Is Your Company on the HR Naughty or Nice List?

We all know how Santa uses the naughty and nice list, but what about in HR – if you evaluated your HR practices would you end up on the naughty or the nice list? Many companies overlook some very important areas that later cause them to have unexpected problems. Today, we will go over some basics of how to stay off the naughty list!

Does your company have a Vision, Mission and Core Values? Are they clearly communicated and understood by all employees?

Many companies say they have a vision, mission and core values, but if you ask the employees they are not aware of them. These statements should be integrated into company culture and business planning decisions should be make to align with the stated vision and values. No core values puts you on the HR naughty list!

Does your company have a healthy company culture?

Every company has a culture. It just may not be the one they intended to have. To establish a culture for the employees and customers that is intentional there needs to be a true focus and effort around culture. If the company does not create the culture the employees then create the culture. This may not be in line with the goals of the business and can have negative effects on employee and customer retention. Unhealthy culture = HR naughty list!

Does your company have an employee onboarding process for new hires?

Employee onboarding is not just one day or just filling out new employee paperwork. This process can look different at every company, but it needs to last at least several months to properly integrate a new employee. Statistics show that employees who have not been properly onboarded are much more likely to leave their jobs in the first year. Stay off the naught list by improving your onboarding!

Does employee engagement need improvement?

Many companies struggle with employee engagement. Every company has engaged, disengaged and actively disengaged employees. Companies with a highly-engaged workforce are more financially successful, attract better employees, have better productivity/work quality and are better able to retain top talent. Don’t let low employee engagement put you on the naughty list!

Do you have leadership training within your organization?

Few people have a natural gift for leadership. For most, it’s an acquired skill learned through support, education, experience, and commitment. A successful business is one that trains its leader to lead just as it would provide an entry-level employee with the skills to perform the duties of their position. No leadership training definitely puts you on the naughty list!

Do you know who your high and low performing employees are in your organization?

Your high performing employees are the ones who are driving the success of your business. They need to be identified and groomed. If you have not identified your high and low performing employees this automatically puts you on the HR naughty list and gets you a lump of coal!

Do you have a performance review/evaluation process that is working well?

An effective performance management process allows you to groom high performers to retain top talent and identify low performers to train them to become better performers or possibly recruit their replacement. Having regular feedback and accountability meetings should be part of the process for active communication between managers and employees. Having a well run performance management process will keep you off the HR naughty list!

Does leadership have a well thought out compensation strategy including merit increases, bonuses, and other types of employee rewards?

Total compensation is a significant factor for retaining high quality talent and building a healthy workplace culture. People are your greatest asset so it can be beneficial to view compensation as a business investment rather than a company expense. Not having accurate information on what competitive salaries are in the marketplace will certainly put you at the top of the HR naughty list!

Do you have measures in place to control employee turnover and keep it low?

Many factors play into issues with high employee turnover and many of them are already on this list. Employees who understand their jobs, have proper training, are well compensated and are shown appreciation by their managers are much less likely to leave their jobs. High employee turnover sends you straight to the HR naughty list!

Do you have a succession planning process in place to identify and development the future leaders within your company, especially if your top leaders are close to retiring?

Having a succession planning strategy in place helps your business prepare for all contingencies by preparing high-potential workers for advancement. By finding and developing people for future roles you are able to promote from within. Employees who know they are being invested in have increased motivation and loyalty to the company. As you probably already assume, having a succession plan keeps you off the HR naughty list!

Do you have job descriptions for all positions within the company that reflect job duties accurately?

Having accurate job descriptions is an often overlooked item of importance. Accurate job descriptions aid in attracting the right employee during the hiring process, helps guide training during the onboarding process, helps measure performance, increases job satisfaction and retention and offers protection after terminations. Not having updated accurate job descriptions = HR naughty list.

Has your employee handbook been reviewed and/updated in the last 2 years by an HR professional or labor attorney?

Having an updated legally compliant handbook can save you many headaches when problems arise in the company. Not having a legally compliant handbook is an HR naughty list item and may cost you in the long run!

We at HR Catalyst want to do everything we can to keep you off the HR naught list – so if you answered No to two or more questions above, please accept our Christmas gift to you – a complimentary phone consultation to discuss possible HR solutions for your company. You can schedule a call below. Also, don’t forget to check out our HR Naughty List video series on our YouTube channel and subscribe for future updates!

Small and medium-sized businesses may not have the time or expertise to implement the necessary people strategies for business success. The ideas above can be easily implemented by you to help improve the performance of your employees which leads to increased employee engagement and increasing the bottom line.

We are here to help you with the people side of your business: employee engagement, retention programs, performance management, vision, and strategic plans, leadership development, selection & onboarding, compensations programs, organizational design, employee handbooks, core values, and all things HR-related.