by Steve Bruce

Beware of the killer phrases that doom your pitch to failure. If you want to maximize your success as you climb the career ladder,  here are some phrases you should never utter:

1. AVOID “I can’t do that” or “That’s impossible” or “That can’t be done.”

Even though you may feel this way on the inside, these negative phrases are perceived by others as pessimistic, unconstructive, and even stubborn. Your boss, peers, and customers most likely want to hear what CAN be done. Instead say, “I’ll be glad to check on that for you” or “What I can do is …” or “Because of company policy, what I CAN do is …”

2. AVOID “You should have …” or “You could have …” or “You ought to have ...”

These words—should, could, and ought—imply blame, finger-pointing, and fault. There’s no quicker way to upset a boss, colleague, or customer than to suggest that he or she is guilty of something (even if it’s true). Instead, take a collaborative approach. “Please help me understand why …” or “Next time may we adopt an alternative approach ….” or “I understand your challenges; let’s resolve this together…”

3. AVOID “That’s not my job” or “I don’t get paid enough for this” or “That’s not my problem.”

If you’re asked to do something by your boss, coworker, or a customer, it’s because it’s important to them. Therefore, as a team player, goal #1 is to figure out how to help them get it accomplished. Even if it’s not in your job description, saying so displays a career-limiting bad attitude.

4. AVOID “I may be wrong, but…” or “This may be a dumb question, but…” or “I’m not sure about this, but…” or “This may be a silly idea, but…”

Eliminate any prefacing phrase that demeans or negates what you’re about to say. Instead, get rid of the self-deprecating phrase, drop the ‘but,’ and make your comment.

5. AVOID “I’ll try.”

Imagine your boss says to you, “I need your proposal by 10 a.m. tomorrow for the customer meeting.” Your reply is, “OK. I’ll try to get it finished.” The word “try” implies the possibility it may not get finished. It presupposes possible failure. Instead say, “I’ll get it finished” or “I’ll have it on your desk by 9 a.m.”

by Business Management Daily 

One small misstep could cost the company hundreds, thousands and even millions of dollars.

#1: Advertisements, Interviews and Offer Letters

Mistake: improper language in job advertisements. Too many employers still use inappropriate terms — such as "girl," "boy" or "young" — in their job advertisements. This is particularly true when managers, rather than HR, write the ads.

Mistake: unlawful interview inquiries. Too many hiring managers ask about personal and/or protected characteristics during job interviews, which sets the employer up for a discrimination lawsuit if the applicant is not hired.

Mistake: inaccurate description of the job. Some hiring managers work so hard to get top-notch recruits in the door that they fail to be realistic with their description of the job. The unhappy employee will leave, and it will have been a shameful waste of the employer's time and money.

Mistake: inadvertent creation of contractual promises. Too many employers include language in their job offer letters that inadvertently creates an employment contract. For instance, mentioning a yearly salary implies a yearly contract.

#2: Wage and Hour Issues

Mistake: misclassification of workers. Exempt vs. non-exempt status: Finding and correcting these mistakes are an Obama administration priority. While there are many factors to consider, you're basically basing your determination on the employee's level of responsibility and/or training and a salary test.

#3: Privacy Assumptions and Violations

Mistake: permitting an expectation of electronic privacy. Too many employers fail to advise employees to expect no privacy on their computers. If you asked employees, "Do you think the stuff you put into that computer is private?" you might get some interesting answers.

Mistake: improper electronic monitoring. Some states have statutes that require employers to give employees notice if they are being monitored electronically.

Mistake: inadvertently revealing private employee information. Management possesses a great deal of sensitive information about individual employees. It is your duty to keep that information confidential.

#4: Training and Performance

Mistake: failure to train supervisors. When supervisors are not trained, they're the ones who get you into trouble. They may say rude, racist or sexist things, or be unintentionally discriminatory, and because they are in a supervisory position, the entire company is on the hook.

Mistake: misleading performance evaluations. If you try to discipline an employee for a performance/behavior problem that was never noted on their evaluation, your hands may be tied.

#5: Sloppy Terminations

Mistake: sloppy finish. Regardless of whether a termination is voluntary or involuntary, always allow the employee to leave with dignity and ensure they sign exit paperwork.

#6: Record-Keeping/I-9 Issues

Mistake: failure to document past practices. Courts love to know not only whether the treatment of an employee was against the law or company policy, but whether it was in line with past practices.

Mistake: failure to comply with Form I-9 requirements. Failure to complete the I-9 form properly and failure to keep the form in a separate file are common mistakes employers make.

#7: Breakdowns in Communication

Mistake: failure to keep employees in the loop. Forgetting to notify employees about policy/procedure changes, outcomes of investigations/discipline issues or unsatisfactory behavior or work quality can be a costly slip-up.

#8: Accommodations

Mistake: failure to explore accommodations. "Accommodation" can be defined as "a determination in favor of the employee." Employers should explore accommodation options when an employee: has a disability, is pregnant, is called to active military duty or has a family member called to active military duty, or wants to engage in a religious observance/practice.

#9: Non-Compete Agreements

Mistake: unreasonable scope. Obviously, an agreement prohibiting an employee from working at any position in the same general industry forever and ever isn't going to hold water.

by Steve Bruce

What is an HRIS?

A Human Resources Information System is an integrated system for providing information used by HR management in decision making. It tracks information about all of an organization’s employees, usually in a database or a series of interrelated databases.

Information Stored in an HRIS

What is typically stored in an HRIS:

• Employee name, gender, address, SSN
• Department
• Job title
• Grade
• Salary
• Salary history
• Position history
• Supervisor and perhaps a few levels up
• Training completed
• Special qualifications, licensing, certification
• Ethnicity for the EEOC and understanding makeup of employee populace
• Date of birth
• Disabilities
• EEO and veterans status
• Visa status
• Applicant tracking, interviewing, and selection
• FMLA and leave tracking
• Benefits selected
• Performance data
• Disciplinary action received
• High potential employee
• Succession plan status
• Attendance and PTO use

Why Use an HRIS?

An HRIS is more efficient at many tasks, thereby freeing up HR staff for more strategic functions. For example:

• Employees may update personal data and address changes, etc. without involving HR staff.
• Data are stored in one place, producing time-efficient reporting for compliance, employee development, and strategic objectives.
• Executive and management reporting capabilities are “on the fly” for employment data by department, location, or any number of other variables.
• Managers can access the information quickly and easily for employee development, performance improvement, and wage detail.

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