Author Archives: Ben

New Year, New Book, and a New You!

Wow.

This is the first day back at work for many after the winter holidays are coming to a close, and I hope those holidays were rejuvenating for you and those you care about. The family and I enjoyed some much-needed time off, and weather here in Alabama was nice enough to get out in shorts this weekend for time at the park, bike rides, and more. A great way to refresh things for a great start to the year.

The family and I have been celebrating as my new book, Artificial Intelligence for HR, came out just before the new year. I have been humbled to hear some wonderful feedback from the people that have already been reading the book. I am honored! I won’t be pushing the book heavily in the coming months, so if you want to read some fun stories, learn about the trends in HR, and understand what the advent of AI within recruiting, training, and more means for your job, this is your chance to get the book. If you’re reading it and would be willing to add a review on Amazon, I’d be very, very grateful (we could work out a signed copy, if you’re interested).

Finally, this is a new year for YOU as well. Are you certified? Are you thinking about getting certified? Is this the year you pull out your own “state of the union address” for your own company’s leadership? Maybe you have decided that this is the year you step it up on the strategic front, creating more value for your employer and a more meaningful HR practice as a result. Is this the year you toss the “HR” term completely in favor of one of the newer titles, like “employee experience” or something else? I’d love for you to share what your big goal is this year for you and/or your team.

As always, my team and I try to create content, tools, resources, and other helpful information for you on a regular basis. If there’s something you need or want that you haven’t found yet, just throw in a comment below. This is a new year, and we’re in this together, my friends.

-Ben Eubanks, Founder, upstartHR

We’re Only Human 46: New Methods for Educating the Future Leaders of HR

Today, everyone is fascinated with talking about the “future of work.” But who is the future of work? That’s right–students. The kids (we’re old enough to call them kids, right?) that are coming up behind us are going to truly BE the future of the workplace.

In today’s episode of We’re Only Human, Ben takes the opportunity to sit down with a long-time friend, Matt Stollak, to talk about these ideas. Matt teaches HR courses at St. Norbert College, and he takes a very different approach to the classroom than most professors.

If you are hiring new HR professionals or if you’re looking for ways to train some that you’ve recently brought on staff, Matt has some great ideas for how to go beyond the academic approach and make it very practical and real. This is *real* learning. Get ready to take notes, because class is in session.Â

Connect with Matt on Twitter: http://twitter.com/akabruno

Using Employee Feedback to Guide Decision Making

Almost every conversation our team has with business leaders touches on today's pace of change. That pace often prompts employers to make quick decisions, but the problem is those are not always made with the right data on hand.

For example, you're looking for ways to educate your workforce and provide them with the information they need to excel. But you're using last year's employee feedback survey as the basis. How do you know those insights are even relevant today?

Additionally, we have inherent psychological biases that affect our decisions. These biases can influence us to make flawed decisions based on extraneous factors like when we heard about the issue versus the actual importance of it. To counter these issues appropriately, organizations need to be more intentional about listening for problems and acting on them.

THE POWER OF LISTENING + ACTION

“We have two ears and one mouth so that we can listen twice as much as we speak.”

– Epictetus

TheÂ engagement problem in the workplaceÂ is one that HR and business leaders know all too well. A significant majority of workers are marginally engaged, if at all, and only a small minority are highly engaged in their work. It's the workplace equivalent of trying to row a boat by yourself with most of the other rowers either sitting idly or actively paddling against you.

Check out the rest of this article to find out the Three C’s to better listening.

Can We Dock an Employee for Using Company Paid Leave? [Reader Question]

We get all kinds of interesting questions about HR, talent, and the workplace, and today is no exception. Have your own question? Shoot it in to us and we’ll keep it anonymous!

Can an employee be docked on a yearly/scored performance evaluation for using their paid sick leave benefit for legitimate medical appointments?

The Purpose of Employer Paid Leave

Continue reading →

We’re Only Human 45: How to Pursue a Culture of Learning Innovation

Ask almost any business leader, and they’ll tell you that they want their organization to have a culture of learning. However, in today’s discussion, Mark Onisk points out that firms often fail at that “squishy” dream because it’s not well-defined. Simply setting up a learning portal won’t lead to improved results, says Onisk.

In this episode, Ben talks with Mark about the development of learning as a discipline and how it has changed over time. Mark is the Chief Content Officer at Skillsoft, a company that recently celebrated its 20th anniversary. In the discussion, Ben and Mark look at how to create durable skills for workers, the biggest mistake to avoid when setting up a learning strategy, and how to get business leaders to prioritize skills development.

If your organization is looking for ways to build a more competitive workforce that is ready for a digital future, this is the episode for you.

Read Mark’s blog on how learning will change in the next five years:Â https://www.skillsoft.com/blog/2018/11/5-ways-corporate-learning-will-change-in-the-next-20-years/

Get the 2019 HCM Trends Report mentioned in the introduction:Â http://lhra.io/blog/2019-hcm-trends-market-size-investment-priorities/

What Are the 2019 Trends in HR?

In terms of writing and reading content, I have always been anti-trends. Every year people recycle the same information over and over, and it never really reflects reality.

However, this year I partnered with a team to create a list of real trends for 2019 based on where capital is being invested into HR technology, what the forward-thinking employers in the market are doing, and more. It’s a true look at the trends for the coming 12 months. I hope you enjoy the report below. If you’d like to download a copy just click here.

If you’re a practitioner facing one of these challenges, feel free to reach out to us for an advisory call to discuss.
If you’re a solution provider interested in learning more, feel free to contact our team to see how we can help.

Buy a Book, Get Free Stuff: Limited Time Only

We interrupt your regularly scheduled programming for this important announcement!

Cover design for the new book

This year I’ve written my first book. It’s coming out in North America on December 28th. Since the publisher decided to push it to the end of the month, it’s not a Christmas present–it’s a “let’s start 2019 off with some really cool insights on HR and how technology is enabling us to create more human workplaces” present.

As with all my writing, there’s a good blend of research, fun stories, and examples to make even a book on technology very interesting and actionable!

Free Bonus AND a Giveaway

To encourage you to grab a copy, I’ll be running a special promo. Anyone that buys a book in the presale period will receive a special shirt to commemorate our collective belief that HR is an essential part of the future of work. We’re working on the design right now but it will be sure to get great comments (and plenty of jealousy) from your HR friends if they don’t get in on the presale.

Additionally, for every copy you buy you will get entered into a drawing to win a Human Capital Institute virtual conference pass ($800 value). Buy two copies, double your chances of winning! :-)

Please note: Amazon and other sellers do not send me presale information as the author, so in order to enter the contest and get your shirt I need you to send a copy of your receipt and your preferred shirt size to ben@upstarthr.com no later than December 30th in order to participate. Shirt orders will be made on 12/30 so we may not be able to accommodate late requests.

Note: If you are ordering a batch of 10 or more books for your HR team, your students, your customers, or a local HR chapter or reading club, please let me know and I can try to help with a bulk order to save you some money through the publisher directly.

Questions? Drop a comment below! Thanks in advance for all of your support and I am looking forward to sharing the book with the world!