Managing Your Business

Verifying Performance

2010-05-18T11:57:00.000-04:00

The office manager has just told you there has been an incident with a customerand it appears it was caused by an employee you hired a couple of months ago. Your first question is “What could have happened?” and the second one is “How will this affect me and my company?” Even if you carry insurance, this could be a disaster.

Workplace violence is not new and is becoming more prevalent every day in dramatic situations such as the Xerox employee in Hawaii and the day-trader in Atlanta. More than two million Americans are physically assaulted each year and one in four workers is harassed, threatened, or assaulted on the job. The most recent government statistics on workplace homicides show that ‘work associates,” both current and former, account for more than 14 percent of the job related homicides in 1996 and increased 55 percent from 1992. When you hire someone you don’t think a tragedy like this will strike your company, however it is becoming more and more commonplace.

The liability of employers for violent acts committed on their premises or associated with vehicles, has never been greater. Courts increasingly award recovery to employees, customers, and others who have suffered assaults, harassment, or worse from vicious workers. You say you don’t or didn’t know an employee was a risk.

This is a case of what you don’t know can hurt you. A company may become liable for its own negligence by hiring an employee who proves dangerous to others if “the company knew, or should have known through reasonable hiring efforts, that the person was dangerous or unfit.” In short, if through your negligence you hire an individual who could pose a threat to employees, customers, and others, you are putting your entire company at risk. While the Americans With Disabilities Act prohibits you from discriminating from hiring workers who may have disabilities, employers are not obligated to hire individuals who pose a “direct threat” or “a significant risk of substantial harm to the health and safety of the individual and others that cannot be eliminated or reduced by reasonable accommodations.”

As a business owner, knowing this will not protect you. Only your actions will protect the individual hiring manager and the organization from litigation. To ensure that you have done the “due diligence” necessary to screen out anyone who poses a “direct” and “significant” threat to employees, customers, and others, be sure to do the following: Begin by determining risk related essential job functions so you can see what steps must be taken. The more the risk, the more steps to be taken.

Questions to be considered are:

• To whom does this person have access? Employees with frequent and unrestricted access to customers and employees present a greater risk than those who work in relative isolation.

• What security factors are present in the job? The main question is whether the individual works alone or is supervised by others or by electronic means.

• What tools or equipment do employees typically use? If dangerous items could be a normal part of the work site, or readily concealed in things such as [tool boxes and tool belts], that deserves careful consideration.

• Are there any unique risk factors during normal contact with others? The main consideration here is whether normal forms of job contact, in conjunction with mental disorders, contribute to the potential for violent behavior. Before presenting a job offer, the hiring manager and company must do an effective job of screening to eliminate candidates who pose a threat. The following are screening methods.

• Job interview.Ask probing questions to uncover examples of behavior that could indicate tendencies that put others at risk.

• Criminal record request on application. The application should ask, “Have you been convicted of a felony? If, so give details.”

• Background checks.For as little as $20, an employer can get a basic report drawn from national data on prior convictions and prison records associated with violent crimes and drug offenses. Felony conviction records are available at local courthouses.

• Drug test.The Center for Drug Abuse can provide the names of competent laboratories that can screen for illegal drugs for those considering being hired and for current employees. They can be reached at 800-843-4971.

• Employment references.For as little as $12 per reference listed, employers may verify pre-employment information (dates of employment, job titles) and such risk related information as to the applicant’s ability to get along with others, safety issues, and honesty. Remember to get a signed authorization waiver from the applicant before conducting these activities.

• Pre-employment evaluation instruments.
A number of paper and pencil integrity instruments are available to assess an applicant’s attitudes toward integrity, substance abuse, reliability, and work ethic. Instruments are becoming more convenient for smaller organizations such as tree care companies to use because of accessibility via the Internet. (www.OutlawGroup.com, has Integrity Testing, Background Checking, and Reference Checking available.)

The Employers face a difficult situation. If they go too far in conducting pre-employment screening, an applicant’s civil rights might be violated. But if little or none is done and problems occur, those affected might seek damages for negligent hiring.

The workplace is considered all areas the individual would be in while under your employment, which includes to and from the job site. You may also be liable for the employee’s after hours behavior if the initial contact took place as a part of work. As you can see, the exposure to liability is diverse.

While the law may limit methods or even the extent to which certain information can be used, it does not limit normal “due diligence” or prudent fact checking to ensure you are hiring an individual who is not a known threat to others, and, most importantly, a productive employee. Because of the importance of the “due diligence,” over half the states have enacted statutes that give employers a qualified privilege when checking references. It is a good idea to check with a local labor attorney to find out if in your state you have this “qualified privilege.”

If that fateful phone call comes notifying you of an unfortunate incident on the job site, your company will be much safer from a legal standpoint and you will rest much easier from a moral standpoint if you know you did everything reasonably possible to prevent it. Begin today by examining your hiring process and making the changes necessary to prevent violence and illegal activities in your workplace. As an additional benefit, you will select and retain more productive customer-oriented employees, which will raise the performance and productivity of your company.

© 2000 Outlaw Group Inc. All rights reserved.

If you would like a copy of a special report entitled “Verifying Performance” that gives you more details about how to verify the background, work experience, and criminal history of applicants, please e-mail your name, company, and address to info@OutlawGroup.com and request “Verifying Performance” report in the subject line.

Uncovering Real Candidates

2009-06-25T11:00:00.000-04:00

Let's say you're interviewing the perfect candidate for a key position in your organization. She has the characteristics, attitudes, skills, background and experience you have identified as "musts" for this position.

But while you've interviewed her at length, you're still not sure you've gotten to know the "real" candidate. With the future performance of your company resting on her performance, questions are sure to arise.

Is this the person I really want in this critical position? Will she be responsible in taking care of my customers and working with employees? Can I trust her to protect my assets as I would?

Such uncertainty is common. Each year, 160 million interviews take place in the U.S., and despite so many opportunities to practice technique, the interview process often falls short. Experts universally agree on the need to improve interviewing techniques so business owners and human resources managers can make better hiring decisions.

Stopwatch decision-making
During an in-depth interview, you have about an hour to judge the candidate's potential, while the candidate seeks to convince you of her qualifications. With such time constraints, remembering a few rules of thumb should help produce fruitful discussion.

Generally, the candidate should do 85 percent of the talking. Use a conversational tone to allow the candidate to talk openly. Encourage the candidate to respond freely with open-ended questions requiring more than a "Yes" or "No" response. Some examples are:
--Tell me about your last job
--What do you feel are your strengths?
--How would you compare your results with your peers?
--What is the greatest challenge you've ever faced?

Plan your questions before the interview. Be sure to ask a similar questions of all candidates for the same type position. This provides a good basis for comparing one candidate against another or against those who have been successful in the position.

To obtain more in-depth information ask one of the open-ended questions above, then ask for additional information about the subject, followed by "Why?" This probes the candidates thought process and reasons for his or her actions and opinions.

Also, when "Why?" is asked several times, most candidates responses reveal their true opinions and feelings.

Avoiding the pitfalls
Even the best questioning techniques cannot prevent certain pitfalls. One common mistake interviewers make is falling victim to the "Halo Effect," which occurs when the interviewer asks questions to confirm a preformed opinion.

This typically happens when interviewing an individual with impressive credentials. Because you assume this person is an excellent candidate, you tend to ask only questions confirming your opinion.

Another common pitfall is telling too much too soon. If the interviewer talks too much about the culture, history, or description of the job, this may inform the candidate how to respond.

For example, if you describe your company as an aggressive organization that prides itself on commitment to customers, don't be surprised if the candidate describes him or herself as aggressive and thriving in a customer-focused organization.

A more effective approach is to give generic information early in the process, such as, "The job involves making in-person calls on customers and selling our products."

Effective questioning techniques should focus only on the job and the candidate's ability to perform the job. Questions involving race, religion, national origin, age, sex, marital/family status, or disability must be avoided because they could be discriminatory.

While there is much room for individual style in interviewing, these techniques should help increase your chances of uncovering the real candidate.

Before The Rebound

2009-06-08T09:18:00.000-04:00

Even if your company is fully staffed now you must consider how to ensure you have the human capital to capitalize on the long-awaited economic upturn. Even though unemployment is still high, it will change soon as the economy improves. The available labor pool will appear to shrink, and the time and effort needed to fill positions will increase when companies plan to expand.

To continuously have a top performing staff you must continually recruit. You can’t wait until someone leaves, you are ready to terminate an employee, or you want to add an employee to begin focusing on recruiting again. It must again be part of an everyday process and it requires a conscious effort to continually look for capable, motivated people.

The key to continuous recruiting is keeping your needs clearly in focus. Know what you need, take the time to examine your current and future personnel needs, just as you would monitor customer acquisition and retention. Account for predicted growth and the inevitable attrition that occurs. Don’t just look at the number of people needed. Look at the skill and experience level needed for the position. Ensuring you fully understand what you are looking for, by position, makes your recruiting efforts easier and certainly more effective.

Once you know what you need, you can begin searching for those individuals. Figure out where the individuals you would want to hire are currently working. You don’t plan on finding enough people out of work or just using traditional methods such as want ads. You’ll have to identify and attract people who are employed. Our experience has shown that organizations, in which every manager consciously looks for talented employees who fit the jobs needed, have the applicant flow needed to keep positions filled with top performers.

Actively recruiting by management isn’t the only way. Innovative recruiting techniques - beyond typical methods such as newspaper ads, internet job postings, and job fairs or campus recruiting - pay dividends.

For example, you can volunteer to speak to groups about your industry, especially to groups with potential applicants. Don’t forget to mention your need for employees and provide an easy way for an applicant to contact you. Someone in the audience may refer a friend or family member.

Develop a relationship with a high school or community college. Provide career information, speak to classes, and possibly offer internships or summer jobs. Use this as a way to get top job prospects before they start looking.

Community involvement is a great way to recruit. Many communities have groups who need assistance and help. For example, assisting an organization with members recently immigrated to the U.S. cannot only help the organization, but can open doors to that applicant pool. Many people, especially those new to this country, are uncomfortable about aggressively pursuing a job because of their culture. Be sensitive, learn their culture, and make it easy.

With today’s large number of bilingual workers and applicants, it is critical to make communication easier. You may translate your recruiting information into Spanish to get more impact in Spanish-speaking communities. If your recruiting materials are culturally sensitive, you will attract more candidates.

When the business climate improves, candidates will again be choosey and that demands that we adapt our hiring to a more pro-active approach of recruiting. We can not be slow, ineffective, or impersonal in our contact with candidates if we are to get the best.

It is important to make it easy for recruited applicants to move through the employment process. They require encouragement and persuasion since many are gainfully employed and may be uneasy about changing jobs. However, we must still follow an employment process that ensures we make good hiring decisions.

Today, it is even more important for a company not to make a hiring mistake. If, in your hurry to hire, you don’t do a proper background check, you may later find yourself and the company liable for an undiscovered problem, such as a felony conviction for a violent crime.

When times are difficult it is more important than ever that we realize the importance of a stable and talented workforce. Making staffing acquisition and retention a focus similar to customer acquisition and retention will pay dividends. Without staff, we cannot serve our customers or reach our organizational goals.
©2009 Wayne Outlaw

References A Signpost on the Road to Hiring The Best!

2009-06-02T09:19:00.000-04:00

How do you hire? Have you asked yourself that question lately? Are you having difficulty with turnover costing your company thousands of dollars?

The answer is simple: Take a long look at how you are hiring!

REFERENCES – SIGNPOSTS ON ROAD TO HIRING THE BEST

The truth is a defense against a charge of defamation. An honest, specific evaluation of an employee’s work history and an accurate appraisal of his or her ability can be easily defended.

References are a critical part of the hiring process. If you receive job employment references, you are severely limited in your ability to identify top performers.
Yet statistics consistently show employers check references of about one-forth, or less, of the job candidates. Of those who check references, they generally check only one or two. If you don’t believe this statistic, think about the number of people who have left your company and how often you receive a call to check references.

Considering the lack of performance verification, is there any wonder applicants claim skills and experiences they don’t have? It should be no surprise if an employer discovers a new employee has the same type of problem at this job as he or she had with a previous job.
It takes little time to do a thorough job checking references, and it can prevent hiring an employee who will be a time-consuming management problem, a drain on profits, or even a liability. Past job performance is usually the best indication of future job performance.
Many companies don’t give references because of the fear of litigation. If they do, they tend to only give dates of employment and job title, which I call the name, rank, and serial number approach. But even this minimalist approach may pose risks: If the same employer later gives someone else a glowing reference, a person who got only a bare-bones reference could claim discrimination.

Nor is the no-reference approach entirely safe. In a landmark case, an insurance company employee with an excellent work history was terminated in a dispute over payment of legitimate business expenses. Her supervisor asked her to resubmit her expense report with reduced expenses to correspond to the expense budget. She refused and the supervisor fired her for gross insubordination. The company decided not to give her any type of job reference.
As you can imagine, without a reference she had difficulty finding work in the insurance industry. As a result, she sued her former employer and collected for defamation and lost wages. The court found that “no reference could be construed as a negative reference.”

Since it is important to be able to provide and obtain references, businesses must find ways to give references without exposing themselves to litigation. To stay out of the trouble, businesses should follow several principles. Tell the truth. The truth is a defense against a charge of defamation. An honest, specific evaluation of an employee’s work history and an accurate appraisal of his or her ability can be easily defended. However, this puts a burden on the employer to keep accurate performance data. Ensure the information is given to only those with a need to know.

When giving a reference, stick to factual statements about the former employee’s actual job performance. Avoid generalities and subjective judgments. Limit comments to the specific skills or attitudes that are job related. Don’t allow references to be colored by personal feelings.

Be sure to apply all policies concerning references consistently. Don’t favor one group or position over another. Employers who act in good faith, in most states, have a “qualified privilege” to communicate an accurate appraisal of performance even if it otherwise might be considered defamatory. Remember the truth, objective and documented, is permissible.
Getting references requires just as much care as giving references. There are specific techniques and skills for getting the knowledgeable people to give information about past job performance of the candidate.

First, obtain permission from the candidate to check his or her references. It is best if permission is written or included with the job application. Be sure to ask for a number of names so you can avoid “hand-picked” references, such as close friends or former co-workers.

I like to ask for references of at least three former bosses, three former coworkers, and, if the candidate’s job involved supervision, three former subordinates. That way I can easily find someone who will give accurate, detailed information. Seek out people who observed the actual job performance of the candidate. If the job involved customer contact, you can ask for a list of customers and permission to contact them.

To check the references of a current employer, you can ask for names of those who are no longer employed with the company or would speak confidentially. In today’s business environment there most likely will be individuals who have left the company and who are familiar with his or her performance.

If a prospective employee cannot provide names of people who know his or her work history, this should be a cause for concern. Generally, top performing individuals not only know who can describe their work performance, but also are very willing to assist you in locating them. Remember, no reference, or a lukewarm reference, is a “red flag” and should be clarified before hiring.

Those you hire today are your future performers. Hire those who will be top performers.

We have added some new products to help your business!

Wayne Outlaw is President of the Outlaw Group Inc., Mt. Pleasant, S.C. He is author of Smart Staffing: How to Hire, Reward and Keep Top Employees for Your Growing Company. He can be reached at 800.347.9361.

New Look!

2009-05-18T09:12:00.000-04:00

We have updated our website! Please visit us here

We have added some exciting features, though!

First, we have a search function which will allow you to search for the specific information that you need today!

Secondly, we have added a resources page with both free and paid for resources to help you build your business!

WE NEED YOUR HELP!

Please email us at Tamara@outlawgroup.com with requests for articles that you need to help your business grow! Afterall, this website is for you!

We will return to regular blogging on Thursday! In the meantime, have a productive week!

Pardon the "Vacation"

2009-05-11T09:24:00.001-04:00

We want to apologize for the "Vacation" in postings. We are in the process of redesigning our website and we would LOVE your input! Please send us an email to let us know what you would like to see us add and what would help you! Your feedback is welcome! Please email our webmistress to add your input--tamara@outlawgroup.com!

New Business Tool!

2009-04-30T08:54:00.000-04:00

We are proud to announce our latest tool for Business Owners

Our Smart Staffing™ Program!

Our clients have told us how time-consuming hiring the "right" employee is and how much money they are losing either through the process or from high turnover rates.

Do you realize that the average cost to a company to replace one employee equals one and a half times their yearly salary?

Did you know that 95% of all companies are the victims of employee theft? A theft that costs businesses over one billion dollars a week!

Through our comprehensive Staffing program, you can save time and money during the hiring process by having us assist you! Visit our website: www.outlawgroup.com for more information on our Staffing Packages!

Tools for Small Business Owners

2009-04-20T08:29:00.000-04:00

Several of our clients have told us how much time they spend on the hiring process-time taken away from the running of their business. Often times, this time is wasted on an applicant when they fail to pass the background investigation or initial interview. Wouldn't you rather have an expert in the staffing industry assist you with that process?

As always, Outlaw Group, Inc, strives to find ways to assist our clients.

We would like to announce our new Staffing Packages!

Starting at $35.00, these packages vary services: From the creation of your advertising to recommendations of final applicants. We want to offer our expertise which will allow you to run your business and reduce the cost of turnover by recommending the RIGHT applicant for the job.

For additional information and pricing call us at 800.347.9361.

Are Satisfied Customers Enough?

2009-04-13T15:45:00.000-04:00

We hear of the importance of customers and service regularly from newspapers, magazines, and at conventions. Is your customer service good enough to ensure customer loyalty? Are you doing well enough to ensure your future success with customer repurchase decisions and retention?

Conventional wisdom has said that we should focus our attention on ensuring that none of our customers were less than satisfied. Companies have used slogans such as “100% customer satisfaction” or “no dissatisfied customers” and been disappointed when it didn’t produce loyalty and retain market share. Extensive research has been done with all types of organizations to determine the correlation between the level of satisfaction and customer retention and the repurchase decision. This research indicates if customers are just “satisfied” that is not enough. Today, with almost everyone focusing on customers, simply satisfying customers is not enough to build customer loyalty.

This research identified organizations with few dissatisfied customers, yet those customers did not display their loyalty by continuing to do business with, repurchase, or tell others of the company’s benefits. This proved “satisfied” customers are not enough. They must be “very satisfied.” It validated that the probability of a customer continuing to do business with you if they are “very satisfied” is significantly greater.

AT&T, for example, found that a customer who was “very satisfied” had only a 3% jeopardy of leaving and going to a competitor. They also found that if a client had slipped into the “just satisfied” category the jeopardy of leaving increased ten times to 32%.

Xerox Corporation found, of the customers who said they were satisfied, only one in seven would do business with them the next time they were ready to make a purchase decision. However, they found, of those identifying themselves as “very satisfied,” six out of seven would do business again.

Opinion Research Corporation in Princeton found that “completely satisfied” customers were nearly 42% more likely to be loyal than those who were merely “satisfied” customers.

Regardless of your type of business, it is critical for your future success that your customers be not just “satisfied,” but “very satisfied.” Whether it is phrased “totally satisfied,” “completely satisfied,” or “very satisfied,” the investment to attain this level pays dividends.

We cannot afford to follow conventional wisdom that says it is very important to have no dissatisfied customers and all efforts simply should be focused on elimination of dissatisfaction. In the service sensitive ‘90s that is not enough. We must focus our resources on ensuring our customers are “very satisfied” and measure it frequently to ensure that we are investing our resources correctly.

Assistance for the Business Owner

2009-04-08T16:09:00.000-04:00

Welcome to Outlaw Group, Inc.'s Blog designed specifically for the Business Owner. Each week I will be providing vital information for your business, regardless of size. I would like to start this blog off with a timely article on re-engineering your company. Is it for you? As a part of this blog, I would welcome feedback, questions and concerns! Please feel free to email me with any issues you are facing as a business owner and we'll address them.

Is Re-engineering for You?
Many people view re-engineering as a ”quick fix” or “cure-all.” Some see it as a politically correct term for lay-offs and downsizing.

Many businesses are finding that they cannot “cut their way to growth.” They continue trying to take the expenses out of the business, when lack of sales or declining margins is the real source of lack of income. While they may be able to improve the bottom line once by reducing staff and cutting costs, it only has a short-term effect. Human assets, once lost do not return.

Expenses can only be cut so far until they begin to hurt current operations, new product development, marketing, and even customer satisfaction. Reducing expenses in critical areas may have a short-term effect, but in many cases it speeds the downward spiral and dooms the company to even more difficult times in the long run.

Re-engineering was espoused by Michael Hammer and James Champy in their book Re-engineering the Corporation. They focused on the customer and suggested that processes be re-engineered to make them easier and more effective in serving the customer. The by-product of this improved process was to be increased customer satisfaction and reduced cost. On many this message was lost.

When companies attempt to implement a re-engineering project on their own, many miss the mark and the results are disastrous. Some simply reduce their staff and operations, without developing ways to do the work more efficiently, causing their people, the work, and the customer to suffer.

The most critical and costly mistake is the assumption that what is being done is right and the customer wants it. Many fail to ask what the customer values and wants. You cannot remove enough cost to make an unneeded operation profitable!

Instead of re-engineering, a better approach is to use Results Engineering, especially with small and medium sized or “nitch companies.” Start at the beginning and ask the strategic questions: What business am I in? What does the customer value? What is the customer willing to pay for? How much is the customer willing to pay?

Companies like Nike have found that they don’t have to build a better shoe or even a less costly shoe. They found out what shoes their customers wanted, and what they were willing to pay for them. Then they engineered their results by determining how to build that shoe, in the quantity needed, to produce the results they wanted.

Companies using Results Engineering have a wonderful opportunity to be more responsive to their marketplace and even to exploit opportunities by entering new market segments.
If you or your organization is contemplating change, or if it is already underway, make sure it is done well. Your organization’s future health will depend on it.