Human Resources-Employee Relations

Lets say that you have an employee that works for you and quits after (8) months with your company. Many experts state that the cost of replacing that employee will be equal to his annual salary.....sound too high? I don't think so-when you add up all of the training costs that go out the door with the former employee and the costs associated with finding and training his replacement-then add the administrative costs. The $ add up quickly. If Mike starts his new employees at $10.00 an hour-that is about $20,000 a year. Think for a minute about the significant amount of money that Mike's Carwash saved when they reduced turnover by 25%.

By the way, what is your annual turnover %? When an employee leaves your company, how much $ does it cost your company to replace him?

Human Resources-Employee Relations

After full implementation of this intensive management training, turnover at Mike's Carwash decreased by 25%. Next time let's see how this turnover reduction translated into more $ for Mike's. This is a textbook example of how treating employees with respect by developing their potential is not only the right thing to do-it also makes money for the employer.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

Mike's Carwash pulls it off through better management of employees that in turn makes these employees more productive and less likely to leave. And where did this process start? It started with management training. Exit interviews and other resources showed that their managers needed help in the areas of applicant screening, interviewing, and hiring practices. And so Mike's Carwash started to provide intensive management training that includes follow-up training at the workplace.

And the results? Stay tuned.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

"And one of the worst of those has always been car washes, jobs where, as Bruce Springsteen put it, all it ever does is rain, where workers quit as soon as they find something better."

But hold on a minute-what about Mike's Carwash, headquartered in Fort Wayne, Indiana? This company has more than 200 full time employees, 37 locations, and generates more than $50 million dollars in annual revenue. Annual turnover at Mike's is about 10 percent and average tenure is 8 years Half of the vacancies are filled from within. Hourly employees are provided with healthcare benefits, tuition reimbursement, paid vacation, a profit sharing plan, and a 401(k) retirement plan.

Entry level employees receive up to 90 hours of training and individualized employee-development plans to prepare them for promotion opportunities. They also receive financial education so that they can understand the company's financial statements, which are open to all employees.

So how does Mike's pull this off?! Stay tuned.....the answers may surprise you.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

"Better hiring practices and employee management can make significant differences in turnover, retention and engagement--even in industries that have historically been seen as offering low-wage, high-turnover, dead-end jobs." (Source:Human Resource Executive Online)

Can all of this be true at one of the worst places to work in the United States? Stay tuned.....

Human Resources-Employee Relations

How well do you know the individuals that work for you? Some of them are not interested in sharing any of their personal lives with you.....but some do want to share. Spend some time with the second group-learn about their families, hobbies, etc. And don't do this in a manipulative way-get to know them better because you really are interested in them as individual human beings.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

If there was ever a critical time to consistently communicate with your employees and to offer them on-going encouragement, that time is now. Please get up from your desk, find a fellow employee who needs to hear some positive words, and speak those words to that person.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

One of my readers posted these comments on my blog-"It's all about talking with your employees---getting to know them both personally and professionally. Letting them know how important they are to the company and listening to what they have to say---open communication builds trust."

Human Resources-Employee Relations

What does understanding have to do with trust? Everything-it means that you take the time to understand/to learn what your employees are concerned about..... and also what they are capable of doing for your organization that they are NOT doing now.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

T.R.U.S.T.-"Trust requires understanding-start today"

Human Resources-Employee Relations

The word is.....trust. As a human resources professional, are you trustworthy? Are the members of your management team trustworthy?

Human Resources-Employee Relations

The question that I asked in my last post was on a final exam given by a professor at a university. He was teaching his students the value of communicating with everyone in the workplace; because no matter what your job title is , you still are important to the success of your company.

Human Resources-Employee Relations

Do you know the name of the janitor that cleans your office/work area?

Human Resources-Employee Relations

As an example,you are an HR Manager at a manufacturing company. On a typical day, you pass by one of the Electrical Engineers at your facility. You say "good morning" and keep on walking. That particular engineer does not care about the new performance review process that you are currently designing, or the fact that you know what EEOC, FMLA, OSHA, and FLSA stand for-he wants you to stop and spend a few minutes talking with him about his career progression at the company, what training opportunities are available to him, how his son is doing in college.....

Human Resources-Employee Relations

The following statement may not sit well with some of my HR colleagues, but it is what I believe-if you are in Human Resources and you are not spending at least 10% of your workweek interacting with your workforce, you are failing as an HR Professional. (The 10% number amounts to 4 hours a week-less than an hour a day).

Give me chance to prove my point.....