BEST PRACTICES FOR THE ULTIMATE HR GENERALIST Michelle Gray, SHRM-CP,

BEST PRACTICES FOR THE ULTIMATE HR GENERALIST Michelle Gray, SHRM-CP, PHR October 20, 2016

AGENDA COVERING THE NOT SO BASIC The HR Generalist Defined Department of One, Department of many Compliance Leading by Example One Size Doesn’t Fit All A Day in the Life of a Generalist Networking – Does it Matter

HR GENERALIST DEFINED Generalist: A person whose knowledge, aptitudes, and skills are applied to a field as a whole or to a variety of different fields (opposed to a specialist) HR Generalist: Performs HR-related duties on a professional level and works closely with senior HR Management or Organizations Leadership Team. Can support a region, department, or entire company. Functional support include: benefits administration, employee relations, training, recruiting, performance management, onboarding, policy implementation, compliance, safety/workers comp, compensation.

THE HR GENERALIST DEFINED Department of One or Many Talent Management (Recruit well from the beginning) Benefits Payroll Safety/Workers Comp Onboarding Investigations Compensation Training/Development Compliance

COMPLIANCE – SIMPLE APPLICATIONS Pre-Hire/Onboarding/Post-Hire Recruit- be positive, honest, sincere Don’t pretend or show a pretty picture, be honest but professional Avoid negative comments regardless of your opinion or agreement Location – respect the interview (minimize fish bowl or out in the open) Onboarding – make it memorable and welcomed experience Have required documents ready, protect their information Demonstrate the importance of culture Conduct an Orientation - include COC, harassment/complaint process Send out a welcome email to introduce the new employee Post-Hire – don’t forget about them Follow up – do a walk through of their area, ask them how they are doing, DO – one/one meeting at least 30 days post-hire.

COMPLIANCE – SIMPLE APPLICATIONS CONT. Employee Relations Investigations Location of the interview – avoid the fishbowl and open areas Don’t promise 100% confidentiality – Need to know Ask the person bringing the concern what solution they like to see (don’t promise the outcome) Respect the person you are interviewing, don’t assume the accused is guilty Recommend 2 management level present (HR/Manager) Don’t lead the witness, ask them if other witnesses were there Always assume you are being recorded Keep questions simple and open-ended (prep some questions ahead) NEVER GROUP INTERVIEW .

COMPLIANCE – SIMPLE APPLICATIONS CONT. Employee Relations – cont. Open Door – Employee Concerns Keep a neutral position, show integrity in your discussions Don’t side with the employee or make them feel you will run to management each time. Unless it warrants Need to Know Build trust – don’t dismiss the concern Follow up with employee Do not engage in the company gossip or watercooler talks YOU ARE HERE TO BUILT A GOOD PLACE TO WORK NOT FRIENDS TO HAVE HAPPY HOUR WITH . Impact of Not Listening, Ignoring a Situation Can it affect you – YES, your job and legally Named into a lawsuit (even after you leave, your name is always on those documents)

LEAD BY EXAMPLE Going Outside the Norm– Engage Know your Company, not just the HR side Walk the halls – Learn about your peers and departments Communicate at the employee level not the legal terms Meet with Managers and employees at their location Manager One/One’s – learn about what’s going on in their departments Because something is not illegal doesn’t mean it’s ethical Gossip, Rumors, Poor representation of the company, saying one thing and acting out another Divulging information about others Inclusive Workplace – invite others to participate, learn about employees strengths and bring to managers attention BE OPEN AND ADAPTABLE TO CHANGE .

WATCH ME

ONE SIZE DOESN’T FIT ALL . Know your Audience Managers, Executive, Board Departments, Regions Understanding Their Communication and Behavioral Styles Know your own style first (dominate, talkative, analytical, aggressive, cut to the point) Tools - Disc, ProScan, Elements, etc. Keeping up with Technology and Social Media Generation – where are they in the generational index (Boomer, X, Y, or Z)

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN HR GENERALIST Your wake up and plan your day, walk in and have a nice drawn out “To Do” list and can’t wait to get some items off your checklist, then it happens . Manager walks in “I’ve had it with Jonathan, I want him fired now” Payroll is due at 2:00 and several of the managers still haven’t approved their employee timesheets Susan calls and says I forgot I didn’t take the day off last week, I need to add that vacation day back into my time Your Executive/VP calls and asks you for a Active/Term report and he needs it in the next 15 minutes THE LIST GOES ON So what do you do NOW!!!!!! Are you? Sheepherder; calm, productive, and preparer OR Tornado; frustrated, disorganized, and reactive

A DAY IN THE LIFE OF AN HR GENERALIST CONT. Your Reaction Matters How people will perceive you Your emotions show through even when you don’t think they do Regardless of the other individuals behavior always be professional Doesn’t mean you have to accept inappropriate actions, its how you respond to it Body language Learn a common language between you and your manager “Vent” versus “I need your guidance/opinion” Come with Solutions (not just issues)

SHARING TIME Take 3 minutes and discuss in your area what you’ve done that has impacted your organization and made HR a positive involvement versus the dreaded “OH, HR”

NETWORKING – DOES IT MATTER Good Networking Makes a Difference Building a Relationship People build trust when they feel there is a mutual give and take You will trust someone opinion or guidance if you learn to know about them Support is formed with one other Are you a Library – How much can you brain really hold Even when we are experts in our field or areas of our field we can’t be everywhere and know everything all the time. Having a core group you can send questions, ideas or resources to saves time and money. Learn new practices and apply to your organization Your names makes a name for your company, Word of Mouth When you talk about your company and you are respected others will think of you and your company

QUESTIONS Thank you