is discussed between Mentor and Mentee is respected. There are often frank and honest discussions about strengths, weaknesses and opportunities for improvement. Sensitive feedback often occurs in these sessions; these are private matters that others do not need to know.
•The mentoring relationship is guided by the company’s culture and values. There is a clear expectation that mentoring relationships exhibit a high degree of professionalism. The conduct of participants should model the company’s core values
•Specific and realistic goals are established that provide a means to measure success. Specific goals should be encouraged such as giving a presentation, learning a specific skill in Excel, completing a project, developing an action plan, etc. Goals that are vague such as “I want to be a better person,” or “I would like to improve in all areas” are not that helpful and don’t encourage accountability.
•Success stories are documented and celebrated. Keeping a record of the program’s achievements affords an opportunity for others to learn from the positive experiences of mentoring teams.
For additional information about Landrum’s mentoring program or implementation of a mentoring program at your company, you may contact Jim Guttmann, SPHR at (850) 476-5100.
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Chapter 2
Cross Training: A Win–Win–Win Situation
By Melissa K. Miller
Investing in employee development through cross training is a wise choice. When training budgets are tight, finding creative ways to engage employees in learning opportunities can be challenging. There is a strong business case for cross training employees. Not only does cross training enrich employees, it can also increase organizational capacity. Capacity, that is, to provide essential services to clients in the absence of key personnel.
Done right, managing capacity can be as much about employee development as it is about business continuity. Landrum has developed a comprehensive Capacity Management System (CMS) that meets both objectives (and then some). The CMS provides a uniform format for managers to document all functions within their department and keep adequate numbers of staff members trained to perform each function.
Staff members are engaged in the process from the very beginning. Employees collaborate to compile a comprehensive list of duties for their department. On an individual basis each employee then rates their proficiency at each task. This information is the basis of a conversation between employees and their supervisor. Together a cross training plan is developed that will meet departmental needs and provide growth opportunities for the employee based on their goals. Employees who have mastered certain tasks assume leadership roles in training other employees.
Cross training is a win–win–win situation. Trained employees win because they feel valued, the trainers win because they have had an opportunity to share their expertise, and the organization wins because employee satisfaction has increased and continuity of service has been enhanced.
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Chapter 3
Training Costs: From Pricey to Priceless!
By Leslie Gordan
Conference registration fees can be very expensive. Traveling out of town is costly, and customer service can suffer from several people being out of the office at the same time. What is a small office to do?
At Landrum, knowledge is valued by our senior leaders. Development of staff is one of our corporate goals and lifetime learning is part of our culture. Almost one-third of our staff is certified and must obtain continuing education credits to keep licenses or certifications current, and training dollars must be spent there first.
But what about the rest of our motivated staff who want to learn new skills to improve their performance? To get the most out of every dollar spent on training it’s helpful to capitalize on in-house knowledge, which can have a two-fold benefit; employees have exposure to a wide variety of learning opportunities, and staff members have the opportunity to develop their presentation skills in a safe environment.
You may be thinking that sounds great, but how exactly do I do that? When someone at Landrum travels outside of the office to attend training, they are responsible for sharing what they learn with co-workers who could benefit from the same information. Depending on the course attended, there are several ways that this can be accomplished:
1. Give a three minute summary of the training at an employee or department meeting. If there is interest, an informal brown bag lunch can be arranged so co-workers can learn more. If the information is of a technical nature, a regular training session might be scheduled.
2. Write up a one-page summary for Department Heads to share at their individual department meetings.
3. Post a one-page summary on the staff bulletin board.
4. Pick up extra handouts to share (if available).
5. Obtain an electronic version of the presentation to post on the company network for co-workers to access.
These ideas work and can be adopted by any size organization. However, holding attendees accountable to effectively share conference information with the rest of the organization is how you get your money’s worth. Here are a few suggestions:
1. When approval to attend the conference is given, go ahead and schedule the meeting when the employee will be presenting the learned information to other staff members.
2. Have a standard policy that states one cannot attend training unless knowledge sharing of previously attended training has occurred within a certain period of time. If that employee does not have time to share their knowledge, take outside training off of their agenda for a period of time and give someone else the opportunity.
3. Include knowledge sharing in the performance review process of employees who participate in outside training.
4. Include attendance at in-house presentations in the performance review process.
5. Conduct a brief survey that helps determine effectiveness of the presentation.
This has several benefits:
•Did co-workers find value in the knowledge gained?
•Can this information improve job effectiveness or efficiency?
•How might the presenter improve their presentation?
•Should this subject be considered for future in-house training?
If more than one person from the organization attends the same conference, prior workshop coordination can prevent duplicity and can ensure coverage of the most important sessions.
Many conferences offer free or reduced registrations for presenters. If your staff has the knowledge and the talent, encourage them to volunteer to facilitate a workshop or give a presentation. Allow them to practice and fine-tune their presentation in-house.
Allow your workforce to explore all aspects of your industry by exposing them to a wide variety of learning opportunities. If the subject has limited applicability but a lot of interest, offer it as a brown bag lunch that employees can attend on their own time. If the subject matter is related to the individual employee’s job duties, allow attendance on company time. You just may ignite a passion for a new career path – and that is priceless!
Knowledge is power. Share the knowledge!
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Chapter 4
A Wellness Program for Your Employees
By Candace Rorrer
Envision a company motivated to be physically active; employees walking to co-workers’ desks to discuss issues face-to-face instead of sending an email, joining peer groups to walk or run after work or during lunch, and participating in charitable races on the weekends as a company team. Not only will employees acquire the benefits of being in good physical shape, but the company will enjoy lower medical costs due to a decrease in illness, increase in work productivity and an increase in attendance.
The Wellness Committee at Landrum offers educational opportunities for employees by improving health awareness in the areas of nutrition, physical activity, and emotional well-being. To promote nutrition, the wellness committee has invited local experts to come in and educate employees on properly reading nutrition labels and provide tips on eating healthier. To promote physical activity the committee created a walking program - a run/walk team that trains for local races and a “boot camp” and yoga class that takes place in the office after hours. The committee promotes emotional wellbeing by inviting motivational speakers to teach the staff. Classes cover the topics of health and humor, stress, and managing emotions.
There are a number of ways to promote wellness in the office while promoting positive reflections to a company’s bottom-line. Start by organizing the following strategies:
•Maintain Senior-level support
•Determine goals and objectives
•Recruit a team
•Develop a budget
•Promote activities
•Decide on incentives
•Have a kick-off celebration
•Sign up participants
•Evaluate progress
Have little to no money to put towards a wellness program? Check your organization’s insurance carrier for discounts. Most insurance companies offer discounts to gym memberships, weight loss programs and educational materials. Contact local gyms, spas or weight loss programs to see if they offer a company discount. You also might want to consider employees paying a registration fee to put towards a cash prize for the person that logs the highest number of steps or miles walked, as an example. Here are a few web-based tracking programs that start promoting physical activity.
http://www.startwalkingnow.org
http://www.americanonthemove.org
http://www.acsworkplacesolutions.com/activeforlife.asp
Let's get active!
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Chapter Five
Community Outreach
By Joni K. Humphreys
Establishing a community outreach program for your business can be beneficial to employers, employees and recipients alike. Employees can develop relationships and leadership skills through community outreach opportunities. Allowing employee-led groups to identify and coordinate community service projects not only builds camaraderie, it also builds employees’ self-esteem and self-confidence. Landrum started a Community Outreach Committee comprised of employees from all departments and all levels of our company, and we found it to be very successful in multiple ways.
There are many ways to go about starting and implementing a community outreach program.
Here are some things that have worked for us:
1. Throughout the year employees are encouraged to nominate organizations and projects to be supported during companywide fundraising and community service projects.
2. After the activities have been decided upon, employees take charge to lead the company project from inception to completion. Employees have the opportunity to exercise leadership and public speaking skills as they coordinate activities with the recipient organizations and internal staff. Community service events provide a unique opportunity for employees to become more acquainted with senior leaders from other parts of the company as they work side by side for a common cause.
Here is a sampling of ways to encourage employee participation in fundraising and volunteer activities:
•Give employees the opportunity to nominate charitable organizations as part of the selection process for a fundraiser beneficiary
•Organize an email-based silent auction of homemade baked goods or dinners with proceeds going to a selected charitable agency
•Plan pot luck breakfasts and/or lunches with proceeds going to a selected charitable agency
•Put together a recipe book made up of all the delicious meals made by your employees during your lunch and breakfast events and sell them for a nominal amount (they make great client gifts too)
•Conduct seasonal supply drives, such as school supplies, pajamas, winter coats, and Christmas gifts for foster kids as well as newborn baby supplies and groceries for needy families
•Allow employees to showcase their talents; hold drawings for employee-made crafts, jewelry or woodworking projects with proceeds from ticket sales going to a selected charitable agency
•Allow groups of employees to volunteer on a local phone bank for a non-profit agency telethon
•Participate as a company in a community-wide work day such as the United Way Day of Caring
•Invite local non-profit agencies to your company staff meeting for a check presentation so that the employees can share the moment and hear more about the agency
A dedicated community outreach program can be successful for many businesses. Landrum’s commitment to our community is a solid part of our corporate culture, and we can say from experience that it is very rewarding for all involved. We encourage you to consider developing your own program. Remember, the key to having a successful volunteer and community outreach program at your workplace is to keep the FUN in FUNdraising.
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Chapter 6
Personal Development Library
By Ted A. Kirchharr
You will probably find that many of your employees have purchased books, audio books, programs on DVD, etc., related to personal development. Rather than gathering dust on a bookshelf, why not collect and share them with co-workers? Your library can begin with resources your organization may already own. Add to those resources any materials your employees are willing to share and you’ll probably have sufficient resources to establish your library. You can augment your library with new materials acquired at conferences, trade shows or industry publications, etc. Additionally, used book stores, charity sales, and even garage and estate sales can provide additional material for your library.
Our company took an underutilized closet and turned it into a useful library. Checkouts are entirely on the honor system. And though we did not experience abuse of the library or inappropriate materials being added, it is something to consider when setting up your own guidelines for usage.
While you will never compete with your local library, a convenient (and free) opportunity for your employees to study subjects that interest them could be a real winner for your employees and your organization.
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Chapter 7
S.T.E.P. It Up
By Melanie Rhodes and Ted A. Kirchharr
Here at Landrum Companies every S.T.E.P. counts. S.T.E.P. is our internal Staff Training and Education Process. The purpose of S.T.E.P. is to develop a training program that ensures every employee has an opportunity to maximize his or her potential.
We developed this program some years ago in response to issues raised in our annual employee satisfaction survey. If you are not currently surveying your employees, you should. We’ll discuss the role of employee focus groups later in our eBook.
Our employees told us they wanted more opportunities for both professional and personal development. The original program had five components: business-related, computer skill development, job skill development, personal development and customer service. An employee led committee developed these five tracks then sought class topics from employees and their managers. We were able to identify speakers internally as well as from our business partners and the community. Many of these speakers were delighted to teach these classes for free, others received a modest honorarium.
The classes were offered multiple times so employees could attend without disrupting the workday. We have covered subjects from Excel Charting to Workers’ Comp 101 to Travel Tips (including how to pack). We are continually seeking new topics and speakers to respond to the needs of our employees. We strongly encourage you not to overlook personal development topics as you build your program. It strengthens the ties among your employees when they are learning together how to deal with sensitive issues like aging parents or internet security for their children.
Ready to S.T.E.P. it up at your business? Start by identifying your employee needs and interests. Next, find the strengths that individual employees have that could be taught to the group. Determine what focus areas of training will fit with your company’s needs and values. Develop a way for employees to track their training progress so it can be monitored throughout the year. Finally, and maybe the most important, get employee feedback on the effectiveness of the training and ideas for future training needs.
Book Club
Professional development doesn’t have to be expensive. An effective program for us has been our voluntary Book Club, which is open to all employees interested in reading a book together and meeting over lunch to discuss. Our books have included such titles as Good to Great and self improvement books like The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People and The Five Love Languages. A complete bibliography is included in the appendix.
We meet on our lunch break every other Tuesday. Someone from the group volunteers to outline the readings and another person volunteers to organize lunch. Particpants either bring their own lunch or choose to purchase lunch delivered by one of the local restaurants.
The outline is a 2-3 page summary of the assigned reading for that week, and is the basis for our discussions. The outline is helpful in case you didn’t have time to finish the reading (typically 50 to 75 pages). The discussions can be quite lively and provide another vehicle for employees to learn from each other. We also learn about each other as well. We have a saying, “What is said in Book Club stays in Book Club.”
As you can see professional development doesn’t have to be expensive. With a little effort you can provide opportunities for staff development while at the same time provide them with opportunities to get to know each other in new and meaningful ways.
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Chapter Eight
The Financial Burdens Your Employees Face Do Affect Your Business
By Holly McLeod, PHR
“Sixty percent of employees lack adequate cash reserves to live longer than two months if they were to lose their job.”
(Overextended: A Special Report on the Business Cost of Financial Stress, Dave Ramsey’s Financial Peace Workplace Edition)
“Almost three out of five new middle-class retirees will outlive their financial assets if they keep up their pre-retirement ways of living.”
(Ernst & Young, LLP study on behalf of Americans for Secure Retirement)
“Thirty million workers in America – one in four – are seriously financially distressed and dissatisfied with their personal financial situations.”
(Financial Distress among American Workers, by E. Thomas Garman)
The statics are overwhelming: The majority of the American workforce is in serious financial trouble. To make these statistics scarier, they were compiled prior to the financial crisis that started in late 2008. Imagine how many more of us are deeply concerned with our personal financial duress than we were prior to this time!
Even the Federal Reserve Bank spoke up. In a publication developed jointly by the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, the Banks state that “Employers benefit from a financially educated workforce in several ways.” That same publication suggests that a well-executed workplace financial education program is likely to:
•Reduce absenteeism
•Moderate turnover rates
•Decrease direct employer costs related to wage garnishments, bankruptcies, payroll deductions for child support and alimony, and administrative costs for borrowing against retirement plans
•Increase employee productivity
•Increase contributions to the company 401(k) program
•Increase employees’ allegiance to their company
•Reduce the incidence of employee theft
As part of Landrum’s STEP education program (see ch. 7), employees are surveyed on which topics of education they would most like to see offered. In 2008, an overwhelming majority of responses were geared toward personal financial management. The employees’ interest, combined with troubling statistics and the company’s desire to help its employees, drove Landrum’s STEP Committee to seek the financial education program that would be most fulfilling and beneficial. And find it, they did.
Financial Peace University, Workplace Edition, is a 13-week program on personal finances developed and trained by radio and television personality Dave Ramsey, via DVD. After reviewing several options, Financial Peace University (FPU) was determined to be the most comprehensive program we could offer.
Through FPU education, employees learn many invaluable lessons on:
•The 7 Baby Steps to Financial Freedom
•The importance of saving
•How we relate with money
•Cash flow planning (including valuable budget worksheets)
•Breaking the chains of debt
•Understanding credit bureaus and collection practices
•The power of marketing on buying decisions
•The role of insurance
•How to make smart purchases
•Understanding investments
•Planning for retirement and college
•Working in your strengths
•Real estate and mortgages
•The power of giving
Landrum’s Senior Leadership Team generously agreed not only to offer this valuable program, but decided that the company would help out as much as possible for each employee, since there is a cost associated with purchasing the package of materials that accompanies the classes. Landrum agreed to pay half of the cost for each participating employee, and also to reimburse the other half to each employee who met an attendance requirement of 11 out of 13 classes. In other words, the class would be free for anyone who made the commitment to attend most of the classes. In addition, the company allowed the program to be held during work time, with the employees using one hour of their own each week and the company paying for the other hour of each two-hour class.
Amazingly, 70% of our employees signed up for the classes. There has been tremendous positive feedback from the employees, and each week during class employees happily shared personal victories and successes. This class is not about debt management, but about debt elimination. The facilitator of this program, an employee who had previously completed FPU, stated that she saw employees amazed at having money left at the end of the month for the first time in their working life. Other employees have expressed seeing a “light at the end of the tunnel” that wasn’t there before this class was offered. Still others have expressed having control over their finances and communicating with their spouses in a positive manner about finances. And now, two years later, we’re still getting proud comments from employees who have made their last car payment, or paid off the last credit card they will ever have.
This has truly been a rewarding experience for all participating employees, and we believe this program has allowed employees to have a much-needed sense of control over their finances. As statistics show, this not only benefits our employees, but our company as well.
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Chapter Nine
Where Did the Fun Go?
By Elizabeth Oakes, SPHR
As a child, we can all remember running – just for fun. We twirled in circles, never got sick to our stomachs, and we did it just because the world was silly from that wobbly point of view. When did we stop enjoying that silly point of view? Furthermore, when did we start taking ourselves so seriously? Can you remember the last time you truly enjoyed yourself at work and thought “That was SO much fun!”?
You may have heard the following statistic: “Average Americans spend approximately 107,536 hours working over the course of a lifetime.” This is only an average and doesn’t factor in the entrepreneurs who practically live at their companies or those of us who began our employment history prior to 18 years of age. While many of us cognitively know that this is a huge chunk of our life, it doesn’t quite sink in until you’re stuck at a lifeless job with no enjoyment factor. Why, then, are we all so intent to continue in this drudgery? Why don’t we make the workplace a more enjoyable place?
Some of you are thinking, “Well I’m not going to put arcade games or sleep pods in my place of business. It might work for Google and other large companies, but fun like that isn’t going to cut it where we work.” It’s okay to think that, too. What specifically works for the employee groups of heavy weights like Google and many of the other Great Places to Work award winners wouldn’t necessarily be appropriate for many small and medium sized businesses. That doesn’t mean you can’t add a little levity to an otherwise serious environment. Some of you are still looking for proof that “fun” at work promotes productivity and is worthwhile. Fun at work is incredibly intangible and requires an extremely self-confident and seasoned leader to allow employees the leeway to enjoy themselves and still trust that they will be productive at the end of the day. If you’re looking for a little more support that fun in the workplace is effective, you might want to check this out: http://www.workplaceissues.com/arhumor.htm .
Let me tell you a little bit about my experience in realizing it was okay to have fun at work. My colleagues and I underwent training with the Meyers Briggs Temperament Indicator a few years ago. This teambuilding exercise measures a person’s personality type and helps an entire team to understand the natural differences everyone has and what each person has to offer. The exercise that stuck out in my mind was one where the facilitators laid a rope on the floor. The directions were that each participant was to think to themselves the answer to the following question:
On normal working days, do you feel you need to get all of your work done before you can play and have fun? Or do you feel you can play throughout your day, just as long as your work is complete at the close of the day?
We were then told that each end of the rope represented the extreme view of those questions, and we were instructed to physically place ourselves along the rope where we felt we naturally belonged. As soon as they said “go” I not only went to the side that indicated that I could play throughout the day, but I stood far past the end of the rope, basically plastering myself to the wall on that side. All of my colleagues giggled knowing how much I liked to “goof off”, in their opinion, throughout the workday. After the exercise was over the facilitators explained what I found to be the most beautiful understanding of fun in the workplace. They described that many employees are not functional and have a reduced work product if they are not allowed to have fun throughout their day.
I was finally vindicated! I wasn’t just goofing off all those times I was cracking jokes with coworkers or sending funny emails – I was reinvigorating my motivation, recharging my batteries, and in general, enjoying my time at my job. Being allowed to enjoy the people I work with and having the freedom to be in a fun environment is the intangible thing that makes me want to come back each day. That day when the facilitators explained why I so desperately need that aspect of my job, it allowed me to not feel guilty about being silly. It didn’t mean I had any less work to do, that I didn’t have enough work to do, or that I was any less of a professional than my colleagues; just that I needed my own time frame in order to get it accomplished.
The hard part, as a manager and employer, is letting go of that control and allowing your staff the freedom to play a little at work. A related concern is worrying how the “fun” will affect your business and customers. Fortunately, more often employees who enjoy their work atmosphere retain longevity and exude their enjoyment. This is contagious to your customer base. As an example, think of your favorite restaurant. Was everyone having fun? Was your wait staff singing or dancing? Maybe it’s the fact that the staff is the same and they know you by name. None of those types of things occur in a workplace where employees are unhappy. In contrast, think of your least favorite restaurant experience. My guess is that the wait staff might have been absent or slow and you probably saw very few smiles. Not a whole lot of fun going on there, I’m guessing.
Getting a fun atmosphere in the workplace will take some trust on the part of all parties involved and an open conversation on a regular basis to make sure everyone is comfortable. As a manager, ensuring that the fun doesn’t go too far might be a regular hazard, but a hazard that I can promise you is worth dealing with.
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Chapter Ten
Focus Groups
By Ted A. Kirchharr
A highly effective tool in understanding the needs and concerns of your employees is the use of employee focus groups. When facilitated properly, focus groups will give you significant insights into what your employees are thinking. We’ll review a few of the essential elements.
As Stephen Covey would say, “Begin with the end in mind.” What is it you hope to achieve with your focus group? For example, are you responding to issues that your employee survey revealed or are you trying to uncover other issues that you may suspect may be a concern?
Once you know the purpose of your focus group it is important that the facilitator (or moderator) of your focus group is skilled in promoting good group discussion. A trained facilitator will know how to encourage everyone to participate, and can draw out the shy personalities or quieten the loud voices. Many organizations employ outside facilitators to encourage open and honest discussion on the part of employees. If you choose not to employ an outside facilitator, you should strive to find a facilitator that will be trusted by the whole group.
Next, it is important to select your focus group participants. Typically a dozen or so individuals should attend focus group meetings and these groups should reflect the job duties and departments within the organization. It is important to note that supervisors should not participate in a focus group with direct reports.
There are a number of ways to spur discussion during the meeting. A method we regularly use involves taking the participants on a virtual tour of the organization. This method generally produces a number of issues from throughout the organization. A typical session will generate between 75 and 150 issues. We’ve seen the count go over 200!
Now that you have the issues, what do you do? We have found it helpful to have the participants rate the issues. With this bit of data we are able to focus (pun intended) our efforts on the issues that are most important to our employees.
Our next step is to share the results of the focus groups with our employees. While on occasion this might be painful for some in management, we want to make sure our employees know we heard them, and more importantly, that we intend to take action on their concerns.
Finally, we typically form cross-functional teams to develop recommendations to address the issues. You probably cannot or, in some cases, should not take action on an issue; however, you should communicate to the employees why you can’t (or won’t) take action on an important issue they raised.
Employees are your most valuable asset. Listening to them and taking their concerns seriously will pay big dividends for your employees and for your organization.
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Appendix
Bibliographies:
Collins, Jim. "Good to Great." HarperCollins (New York, NY) 2001
Covey, Stephen R. "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People." Simon & Schuster. 1989
Chapman, Gary. "The Five Love Languages." Northfield Press. October 1992
E. Thomas Garman. Financial Distress among American Workers. March 23, 2005 (personalfinancefoundation.org)
The Case for Financial Education at the Workplace. (Developed jointly by Federal Reserve Banks of Kansas City and Atlanta). March 2005 (http://www.financialwellnessdllc.wrfa.com/section7.cfm)
Ramsey, Dave. Financial Peace University Work Place Edition. (www.daveramsey.com/workplace/home)
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About the Authors
Jim Guttmann, SPHR, Human Resources Manager, Landrum Professional Employer Services.
Jim has over 20 years of HR generalist experience for a large government contractor and Fortune 500 Company. He holds a Masters in Business Administration from Florida State University. Jim is an active member of the Greater Pensacola Society of Human Resources Management and is certified as a County Mediator and qualified to administer the Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI).
Melissa Miller, PHR, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc.
Melissa serves as Strategic Management Specialist and holds an Associate Business Continuity Professional (ABCP) certification from the Disaster Recovery Institute. Melissa facilitates strategic planning sessions, coordinates business continuity planning and provides a vital connection between staff and management through employee focus groups and feedback surveys.
Leslie Thomas Gordon, CPA, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc.
Leslie serves as the Quality Assurance and Compliance Manager where keeping track of our clients in thirty-two states has evolved into an art-form. She was editor-in-chief of the application that resulted in Landrum’s Governor’s Sterling Award in April 2007, and has served on the Florida Sterling Council’s Board of Examiners since 2006.
Candace Rorrer, Benefits Accounting Specialist, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc.
Candace serves as the Cobra Coordinator and tracks paid leave policies for over 300 Landrum client companies. She has 12 years experience in the healthcare field and is currently working towards a degree in Exercise Science. Candace oversees Landrum’s internal Wellness Program.
Joni K. Humphreys, Director of Marketing and Communications, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc.
Joni manages all marketing and public relations opportunities for Landrum and is accountable for the company’s social media strategies including their blog at LandrumHRBlog.com. Joni serves as Chair for Landrum’s Community Outreach Program and coordinates all internal/external fund raising and volunteer events. She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Communication Arts from the University of West Florida.
Ted A. Kirchharr, Vice President and Chief Operating Officer, Landrum Professional Employer Services and Landrum Consulting Services.
Ted is responsible for Landrum’s strategic planning, benefits administration, risk management, human resources and marketing. He has helped hundreds of organizations pursue strategic planning, institute quality control management, hone organizational development, instill leadership training and improve employee retention. He is Past-President of the Florida Sterling Council and has a Master’s in Administration from Central Michigan University.
Melanie Rhodes, Financial Analysis and Reporting Manager, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc. Melanie develops, interprets, and analyzes reports from accounting and financial systems. She also develops systems and reports to enhance management’s decision-making capacity including long range planning and budgeting. Melanie was instrumental in the development of Landrum’s Staff Training and Education Process.
Holly McLeod, PHR, Human Resources Manager, Landrum Human Resource Companies, Inc. Holly has over fifteen years of human resources experience in the corporate, healthcare, manufacturing and consulting environments. She manages Landrum Consulting Services and contributes a weekly “Mayberry Monday” post on LandrumHRBlog.com. Holly is a member of both the national and local chapter of the Society for Human Resources (SHRM). She received her Bachelor of Science degree in Organizational Management from Covenant College in Georgia.
Elizabeth M. Oakes, SPHR, Human Resource Manager, Landrum Professional Employer Services.
Elizabeth ensures that Landrum’s clients are in compliance with all local, state and federal laws that impact on human resources. She assists, as needed, with hiring, terminating, counseling, and training. Elizabeth also advises business owners and employees on the potential resolution of work related issues and consults with employers on the implementation of best human resources practices. She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology with a Human Resource Certification and has over six years experience in Human Resources and Training.
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Social Connections
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