By Liza | No Comments
You can’t miss the headlines. Last week we heard that the Chief Executive of Tech firm Yahoo has stepped down with accusations around including a fake computer science degree on his CV.
For a summary of the situation, read this: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-18053577
So how do people get away with fudging a resume or their background?
You may be surprised to know that it can actually happen fairly easily.
Here are six recruitment scenarios which may mean that all reference and background checks are not completed.
1) A candidate walks into interview. They are charismatic, charming and answer all the interview questions persuasively. The interviewer naturally likes them. The interviewer trusts the candidate as a person. So they assume that everything the candidate has presented about themselves is true, and do not check all the information the candidate provides. In this case the charming interviewee may get away with a few “white lies” as the interviewer has not verified all the detail the candidate has provided.
2) Sometimes recruiters and organisations are super keen to fill a role. So they do not tick all the boxes in background checking. For example, they may miss verifying old qualifications or accept candidates’ assurances that they have achieved accreditations where original documents are not easy to obtain. So the organization brings the person on board and takes the risk that they will work out, because there may not be anyone else available.
3) The organization trusts the assurances from external agencies that appropriate checks have been performed. But that may not be the case. Sometimes agencies leave reference checking to less experienced staff who have not been involved in the interview and selection process. They may not know to cover all the details and probe as necessary at reference checking.
4) The interviewee’s qualification is not verified as it had no relevance to whether they can perform the role at hand, particularly if that person had demonstrated success in successive roles many years after achieving that qualification.
5) A person is hired into a role without being interviewed, assessed and checked. You will often see this in internal promotions.
6) People hire their friends or referrals from friends into roles. Reference checks are neglected. Hiring protocols (if any) are not followed as the person is hired on trust.
Hiring is risky. Poor performers cost money in terms of their lost productivity, their impact on the team and your time as a manager in attempting to help someone perform.
There are several ways to mitigate the risk of hire including conducting proper reference checks.
Here’s some of what we look at:
1) We do not rely on just one reference, no matter how glowing it may be.
2) We check the referee themselves to see where they currently work, where they have worked and their relationship to the candidate.
3) We do not trust mobile phone numbers of referees.
4) We cover questions, claims and concerns that may have arisen in our interview. We contrast reference information with information the candidate has provided.
5) Where qualifications are required for a role, we will ask to sight them.
6) When we do reference checks listen to the “unsaid” as well as the “said” and probe where we need to. If a referee words their responses carefully, we try to explore why.
7) We consider the credibility of the referee and assess the detail they provide against other referees. We consider if the referee a reliable person to be providing a reference. We compare what they tell us, to what other people tell us and probe where there are inconsistencies.
8) If we cannot ascertain all the information we need, we will discuss this with employers and look at other ways to minimize the risk of hiring someone.
No process is perfect. Errors can happen in hiring and things can be overlooked.
But you can minimize the risk if you have a systematic and detailed process. If you would like assistance in developing a robust recruitment process, or to find out more about our methodology, call Enigma HR: 02 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
Who’s been trying to hire someone recently?
I was at the BNI breakfast last week and one of our business colleagues mentioned that they had someone work for them for 27 years.
27 years!!!
That kind of loyalty is so rare nowadays.
Despite what you read in the media, our experience is that there are still skills shortages. If you’re in a small to medium business you know what we’re talking about. We’re not talking basic skills. We’re talking the type of skills that will drive your business forward, and the type of person who is happy to come along for your often bumpy ride.
So if you’re a small but growing business, how do you attract those types of skills? Where do you find someone who will stick around? How do you understand what you can offer, or as they say in HR marketing: “your employee value proposition?”
Here are a few things to think about:
- Why do people leave your company?
- What do your current employees like about your company?
- What do your current employees dislike about your company?
- What defines a high performer over a lower performer?
- What would your employees say about you if you were not in the room?
- What skills do you need to take your business to the next level?
- What do you offer as an employer that nobody else does?
- What are your competitors offering?
If you can clearly identify who you are, what you offer and how you stand out in the market place, plus have a strong sense of the skills you need to complement your own, it’s easy for everyone to sing from the same song-sheet – so to speak.
Once you have that consistent vision, finding the people to fit and to stick around becomes a whole lot easier.
Why are we telling you this?
In our experience this is an area where business falls down. If you would like help in workforce planning, and in defining what is unique about you, please give our workforce management solutions team a call. (02) 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
Have you heard of Job Advisor or Workplace Fit?
They allow workers to document life inside the company without the corporate spin.
Take a read of this review below that appeared on one of the sites:
“A very disappointing experience for a big name”
Review Period:
2008 to 2010
“It was unfortunately a disappointing experience from day one. Training opportunities promised during interview stage were not delivered on and career growth/promotion requests were tactfully ignored come annual review time. Team endured a very long and drawn out year long redundancy process, which was not handled very well.
Big focus on “quick wins” and the bottom line, and very little on process improvements. Management very protective of their international travel rights, but then reluctant to reimburse a $20 cab fare when a team member would work back late. On a positive note, they did subsidise health insurance and they were big on safety – a message that was reiterated every meeting.”
Managing your employment brand is tricky at the best of times. However social media and sites like these put a whole other spin on things. Anything negative has the power to go viral, and go viral fast.
One area where it’s easy to find criticism is in the recruitment process. The power of your reputation to go pear shaped from people who don’t really know your company is immense, given that people are vulnerable and stressed when they are looking for a job.
We know as recruiters we cop a lot of criticism about the service we offer. We do try our best to keep candidates fully informed about what’s going on.
In the interest in improving our candidate communication, here are four things we need you to do, so we can help you manage your employment brand.
1) Have a clear idea about what you want. If there is uncertainty around the direction of your organisation, or if it is positioned for rapid growth, that’s OK. We then look for a person who is flexible, who enjoys a challenge, and who can develop a project or business blue print when no blueprint exists. Putting someone who needs structure into an environment like this spells disaster.
2) Let us in and tell us about the role “warts and all.” We need to know exactly what is going on so we can sell the opportunity as it exists in reality. If we tell the candidate how terrific a role is, then they discover that the role is something different, everyone has egg on their faces, and you are more likely to lose that person.
3) When you request some candidates urgently and talk about how difficult it is to find the right fit, we get moving. Good candidates are hard to find. They are usually out on two to three interviews, if not more. We need you to respond promptly so we can let them know what’s going on. Delays in the recruitment process can make candidates feel very insecure about the opportunity you are offering. Some will simply de-select if the process is prolonged.
4) Give us some decent feedback to give the candidate. People put hours and hours into their resume and job application. Looking for a job is stressful, particularly if people are working. It’s easy to forget this on the other side of the desk. If we’re rejecting people for a job at a particularly vulnerable point in their lives, we want to give them something to walk away with that they can work with.
You can look at sites like Job Advisor and Workplace Fit as a threat, or an opportunity. Imagine if all your job applicants wrote positive reviews unprompted. A good relationship with your insurance and accounting recruiter will help make your employment brand stand out. Call us for more information on (02) 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
It’s the time of year that most people dread – performance reviews. If you’re a manager you will probably be thinking “do I really have time?” If you’re an employee, having that one-on-one discussion that is primarily around you and your performance, can be confronting as well.
We have some insights that we want to share.
First of all, we weren’t being flippant when we wrote in this post that you should simply “have one,” There is research out there that says how damaging it is to simply ignore your team. Read point one of this post about this research about 5 reasons people leave you that you may never know about.
As a Manager, never underestimate the impact that you can have in someone’s life. One of the best Managers I ever had was simply interested in me. I knew that they listened to me. I then knew that they understood me. So when it came to a time for them to give me feedback, I was ready to listen.
Business woman and highly successful career blogger Penelope Trunk wrote this on her blog almost 10 years ago now. But the message still resonates as it comes back to fundamentals of respect.
“Good performance review takes heart. You need to really see the employee and understand what motivates her. You need to understand where she wants to go, because the job of you, the manager, is to help her get there. And of course, a good manager will show the employee why she should want for herself what her manager wants for her.
An employee knows right away how prepared you are for the review, so don’t bother trying to fake it; this is not a college essay test, this is real life. Lack of preparation means that you do not take the review seriously, so you can bet the employee will ignore what you say. Lack of preparation means mentoring and leading are not high priorities, and managers who do not make those high priorities are managers who have ill-prepared disloyal employees.”
Here are a few things we know are important:
- Listen to your employees. There is no way that they will listen to you if you don’t.
- Before you deliver the review, consider if you are being fair. As human beings we can form impressions of people, that may not be completely true. You may think of someone as not working as hard as others, yet in fact they actually are more productive. So try to base feedback in fact. If you are in doubt in any way, check out your ideas on that person with an impartial third party.
- Be prepared. As Penelope says, how prepared you are is a reflection on how much consideration you give this person’s career.
- Do not reschedule. We say this pretty much for the same reason that we say you should be prepared.
- Be honest and be sincere. One of the things that strikes us in talking to people about their careers is that few people really have an awareness of their strengths and weaknesses. One reason for this is that we all seem to shy away from delivering honest feedback.
Often managers have concerns that they’ll come across like a bully in a performance review if they are too assertive, yet you may need to be direct to make your point clear. We cannot give you a one simple paragraph on how to handle that. Communication is complicated. The way your team member interprets your message can be the result of what they think of you, and what they think you are telling them, regardless of the actual message.
If you would like help with communication training and if you think you need some help in designing a performance management system, please give our Workforce Management Solutions Team a call on 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
Did you know what many people start from the wrong template when they recruit staff? Time and time again we see fuzzy job descriptions that have only a vague relationship to the role on offer.
When it comes to building an engaged team, getting the basics right is critical.
Here’s why.
The process of putting together a position description forces you to analyse the key tasks involved in a role, the skills required to perform that role, the key characteristics which will enable someone to succeed in that role, and the indicators of success – the key performance indicators if you like.
This lays the groundwork for an effective recruitment campaign, as you will know what you want, and all parties involved in recruitment are hiring from the same script. You can use the position description as a template for performance reviews, then develop targeted training or interventions to address any shortfalls in your staff member’s performance.
That’s just the basic part.
Here are some things you need to keep in mind.
Most staff need certainty and guidance, no matter how experienced they are. When you have clearly laid out your expectations staff know what they need to deliver to achieve salary increases or bonuses if they are linked to performance.
Without effective position descriptions, it is difficult for you to address any issues with your team’s performance, as you have never fully laid out your expectations. You may also be exposing yourself to the risk of litigation if any dispute arises.
We know pulling together position descriptions can be challenging, particularly if you are in an environment that changes rapidly. Often it can be difficult to interpret which part of a role is critical to business success. Then there’s the old issue of “we’re all too busy” and have no time to think about these.
We’ve written before about workforce planning. We’re passionate about this topic as we know it makes everyone’s life easier. If you would like assistance with your workforce planning and coming up with a set of position descriptions that will lay the foundation for your future success, give our Workforce Management Solutions team a call. (02) 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
If you are like most businesses you are head down concentrating on what it takes to grow your business in one of the most unpredictable economic cycles we’ve faced. Or you probably think that HR is something that you need to think about once you have your business systems in place.
If this sounds like you, we urge you to stop. Here are some things you must think about if you don’t think you need HR.
You may be exposing yourself to large fines.
Take for example the recent changes to the OH&S laws. These laws are now more complicated and more stringent. Under the new Act (now called the WHS Act) corporations face fines of up to $3 million per offence, while individuals face fines of $600,000 or 5 years in jail. Read here for more information.
You may be exposing yourself to litigation.
There have been a number of changes to the Fair Work Act and minimum terms and conditions with the National Employment Standards. Did you know for example that you no longer need to give three warnings in order for a dismissal to be considered fair? Most people we speak to do not know this and are using outdated procedures and paperwork to manage their staff. Read here for more information.
Your workplace may be making people “sick.”
Ok we know this sounds a little harsh, but your workplace practices could actually be causing your staff to be disengaged, or indeed to be taking “sickies” when they are not actually sick. This issue is complicated to manage. Read here for more information.
Your administrative processes are costing you time and money.
Payroll and personnel files can be voluminous. Without a centralised point for paperwork you may not be paying people correctly according to workplace awards and legislation. This is what usually happens when files live in different parts of an organisation.
You may be missing out on a whole host of benefits.
Your staff could be more engaged, loyal, promote your brand and help you achieve the growth your business deserves.
This is where HR can really add value. They can help you identify what makes your business unique, the values that have made you successful and work with you in developing recruitment, training and performance management systems to help you replicate that culture that will drive your business forward.
We call all this workforce management solutions. We provide tailored solutions as you need them.
Why not give us a call?
The bottom line is that we are confident we can add to the bottom line of your business.
(02) 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
Last year we told you about changes to the national OHS rules which came into effect on January 1.
The new laws are in place in NSW and are being rolled out with minor changes in all other states in the coming few months.
The changes are too important not to remind you of them again.
Here’s the start of what you’ll need to know:
• Under the new WHS Act, corporations face fines of up to $3 million per offence, while individuals face fines of $600,000 or 5 years in jail.
• The new WHS Act requires that you exercise ‘due diligence’ at all times. You will have a legal responsibility to keep informed about health and safety matters. You will also need to act immediately on any OHS risks that are brought to your attention.
• You will be responsible for the health and safety of a lot more people. The new Act requires anyone who conducts a business or undertaking to provide a safe workplace for all employees and workers. With the new Act, the definition of both ‘worker’ and ‘workplace’ has been broadened to include among other people, contractors and labour hire workers.
• You think consulting is difficult now? Under the new Act it will be much more complicated to consult with your employees about OHS. You will have a legal duty to consult with employees and other workers about health and safety matters in a very particular way.
• There will be new restrictions and consequences for discriminatory conduct. The new WHS Act allows for a discrimination case to be a criminal prosecution, and also enables employees to seek civil action for damages.
• You will have to comply with expanded union right of entry provisions for unions.
Is your business compliant with the new WHS Act? No? Don’t panic. Let our Workforce Management Solutions experts ensure your business is prepared, and you’re protected from fines and prosecution. Call us on 82210553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
Did you know how much the Australian “sickie” costs?
Take a read of this piece recently in the Australian Financial Review. According to this report, Australians sickies cost our economy up to $38 billion per year. The average Australian takes 9.4 sickies per year. Compare this to people in the UK who average 7.
Out of control sick days can be reflective of many things in a workplace. So some self examination is needed here.
Does your workplace tick any of these boxes?
- employees believing that their sickies may not be noticed, or have limited impact
- employees having little control over their work combined with inflexible management practices
- stressful work environments and poor management practices
- a flawed workplace management system. (Take a look here for an example of Canadian air traffic controllers who had diarised a rolling series of sick days among themselves. The workers would then make up for their absences at times that attracted overtime rates, and would therefore earn more money.)
Work practices aside, you may just have a person who takes a sickie because they can’t be bothered coming into work, or they have something better to do with their day. Football or beach anyone?
So what can you do?
How do you manage an employee who has too many sickies?
What evidence do you need if you suspect the system is being abused? What evidence is compelling evidence? What if the employee can provide medical certificates? Do you have any avenues then?
There’s no one easy answer on managing absenteeism.
The truth you need to have practices in place to create a positive work place culture, effective managers and performance management systems, and then have the confidence and tools to be able to deal with the bad apple employee who abuses the system.
If you would like help managing your absenteeism, we have a team of workforce management experts who can help you identify the problem, and come up with strategic and targeted solutions. Call us now on (02) 8221 0553.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Liza | No Comments
The Fair Work Act of 2009 has been in place for the past two years.
However, when we talk to our clients and candidates, we are always surprised about how little people know about employee contracts and how many myths surround dismissal laws. This is partly because there have been a number of changes to the minimum terms and conditions with the National Employment Standards, but mostly because there has been a lack of education and training around these.
Many people still think that they are required to give three warnings prior to dismissing an employee.
If you dismiss a worker for an unsatisfactory performance, Fair Work Australia is required to consider whether an employee has been warned about their unsatisfactory performance. Did you know, however, that Fair Work Act does not actually set out any minimum amount of warnings that must be issued in order for a dismissal to be considered fair?
That’s right. The Act does not specify three!
What this all means, is that your people and compliance systems need to be sound. Here is a sample of things you’ll need to consider:
1) Do you have contracts in place?
2) How compliant are your contracts with the current National Employment Standards and modern awards?
3) Do your managers understand their new obligations?
4) Are your managers trained in managing performance and delivering warnings?
5) Do you have systems in place that ensure that members of your teams are complying with the latest changes in legislation and regulation?
The law is complex and changes all the time. If you are unsure of your rights and obligations, we strongly recommend that you seek professional advice.
If you would like assistance in reviewing your performance management systems and workplace contracts, please give our Workforce Management Solutions team a call on 02 8221 0553. We will ensure you are compliant with Workplace Laws.
In 1997, I founded Enigma HR with the philosophy: “be ethical; be professional; be friendly and serve my clients well.” We specialise in insurance and accounting placements and have been assisting professionals in this industry for over 20 years.
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By Karalyn | 2 Comments
Here’s my soap box rant on words I see and hear that niggle at me a little. These are my pet peeves only. You could me picky, so you’d better tell me if you agree or disagree, in the comment section down below….
“I’d consider that…”
If someone says in interview “I’d consider a lower level job,” I hear: “I’ll jump ship at the next better offer.”
It’s better to tell someone why that particular job suits you right now.
“Dealing with”
Spoken interviews and used in resumes – “dealing with” customers, staff, people etc.
On resumes you need to use more action words. See our previous post here.
In conversation it sounds like my Dad when he’s mad about something. He’s dealing with Telstra, “dealing with” the Local Council, “dealing with” his local member of government.
“Facilitate”
This always sounds a bit passive aggressive – usually used when someone wants to control something or direct a result, but doesn’t want to be obvious about it. Look in their passive aggressive tool kit and you may find enough post-it notes to start a cold war.
This is term is also frequently used incorrectly.
In interview I once heard someone say they were facilitating communication. When I probed a little deeper I found out that they had made a telephone call.
I facilitated the end of the interview after that.
“Outcome”
I like using the word “outcome” when I’m not really sure what to say. I can sound like I’ve achieved something, but I can be vague about what.
“In relation to”
Stick with about…
“In terms of”
Padding and filler. It either is or it isn’t!
This article first appeared on the www.interviewiq.com.au website.
