Challenges of Background Checks

With many companies prohibiting the release of information from past employees, many employers are searching for ways to find out about the integrity and performance of job candidates. A recent article published in HR Magazine claim that recruiters are looking to social network sites such as Facebook, to paint a picture of a candidate.
According to a 2010 poll on background checks conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), 98% of members stated that their organizations would only verify dates of employment for current or former employees. Furthermore, 68% said they wouldn't discuss work performance, 82% stated that they wouldn't discuss personality and 87% said they wouldn't disclose a disciplinary action. Regardless of success, employment law attorneys encourage HR professionals to forge ahead. If a company doesn't perform a background check on an employee and he or she harms the employer, the company could be at fault for negligent hiring. One should document good faith effort to find out information.

I was involved in a case where an employee had perfect attendance during his probationary period but once he was part of the union, his unexcused absences were frequent. Another employee, through a mutual friend, heard this individual had an attendance problem at his previous job. If true, it would’ve been helpful, but many previous employers’ policies don’t allow them to elaborate. The article mentions that many HR personnel or hiring managers are calling references and previous employers themselves, often asking the candidate's supervisor to give further information, and bypassing the HR department. This is a sketchy practice, as some hiring managers may ask illegal questions. In the end, the goal is to find the right candidate for the job, not dig up dirt on candidates.

Meinert, Dori. "Seeing Behind the Mask." HR Magazine. February 2011; 31-37.
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Training & Development of Middle Management

A recent article from SHRM’s HR Magazine discusses training and development for the most crucial segment of the workforce: middle management. This segment is often pressured from the top by upper executives, and the bottom by customer-facing employees. A middle manager who is well trained will better communicate the company's objectives to employees and help minimize the "us vs. them" attitude, improving satisfaction and morale of the workers. H.R. professionals can support the middle management training initiative by addressing the needs of new and veteran managers, reduce barriers of training, and create opportunities for middle managers to network with one another to learn different aspects of the organization (Tyler, 51).

It is vital to properly prepare and train front-line employees before they enter a supervisory role. In my experience, our company typically promotes an employee with years of experience, give him a raise and a nifty title, and throws him into a supervisor position. However, it is very difficult for them to work alongside coworkers for ten years or so, to being their boss the next day, as a supervisor now responsible for disciplining, reviewing and assuring workers are doing their jobs properly and safely. The article mentions a program used by the Turner Broadcasting System (TBS) in Atlanta to develop middle management. This seven-month program covers hiring, performance management, company polices and procedures, delegating, time management, transition from a subject matter expert to a people manager, team development and resolving interpersonal conflict. Their first group graduated from this program in November 2010. After reading about this program, I am interested in using some of these ideas to improve the way we promote managers at my work in the future, as proper training can lead to more effective management.

 Tyler, Kathryn. "The Strongest Link." HR Magazine. February 2011; 51-53.

Recruitment & Selection

Recruitment and selection are an important part of business because they are essential to attract and maintain one of the most significant assets: people. We often thing of recruitment in terms of internal and external hiring; however, there are many people who get overlooked in recruitment, for example, veterans with disabilities. According to a poll conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) and ILR – Employment and Disability Institute at Cornell University, almost three-quarters of organizations agreed that veterans with disabilities perform on the job as well as any other employee. These results validate the high potential of the veteran pool of candidates. Findings also showed that more than 60% of organizations reported that they were unaware of the Tip of the Arrow Foundation, the VetSuccess Program and the Wounded Warrior Program, which are resources available to employers to find qualified applicants who are veterans with disabilities. In terms of companies actually hiring veterans, 68% of organizations polled reported that they hired a veteran in the past 12 months and 67% of those companies reported that their organizations included veterans in their diversity plans and policies. Finally, the poll found that only 38% of HR professionals reported that their companies had EAP’s with expertise in veterans’ issues, which would be helpful for veterans adjusting to work life after serving in the military.

There are several policies that assist veterans in finding work. The Vietnam Era Veterans' Readjustment Assistance Act of 1974 (VEVRRA) and amendment, Jobs for Veterans Act (JVA), which encourage and in some cases force employers to take affirmative action to employ and promote qualified covered veterans, including those disabled. The results from the poll show that most employers are satisfied with these individuals as employees, and are encouraged to continue to promote giving opportunities for our veterans.

 Recruiting Veterans with Disabilities: Perceptions in the Workplace, SHRM Poll 1/12/11

Social Media in the Workplace: A Challenge for Some

It seems like only yesterday that most communication within the workplace, including conversations with vendors, customer and employees, was carried out over the phone or in person. Thanks to the dawn of the Internet, communication is faster and far more efficient with programs such as email, text messaging, web-conferencing and social network websites, such as Twitter and Facebook.The author describes social media as the “relatively inexpensive and wide accessible electronic tools that enable anyone to publish and access information, collaborate on a common effort, or build relationships” (Pg. 4). Sounds great, right? Well not every organization is taking advantage of this phenomenon, with negative employees who refuse to change.

It's 11:30 am and an employee is injured. The injury is not serious, but the Plant Manager wants to hold a safety meeting in the lunchroom at 1:30pm. He asks his assistant to contact managers to begin the chain of contact. A fast, efficient means of communication is necessary to ensure the message gets across. The problem is, some employees do not check their emails for days. This is because they are slow and unfamiliar with their computer. Is it fair to expect that some will check their emails and others need to be called?

The situation above is one that I've dealt with at my company. I learned quickly, after seeing that certain departments didn't show up for meetings, that some managers do not check their mail and must be called by phone. This creates a dilemma because although it is very time-consuming to call everyone, it is the only way that the message will be transmitted. If everyone was trained and familiar with email, the message would reach all parties. One issue recognized in the book, Social Media at Work, is that certain employees are not comfortable communicating on the worldwide web using programs such as email and social network sites. By taking more time to communicate to employees with negative attitudes towards social media, the company loses productivity as it now takes longer to pass along a message. This could result in the loss of several hours of work productivity each week.

The book mentions that the Baby Boomers and Gen Xers are still unfamiliar with this way of working and living (pg. 6). It is very apparent in my workplace, where the managers with 30+ years of experience rarely check their email and prefer to make a phone call to move information. But as these veteran employees begin to retire, they are being replaced with people who are expected to know and understand the ways of social media.  Until then, some employees have much resistance and negativity towards new programs. The implementation of social media in the workplace is still a challenge where older generations are still dominant. While I still find it sometimes difficult to motivate veteran employees to embrace the exciting programs and features in social media, there is hope as the younger generations become experts in this field. The world is changing, as are our workplaces. Are you ready?

Source:  Jue, Alcalde-Marr, and Kassotakis book, Social Media at Work
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