What is an Employee Performance Improvement Plan(PIP)?

Whether you’re new to managing employees or on a path of developing your management skills, one central tenet of employee management is a process to help under-performers improve. After examining the financial cost of terminating an employee for poor performance and hiring someone else, choosing improvement over firing is a smart business strategy that any leader or manager should embrace.

We know that’s easier said than done. Working with an employee to get better at their job is full of uncomfortable conversations, but with the right tools in your management belt, you’ll soon be able to move through the process with ease.  Here’s everything you need to know to hit the ground running with a performance improvement plan.

How can employees improve their performance?

While there’s no clear answer of what constitutes adequate performance for each business, there are several ways that employees can improve their performance. Whether it’s something as direct as improving sales numbers or softer skills, such as demeanor or cooperation, there is almost always some way that an employee can improve. It doesn’t always have to be a negative critique, either; feedback could be about maximizing employee efficiency rather than addressing a problem.

While most managers only step in to improve performance when an employee’s work ethic has become problematic, improvement can also mean elevating an employee from good to great.

What is a performance improvement plan (PIP)?

“A performance improvement plan (PIP), also known as a performance action plan, is a tool to give an employee with performance deficiencies the opportunity to succeed,” explains SHRM, adding that, “it may be used to address failures to meet specific job goals or to ameliorate behavior-related concerns.”

When putting a PIP into action, ensure that your ultimate goal is to improve performance, rather than justify a termination. Performance improvement plans are separate from a paper trail that should already be in place to document an employee’s potential path to termination; instead these plans are action-focused which should lead an employee back into good standing within the company.

Next, if you determine that a PIP is the right way to go, sit down with the employee and develop a plan together with the help of HR to moderate. While the manager should be guiding the PIP creation process, it’s important to include the honest feedback of the employee so that the plan has the potential to be realized. performance improvement programs should include any and all relevant information, such as specific statistics, examples, or the job description for references.

After creating and implementing the plan, the next step is monitoring its progression. Depending on how monitoring goes, at the conclusion of the performance improvement plan, the employee’s performance will ideally have been corrected, at which point he or she will walk away with the awareness that these new levels of achievement are expected to continue. or, if it goes into the other direction, it might be time to consider reassignment, demotion, or termination to resolve the issues at hand.

What is an employee corrective action plan?

As the University of Washington explains, an employee corrective action plan is similar to a PIP. “The objective of corrective action is to correct and resolve employee performance problems in order to retain the employee as a productive staff member,” the university’s HR Operations department explains.

Things can get a little tricky when it comes to dealing with “at will” employees and it’s important that what’s called “just cause”—essentially ensuring that the corrective action plan was properly carried out in case of any legal action taking place if the action results in a way that an employee could choose to dispute.

References

• Jamie A.Gruman & Alan M.Saks.,2011 Human Resource Management Review,Volume 21,Issue 2,Pages 123-136

• Raluca L.Vosloban.,2012 Procedia Economics and Finance,Volume 3,Pages 660-665

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lTJRHLs6l4A

What are employee relations?

How you deal with your staff can make or break your business - they are one of your most important assets. Treat them badly and you’ll experience an exodus of talented employees. Treat them well however, and you will be rewarded with hard-working, productive staff who enjoy their work and value their employer. 

In short, happy employees are productive employees. 

Yet you’d be surprised at how many businesses still overlook their staff, treating them as numbers rather than human beings, concentrating only on cost and efficiency and ultimately paying the price.

So, what exactly are employee relations?

Employee relations have replaced the term industrial relations and cover much more than just the collective relationships between employer and workforce. Whereas once it was focused on the influence of trade unions and collective workforce rights, there has been a shift towards individual workplace rights as trade union membership has declined.

Employee relations can include working conditions or pay and benefits – the traditional things associated with trade unions and collective workplace rights. But it can also include work life balance, rewards and recognition.

The key thing is managing those relations well. Whether you’re a business owner or a line manager in a business, fostering positive relations will improve business performance.

Managing employee relations

Writing a transparent employee relations policy is a great place to start. This should include your company ethos, rules as well as procedures for addressing any employee-related problems. But the way you deal with the workforce as a whole and with individual employees will differ. 

1. Individual relationships

As trade unions have declined the focus is now much more on individual relations with employees. Engaging with your employees is vital if you want to make sure they stay happy and productive. Motivation, job satisfaction, work flow, shared purpose and work effort are some of the areas you need to consider. But needs vary greatly from employee to employee depending on gender, age, job type etc. so you need to ask them directly and communicate with them. 

Remember the last job you did that you loved? Did you enjoy it because you were made to feel important, because you were a valued part of a team or because you knew your work made a real difference to the success of a company? By communicating with your employees, you will get a sense of what they want and how best to make them feel like you once did. 

2. Collective relationships

No one likes liars and you will seriously damage your company credibility if you’re not open and honest with your workforce. Yes, trade union membership has declined but they still exist and your workers may be members, depending on your industry. And even if your staff aren’t affiliated to a trade union, how you treat them collectively and communicate with them is still just as important.

As you would with individual employees, ensuring there is effective two-way communication between you and the workforce is vital, especially if changes could affect jobs, hours or pay. Communication needs to involve listening and dialogue rather than simply dishing out information. Being proactive, focussing on positive behaviours and encouraging problem-solving can all help to build positive relationships, leaving your company with a great employer image rather than a poor one.

The value of employee relations in small businesses

Do not underestimate the power of the workforce voice. You might think managing employee relations isn’t relevant to you if you run a small business but you couldn’t be more wrong. No matter how big or little your company is, building good relations and engaging staff will be vital to your business success.

Disengaged staff can be particularly crippling for small businesses because you don’t have many staff to rely upon and you can’t afford to take a big productivity hit. If one becomes disgruntled, you can very quickly end up with all of them unhappy and a serious issue with your workforce. Engaging with staff early on also lays the groundwork for good practice as your company grows.

Make your employees feel valued rather than just mere workers in your business, talk to them, keep them informed and engage them in their work - you’ll build a positive atmosphere in which people want to work, rather than one where they’re constantly scanning the job ads, looking for a role where some does care about them. 

References

• Rowley,C.,& Harry,W.,2011 Managing people globally,Pages 247-326

• Leat,M.,2007 Exploring Employee Relations(Second Edition),Pages 309-348

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MniDX7CcGt8

The importance of compensation plan in an Organization

Compensation plays a critical role in aligning employee behavior with business objectives. Since the industrial age, the four Ms of business management i.e. Man, Material, Machine and Money are said to contribute to the business’s success. Among these, man has been considered to be the most important factor contributing to organizational effectiveness and efficiency.

Attributes such as lateness, absenteeism, unsafe actions, alcoholism, drug abuse, poor training, and incompetence can upset the apple cart of business objectives. Efficient employment practices are inevitable towards the sustenance of goals by making sure that this one important factor is set right on the path of productivity. There is no doubt that by employing the right kind of man for the right job can discard the wide space called ineffective business management. However, human elements such as expectations, emotions, ambitions, egos etc. too contribute a fair amount to business success. Thus, a fair compensation system is created in every organization on order to make the most of most important ‘M’ element.

Compensation attributes to all forms of pay and rewards received by employees for their performance, including all forms of benefits, perks, services and cash rewards. It is paramount to acknowledge and announce the total compensation to your employees. This needs to be done so that the significance of what you are putting forth in compensation is clear and hence attracts and retains talent.

Compensation is usually given in the form of monetary rewards that can be either direct or indirect:

DIRECT COMPENSATION

• Wages & salaries

• Bonuses

• Incentives & commission

• Stock options

INDIRECT COMPENSATION

Various income protection programs – employee insurance, workers compensation, pension plans

Benefits

Indirect benefits can be costly, and their value should be disclosed and recognized when discussing about the compensation offered.

When creating an organization’s total compensation program, including compensation design, rules and procedures, it is vital that the HR professionals understand and include what is moreover essential to the business and its objectives.

A variety of elements need to be considered when designing a compensation plan that is also compatible to the employee demographic and budgetary bridles.

The following should be included when designing a compensation plan:

• Various elements that will embody the total compensation offered to the employees.
• Comparable and competitive compensation rates within the industry.
• Compensation needs to be unbiased. There must always be a logical increase in pay when it comes to length of service, job title, skills and abilities required to accomplish the job in a productive manner.
• An already established criterion that results in a pay increase.
• A well designed system to measure and control payroll costs.
• A proper procedure to measure the success of the organization’s compensation program by determining if the compensation results into favorable retention numbers, workforce performance and motivation.

THE PURPOSE OF COMPENSATION IN AN ORGANIZATION:

• Attract & retain employees

• Motivate workforce & sustain high morale

• Meet legal requirements

• Motivate personal growth

In every organization it is essential to understand the importance of compensation and the flexibility the hiring managers can have in designing a compensation package that can in turn attract, retain and develop a quality talent pool.

References

• Rogers,D.,2017.Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics,Volume 118,Issue 3,Pages 499-511

• Xavier,B.,2014.Human Resource Management Review,Volume 24,Issue 1,Pages 31-40

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fRMxbSDiC8

The importance of Training and Development in HRM

Definition: Training and Development

Training and Development is a subsystem of an organization which emphasize on the improvement of the performance of individuals and groups. Training is an educational process which involves the sharpening of skills, concepts, changing of attitude and gaining more knowledge to enhance the performance of the employees. Good & efficient training of employees helps in their skills & knowledge development, which eventually helps a company improve.

Training is about knowing where you are in the present and after some time where will you reach with your abilities. By training, people can learn new information, new methodology and refresh their existing knowledge and skills. Due to this there is much improvement and adds up the effectiveness at work. The motive behind giving the training is to create an impact that lasts beyond the end time of the training itself and employee gets updated with the new phenomenon. Training can be offered as skill development for individuals and groups.

Organizational Development is a process that “strives to build the capacity to achieve and sustain a new desired state that benefits the organization or community and the world around them.” (From the Organizational Development Network website).

Relation between Training and Development

There is a relation between training and development, and there is clear difference between the two based on goals to be achieved. Development is made to answer the training problems:

TRAINING	DEVELOPMENT
Training is meant for operatives	Development is meant for executives
It is reactive process	It is pro- active process
AIM: To develop additional skills	AIM: To develop the total personality
It is short term process	It is continuous process
OBJECTIVE: To meet the present need of an employee	OBJECTIVE: To meet the future need of an employee
Initiative is taken by the management	Initiative is taken by an individual.

Importance of Training and Development

For companies to keep improving, it is important for organizations to have continuous training and development programs for their employees. Competition and the business environment keeps changing, and hence it is critical to keep learning and pick up new skills. The importance of training and development is as follows:

• Optimum utilization of Human resources

• Development of skills

• To increase the productivity

• To provide the zeal of team spirit

• For improvement of organization culture

• To improve quality, safety

• To increase profitability

• Improve the morale and corporate image

Need for Training and Development

Training and development of employees is a costly activity as it requires a lot quality inputs from trainers as well as employees. But it is essential that the company revises its goals and efficiencies with the changing environment. Here are a few critical reasons why the company endorses training and development sessions.

• When management thinks that there is a need to improve the performances of employees

• To set up the benchmark of improvement so far in the performance improvement effort

• To train about the specific job responsibility

• To test the new methodology for increasing the productivity

Advantages of training and development

Training and development has a cost attached to it. However, since it is beneficial for companies in the long run, they ensure employees are trained regularly. Some advantages are:

1. Helps employees develop new skills and increases their knowledge.

2. Improves efficiency and productivity of the individuals as well as the teams.

3. Proper training and development can remove bottle-necks in operations.

4. New & improved job positions can be created to make the organization leaner.

5. Keeps employees motivated and refreshes their goals, ambitions and contribution levels.

Disadvantages of training and development

Even though there are several advantages, some drawbacks of training and development are mentioned below:

1. It is an expensive process which includes arranging the correct trainers and engaging employees for non-revenue activities.

2. There is a risk that after the training and development session, the employee can quit the job.

Training and Development Process

Training and development is a continuous process as the skills, knowledge and quality of work needs constant improvement. Since businesses are changing rapidly, it is critical that companies focus on training their employees after constantly monitoring them & developing their overall personality.

Steps for training and development processes are:

1. Determine the need of training and development for individuals or teams

2. Establish specific objectives & goals which need to be achieved

3. Select the methods of training

4. Conduct and implement the programs for employees

5. Evaluate the output and performance post the training and development sessions.

6. Keep monitoring and evaluating the performances and again see if more training is required.

Hence, this concludes the definition of Training and Development along with its overview.

References

• McCrie.R.,2016.Security Operations Management(Third Edition),Pages 113-143

• Susan.L Murray,Matthew S.Thimgan.,2016.Human Fatigue Risk Management,Pages 193-204

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-0eCYWbjbyU

Recruitment process in Human Resources Management

Ah, The recruitment process. That process by which organizations find new employees. Sounds simple, right?

Wrong! If it was simple, every organization would do it and they would do it well. The fact of the matter is that they don’t. That’s one of the many reasons they hire executive search consultants to help them. (Or at least they should.)

What is the recruitment process?

A recruitment process is an organization-specific model of candidate sourcing for the purpose of finding and hiring new employees. Typically, the ownership of the recruitment process resides within the Human Resources function, although companies also use third-party recruiting firms. Ownership can vary depending upon the specific organizational structure of the company carrying out the process.

Are the hiring process steps always the same?

Of course, every organization and company is different. What works well for one company may not work well for another. That’s why the ability to be self-aware is a crucial component of the recruiting process. You can’t do what sounds like it might work within your organization. You must do what does work.

One thing that organizations (your clients) must remember is that the recruitment procedure involves actual recruiting. That’s because these organizations should be going after top-shelf, A-level candidates. These type of candidates need to be recruited. Why? Because they’re not actually looking for a job! They’re probably already being paid well and treated well by their current employer. However, recruiting passive candidates is NOT easy.

That’s why a company’s recruitment procedure should not just consist of submitting a position to online job posting boards, sitting back, and waiting for the applications to roll in. That’s not going to result in the sourcing and hiring of the best candidates possible. It might result in the sourcing and hiring of the best candidates actively looking for a new job. It’s not the same thing.

When company officials examine their organization’s hiring process steps, they must have a proactive mindset. In other words, their focus should be on identifying, recruiting, interviewing, hiring, and retaining the best candidates available in the marketplace. (Regardless of whether they’re actively seeking new employment). That—in a nutshell—is what the recruitment process is all about.

Recruitment process steps

But . . . there’s a little more to it than that, as you might imagine. Okay, so company officials must be self-aware and know what works for their organization and what doesn’t. They must also act proactively and have the proper frame of mind at the outset. Creating a basic recruitment flowchart can sometimes be helpful to keep you on track.

With all of this in mind, below are the 10 basic steps in the recruitment process. (Remember, the process in individual to each organization, meaning they might omit steps, add steps, move them around, or all three.)

1) Identifying the hiring need

You can’t find what you need . . . if you don’t know what you need. It’s not enough to know that you need [insert position title here]. You must also know the complete job description. However, you must know the description as the last employee who left in the position left it, NOT the description when that person took the job. That’s because chances are good that they took on new/additional responsibilities while in the position. Now the job when they left is different than they job when they arrived.

2) Planning

Once you’ve identified exactly what you need (both in terms of hard skills and soft skills), then it’s time to put a plan together to find what you need. You know what they say: “When you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” Yadda-yadda-yadda . . . except it’s absolutely correct. Make sure that you get the “buy in” of everybody involved with the hiring process on the steps that will be taken and the communication channels that will be used. All it takes is one misstep to blow everything up.

3) Searching

This is a case where you need to be a “hunter” and not a “gatherer.” Too many companies are “gatherers,” thinking that superstar candidates are going to rain down from the sky like so much manna. No, they are not. Once again, this is why companies hire “headhunters.” They hunt, they do not gather. Not only that, but they’re good at what they do. Hiring authorities and even companies with internal recruiters often cannot match the expertise and connections of a recruiter who “works in the trenches” of the industry day after day.

4) Identifying viable candidates

Finding candidate is also not enough. An organization (or its recruiter) must also find qualified candidates. Anybody can find candidates. They’re everywhere. But those high-level A-players, the kind of candidates your competition would kill for? They’re NOT everywhere. So searching for them, finding them, and identifying them will be more difficult if the first three steps in the process have not been undertaken.

5) Recruiting of A-level candidates

Once viable candidates have been identified, they must be recruited. In other words, they must be sold on not only the opportunity, but also on the organization. Some organizations miss this important distinction. Top candidates are not just interested in a great new job. They’re interested in a great new job with a great new employer. If they like the job, but they don’t also like the employer, then they’re not going to take the job. As mentioned above, recruiting is a major facet of the recruitment process.

6) - (Telephone) screening

Sure, you have a batch of viable candidates, most likely passive candidates, who are interested in the position. But not every single one of them are going to make it through the process. That brings us to the first screening stage of the process, the telephone interview. Ideally, you would have a list of 10 to 15 very strong candidates, all of whom are interested in the position. The phone screening serves to whittle that list down, so that you can move to the next stage of the process, which is . . .

7) - (Face-to-face) interviewing

There are two important aspects of this part of the recruitment process:

1. It can’t stretch out too long, or candidates involved will lose interest.
2. Employers must communicate to candidates where they are in the process and what to expect in the near term or they will start looking elsewhere. This is a particular danger with top candidates, since they are more than likely interviewing with more than one organization.

Sure, there are other important aspects of the interview stage, but these are the two that companies neglect the most, with predictably dire consequences.

8) Offering of employment

The offer stage is one of the most delicate stages of the recruiting process. A hiring manager should never take for granted that a candidate is going to accept an offer. However, if they’ve done all of the proper work beforehand and they’ve double and triple-checked everything, then the candidate should accept the majority of the time. Here’s an important note: if an organization is working with a search consultant, the hiring manager of that organization should let the search consultant extend the offer. That’s what the candidate expects, and that’s what should happen.

9) Hiring of the candidate

Why are the offer step and the hire step not combined into one step? Because not every offer of employment is accepted. If every offer was accepted, then yes, we could do that. If a #1 candidate rejects the offer, then the company might extend the offer to their #2 candidate . . . or their #3 candidate, if #2 falls through. Once a candidate does accept the offer of employment, though, that’s when the official hire can be made.

10) Onboarding of the candidate

What’s the point of hiring the best candidates in the marketplace if you can’t retain those candidates after you’ve hired them? A comprehensive onboarding process is perhaps the most crucial steps in the recruiting process. When we refer to onboarding, we’re talking about more than just new employee paperwork and knowing where the bathrooms are located. We’re talking about continuing to make the candidate/new employee feel wanted before they officially join the organization. Many a company has failed to do that, only to see their new employee never show up for their first day of work.

One of the best ways to make more placements is to speed up the recruitment process. Sure, there’s not much you can do about how fast your clients move. But your recruiting software? You’d better be using a recruiting applicant tracking system that’s simple, powerful, and designed to save time and energy during the process.

Because the faster you get the best candidates in front of your clients, the better.

 

References

• Collins,J.,2018. HR Management in the Forensic Science Laboratory,Pages 203-226

• Brindusoiu,C.,2013. Procedia -Social and Behavioral Sciences,Volume 92,Pages 112-116

• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sed_nZnKUdw