LinkedIn Requests & Etiquette
Posted by UECU in Human Resources Articles, Voluntary Benefits on February 21, 2012
This morning I received a request on LinkedIn to connect with someone. I do not know this person and we are not members of the same groups. We do have a few connections in common. This person listed me as a friend. I have now racked my brain trying to figure out how I could possibly know this person, and have come up with nothing. Do you follow any etiquette guidelines on LinkedIn? I try to only connect with people who at the very least might know my name through conversations or group activity.
While I do work for a company that provides a service to HR professionals, I am not in HR groups trying to sell our services. I would consider this bad etiquette (unless of course that is the point of the group). When there is a relevant topic being discussed where I think employees’ financial wellness should be mentioned, I bring it up. But I do this because I believe that financial stress can affect a workplace’s productivity. Not simply to try to sell our services to group members. At some point, lines are crossed, and I have been surprised by some comments I have seen in professional groups and discussions.
I am someone who is truly interested in human resources and happens to provide a voluntary benefit. Am I using LinkedIn incorrectly, or being too judgmental of others? I would love to hear your thoughts on this.
Have a great day!
Erica L.
P.S. If you are not on LinkedIn; join, it is a great site. Then check out these groups:
Independent Energy Human Resources Association
Pension & Employee Benefit Specialists
Don’t forget to connect with me and let me know you read my blog (see, there is a connection)!
Super Bowl XLVI, HR & Marketing
Posted by UECU in Human Resources Articles, Recruiting on February 13, 2012
Okay, so I know you may think the Super Bowl and Super Bowl commercials really have no direct relation to human resources. However, it can be argued that HR has a lot in common with marketing. Needless to say, I have to touch on a little Super Bowl information this week.
In college, one of my marketing professors was absolutely obsessed with the Super Bowl commercials. We would spend at least two classes analyzing them and arguing over which did it the best and why. I would have to say that my top picks are the following:
- Weego for Budweiser. As a dog lover they nailed it by promoting pet adoption at the end. Does your company have any ties to bettering the world/environment/lives? It might help someone pick your company if they see everything else equal between two job offers.
Recruiting should take a page out of Budweiser's playbook: share your values.
- Acura NSX with Jerry Seinfeld. People are greedy, and that can be a strong motivator. They want the best and they want it first. What do you offer that is a unique perk to working at your company?
- Doritos and the sling shot baby. It was … unexpected and showed ingenuity. But again, touched on greed.
If you need to perk up your recruiting efforts, try taking a few plays from your marketing and sales teams. After all, you are trying to sell your company to candidates.
It was also a very good game!
What was your favorite commercial?
Erica L.
Are you checking employees’ credit scores during the hiring process?
Posted by UECU in Hot HR Topics, Human Resources Articles on February 6, 2012
The idea of reviewing a candidate’s credit report during the hiring process seems to be debatable in the recruitment world. It does, however, seem to be more popular for certain positions within a company, than among companies as a whole. As someone who works in a financial institution, I understand the usual use of your credit report and score, as well as probably a little more about how the score is determined than the average person. But what do human resource professionals expect to get from reviewing a credit report?
In previous HR positions I can say that we did not check credit (this would be back about 4 years), and when I checked a recent SHRM Survey: Credit Background Checks these types of companies fell into the categories that rarely used credit checks (ex. hospital). The most common organizations or positions that require a credit check are:
- Financial institutions or anyone with financial responsibility (ex. handling cash)
- Senior executive positions (ex. CEO or CFO)
- Positions with access to confidential information (ex. salary or medical information). Were you as an HR person required to pass a credit check?
While it looks as though very little weight is generally put on the credit check, I think it is important to remember the economic times when putting weight on these checks. The past few years have been very tough on people in general and their credit is most likely going to show that. If you do require a credit check, allow candidates to explain before making decisions. Maybe their spouse had lost their job and expenses were tight for a while. There also could have been an illness in the family or they could have been unemployed for an extended period of time. Be respectful during the recruiting process, and don’t make judgments.
I’m curious, why do you require a credit check, or why do you think they are important? It seems to be used as a differentiator between 2 good candidates, but some simply use credit checks when there is potential for fraud. And if you are noticing problems in credit checks while still hiring the candidate, consider offering a benefit to help employees regain their financial wellness. As you can see, you will help them in more than just financial situations.
Erica L.
Facebook Timeline
Posted by UECU in Human Resource Information on January 30, 2012
In the next few weeks Facebook will push the timeline out to all profiles, and then give you seven days to clean it up. Apparently, the timeline makes everything from your Facebook past more accessible.
Do you use Facebook for recruiting? Be aware of some upcoming changes.
Are you using Facebook for your recruiting efforts? Is it more to see if they will fit in with your culture or as another method of background checking?
I am sure that not all human resource professionals use Facebook for recruiting or deciding on a candidate, but some do. For those that do, think about what really affects the position. Does it really matter what the candidate did five years ago when they first started using Facebook, and do you have the time to look back that far? Probably not. Pick out huge no’s for your company and the time-frame you can consistently review, then stick to it. And most importantly, be careful of the potential for violating anti-discrimination hiring regulations — these social media background checks can be risky for you and the candidate.
Erica L.
SOPA vs. Human Resources
Posted by UECU in Hot HR Topics, Human Resources Articles on January 23, 2012
If you have not heard of SOPA you might be living under a rock. Or I suppose you could just not care or think that it will have no effect on you or your company. I know it will not become one of your top challenges in HR, but whether or not you end up being for or against SOPA, you might want to have a basic understanding. I am certainly not an expert, just a consumer who sees the effects these changes could have on my day to day life.
SOPA – Stop Online Piracy Act or House Bill 3261 was introduced to the House of Representatives on October 26, 2011. Those backing the bill say it will protect copyright laws and intellectual property. Those against the bill fear it threatens free speech and will basically cripple the internet from what it was meant to be. Many high profile companies have come out for or against SOPA, and consumers are letting these companies know how they feel. Did you notice the black out on January 18th by Wikipedia, Reddit, Mozilla, WordPress.org? I access all of these sites on a pretty regular basis.
So why am I bringing this up to HR professionals? For some of you it may very well be a hot topic in your organization and even have effects on your organization. But remember, if your company is strongly for or against SOPA, your employees may not feel the same way. If it is appropriate to talk about in your industry, allow for open communication, and make sure employees understand they need to respect each other’s views and the path the company has chosen. Have a decision maker on the topic share why the company has decided to be for or against SOPA and how these choices will affect the company and its business model. In general, it probably won’t directly affect most HR professionals, but it might affect the company you work for, so you should probably care a little. Most likely this is a hot topic for your tech talent; don’t give them a reason to start looking for a new company.
Here are some nice resources if you would like to know more:
SOPA, PIPA: What you need to know from CBS News
Stop Online Piracy Act from Wikipedia
Mashable.com has been covering SOPA with pretty regular posts
Erica L.
SHRM Connect
Posted by UECU in Hot HR Topics, Human Resource Information on January 16, 2012
The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) created SHRM Connect back in 2009. As someone who actively uses many social media platforms, I quickly set up a profile, used it for a while, and then forgot about it. Over the past few months, however, I have started to go back into SHRM Connect. And I am glad that I did. While I still have quite a few pending connections, there is definitely more activity than when Connect first came out.
There are many groups relating to specific aspects of human resources, benefits, recruiting, etc. You can also join groups specific to your location or industry. Upcoming events are displayed so you won’t miss anything; blogs, and even HR Talk are on your home page. SHRM Connect is a great platform for HR professionals to interact with one another, so check it out at: http://community.shrm.org/. It’s a very nice resource and is continuing to evolve with what the users need and are looking for in a social media site specific to HR.
Erica L.
3 Reasons to Offer Banking Options to your Employees
Posted by UECU in Company benefits examples, Group voluntary benefits, Types of Employee Benefits on January 9, 2012
I received my electronic copy of the HR Magazine for January 2012 late last week. I took a few minutes to glance through the topics with one topic in particular standing out to me, “Bank on Savings” on page 47. I urge you to check it out when you get your copy.
I found this particular article very interesting since the topics discussed are the exact points I try to get across when talking to companies about the benefits of offering Utilities Employees Credit Union. Now I am not here to push UECU, but I do find these points very important and I think they warrant a general discussion.
Here are three takeaways from the “Bank on Savings” article:
- It costs $2.00 to issue a paper check to employees, versus $0.35 or less for direct deposit (according to NACHA – The Electronic Payments Association). When offering a financial institution to employees, the institution will generally promote direct deposit for you, saving you time and ultimately money. If you have a company of 1000 employees, 1/3 of which have direct deposit you could be spending $115.50 for the DD, and $1,340 to send out paper checks for each pay period. If you need to cut down costs, here is an easy way to do so; offer a financial institution where your employees can utilize direct deposit. This will cost you a little set up time with the institution, but that is all. The institution will do the work for you by marketing the many benefits of direct deposit to all of your employees.
- Many financial institutions working with a company will offer financial education and workshops. These workshops can help employees with topics they may be concerned about or feel they would like to understand better. Some common topics we find are what contributes to your credit score, how to improve your score, and budgeting. The article also mentions many employees being interested in avoiding identity theft. The financial institution will offer workshops free to the company and employees, and some will even be willing to do them over lunch as a “lunch and learn” event if you cannot have employees be away from work for a half hour.
- Paul Corrigan, Sr. VP of Citizens Financial Group echoes UECU, “Financial stress can lead to distracted employees who are less productive and more prone to absenteeism.” I am finding this argument more and more prevalent in HR topics lately. It is nice to see that human resources professionals are seeing the correlation between financial stress and the workplace.
This article is specific to banks, so as a pro-credit union person I want to mention that credit unions will offer the same services to employers and employees as banks and tend to offer better rates and fewer fees. So if you are looking into a financial benefit for employees, don’t forget about credit unions. I have never had an account at a bank, so I can personally say that I have been very happy with credit unions in general throughout my life.
I’d love to hear about bank at work options you offer your employees. What are the pros and cons that you have found?
Erica L.
Five Ideas to Help Increase Productivity in the New Year
Posted by UECU in Hot HR Topics, Human Resources Articles, Uncategorized on December 29, 2011
So, you’re in the office the week between Christmas and New Year’s…
People say they like to work this week since it’s generally quieter and they are able to catch up on things and get more done. The lack of meetings and other coworkers in the office is helpful to them. For me, I figure I don’t have kids so I’ll happily let others who really want this week off, get it. My goal for the week (drum roll please) … find my desk! It’s already Thursday and I haven’t gotten very far.
My desire to clean got me thinking about a few other things we should think about during this “slow” week. Human resources professionals are the first faces prospective employees will see and really interact with. You need to take care of yourselves and your workspace. I’ve had a few positions in HR and my desk still looks like an HR professional’s desk. There is stuff everywhere, but you know exactly which pile has what you are looking for. Take a few minutes at the end of each day, maybe from 4:30 to 5:00 and try a few of the following (then get out of there at 5:00!):
- Pick up those piles and dust. The end of the year is busy for everyone and your workspace can look worse for the wear. Take a few minutes and get rid of those dust bunnies messing with your allergies and pick up the stray paperclips, water bottles, and pens that might be scattered around.
- Consider how comfortable you find your workspace. Are you straining any muscles to work comfortably? It’s not only bad for your body, but also your mind. I know leaning over my laptop hurts my neck and back and at a certain point, I start to get shorter with people. I’ve already grabbed a wireless mouse, but a wireless keyboard is next on my list. Then I can prop my laptop up so I am not looking down at it. For you, maybe it’s your chair; consider adding a pillow for lumbar support. This post gives you some other great options: How to Ergonomically Optimize your Workspace.
- Would an extra file cabinet really work wonders for your workspace? Say something.
- Invest in a cold cup. I love mine from Starbucks. But I use it for water. I know I don’t drink anywhere near eight glasses of water a day and having cold water readily available really helps me stay hydrated.
- In January, have a clean your workspace afternoon. Set a day where it’s okay for employees to not be working from 4:00 to 5:00. Get feedback from your employees on their workspace needs. See what they like and what could help them increase their productivity. The feeling of organization and less clutter might also help increase employee productivity in the New Year.
Happy New Year everyone! Thanks for reading!
Erica L.
Holiday Sweater Contest Results
Posted by UECU in Human Resources Articles, Types of Employee Benefits on December 22, 2011
The results are in! As promised last week, I said I would share a picture from our recent morale boosting holiday competition. We had a sweater contest for anyone who wanted to participate. The category was for the most festive sweater. We gave out prizes of $10 and $5 gift cards for 1st through 3rd place and then an honorable mention.
I will tell you that I think it worked well. Employees were in a good mood, laughing and checking out all of their co-workers’ sweaters. By lunch everyone was talking about Jerry’s sweater and going to look for him. We easily had our winner.
Jerry from our E-Services department won the most festive sweater!
Others won for going above and beyond just a sweater; wearing antlers, holiday socks and jewelry. All in all, it was a nice day. Work still got accomplished with our members never noticing that we were having a fun event at work.
Something like this could work for most holidays. If you see your employees becoming bogged down, throw something small and exciting into the mix for them. It doesn’t always have to be a huge employee benefit addition.
Happy Holidays!!
Erica L.
Six Ways to De-Stress Employees this Holiday Season
Posted by UECU in Hot HR Topics, Human Resources Articles, Types of Employee Benefits on December 15, 2011
Keep employees de-stressed this holiday season with some added benefits (aka presents).
It’s a stressful time of year. Employees are trying to get their work done and some may be worried about the economy and even keeping their jobs. Now add to that the stress of the holidays … family visits, cooking and baking, cleaning, shopping, traveling … there is a lot on all of our plates this time of year. Try to think of a few small things your company can do or offer that might help ease this stress for your employees. Remember, employee stress can cause things like headaches, ulcers, and in worst cases, heart attacks. So keeping employees happy and de-stressed is in your best interests as well. It also might help to strengthen employee loyalty to your company.
Here are six options I came up with:
- Suggest a little friendly competition – we decided to give our employees a dress down day today and the chance to participate in a holiday sweater contest. Ugly holiday sweater parties are very in, but be careful not to hurt anyone’s feelings. Go with most festive sweater as the category. We gathered a few $5 to $10 gift cards so it’s not expensive. It’s nice to have a day that is just a little different than most, plus everyone likes a good competition. You’ll get to see just how creative your co-workers are (I’ll post a picture next week)!
- Surprise them with a little time off – If you can (and for some companies this will not work), let your employees leave an hour or two early on the 23rd or 30th. Let them choose which would be better for them. Or, give each employee the chance to take a two hour lunch break until the end of the year. This would work better if you have staff coverage issues; just make a point that extra lunch break hours are first come first serve, and only so many employees can use them per day.
- Bring in lunch or breakfast – it’s an oldie, but always appreciated. For a smaller budget, do breakfast or soup and sandwiches.
- Give them a small gift or thank you card – Appreciation can go a long way for employee morale.
- Encourage them to laugh their stress away – By providing a Wii console with a few games. When they need a break they can take ten minutes to race a co-worker in Mario Kart!
- Give them time to volunteer – An extra long lunch could work here again. They can help with Meals on Wheels or take a dog from the Humane Society for a walk. These are great ways for employees to relax and feel good about themselves.
Try to pick things that you think you can maintain over the years, or maintain a similar level but still allow some surprise each year. Employees do tend to expect things after they get them once. If none of these work for you, check out 10 Ways to Lessen Holiday Stress in the Workplace. Are you offering anything to help your employees deal with holiday stress?
Erica L.
