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Check out some of the value-bombs dropped by Michael Gugliotti with SWBC’s PEO (Professional Employers Organization) Division during his 15 minute interview with Stephanie!
Q1:
What are some of the biggest mistakes you see people make when they're running their own HR that you can share with us?
Michael:
The biggest mistake about the HR is running your own HR.
Few companies are HR companies. If you’re a roofer, you're doing roofing -- you're not doing HR.
For example, if you’re not an auto mechanic you don’t change your own oil. You outsource it and let an expert do it.
A lot of business owners try to think, “Hey, I know this. I can Google it.” or they believe that HR scandals won’t happen to them, or “I've got a friend that's been doing this for 20 years this way.” And that's where they end up running into problems.
Way too often people try and do what others are doing, for example, they will hire someone as a 1099 when they probably aren’t. If the IRS catches that, you might be in the back of the business journal with a tax lien on your 941 and none of us want to end up publicly called out for not paying taxes properly!
The biggest thing is making sure that those processes are done correctly and legally.
Q2:
What is your best tip for retention with your employees?
Michael:
When it comes to Human Resources, perception is reality.
What's the first impression an employee gets when you hire them? Is it this discombobulated mess? “I think I got your I-9 here... I think I've got this over here… Time off? Well, kind of just let me know when you want to take it.”
If that happens, and it does, a lot! Your new employee is starting to think “Man, did I make the right choice by coming to work here?”
Or do they come into a well oiled machine and think “Wow. Yeah, this is a small company. But they've got their stuff together and I need to too and I want to work here!”
Their impression of the company can either retain an employee or help them leave.
(A sidenote from Steph: In a recent study, it was discovered that most employees leave a business within a year and decide if they’re going to stick around in the company long term within the first six weeks. So first impressions matter!)
And you want them to stay.
If you have an employee turnover, that turnover and retraining to get the new employee to the same level that the person just left, it costs about 30% of their total salary. So if it's a $50,000 employee, you're talking several thousand dollars that you're losing just to replace someone.
It's a lot less expensive to keep a client than to go get a new one, and it's the same thing with employees. You make a lot more if you can keep your employees, than having to go out and get new ones and replacing them.
(If you want some tips on hiring