Training Employees In Small Business (SMB Series)

"Being in person doesn't mean you are present." On one hand, many employees love remote work while, on the other, many companies want employees in person. Where do you sit on the subject? The debate rages in my household. I'll state the obvious: it's hard for any of us to be objective. I spoke with Kaleem Clarkson, COO of BlendMe, a consultancy focused on supporting remote and hybrid workplaces. Recently, he was listed as one of the top 50 experts around enabling remote work. He shared his insights on why employers resist remote work, the pros and cons of remote work, and how to build a successful remote work culture. 🥇Top tip: plan around building social connection. 🌍 The advantages of remote work are considerable. If they weren't, there would be no debate. 💻 The main challenge of remote work is how to build social connection. He says this rests mostly on the employer. 👥 A social connection strategy and calendar will help you foster connections among remote teams. 👨‍💼 He doesn't try to persuade skeptical leaders. He'll help if they are genuinely exploring the issues. 🔍 You need to think about asynchronous communication and documentation in a remote work setting. Find Kaleem on LinkedIn at linkedin.com/in/kaleemclarkson/ Blend Me Inc: blendmeinc.com Kaleem's YouTube Channel: youtube.com/c/KaleemClarkson Find Andrea for consulting at [email protected]

In a small or medium business (or NFP) you need to do a little bit of many things - learning and development is no exception. So, as part of my series on HR for SMBs, we are talking about L&D in that environment. Our expert guest for this episode was the exceptional James Aird, an L&D specialist with a Master's of Education from Harvard. James has a unique perspective, having honed his skills in conflict areas like Iraq and the Congo. He is down-to-earth with a lot of practical tips to help SMBs figure out their L&D. In this episode, James shares: 🎯 Why SMBs should invest in L&D. 💡 Common challenges faced by SMBs in implementing L&D programs and how to address them. Some is money, but some is attention and expertise. 📚 Surprisingly affordable options for SMBs to access comprehensive learning and development resources. 🏢 The role of leaders in driving L&D and aligning it with business objectives. 🔑 The ideal time for an organization to invest in a Learning Management System (LMS). If you're leading a small or medium business or NFP or you're in HR there, check out this episode - and the whole series! Resources: The Assoc'n for Talent Development https://www.td.org eLearning Industry https://www.elearningindustry.com James' website: https://edupivot.io/ Reach out to Andrea for consulting [email protected]

I was tired of hearing about 'fast-paced change' ten years ago. And now the pace is even faster. The World Economic Forum's 'Future of Jobs Report', estimates that by 2025, 85 million jobs may be displaced by a shift in the division of labor between humans and machines, while 97 million new roles may emerge. That's since 2020! That's next year! My guest, Michelle Ellis, brings a wealth of knowledge to the table. With her background in from Disney, a PhD in training and performance improvement, and her current role at Intellum, a learning management software company, she shares approaches to building learning culture. We talked about: 📚 The definition of a learning culture and its importance in modern organizations. Note the pace of change. 📈 The benefits of fostering a learning culture, including increased innovation, retention and employee satisfaction. Many things promise this, but I think learning can deliver. 🎯 The role of a learning culture in upskilling and reskilling employees. 💼 The difference between talent management and talent planning. This was so interesting - see the video! 🧠 The importance of competency-based learning and the distinction between skills and competencies. 🔧 The role of technology in building a learning culture. This episode offers valuable insights for HR professionals looking to cultivate a learning culture within their organizations. It's a case for those who aren't building a learning organization to reconsider. Hiring is expensive! It's time to equip your team with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive in a rapidly changing work environment. Find Michelle on LinkedIn at / michelle-ellis-phd-cxac-cert-3357833 See Intellum here: https://www.intellum.com/ I am an HR consultant to small and medium businesses and not-for-profits. Reach out to me here: [email protected]

Battling uphill with recruitment for small and medium businesses or not-for-profits? Worried about competing with the big names and their resources? It's time to level up your HR game! In this episode of The HR Hub, I dove into full cycle recruitment: all the steps in the recruitment process. I offered insights and strategies to help you attract great people even against larger and more well-known employers. This is another episode I (Andrea Adams) did myself. I'm an HR consultant to small and medium businesses and distilled some of the questions I get into a quick overview. I broke down the full-cycle recruitment process and highlighted why you need to care about each step if you want to make great hires. In this episode, you'll discover: 📚The difference between a job ad and a job description, and why it matters. 🎯How to source candidates effectively whether you target individuals or get individuals to target you. 🚀 Strategies to speed up the screening and selection process and avoid bias. 💰 Getting the most out of your budget. ⏰ The importance of timing in recruitment and how to plan for it effectively. 👥 How to assess a candidate's fit for your organization without compromising diversity. Find me at https://www.thehrhub.ca/ [email protected] https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-adams1/

Thinking about running a 360 program to provide feedback to employees? For some reason, one of the few things I remember from university was a project I did on 360's. Even then, it seemed so much more valid and potentially insightful that a regular review. To explore this, I reached out to Jo Ayoubi, co-founder of Track 360 Feedback. Jo is a consultant and they have a 360 software platform so she was an excellent guest for this discussion! Jo covered it all: 🤔 360s are a great way to get insight on HOW someone does their job not just what they accomplish. 📝 A 360 feedback program is NOT a performance review. It could be a piece though. 👥 Preparation is critical - particularly preparing all the people who will participate. 📊 Not all her clients do a good job of follow-up but you probably should. 📅 It will take 2-3 months from beginning to end. This episode has so much valuable insights to help you understand how a well-implemented 360 feedback program can help employee and organization performance! Find Jo Ayoubi and her company at https://tracksurveys.com/ She would also chat with you on LinkedIn:   / joayoubi   Find me for consulting in Western Canada https://www.thehrhub.ca/

Worried about a leadership shortage? Or are you a new leader and... OMG it sucks?? This week I talked about building leaders with Corina Walsh, a seasoned leadership coach and host of the "People and Culture Success Show". Corina has considerable knowledge and practical advice to help HR identify, nurture, and accelerate leadership within an organization. She shed light on the common mistakes new leaders make and how HR can help. We talked about: 🛠️ Promoting people who are technically strong. Could be a bad idea. 🎯 The key attributes of emerging leaders - they should be people-people. 🔍 The important role of HR in succession planning and leadership development. 🔧 How to help new leaders transition smoothly and effectively. 📚 The importance of ongoing leadership training and development. If your leadership pipeline is barely a trickle or new leaders are failing. Check this out. Find Corina at shiftpd.com. She has a lot of free resources too! Find Andrea for small and medium sized business consulting in Western Canada.

Are you worried about your labour supply? Well... there are places you might find it, if you're open-minded. In this episode of The HR Hub, we dive into the world of older workers, their potential, and the myths surrounding them. I spoke with Laura Tamblyn Watts, CEO of CanAge, Canada's national seniors advocacy organization. She is a researcher, teacher, speaker... and well qualified to participate. We covered the gamut and I asked tough questions like: don't they cost more? Laura shared her insights on this and the good and bad news about the labour market and how we can prepare for looming labour shortages. We discussed: 🧓 How older workers can be a solution to Canada's significant labour shortage 💼 The importance of good retention strategies and avoiding ageist practices 👩‍💻 Why the myth that older workers can't use technology is just that - a myth 🎓 Everyone wants learning and development - including older workers 💡 How companies can actively attract, retain, and support older workers At the very least, include age in your DEI statement. She is super knowledgeable! Check it out! Find Laura at / laura-tamblyn-watts-a8ab61 CanAge https://www.canage.ca/ Living, Learning and Earning Longer: https://www.aarpinternational.org/ini... Find Andrea for HR Consulting [email protected]

Are you grappling with the complexity of pay transparency? We all want compensation to be fair and equitable, but transparency opens up even more questions about compensation as comparisons are made. And there were a lot of questions to start with! If you might be affected by pay transparency laws, watch this discussion with Sally Loftis. Sally is the Managing Director of Loftis Partners. She specializes in pay equity, transparency, DEI and OD. This episode will help any HR professional seeking to understand the often murky water of pay transparency and equity. In this episode, you will learn: 🔍 The reasons why some employers are hesitant to share pay data and the repercussions of such reluctance. 💡 Some employees don't want pay transparency either - it's crucial to communicate internally before implementing changes. 👥 There's a balance between complete pay transparency and protecting employee privacy. ⚖️ Pay transparency doesn't replace pay equity, but they work together. 🚀 There are ways to 'do' pay transparency in a way that builds trust across the organization. Follow Sally on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/sallyloftisloftis/ Her site https://www.loftispartners.com/ Find the Pay Equity Collective at https://pay-equity-collective.mn.co/share/GTCEIh6yArceY6cY?utm_source=manual This is a link to her guide on conducting a pay equity assessment Find Andrea for SME consulting in Western Canada at thehrhub.ca

If I was going to listen to one episode of my own show this year, this would be the one. There is something I love about all of them, but this was next level. It may be appropriate considering the guest: Dr. Peter Cappelli. He is a professor of Management and Director of the Center for Human Resources at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is the author of numerous Harvard Business Review articles and, recently, the author of a book on the topic of our discussion: Our Least Important Asset: Why the Relentless Focus on Finance and Accounting is Bad for Business and Employees. He explains so many things you think are dumb about the way we handle our workforces. Like: ❌ Employees are not assets. They're a fixed cost and one that must be minimized to drive shareholder value. ❌ Creating the appearance of shareholder value is NOT the same as creating a strong and efficient business. ❌ This leads to so many practices you think are shortsighted. Decreasing training budgets, layoffs, wonky recruitment, capped salaries... and it's invisible. Or, at the very least, opaque. ❌ All because of GAAP (Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and how they are applied to HR decisions. ❌ Even investors wish this would change. There was so much to take in and so many useful insights for HR more broadly. It's longer than my typical episode, but I HIGHLY recommend it! It will be well worth your time. A link to Dr. Cappelli's book https://www.amazon.com/Our-Least-Important-Asset-Relentless/dp/0197629806 Find Andrea on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrea-adams1/ or at [email protected]

Cat owners need not apply! I promise it's unfortunately real and relevant. We even spent a couple minutes talking about how analytics might enable discrimination on factors that seem to have no bearing on performance like whether you love cats vs dogs. This kind of data is part of the trend towards creepy analytics. I spoke with Dr. Salvatore Falletta who just wrote a book entitled 'Creepy Analytics'. He helped me draw the line between AI and analytics which are related but not exactly the same thing. Whether analytics or AI, HR needs to be monitoring this or legislation will eventually do it for us. Some unfortunately real questions we discussed: 👂Should your employer be able to listen in on conversations? 🚽Should your boss know if your are in the bathroom? 💸If you dump company stock, should your boss know? 🤔Should your employer be able to scrape sentiment from your emails? 🙀Is your love of cats (vs dogs) relevant and, even if it is, should a prospective employer make decisions on this? We need transparent data collection and analytics and white box AI. These were just a few of the insights in this somewhat dystopian but also funny episode. Sal’s LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/salvatore-falletta/ Sal’s Book: Creepy Analytics: Avoid Crossing the Line and Establish Ethical HR Analytics for Smarter Workforce Decisions Find Andrea https://www.thehrhub.ca/