Are There Bullies at Your Credit Union?

by Paul Hendryks and Gene Mandarino

Turn on the news, read your phone, listen to the radio, watch any of the most popular sitcoms or reality shows and you will see a common thread running through all of them, or most of them: people being mean. The news is filled with horrific stories of violence and abuse. The sitcoms cannot do without pranks and practical jokes at someone’s expense and the reality shows are a continuous stream of people arguing, with more bleeped out expletives than actual dialogue. 

With this continuous stream of “mean” in the media it is no wonder workplace bullying is on the rise. And, according to the Associated Press, 10 states are now considering legislation that would allow workers to sue for on-the-job bullying that causes physical or emotional harm. They also cite that 56% of companies surveyed have some type of anti-bullying policy.

As an HR professional we would suggest that every credit union get out in front of this and look at including an anti-bullying policy in their employee handbook. As a person I would suggest that we look at ways to encourage each other to be nicer: to say thank you; to say please; to help out a coworker who is struggling with a problem at home; to buy a coworker a candy bar just because; to give someone a thank you card; to ask “How can I help?”; to recognize someone for a job well done at a staff meeting; to bring in coffee from Starbucks for the office; to help out with mundane tasks i.e., stuffing envelopes, filing, etc.; or to just ask yourself, “What can I do to be a little nicer?” 

Workplace Bullying - The Next Employment Law Nightmare? 

Maybe you thought it was just an oversight that you weren’t included in the lunch outing by others in your department. Then you later learn that one of your coworkers used the lunch outing as an opportunity to criticize you about everything – from the clothes you wear to your work habits. And later in the week, this same coworker takes credit at a staff meeting for a project you recently completed (knowing you don’t have the courage to speak up to dispute his statement).

All of this may remind you of similar antics pulled by bullies in grade school. One would think that the playground bullies would “grow out of it” and not continue this type of behavior in the workplace. Apparently not, as workplace bullying has affected about 35% of workers according to a CareerBuilder survey.

To read more about this developing topic, click here to view the most recent HRN Performance Solutions monthly HR white paper. If you would like to receive more well-researched and concisely written FREE monthly HR topical white papers, simply sign up here and we will add you to our email distribution list.

Gaining the Competitive Advantage for Your Credit Union - Part 4: Walking the Walk

by Amy Neale

Below is Part 4 of a four-part series we've done on Gaining the Competitive Advantage for Your Credit Union.

To tie this all together – what good is having the competitive advantage with marketing, technology or rewards if you don’t have a staff qualified to support it? It’s no secret that to have a successful credit union you need successful, happy employees.

It’s not enough to say you have excellent member service; you need to walk the walk too. The best way to make that happen is to make sure your staff’s goals are aligned with your credit union’s goals. These goals need to not only be symbiotic but concise, defined, valued, reviewed and evaluated. The most cost-effective and time-saving way to ensure this happens is through an effective performance management system, such as Performance Pro.

For a performance management system to be effective it needs to weigh goals, offer customized factors, be easy to use and require the employee’s buy-in. Once an employee has bought into not only your credit union’s goals, but their own goals as well, it’s easier for them to understand the bigger picture. Then they’ll truly understand how every single member interaction helps everyone to achieve those goals.

The end result? Your credit union will have, attract and retain top performers – employees who help give you that competitive advantage we’ve been talking about.

The Best of the Rest

Defining what makes your credit union different gives potential and current members a clear, definite choice. And remember, if you don’t rise to the challenge – your competitors will be happy to do so.
 
Related Services: GSTV, Mobile, BoldChat, Financial Resource Center, Video Management, Invest in America, Sprint Discount, Performance Pro  

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What Perks are Important for Your Credit Union Employees?

by Joyce Campbell

The area of compensation is one that has expanded to look at not only the dollar piece of compensation, but the “total compensation” package. This part has always been interesting to me, as the additional components of total comp carry different values of importance among organizations and employees. Another interesting component is how these perks and factors have changed through the years, based on technology and the different generations.

Recently, CareerBuilder published a survey exploring what factors are important to employees and what motivates people to stay. With the onset of the new year and the media repeating consistently that  more employees are looking for jobs elsewhere, it is a good idea to know what these 3,900 full-time workers who participated in the survey have to say. 

Factors that are important to those surveyed include:

• 59%               Flexible Schedule
• 48%               Being able to make a difference
• 35%               Challenging work
• 33%               Ability to work from home
• 18%               Academic reimbursement
• 17%               Having an office
• 14%               Company car

 As far as perks, these are the ones most requested:

• 40%               Half-day Fridays
• 20%               On-site fitness center
• 18%               Ability to wear jeans
• 17%               Daily catered lunches
• 16%               Massages
• 12%               Nap room
• 12%               Rides to and from work

 So what, ultimately, are the factors that entice employees to stay?

• 70%               Increasing salaries
• 58%               Better benefits
• 51%               Flexible schedules
• 50%               Employee recognition (awards, cash prizes, company trips)
• 48%               Ask employees what they want & put feedback into action
• 35%               Increase training and learning opportunities

 “What determines job satisfaction is not a one-size-fits-all, but flexibility, recognition, the ability to make a difference and yes, even special perks, can go a long way,” said Rosemary Haefner, vice president of human resources at CareerBuilder. “Being compensated well will always be a top consideration, but we’re seeing work-life balance, telecommuting options and learning opportunities outweigh other job factors when an employee decides whether to stay with an organization.”

Although some of the survey results may not be practical for your credit union or be representative of the needs for your employee population, many of the items listed above are basic fundamentals of doing the right thing. Our society has changed and consequently the work environment has changed. We must respond in the right ways to retain employees and improve morale, which ultimately should lead to a more successful credit union.

More information gathered from the survey can be found by clicking here.
 

Hiring for the Right Fit at Your Credit Union

by Charisse Rockett, PHR

I realized one day how much my mood is dictated by how comfortable or uncomfortable my shoes are. I found that at the end of the day, when my heels were getting higher and tighter by the minute, that I became short-tempered (with everything) and not so patient.  When I got home, naturally the first thing I did was kick the shoes off, and that is when I experienced my own wonderful transformation. I was back to my usual cheery self!

When you buy shoes you want the right fit, otherwise, you will be miserable, you will be cranky, and you will want to get them as far away from yourself as you can! Buying shoes that fit can be likened to finding the right fit for your organization when making a hiring decision. If the candidate doesn’t fit, you will be miserable, you will be cranky, and you will want them gone!

Hiring the right candidate can be a tough decision because all hiring decisions have such a significant impact on your credit union, good or bad. A bad hire, by far, is more costly as reported by a recent CareerBuilder survey. It was reported that this year 69% of businesses have had an adverse effect by a bad hire; and 24% reported the cost of a bad hire to be more than $50,000!

CareerBuilder reported some of the costs of a bad hire to be attributed to their being less productive, 39%; having a negative effect on morale, 33%; and negatively impacting clients, 19%. They also said that issues related to behavior and performance contribute to defining one as a bad hire, since 60% didn’t work well with others, while 59% had a negative attitude.

This enlightening survey shared not only the effects and characteristics of a bad hire, but why companies make bad hires. Click here for the full survey results.

To protect yourself and your credit union from a bad hire, don’t be in a hurry to fill a spot with a warm body. Instead, tailor your interview questions to fit the requirements of the job and to disclose talent, emotional intelligence, and past behaviors. By all means, check their references! It may take a little longer to fill the position, but planning coupled with a little time investment upfront will save you a lot of misery and money later! Remember IF the shoe fits, wear it; and IF the hire fits, keep ‘em!

Documents to Keep or Not Keep at Your Credit Union

by Joyce Campbell

As the end of the year approaches, it is a good time to think about cleaning out file cabinets, drawers and those notebooks that collect dust on your bookshelf.  That’s one of the items on my checklist to complete before the end of the year.  Although it is sometimes a dreaded process, it always provides me with a sense of accomplishment when completed.

When approaching this project, not only should you consider how long to keep the documents but you also need to make sure you don’t keep them for too long as that could put you at risk of a security breach.  So what should you do?  First of all, it’s a good idea to have a document retention schedule in place for your organization.  Consider both the legal guidelines regarding the lifecycle of specific documents, but your organization should also consider how long you need to retain them for internal reference. 

Once the retention schedule is established and the retention period has passed, documents should be discarded appropriately.  Many types of documents require shredding as the method for discarding, which is considered to be best practice.  Additionally a destruction schedule and tracking sheet should be completed as part of your document retention practices.

Below are some of the recommended retention requirements for human resource related documents.  Please keep in mind these recommendations are general guidelines only.  They are not intended to represent legal advice as you should contact your legal expert to provide requirements for your specific requirements based on your type of business and locality.

Document	Years of Retention Recommended
Attendance Records	7
COBRA Records	4
Employment Applications – Not Hired	3
OSHA Logs	6
Performance Records – after termination	7
Withholding Tax Statements	6

Does Your Credit Union Have a Social Media Policy? (Part 2 of 2)

This is the second of a two-part blog that comes from our cohort Joyce Campbell, content manager at HRN Performance Solutions.

Last week we left you at #8 of our 9 tips to create a social media policy. So today we begin at:

9. How could social computing help your credit union?

a)   Professional contacts may use these methods to communicate with your employees.

b)   May provide an opportunity to improve community presence or reputation.

c)   Creates opportunity to get “the word out” about the credit union.

d)  Can serve as a means to launch marketing campaigns.

e)  Can put your credit union at a hiring advantage by using business sites as recruiting tools.

f)    Provides the chance for employees to interact with those in the same fields, increasing employee knowledge, resources and professional contacts.

g)   Keeps morale high.

h)   Keeps you in touch with your members and lets you obtain their feedback.

i)    Provides information regarding products and services.

j)    Is a means to respond to news stories.

k)   Provides a service to members and the public by answering questions and offering information.

A Few Items to Include/Consider for Your Policy

• Require that all communications meet your existing policies’ standards regarding confidentiality and proprietary and sensitive information.
• Ban the use of company logos, trademarks, etc., unless on approved sites.
• Remind employees that their online activities reflect on the credit union and that they should be respectful of coworkers, members, vendors and the credit union’s reputation at all times.
• Don’t infringe on copyrights, trademarks, etc.
• Make it understood that employee violations of applicable policies and procedures may result in corrective action, up to and including termination.  
• Distinguish “at work” standards from “off hours” standards. In other words, what’s allowed at work?

Other Things to Consider

• Ensure that your policy and or guidelines are appropriately communicated and distributed. Consider having employees acknowledge receipt (sign off) of the materials.
• Update your policy and guidelines at least annually, with input from legal, HR, IT and management. Keep in mind employee’s rights with reference to the National Labor Relations Board and recent case law in your specific state regarding social networking.
• Make sure managers “buy into” and actively support your positions. 
• Ensure that they fully understand their special roles in the credit union to serve as examples and to enforce standards.Train employees regarding your expectations.

Bottom Line

It’s difficult to change or control employee behavior under any circumstances. Given the widespread use of social media sites, a total prohibition against employee use (on and offsite) is unenforceable and possibly illegal. Yet employees need guidelines to follow. The goal then is to use common sense to use social networking in a manner that can help the credit union and which does no harm to you, the employer. While that’s easier said than done, it’s important to be proactive and address the issue. It’s tricky to find the balance between ignoring the issue and acting as “Big Brother.”

Does Your Credit Union Have a Social Media Policy? (Part 1 of 2)

The following installment of a two-part blog comes from our cohort Joyce Campbell, content manager at HRN Performance Solutions.

The last ten years has seen a revolution in how people communicate with each other. Social networking, which includes use of Internet forums, blogs, wikis, LinkedIn, Facebook, MySpace, YouTube, Twitter, Flickr – and the list goes on and on – has changed the world. As with most social transformations, this one affects the workplace as well.

If your credit union hasn't already created a social computing policy and guidelines for your workplace, you probably should. No policy is a risky policy. The trick is trying to decide what will work for you, specifically.

The following are a few key points to consider in drafting your credit union's policy. Given how rapidly things are changing in this area, you’ll likely need to review and update your policy regularly. It will definitely be a work in progress. 

Developing Social Networking Policies and Guidelines 

1. One size definitely does not fit all – Don’t expect to adopt another organization’s policy. At the very least you’ll need to customize sample policies (including the HRN written policy included as a template in HR Suite) to fit your credit union, how technology is used in your workplace, your employees and overall organizational need.

2. There are varying degrees of tolerance among organizations – High tech organizations may be very liberal regarding employee social computing and see business opportunities in letting employees network at work. Some older brick and mortar companies may have little use for and only see problems arising from employee social networking. Where does your credit union fit along this continuum?

3. What kind of social networking does your organization seek to regulate?
 
a) When?
      i. Social networking during work
      ii. Social networking after work
      iii. Both

b) What?
      i. What types of communications do you intend to address?
      ii. Does it depend on whether the activities are at work or home?

4. What types of communication may be useful to your organization?


5. What types of communication could present problems to you?

6. Which groups in your organization should be allowed to use company equipment and work time for social networking? – All employees? None? Some?

7. Should you consider blocking, filtering, or monitoring certain sites at work? If so, for what groups of employees?

8. What are the legal concerns and potential negative aspects for employers?  

a)    Companies may be liable for defamatory, harassing, or discriminatory communications by their employees.

b)    Organizations should understand that employees have certain privacy rights and, in some states, laws protect employees who engage in lawful activities outside of work.

c)     Although this area of law is evolving, there are protections for employees engaging in political activities so an employee blog regarding politics, working conditions, or employee rights is probably protected.

d)    Federal labor law provides that employees have the right to discuss wages and terms and conditions of employment.

e)    Employers must be careful not to violate the federal Stored Communications Act. It prohibits a 3rd party from accessing electronic communications (e.g., email or social network sites) without proper authorization. There’s nothing wrong if an employer reads an employee’s posts on a public site…there’s no expectation of privacy. However, if that employer gains access to a password protected site by illicit means or by coercing another employee to offer up the password, that’s another problem.

f)     Many employers review applicants’ social sites to learn more about the candidates. However, an employer who learns about an applicant’s or employee’s disability, sexual identity, race, etc., and fails to hire the applicant or promote the employee could face discrimination allegations.

g)    A Federal Trade Commission guideline (Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising) provides that employees who use social media to make statements about an employer’s products could create liability (even unintended) if a consumer later claims that he was misled or purchased a defective or dangerous product. Companies could be liable for any false or unsubstantiated claims by employees or even for an employee’s failure to disclose his relationship with the company.

h)    Inappropriate communication can damage company reputation.

i)      Problems may arise by intentional or accidental employee action.

j)      It can waste an awful lot of time and decrease productivity. (Some characterize this as “social notworking” vs. “social networking”).

Come back next week to read Part 2!

Shifting Your Strategy as the Result of a Credit Union Merger

For the past couple of decades, mergers have been occurring in many industries, and have possibly been more prevalent in credit unions. While CEOs diligently review the financial part of the merger, another critical part of the merger involves the people side of the equation. Human resources’ role can be one of the most important, aside from the financial review. 

There are two major pieces that HR handles during the merger: the strategy side – policies, practices and benefits, and the people side – emotions and culture.

The Strategy Side

The acquirer’s HR strategy can vary greatly from that of the company being merged. Some questions that should be addressed:

• Do you lead or lag the market in terms of compensation and benefits?
• What are your workplace policies?
• What are your pay policies, i.e., overtime, incentive plans and bonuses?
• What benefit plans do you offer?
• Is there a match on the 401(k) plan?

It’s important to create a spreadsheet to compare the two companies with reference to the above questions so any gaps can be identified. Typically, the acquiring company’s strategy will overrule but there can be some integration of the two, especially where there may be significant differences between the two companies.

When acquisitions occur, there are usually layoffs due to a duplication of manpower. This reality means coordinating separation and severance pay issues. Laws and regulations to be considered through this process include, but are not limited to, Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) and the Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act (WARN) of 1988. Additionally, with increased combined headcount sometimes comes increased legal compliance. Many federal and state laws are based on headcount, such as the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA). Federal and state law requirements need to be identified and brought forward to senior management to anticipate any additional costs and/or policy changes that may be implemented as a result.

The People Side
Mergers also bring about an array of emotions. Employees on both sides of the merger are most likely experiencing some of the following:

• Anxiety – Will I still have a job? What will the new compensation structure be like?
• Resistance – I’m happy where I am and with what I’m doing.
• Fear – What if I don’t like the new culture?
• Trust – How do I know I can believe what they tell us?

Effective Methods to Address Emotional Concerns
First and foremost, HR needs to ensure communication occurs frequently throughout the merger process. It’s a good idea to use multiple avenues of communication to ensure you reach everyone such as a company intranet, FAQs and all-hands meetings. Also, arming managers with information they can share with their staff is very helpful, along with question and answer sessions. Keeping the transaction as transparent as possible, with an appropriate level of disclosure, will ease the anxiety employees are experiencing. Failure to do so could allow the rumor mill to drive the communication process.

It’s important to know where each organization is emotionally before entering the merger. Conducting an employee opinion survey may be an effective method to give insight to the workplace climate and uncover any hurdles. In addition to the survey, developing a presence through on-site visits and interactions with employees may help create trust and reduce resistance.

Fortunately, mergers usually don’t occur overnight. HR should be involved in the process from the very beginning so they can complete their due diligence as thoroughly as the financial side of the transaction.

Related Services: HR Consulting Services, Strategic Planning Resources

Finding the Carrot: Creating Effective Incentive Plans for your Credit Union

Incentive pay, when used within the context of a reward system, should help motivate your credit union staff to achieve or exceed the desired results. Psychologists and compensation professionals often explain motivation to perform in terms of the Expectancy Theory which states that motivation is the product of three perceptions: expectance, instrumentality and valence.

·    Expectance - The employee’s assessment of their ability to perform the required job tasks. The employee must believe he/she can achieve/affect the end results.

Line-of-sight is typically used to describe this ability, which basically means how much control someone has over achieving a specific goal. Incentive programs with a strong line-of-sight for each employee have the greatest motivational impact and, hence, the greatest potential to be effective. 

Also related to expectance is how difficult the performance levels (targets) are to achieve. Targets that are set too high or two low usually have little or no motivational value. 

·    Instrumentality - The employee’s belief that requisite job performance will be rewarded by the credit union. Employees must believe that if they meet the objective, they will be rewarded.

Instrumentality becomes lower when subjective measures are utilized. We recommend building your incentive plan around concrete, objective measures. And be prepared to follow through with your plan, even if financial conditions change. Failing to do so will reduce instrumentality of future plans.

·    Valence – The value employees attach to the organizational rewards offered. The employee has to value the reward or it will have little motivational value.

Rewards must be significant enough to motivate effort (physical and/or mental) beyond what would be the norm or status quo. Providing superior member service or reducing operational costs are a few examples of behaviors that can be encouraged with an incentive program for beyond the status quo.  

Creating an incentive program around employees referring family and friends to apply for home or auto loans at your credit union is a good example of a lending incentive. Credit unions can typically have a loan referral fee of $5-$10 for consumer loans and $25-$50 for mortgage loans. 

Your credit union could also benefit from creating an incentive program around staff selling auxiliary products such as payment protection, GAP protection or extended warranty products.  A common structure uses a “pay per sale” method where the employee is paid a certain dollar amount for each sale ranging from $10-$25 per policy.

Loan growth goals can be cascaded down throughout the credit union with senior managers and back office staff being incented for the overall credit union loan growth goal.  Incentives may include branch managers being rewarded for achieving their branch loan goal; loan officers and processers incented on personal loan production; and tellers or other front line staff rewarded for loan referrals. 

In conclusion, it is possible to structure a plan that pays for itself and offers higher opportunities to all employees.  Incentive plans are designed to share organizational gains with all stakeholders.  One last tip – when developing your plan we recommend developing a cost/benefit analysis.  This will provide the template needed to set up a successful  incentive plan at your credit union.   

Related Services: Incentease, Compease, Performance Pro