EXIT INTERVIEWS

Your employee’s bags are packed, they’re ready to go.  They are standing there outside your door...

Today finds us at our final topic of discussion on the subject of interviews, Exit Interviews.  This may be your last opportunity for a discussion with your employee.  What will you say?  What will you do?  Please feel free to comment about experiences performing or being part of an Exit Interview. 

EXIT INTERVIEWS

There comes a time for most employees when they are moving on.  As discussed in a previous post, this can be for a number of reasons ranging from changing jobs to retirement.  The Exit interview, usually given by Human Resources, is typically kept separate from the Termination Interviews because it serves a different purpose.  This interview allows the employer to give the employee separation information and then to extract information about how the employee views the organization.   

Separation Information

If you have rated an employee as re-hirable, a departing employee may be a great source as a future employee.  Some employees can be like great boomerangs.  You release them to the world, they gather experience and knowledge, and then they come back to you later.  It is best to allow them to leave with a warm fuzzy feeling because you, the HR rep giving the interview, have provided the employee with everything they need to succeed.  You will want to be sure to give the employee COBRA benefits information.  It would also be a good idea to provide them with the company’s referral policy and contact numbers.  If your company has a non-compete clause, you may wish to discuss it here if it has not been discussed previously.  Do not forget to get contact information for the employee if they happen to be moving.  Be sure to thank the employee for their time and their work at the company.

Revealing Information

The employee that is departing has the ability to speak honestly and candidly about the company with less fear of reprisal.  This is your opportunity to find out what employees really think of their company and they may provide a more accurate assessment of managers and policies.  You will want to ask why the employee is leaving the company.  Ask what suggestions they have for improvements in the organization.  Ask them about working conditions and relations between managers/subordinates.  Be sure to look for patterns or issues that you may want to address after the employee leaves.  If there is a problem that is causing one employee to leave, it may be an issue for other employees too.

Finally, ask the employee if there is anything more that they would like to say before they leave.  Sometimes they will have a last thought that will be the most important point of the interview.  Then, after you and their manager are sure the employee has all of their personal effects, the employee should be escorted out of the building.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

TERMINATION INTERVIEWS: INVOLUNTARY TERMINATION

I hope that you are having a great energized morning.  Today I would like to continue our discussion on the topic of Termination Interviews.  Previously, we had talked about the interviews due to Voluntary Terminations.  Now it is time to look at terminations of the involuntary variety.

TERMINATION INTERVIEWS:  INVOLUNTARY TERMINATION

For whatever reason, it has become necessary to let someone go.  These terminations can be the result of a number of factors; poor performance, disciplinary infractions, outsourcing, downsizing, or mergers are a few possible examples.  These interviews should be kept separate from exit interviews, but depending on the nature of the termination, these interviews may be merged together.  The direct supervisor should be the one giving the news to the employee.

Preparation

I hope you did your homework before stepping into the interview.  Check your paperwork, check it twice; you do not want to terminate for the wrong reasons.  Depending on the nature of the termination, you should have disciplinary documents on hand to be able to discuss any issues that led to this decision.  It is suggested that you schedule your interview on either a Friday.  A Friday termination will tend to approach the employee at their lowest energy, so there will tend to be less likelihood of a dramatic, negative encounter.  The day of the week is not a hard-and-fast rule.  If you have to terminate someone immediately, you do not need to wait until Friday or any other day of the week.  Schedule the time when a witness, usually a member of Human Resources, can be available.  The witness is useful in the event the terminated employee makes a legal claim against the employer at a later date. 

Prior to the interview, a manager may be tempted to begin revoking access to computers, gates, and doors.  It is suggested that you reconsider this.  While it may prevent the soon-to-be-terminated from deleting data or stealing equipment, it may also provoke an unintended reaction from the employee. 

Stressful Environment

An Involuntary Termination Interview can be a highly stressful event for all parties.  In many cases, the person being informed of their termination may get upset.  In some cases, they may not have been aware that the termination was even a possibility.  For the manager giving the news, this can also be a stressful event, you are after all taking away someone’s livelihood.  You probably do not want to do the interview in an office.  Offices set up a power-height dynamic that can add to the stress.  Consider placing the interview in a private neutral room.  If color is an option, consider using a room that is painted Lavender, as that color has been found to relax and calm the nerves.  A general rule with these interviews is if the volume and energy of the employee goes up in the interview, the interviewer should try speaking more quietly and more slowly, as this may bring the upset employees energy level back down. Always have easy access to a phone in the event you need to call security.  Be sure to document everything.

Informing The Employee

When giving the news, do not dance around the subject.  Be forthright and tell the employee right at the beginning that they are being terminated.  They may ask for reasons.  Provide the answers to their questions that you are able to give.  They may become defensive.  Provide short, matter-of-fact answers.  Do not apologize, as it will add to the employee’s feelings of unfairness in the termination.  If this is an interview merged with an Exit Interview, this would then be the time to roll into providing information about COBRA and other benefits related issues.  If the witness is an HR representative, they will be able to help a manager with these details.  At the end of the interview, it is suggested to have them escorted to their desk to retrieve their things and then out the door.  Depending on the company’s policy, the manager may box the employee’s things for them, and the employee can schedule to retrieve them from the front desk at a later date.

Just remember that it is another human being that is being terminated.  Be firm, be honest, be compassionate.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

TERMINATION INTERVIEWS - VOLUNTARY TERMINATIONS

Greetings!  I hope that you all had a positive and productive weekend.  Myself, I got my desk cleared for the first time in what seems like forever.  I had a few things that had piled up since we got the new dog.  I finally got that stuff filed away.  So today, I want to start talking about Termination Interviews.  I am breaking this topic into 2 parts.  Part one will be about Termination Interviews for Voluntary Terminations.  Another part will look at Involuntary Terminations.  Please feel free to comment below.  Have you ever been through a Termination Interview?  Feel free to talk about your own experiences.

TERMINATION INTERVIEWS - VOLUNTARY TERMINATIONS

Sometimes an employee chooses to leave.  An employee may be excited about leaving his current position for some other opportunity.  However, before they go, they will typically tell their employer about it first.  This is what is known as Termination Interview (different from an Exit Interview).  

Reasons for Leaving

An employee may choose to leave for a number of reasons.  Some of these may include:

•          Another Job:  Higher pay/Better benefits
•          Another Job:  Better Work Environment/More Compatible
•          Another Job:  Shorter Commute
•          Spouse/Child:  A relative is moving them to another area
•          Spouse/Child:  Need time/space to care for a relative
•          Self-Employment:  A decision a start own business
•          Retirement:  Taking a break from work
•          Education:  Deciding to go to school full-time

There can be many reasons an employee may choose to leave.  Be supportive where you can, but do not make any offers on behalf of the company that you are not authorized to make.

About the Interview

This interview does not usually involve HR directly unless the departing employee is part of the Human Resources department.  This is typically an employee initiated interview that takes place between the worker and their immediate supervisor.  This is where they announce their intentions to move on.  Depending on the company policy, you may try to change their mind by reminding them of all of the positive benefits of working in their current position.  The employee will most likely provide some of the reasons behind their decision to leave.  Be sure to really listen and take good notes.  Do not interrupt.  Do not become defensive.  Do not become offensive.  This is the time to negotiate for time.

Negotiate for Time

After the employee has made the decision to leave, you can ask the employee when they intend to leave.  The most common timeframe will be two weeks’ notice but sometimes you may have a couple of months.  If the notice is short, try to persuade the employee to give you an additional week or two so a replacement can be trained.  The employee may be willing to give you a little breathing room so that clients, cases, and assignments can be moved over.  You will probably want to ask the employee to prepare a resignation letter (if they have not already done so) so you can have an official record of their decision.

When the interview is over, you will be able to begin preparations for transition.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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 Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

CHANGE-IN-STATUS INTERVIEWS

After an employee has been in their role for a while, it is natural that they may eventually wish to migrate.  Sometimes the employee wishes to be promoted to another position; other times the move is lateral to a position at the same level.  Either way, an internal Change-In-Status interview typically precedes the move.

CHANGE-IN-STATUS INTERVIEWS

A Change-In-Status Interview is an important tool and may accompany promotions, demotions, and lateral transfers to new positions.  It very different from an internal job interview, as many of the questions you would ask of an internal candidate will already have been answered.  However, some additional questions will need to be asked of the internal applicant related to their skill level, their interest in taking on additional responsibility, and their general work habits.  You will want to do your background prior to the interview.  Check if the employee has been at their current position in the company long enough to meet the company’s policy for posting.  Review their record to see if there are any recent disciplinary actions.  Review their resume and prepare a list of questions in advance. 

Promotion / Lateral Moves

The manager or HR rep interviewing the employee should take care not to pre-judge the individual before the interview.  Just because you are familiar with their work in their current position does not mean that they will perform at the same level in a different job.  Evaluate and discuss with the employee what skills they have.  While you may think that you already know the employee, their strengths and weaknesses, you may be surprised about the answers you receive.  Check to see if they are familiar with what the new job entails and what their new responsibilities will be.  Try to determine whether there is genuine interest in this new position or whether the employee may only be interested in escaping their existing position.  You want to ensure that the new position will be a good fit.

Demotions

Sometimes a person is promoted to a level that is beyond their capability and skill level.  This employee may be overwhelmed by their job, or they may not be willing to shoulder the burden of responsibility that their position carries.  When management recognizes this, it may be time to sit down with the individual to discuss a demotion.  Also note, that if the employee suggests it first, you should not brush them off.  You should consider their suggestion, because ignoring it could lead to a damaged professional relationship with the employee and a further decline in performance.  The demotion should be handled a diplomatically as possible to allow for a smooth transition for the employee to the lower job category.

At a glance, Change-In-Status Interviews may seem perfunctory.  However, they are important tools to use to ensure employees are placed at the right level. 

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS: GIVING THE INTERVIEW

Welcome back for the third part of the Performance Evaluation Interview topic.  We have already looked at the Pre-Evaluation Information and the Performance Evaluation (PE) Document itself.  Next we will talk about giving the interview itself.  Please feel free to comment about your own workplace experiences regarding Performance Evaluations that you may have seen at your own workplace down below.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS: 

GIVING THE INTERVIEW

Following every review period, you will be required to provide feedback to an employee, discuss their performance, and have them sign the PE document.  This can sometimes be challenging, but hopefully it will be a smooth process provided you have done your homework.  Try to give at least a week’s notice when scheduling the interview so that the employee can adjust their schedule.  Be sure to perform the interview in an appropriately private location.

Starting the Interview

If you have an accurate PE document in hand and you have had your cup of coffee, you ought to be ready to go.  It is suggested that you start the interview with some rapport building.  Even though you are probably already familiar with the employee, it is likely that they are a bit nervous given the weight that is often given to the Performance Evaluations.  A good PE score might mean a better life for the employee’s family and a bad one could devastate them.  Open with an Icebreaker to help ease them into the interview.  A good question to open would be, “How is your day going?” or “How about them Phillies last night?”  Remember to smile a little, as a smile will convey comfort to the employee.  Do not smile too much or it might seem creepy.  

Provide the introduction to the interview.  Explain to the employee the purpose of the Performance Evaluations.  Be sure to tell them about the rating system.  Some candidates may become defensive if they find out they have a three instead of a five.  Discussing the fact that most people get threes, and threes are okay, can help alleviate that defensiveness. 

Performance Measures

It is time to walk the employee through the PE document.  It may be useful to give the employee their total composite score up front.  It is not a secret that needs to be revealed at the end.  Providing that total score in the beginning will release some of the apprehensive energy that may have built up in your employee.  In my opinion, the best way to go through the document is to start at the top and work your way down.  Discuss each Performance Measure and provide some background on the criteria that their performance was based on.  Provide the employee with your reasoning for the grade that you gave them.  Hopefully the employee had provided some input previously which will make easing their concerns easier now.  Take the time to listen to any questions or comments you employee asks.  Listen actively, taking the time to paraphrase the employee’s answers back to them to ensure clarity.  Compare how the employee did during this evaluated period versus what the employee’s PE score was in previous periods.

Closing the Interview

Let the employee know that there is room to grow.  Ask the employee about where they want to be in six months.  Remember that it is important to encourage the employee to talk.  Open ended questions and positive silence can help them provide answers.  Avoid becoming too critical or talking down to the employee during this phase of the interview.  Your goal is to provide the employee with a jumping off point for the next several months.  Give them some praise, let them know that the company is committed to their success, and try to end the interview on a positive note.  Ask the employee to sign the PE document and let them know that you will provide them with a signed copy in a couple of days.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS: THE EVALUATION DOCUMENT

We are continuing to look at Performance Evaluation Interviews.  Due to the amount of information involved, I am breaking this topic into three parts:  Pre-Evaluation Information, The Evaluation Document and Providing the Interview Today we are going to look at the Performance Evaluation Document itself.  Seeing as how the Interview in many cases will be directly related to the document itself, it is a good idea to know a little bit more about one.  Please feel free to comment about experiences with Performance Evaluations that you have seen at your own workplace down below.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS:  THE EVALUATION DOCUMENT

So it has been 6 months and now it is time to review your employee.  What do you do?  How do you document it?  Well, if you did your homework as I referenced in my last post, you would already have several months of accomplishments and data for the employee.  Now you need to do something with it.  What you need is a form of documentation, usually known as a Performance Evaluation (PE).  Now I have an editable sample PE that you can download and review at the bottom of this post.  Most organizations will have one of these customized to fit the needs of their own industry.  For example, Sales Performance figures may be featured on the PE of a salesman, but might be inappropriate for a College Professor.

RATINGS

A PE document will give an employer the ability to rate an individual on their performance, comparing an individual’s performance against expectations, company guidelines, and peers.    Some organizations use a 1-5 graded scale, with 1 being a poor performance and 5 being the best.  The typical rating for most individuals will be a 3.  The numerical rating can be useful for tracking and ordering personnel performance for the purposes of bonuses, raises, and promotions.  However, you will want to be careful about not “gaming the system”.  Managers should not artificially give low scores on PEs to save money on the budget.  This will eventually be noticed by your employees, leading to lowered morale and increased turnover.

SECTIONS

PEs are typically broken down into a few common sections with a few additional sections added based on your unique industry or organization.  Some of the common sections include:

     > Job Knowledge/Experience - These kinds of sections will evaluate an individual employee based on their technical knowledge of policies and procedures.

     > Vision/Leadership/Management - These kinds of sections will evaluate the qualities of an individual in leading a team or project in accordance with an organization’s goals.

     > Communications/Relationship-building/Teamwork - These kinds of sections look at an individual’s ability to promote ideas, communicate information, and work with others.

     > Productivity/Accuracy/Quality - This kinds of sections may measure the quantity of work done and assess how well that work was done.

LONG TERM RECORD

Your PEs should be retained on file for at least four years after termination.  It is suggested that you ensure storage of these records is in a secure location with only managers with a “need to know” having access.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

Link to Sample PE:  Sample Performance Evaluation

(right click, Save link as...)

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS: PRE-EVALUATION INFORMATION

The Performance Evaluation is the interview that we will touch on next.  This is an interview that will provide rated feedback to an employee on their performance.  Because of the amount of material involved in these interviews, I am going to break this topic into three parts:  Pre-Evaluation Information, The Evaluation Document and Providing the Interview   I have been a participant in this type of interview in various jobs over the many years.  I am sure you have too.  Please feel free to comment about experiences you have seen at your own workplace down below.

PERFORMANCE EVALUATION INTERVIEWS:  

PRE-EVALUATION INFORMATION

These interviews are an important tool for anyone in management or Human Resources.  An employee without feedback will find growth difficult.  It would be challenging for an employee to ascertain what they are doing right when compared to where they could use improvement without the help of someone that can see their work in the context of the organization.  These evaluations are a manager’s opportunity to provide an employee with their expectations and to advise them where their performance is in relation to said expectations.  Lastly, it is a chance to discuss the goals and career aspirations of your employee, to get an idea of how they want to use their talents.

Six to Twelve Months Before the Evaluation

A proper Performance Evaluation and the corresponding interview are not built in a day or a week.  It is built over a period of months as you observe and document the accomplishments of an employee, nurture your professional relationship with them, and provide occasional advice to your employee at the time it is needed.  You should not expect to sit down to write an accurate evaluation or to have and effective conversation with your employee if you have not put in the necessary time.  It is suggested that you pick a time out, at least bimonthly, to jot down a list of specific accomplishments or major tasks that an employee has completed over that most recent period.  This will be handy to save and come back to when you are ready to make the evaluation

Tracking and Monitoring

During the period between evaluations, you will want to be sure to have systems in place to track and monitor the actions of your employees.  This can be as simple as a notepad with the numbers of hours worked on a specific project each day or as complex as a database that can be mined for trends.  Having numerical trends that you can follow with help you figure out what the employee has been able to do and how it compares against their expectations.  You may also have subjective data that you can look at such as customer survey responses, which can help you in formulating your opinions for an evaluation.

There is more to see.  In the next segment, we will look at the Evaluation Document.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

DISCIPLINARY INTERVIEWS

The Disciplinary Interview is a employers attempt to combat policy infractions.  These are different from the Counseling Interviews we discussed previously, because these are not directly performance related.  You would use a Disciplinary Interview for things like excessive lateness, unannounced absences, theft, harassment, fraud, or threats of violence.  Please feel free to comment about experiences you have seen at your own workplace down below.

DISCIPLINARY INTERVIEWS

You will want to follow a series of steps in the Disciplinary Interview process to ensure the company is safe from liability should the infracting employee be released.  The process may also be truncated depending on the severity of the issue.  There are some employers have a Zero-Tolerance policy towards fist fighting or bomb threats.  They may use a “One-Strike-And-You’re-Out” step, which will eliminate many of the earlier steps in the interview process getting you immediately to termination.  For lesser infractions, such as repeatedly being 15 minutes late to work, a more drawn-out process is used to give the employee an opportunity to correct the situation.  The typical steps that will be followed are:

1)  Verbal Warning

2)  First Written Warning

3)  Second Written Warning

4)  Suspension

5)  Termination

Giving the Interview

The interview a disciplinary interview can be a challenging task.  The employee may be agitated or uncomfortable with the situation surrounding the interview.  The manager or HR associate giving the interview should stick to the facts; do not get emotional.  Any emotion you provide in the interview may be reflected and amplified by the interviewee.  Ask questions to get the employee’s side of the story.  It may be possible that they were unaware of the rule or regulation that they were breaking.  It may be that a supervisor or other official had told them to break the rule.  These are the facts that you want to come out.  A general rule with these interviews is if the volume and energy of the employee goes up in the interview, the interviewer should try speaking more quietly and more slowly, as this may bring the upset employees energy level back down. Always have easy access to a phone in the event you need to call security.  Be sure to document all of your questions and the employee's answers.  

Written Warnings

The written warning will lay out exactly what the employee is doing wrong.  If the problem has occurred as part of a trend, it should also specifically state each time the infraction was observed.  For example, if the policy infraction was that an employee failed to wear a safety harness every time they went up in a Cherry Picker crane to perform an inspection, you should include every date that this was observed to occur.  The warning should also include reference to any failure to make a correction after the verbal warning.  The written warning should state what the employee needs to do if they wish to keep their job (i.e. Wear a Safety Harness).  There should be an area where an employee can add their own comments.  Then the manager and employee will have a place to sign.  If there is a third party witness, often someone from Human Resources, they will have a space to sign as well.  In the event the employee refuses to sign, inform them that their signature is not stating they agree with the warning, it is that they are acknowledging the warning has been given.  If they still refuse, be sure to note that on the record. 

Do Not Build A File

The last note I want to make is that you should never “Build A File” after the fact.  You should ensure that the documentation of infractions happens as they occur.  Courts do not look favorably on employers who add new back-dated warnings into an employee’s file as an excuse to fire someone.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

GRIEVANCE INTERVIEWS

So far we have gone over several types of interviews:  Screening, Campus, Employment, Reference-Check, Coaching, and Counseling Interviews.  These interviews have all been focused on the employee retention and evaluation.  This next interview represents a formalized style of negative feedback for the company or organization provided by an employee. As always, please tell us about your own experiences.  Feel free to leave a comment or question at the end of this post.

GRIEVANCE INTERVIEWS

Grievance Interviews are a formal opportunity for individual employees to provide management with their conflicts about a company policy, procedure, practice, or person.  These interviews are often given by Human Resources professionals who are able to act as a more objective third party separate from the people and situation that may be creating the grievance.  (There may also be collective disputes at your firm that deal with a union and their grievances - this post will not discuss those.  Maybe I will look at it in a future post, but not at this time).

Initiation

The process may begin when an employee requests a grievance.  Depending on your organizational structure, this may simply be initiated by word of mouth, but most likely will require the issue to be submitted in writing directly by the employee to be able to proceed.  The employee can provide that written grievance to an immediate or higher supervisor, an HR rep, or an Equal Employment Opportunity officer at the company. 

Perform An Initial Investigation

Prior to starting a grievance interview, you as the HR rep will want to have some background on the facts beforehand.  Read through the grievance to determine what the complaint is about.  Break down the grievance into digestible bullet points that can be reviewed on an item by item basis.  If the complaint is in regards to a specific policy, review that written policy before the interview.  Consider creating a timeline for yourself to be able to follow what happened and when, which you can update again after the interview.  If an action or activity of a person caused the grievance to be filed, be sure to review your company policies governing those actions before entering the interview.  Although 70% of the interview will be guided based on the dialogue the interviewer will have with the interviewee, it will be helpful to have a few questions prepared to be able to probe further. 

The Interview

Meet with the person that feels that submitted the grievance.  The interviewer should open the meeting by repeating the grievance back to the employee and then confirming the details of the complaint.  Ask questions to discover the facts surrounding the situation.  Ask the person to provide additional details.  Allow for the person to interject their emotions into the interview, as that may be a large part of what is driving the dispute.  The HR rep performing the interview will want to be sure to take notes and document everything.  Ask the “Five W’s” to drill down on details:  Who, What, When, Where, and Why.  Be sure to allow for follow-up questions.  Also be sure to allow for pauses and dead air during the interview, as this will give the interviewee time to collect their thoughts.

Post-Interview

If another person (such as a manager) is involved in the complaint, you will want to have an interview with them to get a bigger view of the incident(s).  You may want to consider having an interview with other members of the same team to see if there is any discernible pattern - have they experienced the same feelings towards this policy, procedure, practice, or person.  Now taking the full list of responses from your interviews, you will be able to compare and contrast the answers you received.  Look at how different interpretations of the same event may have occurred.  In some cases, disciplinary action may be necessary against one or multiple parties; be sure to consider your company’s policies, their potential liabilities, and the full extent of the law.  It is likely that the HR rep’s decision about the next steps to take will be governed by a company policy and may require bringing in the EEO officer or another supervisor.  Take action in accordance with the facts that have been uncovered.

Grievance interviews and procedures can be challenging and determining next steps can sometimes be difficult.  If there is ever a question, I would suggest consulting your HR community online or your local SHRM for ideas. 

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

COUNSELING INTERVIEWS

Do you have an employee that is not pulling their load?  Do you have a worker that is doing their job, but they keep messing up.  Have you tried positive encouragement and a Coaching Interview, but that has not worked?  It may be time for another type of interview; a Counseling Interview. 

COUNSELING INTERVIEWS

Some of you may already be familiar with Counseling Interviews and some of you may not; or you may be familiar with it under a different name.  Counseling Interviews are management driven interviews to address specific performance concerns at work.

Formalized Sessions

These are structured sessions to seek improvement from an employee, typically complete with a set of instructions to be given to the worker.  Most (although not all) Counseling Interviews are prepared in advance by a manager.  The manager has a prepared set of documents outlining the unfulfilled expectations and thoughts on these expectations.  The manager should also have a prepared set of questions to specifically draw out the cause of the problem so that what may be causing the problem in the first place.  For example: It may be that a worker that has sloppy results just had a new child and is sleepy as a result.  That is irrelevant to your part of the solution, but uncovering that may help the employee self-correct so that they get enough sleep and can perform their job properly.  Now, have the employee sign a document, sometimes known as a PIP or Performance Improvement Plan.  Their signature does not mean that they agree to what is in the PIP, but merely that they understand what steps are expected to be followed to bring their performance up to meet expectations.  The employee should read the entire document before the manager tells them to sign.  As this meeting could be presented as evidence in a court of law should an employee be terminated in the future, be sure to document this interview.  These interviews are sometimes attended by a 3rd party, such as a Human Resources representative, as a witness.

A More Informal Approach

A form of Counseling that is sometimes seen as more effective is the Indirect Approach Counseling Interview.  This tends to be a little less formal, as you may be preparing the PIP during the interview itself or immediately afterwards.  When the interview starts, you will bring Employees up to date on why they have been called into the meeting.  Inform them of their poor performance and how management feels the work should be done to meet expectations.  Ask questions about what may be causing the performance and any obstacles at work that might be in the way.  At this point, the manager will want to take in feedback from the employee.  You can try to determine a plan of action that will improve performance that you are both willing to agree to.  You will type that up and then the employee can sign it.  By allowing the employee to make some contributions to the PIP and by them seeing that it is not typed up until after they have provided their feedback, can lead to increased buy-in to the plan by the employee.  The employee will feel that the PIP is actually an improvement tool and that management is looking out for them.  When a PIP has already been written in advance of a Counseling interview, the employee may feel that their feedback was not appreciated resulting in decreased buy-in.

A quick note about combination - Counseling Interviews should be kept separate from Coaching Interviews.  Mixing the two can lead to confusion by the employee as to what to say and how to act during the interview.  It may reduce the effectiveness of both kinds of interviews.

Closing

A short positive closing to a Counseling Interview can be helpful to neutralize some of the negative emotions that may have been generated as a result of the meeting.  It is suggested that the manager offer some short specific praise about something the employee is doing right.  Remind the employee that they are valued.  You can let the employee know that if they can bring up the rest of their performance, you are certain that you can continue to work together in a positive manner. 

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:  The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

COACHING INTERVIEWS

We are going to discuss another kind of interview today, Coaching Interviews.  Have you ever had a great manager; one that was more of a coach or mentor?  Someone that always challenged you to do better?  As always, please use the “like” or comment about your own experiences at the bottom.

Coaching Interviews

Coaching Interviews are sometimes performed by someone in the Human Resources function, but they typically fall to the manager of a group to perform them.  These interviews are a unique animal in the types of interviews.  They are the only interview that is done for an employee with the express purpose of improvement without discipline.  These interviews are often provided to newer employees, but really should be expanded to all employees of any age or experience level.  The goal of these interviews is to find out what an employee needs and how to help them get it.  Sometimes the employee needs career growth; a manager will be able to help guide them and give them ideas about their next steps.  Other times, you will find out what an employee is missing a tool or skill that would help them complete their current job better.  This can help you as a manager or HR rep find new ways of assisting them.

Preparation

As always, it is a great idea come prepared.  Prepare a list of questions ahead of time.  Every employee is different, so it is natural that the questions will differ from person to person.  However, even with this in mind, it would be best to have a standard set of developmental questions that you ask of all of your employees to ensure that you are not being bias for or against any individual employee.  When performing a Coaching Interview, feel free to take notes and document your meetings with your employees.  One suggestion is that you keep your note-taking brief, as you do not want to “spook” your employee into thinking this positive time for improvement is secretly an opportunity for you to document their action for later discipline.  When booking a room for these Coaching Interviews, since you never know what kind of personal information might come out, it might be best to use a private room instead of a public space.

Developmental

Remember your goal is to develop your resources.  Part of this is making sure the employee knows what is expected of them.  While Coaching Interviews are not intended to be disciplinary in nature and should never be mixed with Counseling Interviews or Performance Evaluation Interviews (more on that in a future post), it is important to provide the employee with the benchmarks that they will be judged against.  In providing them with the benchmarks for satisfactory performance, it may be most useful to give them goals with specific numbers.  Why use a generic benchmark like, “Sales reps need to bring in money” when a specific benchmark will motivate them better; “Sales reps need to produce $30,000 in revenue per month”. 

These interviews are an opportunity for managers to find out what makes an employee tick.  You can find out what best motivates them.  Then managers can give gentle suggestions as to which areas could use improvement.  Positive motivation without the threat of negative disciplinary action is what you want to aim for.  Challenge and excite your employees.  You want to foster a good working relationship based in mutual respect looking towards professional growth, not create a culture of fear. 

Give Thanks

Another aspect of the Coaching Interview that is frequently overlooked is the opportunity to give thanks and compliment the employee for the good things that they are doing.  It always seems to be easier to criticize than to praise, but managers would do their workforce a great service by motivating them with it.  When you are providing compliments or praise, be sure to get specific.  A generic “good job” attaboy will not let the employee distinguish between what they have done right and what might need improvement.  Try to be specific with your praise, telling the employee exactly the item that you are referring to.  An example might be, “Tom, you are really doing a great job picking up the phone and reaching out to more customers this month.  You have called and spoken to 139 clients, which is far above the average of 72.”  In this example, a generic, “Good job, Tom” could have left Tom in the dark as to what he had done right.  Thank the employee for what they do too.  Let them know that you value them as an employee and you appreciate their work.

And remember all of you Human Resources professionals:  Be Human... Be a Resource...  Be a Resource for Humans.

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Disclaimer:

The views expressed in this post are by the author Trevor Stasik, and do not necessarily reflect the views of any employer or any other organization. Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek your own legal counsel and/or see a tax accountant before making business or personal decisions.  The author of this post makes no representations as to the accuracy or completeness of any information on this site or found by following any link on this site. The owner will not be liable for any errors or omissions in this information nor for the availability of this information. The owner will not be liable for any losses, injuries, or damages from the display or use of this information.

REFERENCE CHECK INTERVIEWS

REFERENCE CHECK INTERVIEWS

Let’s take a moment to discuss Reference Check Interviews.  These interviews tend to be brief in stature, lasting only 5 to 15 minutes long.  The interviews are typically conducted by a recruiter, HR rep, or hiring manager over the phone with declared references or former employers of potential candidates.  The goal of these interviews is to confirm information from the resume and employment interview.  Additional information about a candidate may also be revealed in these discussions.

Some Basic Guidelines

·         Non-Discrimination:  Be sure to be consistent in your reference checks.  Checking some individuals and not others may be viewed as discriminatory.

·         Document, document, document:  To ensure that you are covered from potential legal action, be sure to document any details of a negative recommendation.

·         Permission:  Be sure to have an applicant’s permission before contacting former employers.

·         Two Reference Minimum:  To rule out bias, be sure to check with at least two former employers.  This can also be helpful in spotting patterns.

·         Personal References:  You should check them, but you can almost guarantee that a personal reference will be a positive one.

·         Scripting:  Similar to the other interviews discussed thus far, having a script handy will keep your interview more direct and likely to result in useful information about a candidate.

As I am sure some of you have experienced these kinds of interviews, please feel free to share with the rest of us in the Comments.  And remember all of you Human Resources professionals: Be Human... Be a Resource... Be a Resource for Humans.

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EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS: LEGAL ISSUES

We are going to discuss a few legal concerns when it comes to employment interviews, because it can be easy to say the wrong thing if you are not careful.  Because there is so much information for this topic, I have broken this Interview topic into a few parts.  We already covered the Basic Interview Stages and Preparation.  Legal Issues will be the third part discussing this.  As always, please use the “like” or comment about your own experiences at the bottom.

Document, document, document...

That is an important phrase in an interview setting.  It seems very important in the context of an interview to document everything your candidate says, because that will clearly help you out when making a hiring decision.  However, what if your interviewee expresses a religious preference or a family situation?  Should you write that down?  The answer is NO.  If a candidate volunteers personal and irrelevant personal information, do not write it down, as it could be used against the company in litigation.  If your company goes to court against a candidate, your notes could be used as evidence.  It will fall to the Employer to prove that there was nothing that was discriminatory in the interview.  Do not ask any follow-up questions with regards to that information.  Also, be sure to tell the applicant that the personal information they provided is not job-related and you only want to discuss information relevant to the job interview.

Legal Way to Discriminate

You can discriminate legally.  However, you may only discriminate if it is related to a “Bona Fide Occupational Qualification” (BFOQ).  An example of this is the Apollo astronauts - the space capsules were small and therefore only shorter people were considered for flight.  Was this discriminatory?  Yes.  Was it legal due to the type of job?  Yes.  Per the Cornell University Law website:

Title VII permits you to discriminate on the basis of "religion, sex, or national origin in those instances where religion, sex, or national origin is a bona fide occupational qualification reasonably necessary to the normal operation of the particular business or enterprise." This narrow exception has also been extended to discrimination based on age through the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). This exception does not apply to discrimination based on race.

If the position you will be bringing candidates in for has a BFOQ, you will want to ensure that this limiting qualification is laid out in the Job Description and also the job posting.  The most common BFOQ defense relates to safety.  Be very careful with BFOQs as they can open you up for litigation.  If you are ever in question, I would suggest consulting with a lawyer for an expert opinion.

Asking Legal Questions

Continuing with the idea that in a court, you will be required to prove that the employer was not discriminating in the interview, the recruiter or hiring manager will need to be sure that the questions that they ask are legal.  Be sure that your questions are relevant and speaks directly to the job description.  If a candidate may be groomed for other positions later in their career, some interviewers may be tempted to ask questions related to that future job position.  This would be a mistake as those questions may not be relevant to the position that the candidate is immediately interviewing for. 

When developing questions and when asking them, be sure to keep in mind the effect your questions will have on the composition of your workforce.  There is a term known as “Disparate Impact” or “Disparate Effect” where a policy or set of questions may appear neutral, but disproportionally affects one legally protected group more than another.  You want to ensure that you are not unintentionally discriminating against any group through your questions.  Imagine that if you were called to court, how would your questions sound to a group of jurors.

Key Legislation You May Want to Consider Reviewing:

·         Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 - http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/titlevii.cfm

·         Equal Pay Act of 1963 - http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/epa.cfm

·         Age Discrimination in Employment Act of 1967 - http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/adea.cfm

·         Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 - http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/ada.cfm

·         Civil Rights Act of 1991 - http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/statutes/cra-1991.cfm

Other Relevant Links:

Cornell University Law, Bona Fide Occupational Qualification:  http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/bona_fide_occupational_qualification_bfoq

Cornell University Law, Disparate Impact

http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/disparate_impact

Disclaimer

Please note, this information is based on my understanding and is only to be used for informational and educational purposes.  Do not take what I am writing as advice.  Seek legal counsel before making business or personal decisions. 

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EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS: PREPARATION

Before I begin, I want to wish everyone a Happy Thanksgiving!  Now, to continue with our discussion of Employment Interviews, our next topic will be interview preparation.  Because there is so much information for this topic, I have broken this Interview topic into a few parts.  We already covered the Basic Interview Stages.  Later we will touch on Legal Issues.  As always, please feel free to “like” or comment about your own experiences at the bottom.

EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS:  PREPARATION

So you found the perfect resume, the screening interview went well, and you have the perfect candidate.  Interview time! ...  Whoa, hold your horses for a second.  Stop and think.  Are you prepared for your interview?  Is it even scheduled?  You had better back up a moment and make sure that you have everything in order first.

TIME SCHEDULING

It is important to allocate enough time for your interviews.  You do not want to rush; short-changing the candidate and your organization.  When thinking about the scheduling process, consider all aspects surrounding the meeting.  Consider that people are more sluggish on the days after holidays.  I am not saying that you should not schedule an interview on this date, but keep this in mind when determining how many interviews to schedule, as they may take a little longer and the candidates may seem less focused.  You will want to allow adequate time between interviews to organize paperwork, reflect on notes, and set-up additional appointments.  For non-exempt employees, expect the total face-to-face interview to take up to 45 minutes per candidate.  For managers and exempt employees, expect it to take up to an hour and a half.

REVIEW PAPERWORK

Resumes (and sometimes portfolios and cover letters) can provide a lot of information for an interviewer.  It is suggested that you look over the resume a few minutes before meeting with the candidate.  This will act as a reminder of what specific skills and experience they may be discussing in the interview.  As I am sure you are aware, the paperwork surrounding a candidate’s interview is usually more than just their resume.  You may want to have applications, background checks, job description print-outs, a copy of the company policies and salary surveys easily accessible if you need it.  It might be a good idea to fit the information in a binder and bring it with you to the interview.

INTERVIEW QUESTIONS

You will need to prepare your questions in advance.  During the interview, you should expect to use about 70% open-ended questions and about 30% closed-ended questions.  Keeping that in mind, prepare your list of questions around the job description.  You will want to elicit responses that reveal if a candidate has the necessary skill set for the position.

Here are a few good examples of open ended questions:

> Can you tell me about a time when you had to manage a group of people?

> Could you walk me through a typical day at your current employer?

> If a coworker asked you to assist them with a project, even though you might have to stay late or over the weekend, how would you respond?

> Can you give me an example of something you were tossed into where you had to pick up something quickly, without training if necessary?

> Please tell me about a time when you had to produce something on a deadline; and how you adjusted your schedule to deal with competing priorities

> Can you give me examples of your past experiences dealing with a difficult coworker and how you handled the situation?

Remember when preparing your questions, be sure to remember to keep the questions legal.  We will discuss the legality issues on my next post on interviews.

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EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS: BASIC INTERVIEW STAGES

It is time now to discuss Employment Interviews.  These are the interviews that are most common; we have almost all experienced them multiple times over our lives.  Because there is so much information for this topic, I will be breaking this Interview topic into a few parts.  This Part will cover Basic Interview Stages.  Later parts will include Employment Interview Preparation and Legal Issues.  As always, please feel free to comment about your own experiences at the bottom.

EMPLOYMENT INTERVIEWS:  BASIC INTERVIEW STAGES

Your typical job interview is going to pass through a number of stages.  To be able to take a candidate through these stages successfully and to get the necessary information you will need to be able to make an employment decision can be tricky.  You want to make sure the candidate feels comfortable enough opening up to you, but you do not want them to feel so comfortable that they take over the interview.  Following this basic interview structure will help you to maintain control.

These are the 5 stages of an interview:

·         Rapport-Building

·         Introduction

·         Core

·         Confirmation

·         Closing

RAPPORT-BUILDING

This is a brief, but very important part of the interview.  During this part of the interview, a candidate will be brought into the interviewing office or area.  You want to ask a few non-work related questions to help put the candidate at ease.  Questions you would ask at this icebreaking phase of the interview are, “How was your ride in?” “What was the traffic like?” “Weather sure is nice today.”  These seemingly innocuous questions could make or break the effectiveness of the entire rest of the interview.  Your goal is to take some of the tension off the candidate so they will feel more comfortable answering the rest of your questions.  If you forget to go through the Rapport-Building stage, your candidates may seem more edgy and nervous throughout the interview.

INTRODUCTION

This is second stage in an interview.  During this stage, the interviewer will tell the candidate a little about themselves and the company.  You will want to keep this brief, as a good candidate will have done their research and should already know about the company.  You want to provide the interviewee with a bit of a softball question first continue helping them get comfortable and providing you with a springboard to enter the Core stage of the interview.  An example of a good question would be, “Tell me about what got you interested in this field” or “How did you find out about our company?”  The idea is to keep these questions low stress.

CORE

The vast bulk of your interview will take place during this stage.  More stressful questions can be implemented here to find necessary information.  About 70% of your questions should be open ended.  These should be questions that were prepared in advance.  The point of these questions is to determine job suitability.  You want to determine if the candidate has certain skills and qualities, check prior work experience, see whether their style of working is compatible with your organizations, and determine if there are any reasons they should not be hired. 

While asking questions, remember to consider whether you are asking safe questions.  It falls on the Employer to prove that there was nothing asked that could be perceived as discriminatory.  Be mindful that if an interviewee volunteers irrelevant personal information, do not write it down, as it could be used against the company in litigation.

A good place to end the Core Stage is to ask the candidate if they have any questions.  Be prepared to provide additional information about the company and the position during this part of the interview.  A good candidate will want to confirm that the company is a good match for them as well.  Be sure to answer as clearly as possible.  If a candidate has questions about salary, vacation, benefits, education reimbursement, job posting, flex-time, be sure to give the candidate the information that may help with the decision-making process.  Be sure not to lead the candidate on... you do not want to give the impression that a candidate will be offered a position if a final decision has not been made.

CONFIRMATION

Towards the end of the interview, you will want to check facts and verify statements.    The goal of this stage in the interview is to clarify any questions you have about the candidate and to ensure that the candidate has not contradicted themselves.  You should ask a few closed-ended questions to confirm some facts on the resume match what the candidate is telling you.

CLOSING

This is your last opportunity to ask the candidate a question.  If there is something important that was skipped or missed, you should circle back and revisit those areas.  Otherwise, you should provide the candidate with the next steps in the interview process.  You can let the interviewee know it there will be any additional interviews or documentation that will be needed.  While being non-committal, let the candidate know when a decision might be made about the position.  

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