Spring “HR Talent” Cleanup

During this time of year, I feel the pull to clean! My house, my car, my office and even my briefcase!

I am told by a co-worker that it is a sickness, but I always seem to physically feel more energetic and productive when my cleaning frenzy is complete. This spring cleanup can also apply to the tasks that we have in relation to Talent Development within your firm. This is a great time to re-energize and spruce up the talent that you have in your firm. Let’s take a look at the areas that you can add to the spring talent cleanup checklist.

Revisit Policies and Procedures as We Enter Our Hiring Upturn

While the economic experts argue about whether the recession has officially ended, firms have been moving toward recovery over the last 12 months by pumping up their recruiting and hiring efforts. The search for new talent at all levels is more important than ever, and clients are telling us that the talent is available to attractive firms. Therefore the question is, Is your firm attractive or does your firm need a little spring cleaning?

Take a fresh look at your current policies and procedures. Are they competitive with the other firms in your area of the country? Have you changed any policies that have not been updated in your employee handbook? Are you prepared for an exciting on-boarding experience that will connect new employees to the firm from the 1^st they are on site? Are your policies and procedures for allowing employees to work from a distance or in a flexible work environment up to date and easy to understand? Take time to look at your entire hiring and on-boarding process to insure a positive outcome for the year ahead.

Review Benefits and Update Internal Communications

Along with recruiting and hiring, insuring that your benefits are in compliance, forms are up to date, employee files are complete and communications on any changes have taken place are worth a look. If your firm is using a space on your network, or an intranet to house the current benefit information, go through each area to insure that the firm is in compliance. Remember that board in the break room that has all of the posters from local, state and national agencies? When is the last time you looked at it to make sure everything is up to date. Clean baby clean!

One more area to consider taking a dust rag too, is an employee benefit survey. We often think about deploying this type of survey at the end of the year when benefits are approaching renewal dates, but I suggest you complete the survey now, so there is plenty of time to shop around long before you are forced into making a decision.

Verify Job Duties and Descriptions

Pre-recession job duties and descriptions may no longer be valid. The past few years have been challenging, but with the upturn in hiring and increased talent, one of the areas that may have changed for people on your team are the duties that each of your team members is now responsible for. If you are a parent, you know that getting the family involved in your spring cleaning endeavors is always a goal, and the task of updating job descriptions is no different.

Recruit each team member to review their personal job description and suggest changes. The review of those changes might be completed by their supervisor and then final review and organization on the network are back in your court.

Evaluate Compensation Grades

Spring is a good time to look at the various positions within the firm and compare compensation levels of the team. Many firms adjust compensation mid-year, and while adjustments are primarily linked to performance, it is also a good time to correct any compensation that is out of alignment.

Alignment issues can happen for many different reasons. A new hire may have negotiated a higher salary than an existing employee. A current employee may have been promoted and the salary level was not adjusted at a high enough level when the promotion took place. An employee may have asked for LESS responsibility and the compensation needs to be adjusted to a lower level. This part of spring cleaning may not be the most pleasant task, but it is essential to clearing out some important dust bunnies!

Re-Establish Communications

One more area to “hose down” and “clean out the cobwebs” is the area of communication. This is arguably the #1 area for anyone who is focused on the talent development in the firm. The talent professionals in the firm have the reputation as the people who bridge the gap between owners and the rest of the team. Think about all of the initiatives that we are responsible for. Employee meetings, training schedules, team building days, firm events and HR projects are just a few of the communications avenues you are responsible for. Spend time researching new ways to infuse fun, education, motivation and intellectual growth into these ongoing events. They may be staples of the firm, but they don’t have to get old and stale!

The list is complete, so now your cleanup can begin. Ready, Set, GO!