HRevolution-Is it for the “little guy?”

A few months back I read a great post by Keith McIlvane about wanting HR conferences to offer more content toward small companies. My first answer for HR conference problems is almost always going to be an event like HRevolution, because it allows participants to drive the conversations and topics that they find interesting, not what some organizer slapped on the agenda.

Keith’s post goes on to discuss this specific content request:

Don\’t get me wrong, the big-brand case studies are extremely strategic in how they launch each initiative and often in a very impressive manner. But most companies have a more limited budget. I would love to hear how they took their huge wish-list and walked through the strategy and reasoning about going in the direction they chose.

I think I have a solid strategy in place, but know it is by far from perfect. Wouldn\’t it be great to hear what similar obstacles are happening in your industry or other industries that might be similar pain-points to what you are encountering.

Can HRevolution really do that?

I say we give it a shot. We’ve had solutions created on the spot for actual participant case studies, activities like the hack labs where participants walk away with a list of ideas to try in their own organization, and other highly participatory content. Why not this one?

What else are you looking for that isn’t being provided by the “traditional” conferences?

Interested in attending HRev? Click here to get your ticket.

How to Become a Best Place to Work

best places to work award

Yes, I know this logo is from 2011. New badges not out yet. :-)

If you’re looking for ideas on how to become a best place to work, maybe I can help. On Tuesday I had the opportunity to attend the Huntsville Best Places to Work Awards ceremony, and Pinnacle received an award in the “micro” size business category. Over 200 companies were nominated to kick off the process, and there was definitely some stiff competition. This is the first year we were eligible to compete since we were too small in previous years.

Want to know how to become a “Best Place to Work?” It’s fairly simple.

  1. Build a company from the ground up with an emphasis on core values
  2. Hire and promote based on those core values
  3. Repeat

Hey, wait a minute. Shouldn’t there be something in there about rewards or transparency or something? Surely there’s more to it.

Certainly, but those are covered in #1. Our values include things like creating a fun work environment and enforcing an atmosphere of open and honest communication. Creating a fun work environment means different things to different people. With regard to the HR team, for example, it is an opportunity to provide a solid slate of benefits that help our people focus on their work, not scrounge around for insurance.

If you choose core values that can be broadly interpreted, yet hard-hitting enough for people to follow them on a daily basis, then you are on the right track. Over time that leads to a great workplace that employees love.

Tomorrow I’ll go back to work. We’ll keep doing the same things we’ve been doing for the past few years, because that’s what our people love about Pinnacle. And that, my friends, is how you become what some people like to call a “best place to work.”

Company Success Stories-A Lesson from Clif Bar

Have you ever thought about company success stories? Most of us are captivated by the startup company “started in a garage and became a millionaire” type stories. I wasn’t looking for an object lesson, but I found one in an interesting place.

I snagged a Clif Bar to munch on before the Run for Kids 50k this past weekend, and as I read the package (I know, I’m a nerd) I was instantly transformed from a casual snacker to a believer in the Clif Bar mission (a little dramatic, but you get the general idea). Below is a slightly modified version of what is on the packaging of ever Clif Bar and package they sell.

You read it and tell me that you don’t feel some sort of connection on a deeper, personal level with the company and what they believe in:

In 1990, I lived in a garage with my dog, skis, climbing gear, bicycle and two trumpets. The inspiration to create an energy bar occurred during a day-long, 175-mile ride with my buddy Jay. We’d been gnawing on some “other” energy bars. Suddenly despite my hunger, I couldn’t take another bite. That’s the moment I now call “the epiphany”. Two years later, after countless hours in Mom’s kitchen, Clif Bar became a reality. And the mission to create a better-tasting energy bar was accomplished. Thanks, Mom!

Clif Bar has grown since 1990, and still the spirit of adventure that began on that ride continues to thrive each day. As the company evolves, we face many choices, yet we always do our best to take care of our people, our community and our environment. Gary – Owner of Clif Bar Inc.

Now, I don’t know about you, but we don’t sell snacks. We don’t have packaging (if you ever figure out how to package a Blackhawk instructor pilot’s services, please let me know!). So how do we share our own company success story with our employees and customers?

It all depends on your preferences. You can start using a new hire welcome letter. You can hold town hall meetings. Whatever you decide to do, don’t forget the importance of tying emotion into the story. Memories that are tied to emotions are more strongly embedded in the receiver’s brain. When you read the Clif Bar story above, you’re filled with a sense of pride and excitement at the struggles they faced and overcame.

Think about your own company’s story. Can you tell it in a way that makes people excited to hear and share it with others? 

I Heart Cake Time

Like many companies, we have a once a month birthday recognition and sit down together to share one of my favorite food groups–cake. I am a fast eater, so I usually finish very quickly and then just sit and talk or listen to others tell about some personal events in their lives. And as much as I love cake, I really love the time that we all share together.

When I think about working where I do, I don’t immediately think about the building, the work, or the benefits. I think of the people. We like to work with people like us. That’s how fun things like our accidental wellness program got started. Now that’s not to say we don’t have diversity in our group. The personality differences just in our local office could fill a psychology textbook, but that’s just part of the fun!

I read a great post a while back by Jason Lauritsen that got me thinking about the people we work with. The tribes, if you will. It’s difficult when I’m recruiting someone to explain just what the “people” aspect of working here is like. I can recite the litany of benefits and perks, but I always lack the words to describe that.

Maybe I can just start saying, “We have cake time. It’s a chance for us to get together and share some fun stories and fight over corner pieces with extra frosting.” Eh, I still think it needs work, but the bottom line is when you are thinking about your workplace, do you think about the people? It’s much more fun to go to work when you have friends there.

Want to make friends? Offer them some cake. I’d take some.

The image above is one of my favorite web comics ever. Check it out here.

Human Resource Management Planning-The Micro Level

hr management planShortly into my lunch meeting, I realized it was a human resource management planning exercise in disguise. And it was so much fun.

I talk often about what it’s like working for Pinnacle. A sizable portion of what makes it a great working environment is having a manager who truly spends their time looking for ways to make your life and career a priority.

I highly encourage you to have a similar meeting if you’re managing someone. They want that attention and expertise that only you can give, even if you feel like you don’t have anything to offer.

Topics to cover

Not sure where to start? Try to touch on these areas and pick at least one to hone in on:

  • The employee’s career goals (no limits!)
  • Have an honest discussion of where you have enhanced their career (and in some cases, where you might have limited its growth)
  • How the employee fits into the organizational plan in the 1-5 years to come

Yes, it’s a short list, because what follows is dependent on the responses. For instance, if the employee wants to eventually become a benefits specialist, but your company doesn’t have any openings for that area, you can help them start preparing by giving them more responsibility in that area. If your employee wants to manage people, start shaping them to be the best manager they can be.

If, in the scope of the discussion, you find out that some of your actions have been interpreted as limiting career growth for the employee, then work with them to come to a resolution.

Finally, in the “big picture,” talk about what the company’s future looks like (as best you can describe it, anyway). Discuss what that means for your department and the person’s position in particular. Be honest. You’d want someone to be honest with you!

A few more details

If you’d like your miniature human resource management planning session to be successful, here are a few more tips:

  • Get away from the office for 1-2 hours (a long lunch works well for this)
  • Spend some time talking non-work stuff, because that’s what matters to the employee most (and could uncover some idea of future hopes/ideas)
  • Be sure to get their input on what they see going on with regard to the team/department level; they’re usually closer to the action than you are

Make it so

While HR management planning is a large-scale activity in most cases, for our purposes today we’re looking at how it affects a team, one person at a time. I don’t know about you, but I’ve seen organizations be damaged by the actions of one reckless, irresponsible person.

What about the other side? How much positive change and influence could one open, honest person create? Anyone at Pinnacle could tell you that my manager does it on a daily basis, one small action at a time. I only hope I can be that inspirational and supportive when I have my own employees reporting to me. Let’s just say I’m taking good notes!

Do you ever have meetings like this with your staff? What do you discuss? 

Developing Your Team-Commitment Matters

How to develop a teamDeveloping your team the “Edward Jones” way

For the past few months, my youngest brother has been going through the hiring process for the hardcore Edward Jones PASS program. I had the opportunity to sit and talk with him about the steps he took to get the position, and it honestly floored me at all the hoops he had to jump through to even be considered as a serious candidate. The more I thought about it, the more I realized that EJ had put some serious thought into the process and what they wanted their final candidates to look like.

Here’s the basic process to go through for the highly competitive PASS program:

  • Apply on website
  • Lengthy web application process
  • Someone at EJ performs resume review
  • If considered qualified, you are notified via email to call in and listen to PASS conference call and Q&A (~40 applicants on the line at once)
  • If you attended the call, you are notified via email to call and schedule your own phone screen
  • During the phone screen, the EJ representative asks how you would build a sustainable investing business, what your plans are, what you understand of the PASS program, etc.
  • If you pass the phone screen, they send you the job description again for review, then you are notified to schedule your own phone interview
  • During the phone interview, the EJ asks fairly standard interview questions. This lasts 45-90 minutes based on your responses. If you do not understand the job requirements (multiple questions based on the job description you’ve been furnished previously), you are not considered qualified. At the end of the call you are given an immediate verbal yes/no notice
  • You receive an email a few days later and are provided a task to complete. Once you complete the task, you report back on your results. If you did not meet your goal, you are eliminated from the process
  • If you complete the task successfully, you are notified to schedule a face-to-face interview to discuss the task and answer a few routine interview questions
  • At the end of that meeting, they tell you that you’ll know if you are still being considered within 4-5 days
  • Someone calls you to make sure you are interested specifically in the PASS program and provides conference call info
  • You call into PASS conference call again to listen to the program description and have a chance to ask questions
  • You call into a conference call only for PASS-qualified candidates a few days later
  • One month before your scheduled start date, you must turn in this information: fingerprints/drug screen/paperwork/background check
  • If you pass each of those hurdles, you are considered qualified to join the early stages of the PASS program

I don’t know about you, but I didn’t have even half as much difficulty getting my current job. I think having a process like this leads to several things:

  1. Your final candidates are fairly knowledgeable about the company, their role, and how that fits into the organizational structure (I’ve met people in previous jobs with 5 years of experience who don’t even know those kinds of details!)
  2. The remaining candidates are deeply committed. They’ve invested several months of sweat equity into the process, and they won’t just walk away from the position halfway through the hiring steps
  3. The people who don’t make it in still realize it’s a good company with high standards for filling its positions

This article only covers the pre-hire steps involved with developing your team. Hopefully I’ll have some time soon to write on post-hire steps you can take in developing a highly committed workforce. For more on the topic, be sure to check out how to develop managers by getting them involved.

Anyone else have a long, difficult hire process? Did that leave you feeling more committed to the organization? Less? 

Am I The Only One?

I have been working all kinds of wacky projects this week (international labor law, anyone?), and it’s only magnified one of my huge (and I mean huge) deficiencies–a lack of organization.

My desk looks like a bomb went off. Ka-blooey.

(And I need your help.)

Sure, I can talk a good game, but sooner or later my subconscious clubs my conscious brain into submission and things just fall to pieces.  It’s a running joke when my wife comes up to the office to see me; she always writes a note on my whiteboard that mentions the state of complete disarray.

Sometimes I lose things (ouch). Sometimes I lose track of things. Sometimes I wonder if there’s a black hole leading to another dimension somewhere near the back corner of my work space that pulls in random papers whenever it pleases. (At least that answer sounds kind of cool when you say it out loud.)

Oooh, so close…

One of my almost-ironclad strategies includes putting Post-It notes with critical tasks on my computer monitor so I see it when I sit down at my desk. I say “almost,” because more than once I have leaned around and lifted up the edges of the Post-It notes on my screen to look at the screen instead of actually handling the task!

Any neatniks out there? I’m looking for some tips. Let’s hear ’em. I need to get this wreck of a desk in order, and I need to do it now.Â