August 30, 2006

Survey finds likeability, organizational fit still key factors in hiring
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 11:28 AM

OK, this is obvious, you say.

But a new worldwide survey by NFI Research confirms that these very non-quantitative, virtually untestable attributes are still significant factors in the hiring process for many firms:

About two thirds of executives and managers rely on personality and "likeability" when hiring or promoting, based on a worldwide survey by NFI Research.
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"Applicants can interview extremely well, test well, and have great skills and yet not be a good fit with your department or the organization," said one survey respondent. "So many variables come into play and there are some things you can't test or measure and sometimes it comes down to liking the person and that good old gut feeling."

Read the full piece.

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August 29, 2006

Labor Day message: listen up, employers
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:43 PM

Employees like to work for companies that provide them with job satisfaction, which means not only a decent salary but other benefits programs, too. That will come as no surprise.

Or will it? Acccording to a new survey by Harris Interactive and Kronos, few companies seem to either recognize that desire or act upon it:

The findings of the "Working in America: What Employees Want" survey, conducted by Harris Interactive® and sponsored by Kronos® Incorporated, found that in today's knowledge economy many organizations still do not recognize the link between their workforce and business performance. The study found that only 36 percent of employed adults work for organizations that invest in programs or activities that create a satisfied workforce. Yet, of the more than 1,000 U.S. employed adults surveyed, more than 80 percent responded that these programs were important to them.

There are many implications of these findings for employers, especially in an improving economy. For example, retention may become an issue:

As the economy continues to improve, employee retention will become a key strategic issue for organizations. The Baby Boomer exodus, coupled with the anticipated labor shortage, will elevate the issue of employee retention to the boardroom. The balance of power is shifting from the employer to the employee and organizations must not ignore this changing dynamic.

Read the whole piece on Yahoo!Finance.

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August 28, 2006

The dependency ratio
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 12:51 PM

Malcolm Gladwell, best-selling author of Blink and The Tipping Point, has a piece in the August 28 editon of The New Yorker under the banner "Dept. of Human Resources."

The subject? How pension obligations are forcing big companies - Bethlehem Steel, General Motors - to go out of business, due to what he calls "the dependency ratio", which he introduces in the context of entire countries:

This relation between the number of people who aren’t of working age and the number of people who are is captured in the dependency ratio.
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This demographic logic also applies to companies, since any employer that offers pensions and benefits to its employees has to deal with the consequences of its nonworker-to-worker ratio, just as a country does.

Among the many ramifications of this obligation, which Gladwell traces back to the early days of organized labor, are the implications for older workers:

. . .[D]on’t we want companies to retain older workers - to hire on the basis of ability and not age? In fact, a system in which companies shoulder their own benefits is ultimately a system that penalizes companies for offering any benefits at all. Many employers have simply decided to let their workers fend for themselves. Given what has so publicly and disastrously happened to companies like General Motors, can you blame them?

This is just one of the troubling conclusions Gladwell reaches.

Oddly enough, despite introducing the concept in the context of countries, citing Ireland's economic revival as directly attributable to its success in reversing its national dependency ratio, Gladwell does not connect the dots to the looming woes of our own wobbling Social Security system, which has caused tons of ink to be spilled on this very issue: too few workers, too many retirees, so the fund will be bled dry.

But the article, longer than the typical web-length piece, is well worth the effort, especially for you HR types. And as we well know, these issues will not be going away anytime soon.

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Workers' pay lags behind productivity, profits
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 10:51 AM

There is a growing inequity between workers' wages (falling) and their productivity (rising), the Globe reports today. Moreover, corporate profits continue to rise:

The median hourly wage for American workers has declined 2 percent since 2003, after factoring in inflation. In contrast, economists report that productivity -- the amount that an average worker produces in an hour -- has risen steadily during the same period.

As a result, wages and salaries now make up the lowest share of the nation's gross domestic product since the government began recording the data in 1947, while corporate profits have climbed to their highest share since the 1960s, [Globe and BostonWorks parent firm] The [New York] Times said.

Is this true in your organization? While the figures may be good for the bottom line, they are not good for employee morale, an HR - and ultimately a business-wide - issue.

Read the full story.

You might also find it enlightening to read some of the posts on the message board "Are your wages keeping up?". There are some not-too-happy campers out there.

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August 24, 2006

Survey: dissatisfied workforce, possible job shifts
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 10:03 AM

The natives are restless.

So reports Workforce Management magazine based on the findings of a recent survey:

Employees in the corporate world aren’t exactly happy campers these days, with a newly released national survey showing lower job satisfaction compared with a year ago. This year, employers are being looked upon to provide their staffs with better pay and health insurance, as well as flexible work hours.

But if such conditions don’t change, the underlying workforce frustration could leave more openings for job recruiters, says Genia Spencer, spokesman for the annual Atlanta-based national survey, Randstad’s 2006 Employee Review.
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"It comes down to going to work every day and how you get treated," Scully says. "It’s important whether you feel valued and/or loyal to the company." If not, she says, all it takes is one especially bad day, or unwarranted poor treatment from a boss, for the employee to quickly decide to move on.

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August 22, 2006

Handshake beats body piercing
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 11:53 AM

In a recent poll of employers conducted by NACE, the National Association of Colleges and Employers, the handshake beat out body piercing as a key factor in the hiring decision - but not by much:

Thirty-three percent of employers said a candidate's handshake would have a strong influence on their opinion of a job candidate compared with 31 percent who say the same about a body piercing. Twenty-nine percent of respondents said obvious tattoos would have a strong influence on their opinion of a job candidate.

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August 21, 2006

100,000 heads are better than one
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 2:48 PM

Maybe a hiring manager wouldn't agree with that, or anyone doing the company's compensation plan.

But here's a way innovative companies are adding to staff without. . .well, adding to staff:

A number of corporate chieftains and academic researchers argue that companies that continue to rely mostly on an in-house R&D department risk being out-innovated by more nimble rivals that use online global networks to focus the power of thousands of minds on their most nettlesome problems.

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August 17, 2006

Will OFCCP compliance kill career fairs?
Posted by at 9:40 AM

It's that time of year, when a recruiter's thoughts turn to the fall career fair schedule. For many employers, this season is the first for operating under the new OFCCP guidelines for internet applicants. Given that most companies now advertise positions on line or use other electronic media (including fax) to receive applications, most searches will fall under the new definitions.

The usefulness of a career fair, long-touted by organizers as a way to make personal connections with employers, may be dwindling, thanks to the OFCCP definition of 'consider':

The definition of "considers the individual for employment in a particular position" for purposes of paragraph 60-1.3 (1)(ii) of this definition means that the contractor assesses the substantive information provided in the expression of interest with respect to any qualifications involved with a particular position.

For DOL's FAQs on OFCCP compliance, click here.

Of course you should consult your own house counsel for a ruling on this, but I think this spells the death of collecting resumes at career fairs. If we collect resumes of applicants and consider them against the basic qualifications of the job, are we not then considering them? I think the answer is yes.

Considering applicants triggers the requirement to collect EEO data, and preferably by candidate self-identification. Will recruiters be handing out self-identification cards? How will they keep them seperate from resumes? How will they reconcile these piles with the electronic applications? In order to avoid issues like this and streamline procedures, most companies are driving all traffic through centralized web-based applicant tracking systems.

The dynamics at career fairs are going to change---if the fairs themselves survive at all. No longer will a candidate foist a resume into an eager recruiter's hand and wait nervously for the cursory review (ie: consideration against basic requirements).

As a candidate said to a recruiter at another table this spring, "Why did I even bother to come? Everyone just says go to the website."

I have a plan for our company to make sure that career fairs are productive for us. As long as candidates come to the fairs, I'm sure we can make them work under the new guidelines. Does your company have a plan?

Maureen Crawford Hentz

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August 15, 2006

Attracting top performers without paying top dollar
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 3:05 PM

Wait a minute - that's an oxymoron, isn't it?

Not really, according to a recent report from Workforce Management magazine. The article profiles different firms and their hiring strategies, including the nation's leading boat retailer, MarineMax Inc., whose sales - and stock growth - are catching attention:

"Top performers command higher rates of pay," [the company’s chief HR executive Jay Avelino] says. "We pay more than our competitors, but A players are also looking for intangibles such as challenging work and advancement opportunities."

The company requires candidates to provide a full salary history and then uses salary surveys and information about the markets to shape the offer. To avoid high fixed costs, the company relies on performance pay programs and may negotiate guaranteed performance bonuses for the first year to lure A players.

What strategies does your firm have in place for attracting top performers - without giving away the store? If you need some ideas, start here.

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August 12, 2006

The generational divide in the office
Posted by Diane Danielson at 11:42 PM

When asked recently about the biggest issues facing HR departments, my answer was easy - boomer bosses coping with gen Y employees. This month there's a great article from SHRM (www.shrm.org) on the generational divide in the office.

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August 11, 2006

Debunking the 'Taking our Jobs' myth
Posted by at 7:49 AM

Anyone paying even a modicum of attention to diversity issues knows that Hispanics/Latinos are the largest growing ethnic population in the US. Add to this the influx of foreign workers of all nationalities and many Americans feel as if 'their' jobs are under siege.

Although we are in a more PC and litigious society, I wonder if in pockets of the US we are seeing the emergence of a subtle variety of the No-Irish-Need-Apply era of the past. Are Hispanics and Latinos (whether foreign-born OR native citizens) being cast as this millennium’s Irish?

A report released yesterday by the Pew Hispanic Center addresses the issue of foreign-born workers (of any ethnicity) and employment impact upon native-born workers.

In 2000, nearly 25% of native-born workers lived in states where rapid growth in the foreign-born population between 1990 and 2000 was associated with favorable outcomes for the native born. Meanwhile, only 15% of native-born workers resided in states where rapid growth in the foreign-born population was associated with negative outcomes for the native born.

Further, in addressing the issue of younger and less-educated native workers, the report's executive summary indicates that

Many immigrant workers lack a college education and are relatively young, but the analysis found no evidence that they had an impact on the employment outcomes of those native-born workers who also have low levels of education and are ages 25-34.

I am hopeful that research like this will assist in assuaging fears that foreign-born workers of any ethnicity and native-born Hispanics/Latinos (often speciously lumped into the 'foreign' category in some people's minds)are stealing jobs away from other native-born Americans.

Maureen Crawford Hentz

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August 10, 2006

Study: CEOs getting more involved in talent management
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 9:42 AM

An article from Workforce Management cites a new study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit and Development Dimensions International that found a significant number of top level execs spend a significant amount of time grooming talent in their organizations.

The study finds that there is:

. . .an emerging breed of CEOs that recognizes workforce management can play a potent role in expanding a company’s revenue base. About 30 percent of executives who participated in a survey conducted recently by the Economist Intelligence Unit and Development Dimensions International say they devote 30 percent to 50 percent of their time to talent management.

"The sheer amount of time that they are spending on workforce is surprising," says Lucy McGee, director at Development Dimensions International UK. "Particularly when you consider how busy these individuals are."

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August 8, 2006

EEO-1 splits categories and puts something else on HR's to do list
Posted by at 2:21 PM

We are in the midst of preparing our last EEO-1 reports under the old categories. As of Sept. 2007, the categorizations change. One of the changes include splitting the "Asian or Pacific Islander" cateogry into "Asian" and "Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander". There are also now categories for bi/multiracial. Another change, and one that I have been spending a lot of time explaining lately, is the reframing of Hispanic/Latino as ethnicity rather than race.

The EEOC has an excellent FAQs section on its website, which can be accessed here. Another great resource is this article from The Multicultural Advantage, which advises

Since the changes create...two, new categories and since we will be allowing people to indicate "Two or More Races", a complete resurvey of your employees should be done. It would be reasonable to plan on resurveying your workforce in the summer of 2007 so you can clean your data and have it ready for reporting when needed.

Along with preparing and surveying, I strongly believe that we need to fully understand why these changes have been implemented. Even more important is devleoping our ability to explain these changes to stakeholders.

These changes may beget the best conversations on race you have in the next year. Mine began with a sincere question I was asked this week: how can a Latino be white?

Are you ready to educate and explain?

Maureen Crawford Hentz

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August 7, 2006

Monitoring employee e-mails (or not)
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 4:44 PM

From yesterday's BostonWorks section in the Boston Sunday Globe comes this story on firms' monitoring of employee e-mail:

Many major companies employ arsenals of hardware, software, and even humans to monitor employee e-mail. And employees continue to learn the hard way that companies hold all the cards when it comes to what's accessed on business computers.

But experts say most companies that have the tools to monitor employee correspondence typically wait until a problem occurs before taking action.

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August 2, 2006

The 3rd Act
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 10:45 AM

Here's an audio blog. From today's NPR Morning Edition comes this segment on "The 3rd Act", older workers looking for work in their 60's and beyond:

Some workers who are past retirement age and still want -- or need-- to work find it very hard to land jobs. Lisa Belkin, a reporter for The New York Times, tells Don Gonyea that changing demographics mean older people need to carve out a new spot for themselves in the workforce.

Start here to get to the NPR.org page, then click on the "Listen" button. Allow for three minutes listening time.

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Now that's a headhunter
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 9:46 AM

From today's "Mother Goose & Grimm" comic strip in the Globe, a little recruiting humor.

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August 1, 2006

Talent retention as recruiting strategy
Posted by Douglas Eisenhart at 2:58 PM

From Workforce Management magazine, an article from the July issue on retaining talent in today's employment environment:

Talent retention has moved onto the radar screens of corporate executives. Nearly 70 percent of executives say that they view talent retention as important or extremely important, according to a survey of 391 companies conducted by TalentKeepers, a consulting firm specializing in employee retention based in Maitland, Florida.

The study shows that there is justifiable reason for the executives’ ranking. In 2005, nearly 60 percent of the companies participating in the survey reported employee turnover rates of 11 percent to 40 percent. Most of the executives also said that they are not expecting turnover to improve soon.

What steps is your organization taking to retain top managers?

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