The Trillion Dollar Jackpot Lurking in HR Companies, large and small alike, are always trying to find ways to increase bottom line results and return profits to the organization, shareholders and employee base to signal healthy business operations and strong leadership. I cannot name one client of mine who is not laser focused on some form of growth or revenue strategy to either sustain or grow their footprint within a given region or industry. In fact, most of my compensation related engagements center on the design and implementation of incentive plans to motivate employees to either capture more revenue or enhance business operations in an effort to optimize business and financial results. In most cases organizations achieve better business results by expanding product offerings, cutting expenses or deepening its expertise in a particular area. I can vouch that the aforementioned measures usually do result in improved fiscal and operational results; however there is one place many decisions makers are overlooking to unlock financial gains and operational efficiencies…..you guessed it, Human Resources.

The idea of employees having an unlimited amount of paid time off (PTO) is a more complicated proposition than it sounds. There’s already a great article on our site that discusses the pros and cons of unlimited PTO plans, and this particular article focuses specifically on the suitability of unlimited PTO plans for certain organizations and types of workers.

We are hearing about changes to the Health Insurance Portability Accountability Act (HIPAA) Privacy Rule, which has been protecting patient and employee’s health information since it was passed in 1996. Mostly these changes are affecting health-related organizations. Now the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is moving forward in modifying the regulations to allow certain covered entities to disclose to the National Instant Criminal Background Check System (NICS) the identities of those individuals who, due to specific mental health reasons are prohibited by Federal law from having a firearm.

We have all heard about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). But one of the biggest questions I get from my clients is "how to comply with the regulations in order to avoid litigation?" Unfortunately, ADA continues to be a liability for employers with 15 or more employees because it presents complex requirements for employers in working with and managing employees with disabilities.

Very recently I had a conversation with the COO and CFO of a client regarding a top candidate who had turned down an offer. They were shocked and confused. They had offered the candidate the compensation she requested and had thrown in a few small perks, but it unfortunately wasn’t enough to seal the deal. Ultimately that candidate (who had multiple offers on the table) accepted another offer. Why?