HR RESPONSIBLY

Yep, we’re knee deep into the holiday season and that means (1) trying to figure out if you should give gifts to your clients/colleagues/etc. and then (2) deciding what to give.

I’m totally convinced that gift giving is an art form.  And, something at which a lot of people do not excel.  Mostly because people don’t take time to really think about the person they’re buying for.

Obviously, gifts are easier when you know the person.  For example, I wouldn’t purchase liquor as a gift for someone I didn’t know well.  They might not drink.  And, if they do drink, the gift might not be something they like.  Early in my career, I worked for someone who loved Champagne.  Not just any Champagne…Moët and Chandon White Star.  So every year, we would get together and buy him a case of Moët.  He always knew it was coming but it was something he really liked and enjoyed.

But let’s say you don’t know the person very well.  Maybe they’re a new member of the team or a client you don’t have too much personal convo with.  It’s still possible to get them a gift they will enjoy.  When I’m in this situation, here are a few things that I give as gifts - they don’t cost a lot and the recipients always rave about them.

1. Magazine Subscriptions - This is a great gift for clients or office environments.  Find a leading edge publication and send a gift subscription.  Some of my favorites are Fast Company and Harvard Business Review.  Many publishers offer discounts this time of year if you purchase multiple gifts.
2. Coffee Mugs - Scoff if you must, but I don’t mean the traditional ceramic container.  There are some cool heated travel mugs out there right now - called smart mugs - that allow you to keep the beverages of your choice hot in your car (or in your office).  Simply put, they rock!
3. Jump Drives (or Flash Drives) - Who can’t use a memory storage device?  I’ve got several and always find a use for them.  They come in so many shapes and colors.  I really like the combo pen with jump drive - looks and feels like a spy pen.  And, if you need to ship it…this gift is easy to mail.
4. Lastly, if you have to grab something on the fly like a gift card…think in terms of places like Amazon which has books, music, games, etc.  Someone is sure to find something they like there.

Just remember, it’s not the price of the gift that matters.  A well thought item that the recipient can use is the very best gift of all.

I just read a post from the Three Star Leadership Blog on why bad supervisors are bad for you.  Now, we all know that bad managers have a negative impact on employee morale and productivity.  But Wally’s post referred to a study in Sweden that says there’s a link between leadership quality and employee health.

And, we aren’t talking about health issues like “my boss is a pain in the ass”.  We’re talking serious stuff like heart disease and high blood pressure.

Since no one who manages people wants to be responsible for an employee’s heart attack or a lifetime prescription of Levatol, it might be a good idea for companies to make sure their management teams have all the tools necessary to properly manage the workforce.

No one wants to be a bad manager.  There are several things companies can do to set their managers up for success.  For those people currently in management:

1. Find out if they want to be a manager.  Believe it or not - I’ve seen a lot of people pressured into management who never wanted to be there in the first place.  You don’t have to be a manager to be a valuable employee.
2. Make sure that managers know what is expected of them.  And, make sure they want to deliver.
3. If they need resources or training, give it to them.  Training is not an expense…it’s an investment.

When you identify someone who has the desire and potential to be a manager:

1. Tell them.  Don’t keep this information to yourself hoping you can surprise them someday with a promotion.
2. Give them opportunities to learn and grow.  They can lead a project or a committee.

Right now, our management teams are being asked to do more with less.  If our managers don’t have the skills and support to manage their teams, how can a company expect them to keep the operation going?

Last week, the Labor Department reported that productivity slowed over the summer months.  While the overall indicator did increase (1.3%), the increase was smaller than Q2 (3.6%).

So what does this mean?  Productivity is an important measurement - the more productive employees are, the more companies can provide in terms of wages (because the company’s sales will cover the payroll expense.)  Simply put, the more employees produce, the more the company can sell, then the more a company can pay.  As Homer Simpson would say, “D’oh!”

Anywho, we’ve got ourselves in a vicious cycle right now.  Times are tough and companies are laying people off.  So what are employees doing as a result?  Could it be they’re hanging around the water cooler wondering if they’ve got a job next week or surfing the net to see who they can connect with on LinkedIn?

And, what does that do to employee productivity?  Well if people aren’t giving work 100% of their attention then, of course, productivity will be down.  That translates into companies producing less…which means they are selling less…which means they don’t have the money to make payroll.  Bingo…you see where this is going.

As a result, it’s time we dust off that old cliché “doing more with less”.  Now I know, some folks might say you can’t do more with less.  But, the sad truth is we aren’t operating at 100%.  Five employees operating at 100% can do more than six operating at 80% . . just do the math.  Simply put, that’s doing more with less.

And since we’re all tightening our budget belts…then the statistical probability exists that, whatever we do, it will be with fewer resources.  We just need to get creative.

It’s time for all of us to get 100% in the game of doing more with less.  We’re asking our government to take action to improve the economy.  We want businesses to do their share.  Everyone needs to contribute.  As employees, our contribution is productivity.

There’s something to the saying, ‘what goes around comes around.’  After recently tagging a few folks, I was tagged once again by Angelique Keenley at Inspired HR.  While I’ve not yet met Angelique, I’ve become a fan of her blog.  And, more importantly, it’s good to know that I won’t be humming alone to Kid Rock’s “All Summer Long” at the next annual HR Bloggers Reunion (not sure what that is).

So as a reminder, here are the “tagging rules.”  I must:

• Link to the original tagger(s), and list these rules on my blog.
• Share 7 facts about myself in the post - some random, some weird.
• Tag 7 people at the end of my post by leaving their names and the links to their blogs.
• Let them know they’ve been tagged by leaving a comment on their blogs and/or Twitter.

More facts about me (like you really wanted to know):

1. Mr. Bartender and I had a Dalmatian for 18 years.  She recently went to that big puppy school in the sky and I’m still not ready for another dog.  A friend tells me that I’m sitting Shiva.
2. If you’ve seen the Rocky Horror Picture Show, then you know they have people acting out the performance in front of the movie screen.  I was Magenta (the maid) for years.  Seen the show hundreds of times and still have most of it memorized.
3. My wallet must always match my purse.  That’s my fashion rule.
4. One of my first jobs was self-employed artist.  I made serigraphs, etchings and paper sculptures.  Great job but I always smelled like paint thinner.
5. A favorite after dinner drink is half-Amaretto/half-Godiva liqueur over ice.  It’s delish!
6. [Warning: shameless self promotion] Not only am I a published artist, I’m also a published author.  In addition to a few SHRM White Papers, I’ve written an ASTD Info Line on Motivating Employees.
7. A goal is to get reservations for dinner at the French Laundry.  My second goal will be to get the money to pay for it…but the reservations are harder to get than the funds.

I’m tagging:

1. Lori Leavitt Evans at Collaborative-Action (Twitter: @LoriLeavitEvans)
2. Cindy Lin at Staged4More (Twitter: @cindeelean)
3. Amy Litt (Twitter: @amymlitt)
4. Elizabeth Roberts at Tenacious Titans (Twitter: @gloriaelizabeth)
5. Tara Burner at Affordable Mineral Makeup (Twitter: @taraburner)
6. Mike Haberman at Omega HR Solutions (Twitter: @mikehaberman)
7. The HR Maven (Twitter: @thehrmaven)

Don’t let me down guys! There’s certainly enough fun to spread around.

On Monday, I came across a tweet from @hoovers about the incredible amount of negativity in the world right now.  And the challenge to go an entire day without saying something negative.

I mean, come on folks, just because our stock portfolios have tanked and we can’t visit a Wal-Mart without risk of mortal injury, it doesn’t mean we should be negative all the time.  I say that very tongue and cheek but there is some truth to it.

Well, kudos to @hoovers for walking the talk and creating “A Day of No Negativity“.  He didn’t waste any time.  A social networking site was up on Tuesday and No-Negativity Day was Wednesday, December 3.  I signed up on Tuesday evening and am proud to be Member #4.  I feel like a trendsetter.  I think this is just one of those events that’s going to explode next year.

Sign up now. Take the oath. Tell your friends. Just do it!

In trying to think up a catchy ending for this post, my first thought was of Kermit the Frog and the “Rainbow Connection”.  Yeah, I know Kermit is as hokey as they come but George Carlin’s “Have a Nice Day” is a little too X-rated for this blog.  So I ditched both of them to leave you with a little “Happy Happy Joy Joy“.  Maybe we can learn something about having a positive attitude from Ren and Stimpy…or maybe not.

Last night, the blogosphere witnessed the 2^nd annual Talent Management Blog Power Rankings hosted by Fistful of Talent and The HR Capitalist.  It was the Oscars of the human resources/talent/recruiting blog world.

And, the Bartender was there.  Coming in at #17 - an impressive showing for my first time in the polls.

My sincere thanks to the judges - reviewing over 115 blogs to compile the list couldn’t have been easy!

When you have a moment, check out the entire list - lots of great blogs out there.  And, check out the judge’s blogs…while they took themselves out of the running to compile this list, they all have great blogs separate from FOT.

Again, I’m truly honored to be included among such an elite group of professionals and will carry my golden fist pump award with pride.