HR Industry Brief

Diversity and inclusion are more important to your employees than you may realize. According to a new survey, more than half of respondents said they would exclude a company from their job search if they didn’t agree with the organization’s diversity and inclusion policies. The numbers were even higher among people age 30 and younger. Among other findings:

• Pre-pandemic 64% of U.S. employees worked completely on-site, 16% worked completely remotely, 20% worked a hybrid mode.
• 49% of workers are now working completely offsite.
• The number of completely remote workers has risen to 28%.
• Those working both onsite and remotely only increased 3% during the pandemic.
• Only 14% of U.S. employees would prefer to work completely offsite, while 50% would prefer a combination of remote and onsite work.

Like death and taxes, regulatory change is pretty much inevitable. How you manage this change can help ensure compliance throughout your organization. Here are some issues to consider as you plan for regulatory change and how you will handle it:

• Lax compliance during the pandemic in 2020 may have introduced hidden risk for activities that normally would have had deeper oversight.
• When communicating change across the enterprise, establish responsibility to manage it.
• If conducting quarterly testing of compliance requirements, it may be challenging to identify key areas in advance that could slip, such as controls around IT/cybersecurity.
• Companies should shift to best practice or common checklists that can be standardized and shared across the enterprise.
• Historically done manually in-house by visible teams, monitoring and testing for compliance purposes may be conducted remotely.
• Verifying and certifying online … [Read more...] about (4/19) Six Considerations Impacting Strategic Regulatory Change Management

Identifying problems is much easier than solving them. So it’s not surprising that when your team identifies problems or issues, these don’t always get addressed or resolved. To facilitate better, more efficient problem-solving, consider the following:

• Create an environment that welcomes both creativity and analytical thinking. Don’t let your team get bogged down by overthinking things, but don’t let them be impulsive about change or innovation. Instead, give people a set time to analyze and question, then work on solutions.
• Be clear about the changes you’re looking for. Help your team to be solution focused. If there are financial or other limitations they need to consider, state these upfront.
• Talk to your team as a group and individuals about what you want them to do differently. Don’t allow for personal blame or finger pointing.
• Set new norms. Encourage new ways of thinking and speaking.
• Role model. Be direct and … [Read more...] about (4/16) Is Your Team Solving Problems, or Just Identifying Them?

According to a new study, it may be possible to reduce stress, burnout, and turnover if CNAs are encouraged and enabled to practice self-compassion. In the study, CNAs received instruction about guided meditation, practiced skill-building exercises, and participated in discussions after the activities. They also were encouraged to practice their new self-compassion skills at home. Attendance and program satisfaction were high, and self-compassion improved significantly. The CNAs also experienced much lower levels of stress and depression through the following three month period. The authors recommend a brief six-hour format to maximize participation. Read the full article. … [Read more...] about (4/15) CNAs Reduce Stress, Improve Skills with Self-Compassion Training in Nursing Home Study

According to startling new data, more than 5.4 million women’s jobs were eliminated from the U.S. workforce between February 2020 and January 2021, and 2.1 million women left the labor force completely. At the same time, a new survey shows that many working moms feel unappreciated and anxious. Specifically, these employees:

• Rate the competitiveness of their salary as 25% worse than dads surveyed.
• View their perceived worth to their organization 33% more negatively than their male counterparts.
• Rate their managers’ concerns for their wellbeing 10% less favorably than dads do.
• Are about a third more likely to see their workload as unmanageable.

Employers are making COVID vaccines for their workers a priority, according to a new survey. Among the findings:

• 60% of employers say they’ve communicated the value of vaccines to employees, and 35% say they are planning or considering such efforts.
• 35% say they have created policies and procedures to facilitate worker vaccination, and 50% of considering doing so.
• 23% are obtaining vaccines to administer to employees or doing so via a third party.
• Two in 10 respondents say they’re offering vaccine incentives, including providing extra leave to get vaccinated and/or additional leave for those who have negative reactions to one of the COVID-19 shots. One in 10 say they’re offering cash incentives.
• 1 in 10 employers are considering requiring proof of vaccination by employees and new hires, and 23% are planning or thinking about making vaccination a prerequisite of returning to the worksite for remote workers.

The pandemic has had many lessons for HR and other managers and leaders in the health care sector and beyond. Among these:

• Departmental heads are expected to communicate regularly, transparently, and effectively with employees, collaborate with business partners, and meet the needs of all stakeholders. Powerful storytelling is key.
• It’s time to rethink relationships and how they will look in the ‘new normal.’ It is important to be creative and consistent about spending meaningful time with colleagues, team members, consumers, and others.
• Downsizing and decluttering are taking center stage. Companies have realized the need for less office space but more (or at least better) technology.
• Employees want and need new, different benefits. Be creative and think of things like a stipend employees can use for things like the Calm app or wellness books/webinars.
• It’s important to create safe spaces for people to talk about fears, … [Read more...] about (4/12) More Workplace Lessons Learned During the Pandemic

Teams will look and function in new and innovative ways post-pandemic. Here are a few predictions from experts to help you on your teamwork journey:

• Results-oriented information technology and collaboration tools drive growth.
• Communication will bridge the gap between onsite and remote workers.
• Teams should expect the unexpected and be prepared to change with agility and flexibility.

A strong brand is important for finding and keeping great people, and some key statistics suggest just how significant it is:

• 86% of HR professionals say that recruitment is becoming more like marketing.
• 86% of employees and job candidates say they seek company reviews and ratings to decide whether or not to take or keep a job.
• 75% of job seekers are likely to apply for a position if the employer actively managers its brand.
• 86% of women and 67% of men in the U.S. say they wouldn’t join a company with a bad reputation.
• 50% of job candidates say they wouldn’t work for a company with a bad reputation, even for a pay increase.
• A strong employer brand can reduce the cost per hire by as much as 50%.
• 68% of millennials, 54% of gen Xers, and 48% of boomers say they will check out an employer’s social media pages to evaluate its brand.

Every generation is unique, with different focuses, backgrounds, and experiences. If you’re not already tuned in to millennials, it’s time to know a few things about this group of people:

• Business is personal to them. Be prepared to get to know them on a personal level and let them share details about themselves and their lives. They want you to take an interest in them as whole people.
• They learn different. Take time to find out how they learn and how they best absorb information. Try to accommodate them with training on a variety of platforms.
• They want to belong and contribute to something greater than themselves. They want to understand their purpose and how they fit into the big picture. To some, this is more important than other material considerations (such as salary).