As a manager, I’m sure you have brought on quite a few new hire employees. Some of these employees, when beginning employment, can “jump right in” and become a part of the team. However, others may take some time to adjust to the new culture. To assist in culture assimilation and the learning of company policies and procedures, I always recommend creating a mentor or buddy program for my client's new hires. They've already invested a lot of time and resources in finding the best candidates, so by instituting this as part of their onboarding program, they are ensuring a smooth transition and investing in their future success.

Last updated: May 2019 Under the new EEO-1 requirements, employers with more than 100 employees (both private industry and Federal contractor) are required to report salaries by gender, race and ethnicity. By contrast, contractors that are subject to the EEO-1 reporting requirement and that have between 50 and 99 employees, will continue to submit the same information that is collected by the current EEO-1 report.

Deciding whether to hire internally for your HR function or outsource HR is a critical decision, especially for organizations experiencing fast growth. If you are currently outsourcing HR functions to a Professional Employer Organization (PEO) and are considering bringing your HR in-house, there are several considerations you need to take into account before pulling the trigger.

As an HR Consultant, I have worked in a number of organizations varying in size, industry, structure, mission and culture. While each organization may be unique, every organization I have worked with has one thing in common – the problem employee. The problem employee can show up in a variety of forms and it isn’t always immediately clear that a small underlying problem has a larger impact to your organization. This article will help you understand some of the ways in which a “problem” may exist in your organization. In each of these scenarios the employee I am describing may bring a unique background or skill set that is incredibly valuable to your organization; however, the problems they bring may offset the value you were hoping to receive when you hired the employee.

So here we are in mid-January and most likely your new benefits plan year began January 1st. This cartoon conjures up memories of the myriad of phone calls an HR department receives as soon as the new plan year begins. Questions such as “what is my co-pay?” and “do I need a referral for services other than preventive care?” And how about the dreaded call from an employee at the doctor’s office telling you that the carrier says he is not covered! Ugh! While these questions are not uncommon, there are things you can do (and must do in some instances) to ensure all bases are covered.