We have all been there. A day that simply doesn’t turn out the way you expected leaving you tired and frustrated. As consultants, this is an all-too-familiar feeling as we juggle projects and different personalities. As people managers and project managers, this is also a very common feeling and often one that leads to a hesitation to delegate responsibility and the statement “I’ll just take care of it myself.”

We keep hearing that Millennials seem to be more liberal with time in that they come in and leave the office on their own schedule. That they quit every six months or have unreal expectations on promotions. They are often referred to as "Generation We", the "Boomerang Generation", and the "Peter Pan Generation". While some of that may be true, let's not forget, that every new generation entering the workforce has typically been seen by older generations as not being as dedicated to their careers. Each generation has unique life experiences that largely play into how they show up at work. Millennials grew up with technology which continues to evolve to become more and more sophisticated, which has largely attributed to characteristics like wanting instant gratification.

We all need time away to recharge our batteries and momentarily forget what we are currently working on. Ensuring that your employees are taking their personal time is important not only for their sanity, but for the betterment of the department and organization that they support. Organizations evolve positively when employees focus on the day-to-day tactical and operational tasks, and also when they provide creative and passionate solutions or ideas to the opportunities and challenges facing the organization. Without this creativity and passion for work, employees will start ignoring and resenting their responsibilities. As leaders in your organization, there is an important tool in your management tool belt for helping an employee retain their passion and creativity for their role – encouraging them to use their personal time.

Many of my clients are interested in starting a wellness program, but tend to shy away. They are always surprised when I tell them that it is not difficult to implement a wellness program, and better yet, they don’t have to have a large budget to get started! Wellness programs are said to increase employee engagement and retention, reduce absenteeism, raise awareness of health issues, and drive down health care costs. If you are thinking of implementing a wellness program, here are some low-cost tips to help you get started.

Helios often works with clients when their recruiting process is broken or non-existent. When we conduct recruiting assessments, one of the most common areas we see overlooked is the candidate experience. With many organizations today trying to do more with less, the candidate experience is often neglected. However, the impact of both positive and negative candidate experiences can have far-reaching consequences on your organization. Studies show that when candidates have a positive experience with your firm, they are more likely to share that experience and encourage others to apply as well (even if they were not selected for the position to which they applied). Likewise, when candidates have a negative experience, they are more likely to discourage others from applying to your firm or even from being a consumer of your brand. Having a poor candidate experience can negatively impact your firm’s ability to be competitive in recruiting top talent.

At Helios, we frequently help our clients survey employees to understand everything from engagement to skill development to benefits needs. Particularly in the era of an evolving healthcare environment, employers need to get the most for the budget dollars allotted to benefits, and the best way to do that is to understand what employees want. As a Human Capital consultant, I advise surveying employees at your own company to discover what matters most to them. If it's crunch time during your benefits renewal, and you don't have the time to survey your team, these two recent studies by Unum and Aflac can provide you with the insight you need to understand how benefits can make a difference at your company.