At many small and midsize organizations, the HR department is an army of one. And as a one-person HR shop, you face problems that your larger-organization colleagues don't.
If you're flying solo in your HR department, you feel pulled in a million different directions at once. How can you navigate to meet the needs of all your internal customers, play a more strategic role in your organization — and keep yourself sane?
Learn these essential tips and tricks.
Here are four key problems solo practitioners face and how to solve them:
1. Problem: Lack of stature within the organization.
You're not perceived as a strategic partner because you're always bogged down in clerical duties.
Solution: Use organization size to your advantage. In a small company, management teams are smaller and more accessible. You see these people every day. Initiate impromptu discussions in the halls about business goals and HR issues. Sound out to executives on your strategic solutions, and call meetings to present them to management. Read the organization's financial reports.
2. Problem: Overwhelming paperwork.
Solution: Ask benefits vendors and other third-party service providers to lend administrative support. Make it an issue at contract renewal time. Budget to hire a temp periodically, if needed. Use technology. Take advantage of the inexpensive, self-service HR information systems and software to handle tasks such as employment applications, hiring assessments and online benefits enrollment.
Sole practitioners get 100% of the grief when HR mistakes are made — but also 100% of the praise when things go right.
On October 19, learn the practical, real-world advice to become successful in running your one-person HR show.
3. Problem: Managing time.
Solution: Keep a simple log of contacts with employees and supervisors and their issues and requests. Put the notes on a spreadsheet, and sort them by topics such as attendance, health insurance and discipline. The log helps pinpoint the recurring issues that take up the most time.
4. Problem: Complying with the tangle of employment laws.
Solution: Make sure you're not "overcomplying" with employment laws that don't apply. Many smaller organizations mistakenly spend time learning about and complying with laws that don't pertain to employers their size.
Managing an HR Department of One: Secrets to Success
On Wednesday, October 19, join us for this fast-moving, 75-minute presentation. A true HR expert, consultant Lori Kleiman, SPHR, will provide you with real-world advice to help grab control of your workday and shine in the HR function.
Sole HR practitioners face a unique set of responsibilities and risks. Managing an HR Department of One: Secrets to Success will help you succeed in your administrative and compliance duties, while improving your executive-level skills as well.
You will discover how to:
- Align HR's goals with the strategic actions of the organization
- Identify your key administrative, functional and strategic tasks — and which are most important to your boss (print the "HR Pyramid" for your bulletin board!)
- Find out what your CEO wants from you
— and what to do about it - Be your own cheerleader in the workplace
- Take simple steps to ease your stress — like moving printed forms outside your office!
- Understand and improve your vendor management process
- Complete a valuable HR Assessment, using the handy checklist
- Know which functions to outsource and which to keep in-house (Don't outsource yourself out of a job!)
- Push for your HR priorities—and get them funded.
Lori's webinars appeal to HR professionals with a sense of humor and give real-world examples that will instantly help improve your HR performance. This webinar is based on Lori's packed-room session at the recent Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) annual conference.
Don't miss this opportunity to take your HR skills to a whole new level!
Register for this October 19 training webinar now.
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