Author: Site Staff

As HR executives well know, improving the job performance and retention ratesof new hires is essential. The following tip on how to implement a multi-facetedprogram is based on an interview with Blue Valley HR administrators SandraChapman and Walter Carter.

    • Use orientation to prepare new hires for clients’ expectations. At BlueValley, the HR team makes sure that new hires understand the level of competenceand performance that the district’s parents have come to expect. That way, they’reless likely to be caught unprepared when under pressure.

    • Use “just-in-time” mentoring. It’s possible to learn through trialand error, but new hires will develop more confidence and learn more if they getthings right the first time around. Make sure that mentors can be available onshort notice, to give advice while a new hire is actually dealing with achallenge.

    • Recognize and reinforce the positive. At Blue Valley, peer-assistanceevaluators point out things that new hires do well, not just the areas that needimprovement. Just as important, the evaluators get novices to explain the “why” behindtactics and strategies that worked, which helps them to apply that thinking tofuture challenges.

    • Give your new hires an opportunity to improve their credentials. Theeasiest way to build a better-educated workforce is to give new workers accessto graduate-level classes right in the workplace. Develop a partnership with alocal college or university so that employees can amass credits toward anadvanced degree.

    • Use your retention and performance-improvement program as a recruitingtool. Blue Valley says that entry-level teaching applicants often ask how much support they’ll receive as they try to learn the job. By touting yourprogram through the Web and news media, you can create a positive image thatwill attract the best and brightest to your organization.

Workforce, September 2002, p. 66 — Subscribe Now!

Dear Budget-Conscious:



Average starting salary for graphic designers, as with most other professions, can be dictated by the economy and the market for jobs. Pay also may vary by regions.

A senior graphic designer– generally someone with five years’ experience or more–can expect to command an annual salary between $48,250 and $67,000.

Graphic design artists with at three years of industry experience should be able to pull down between $37,750 and $52,250 annually. Those with one to three years’ experience can expect a salary range of $29,000 to $41,000.

SOURCE: The Creative Group, Irvine, California, Dec. 18, 2002.

LEARN MORE: Read The Internet is Only Part of Salary Benchmarking.

The information contained in this article is intended to provide useful information on the topic covered, but should not be construed as legal advice or a legal opinion. Also remember that state laws may differ from the federal law.

Ask a Question

Dear Workforce Newsletter

Here’s a copy of the short application employees fill out to take part in Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota’s volunteer program. Following that is a description of the criteria employees must meet to participate.

Below are advertisements designed by students for the FBI.The ad campaign and related efforts resulted in a dramatic increase in the quantity and quality of recruits that the FBI attracted, including more than 330 new bureau applications from minorities for an array of jobs, including investigators, chemists, computer scientists, electronics technicians and financial analysts.

Here are three ways companies are finding candidates who are members of Generation Y.

Go Where They Go
    The Swedish furniture maker Ikea is trying a new approach to finding young talented employees: attracting applicants with handwritten ads on the walls of public bathrooms. Spokesman Jimmy Ostholm said that after only four days they had received 60 applications, which was four to five times more than what Ikea would have gotten from a normal newspaper ad. Ostholm added that the unusual campaign was significantly cheaper than a newspaper ad, too.

    Ikea has obviously decided to go off the board with its new campaign. However absurd this may seem, the thinking behind it is sound. If you’re going to attract a new breed of employee, you have to be willing to go about it using unconventional means and advertising in unconventional locations.

    Ask yourself where the best potential recruits for your organization gather and take your campaign to that locale. Consider the visibility of the local skateboard park, public library or Internet café. Form alliances with key people in key locations and work cooperatively to give your message premium exposure. Since you are competing with video games and the Internet for the attention of this generation, use both to your advantage. Start a recruitment drive on the Web, or take flyers to the local video game store and post them where kids shopping for the latest video game can see them.

Build a Bridge for Your Future CEO
    Each year, Hy-Vee, a large supermarket chain in the Midwest, conducts a career-day seminar at its headquarters in West Des Moines, Iowa. Hy-Vee invites several hundred of its part-time, college-aged employees to this impressive meeting.

    The objective of the career day is to entice young college talent to view working at Hy-Vee as a strategic career move rather than as just a job. This gives Hy-Vee an opportunity to showcase its very impressive corporate headquarters to those who might otherwise see only the store they work in and to introduce Gen Y candidates to the company’s high-ranking personnel. The students hear personal success stories from company execs and high-paid store managers, many of whom are not much older than the students themselves. Hy-Vee’s CEO, Ron Pearson, who always addresses the students, shares how he too began his career with the company as a part-time grocery clerk.

    “This program has been remarkably effective,” said vice president Rose Kleyweg Mitchell. “It gives those students who are searching for a career path the opportunity to see that their dream job may not be that far removed from their present job.”

The First Responder
    Gen Y employees who apply for employment at Monarch Ski & Snowboard Area in Southwestern Colorado don’t get a call from management when they are a prospective hire. The first person they hear from is a peer, and the call comes almost immediately. Monarch has decided that the best people to connect with interested Gen Ys are other Gen Ys who are already committed employees. This immediately puts the applicant at ease. If they have any questions or concerns, the Gen Y staff member can address these issues from the perspective of the applicant, letting them know how the job really works–both the pros and the cons. If the applicant has a question that the employed Gen Ys cannot answer, they are referred to management or human resources.

    The First Responder program serves Monarch well, while simultaneously aligning it with the specific needs and wants of the Gen Ys.

    First, it eliminates lengthy delays often experienced when busy managers must try to work in calls to prospective employees. There’s literally no time wasted between the time of application and the all-important first contact.

    Second, it engages the current Gen Y employees, giving them an opportunity to do something they wouldn’t normally do during the course of a typical day, satisfying their needs for change and for more advanced responsibilities.

    Third, it creates an immediate ally for the new applicant, helping them feel as if they already have a friend who works for the company. Oftentimes, the Gen Y employee will serve as a mentor or a trainer for a new employee he or she helped to recruit.

    Train your top-producing Generation Y employees to be your First Responders to assist you in the initial contact and screening of your applicants from their peer group. Trust them to ask and to answer the type of questions the new job applicants have. Invite your First Responders to sit in on the initial interview. If the applicant is hired, involve your First Responder in the orientation, the training, and the mentoring of the new employee.

From Employing Generation Why? ©2002 Eric Chester, Published Tucker House Books 1410 Vance St., Suite 201, Lakewood, Colorado. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

Regarding an item in the last newsletter about improving communication with non-English-speaking employees, Chuck Miller, Principal, Lakeshore Communications, Wilmette, Illinois, writes:

“While having supervisors become Spanish-speakers is a good idea, the best idea is to have all materials, especially employee handbooks, benefit communications and messages from HR and management translated into Spanish.

Plus, all communications, either in Spanish or English, should be in plain language and simply written for ease of understanding. A translation of college-level English may not be terribly helpful to Spanish-speakers with below average skills in Spanish. I’d also use a phrase checklist, where common phrases used by supervisors or HR are listed next to their Spanish translation so a supervisor or HR person could point to or check off a phrase that a Spanish-speaker may not understand.”

Another reader—who did not identify him/herself, also writes in about non-English-speaking employees:

“I am most concerned about the language used by the author from The Herman Group in the answer to the question regarding Spanish-speaking employees. Referring to Spanish-speaking employees as ‘these people’ and asking if they are ‘legal’ is derogatory and draconian…Perhaps this ‘expert’ is unaware that–given the quality, or lack thereof, of the educational system in the United States–there are huge numbers of native-born citizens who reside in this country legally, who do not have competency and/or fluency in the English language and speak most comfortably in their first language, or the language of their parents.

I question if the author would have used the same language if he was referring to German-speaking or French-speaking employees.”

This letter, from Burbank, California, author and speaker Eden Rosen, was also about the item on non-English-speaking employees:

“You stated that it is foolish not to discipline an employee for bragging about the deal the employee just got. For your information, according to the California Labor Law, it is illegal to discipline employees for talking about their salaries and/or raises. If the company is in California, to discipline that employee is illegal.”

Regarding an item in the last newsletter called “How Do We Prevent Division Presidents from Undercutting HR?” the owner of a Massachusetts technology business writes:

“Yes, it was inappropriate for the employee to brag about her deal. Obviously the president made a huge error in judging the total worth of the employee. Additionally, there was no qualification as to what the questioner defined as a ‘significant increase.’

But, more importantly, when did HR start ruling the company? I think it is more an issue of HR undercutting the president. It is the president that has to work with the employee, not HR.

It is the president that knows the employee’s performance (or at least should) both on and off the record.

It is the president who knows the constraints of his/her budget.

It is the president who has to produce based upon the performance of their employees.

It is the president who knows what it takes to produce the service they are selling and what customers are thinking about their relationship with the company.

HR does not have responsibility or accountability over any of these areas. Therefore the job should be left to the people that know what they are doing and have the responsibility for it.”

This legal document below is shown for illustrative purposes only. Do not use it without consulting your attorney.

Confidentiality Agreement by and between Company A Corporation, with its principal place of business at “X” (hereinafter referred to as “Company A”), and Company B, Inc. with its principal place of business at “Y” (hereinafter referred to as “Partner.”)

1. “Confidential Information” means (including tangible, intangible, and oral and written) (a) any technical, or business information, designs, inventions, manufacturing technique, process, experimental work, program, software or trade secret relating to products, systems, equipment, services, sales, partner lists, research or business of the Parties, their members or subsidiaries; (b) documents marked “Confidential”; and (c) documents, plans, prints, tapes, disks, and other material containing any of the foregoing.

2. The limitations on disclosure or use of Confidential Information shall not apply to, and the Parties shall not be liable for disclosure or use of Confidential Information if any of the following conditions exist: (a) if, prior to the receipt thereof from the other Party, it has been developed independently by the recipient party, or was lawfully known by the recipient Party; (b) if, subsequent to receipt thereof (i) it is made available to the general public, without restriction, or (ii) it has been lawfully obtained by the recipient Party from other sources, provided such source did not receive it due to a breach of an obligation of confidentiality to a third party or the parties; or (c) if it becomes generally known to the public other than pursuant to disclosure by either Company A or Partner.

3. The Parties acknowledge that they may from time to time transfer Confidential Information to each other, and therefore agree to the following with respect to Confidential Information.

1. Not to make copies of any Confidential Information or any part without the permission of the other Party;

2. Not to disclose any Confidential Information or any part to others for any purpose without written consent of the other Party;

3. To limit dissemination of Confidential Information to the Party’s employees who have a need to know and use Confidential Information for the purposes of such performance and who have been advised of and agree to the obligations and restrictions on persons receiving such information as set forth in this Agreement;

4. To treat Confidential Information as strictly confidential and as trade secret information, by protecting such information in the manner and subject to the same protection as the Parties treat and protect their respective proprietary information of like importance but in any event using no less than reasonable care;

5. To disclose Confidential Information to third parties only with the prior written consent of the other Party;

6. To return Confidential Information and any copies thereof to the respective Party upon written request of the other Party;

7. Not to use Confidential Information for any purpose other than to effect the business relationship between the disclosing Party and the receiving Party.

Notwithstanding the foregoing, the recipient may disclose Confidential Information to the extent that such disclosure is required by law or court order, provided, however, that the recipient provides to the disclosing party prior written notice of such disclosure and reasonable assistance in obtaining an order protecting the Confidential Information from public disclosure.

4. The Parties acknowledge and agree that the restrictions contained in this Agreement are necessary for the protection of the business and property of both Parties, and consider them to be reasonable for such purpose. The parties agree that any breach of this Agreement may cause the other Party substantial, irreparable and irrevocable damage and therefore, in the event of such breach, the Party damaged shall be entitled to specific performance and other injunctive relief, in addition to such other remedies as may be afforded by applicable law.

5. This Agreement shall commence as of the date of the last signature to this Agreement (the “Effective Date”) and shall terminate ten (10) days following receipt by a party of the other party’s written notice that such party desires to terminate this Agreement. Notwithstanding termination of this Agreement for any reason, the obligations of the recipient under this Agreement with regard to a particular item of confidential information shall survive for a period of three (3) years following the date of disclosure of such particular item of confidential information.

6. This Agreement is governed by the internal substantive laws of the (applicable state), without respect to its conflict of laws principles. The waiver by one party of a breach of any provision of this Agreement by the other party shall not operate or be construed as a waiver of any subsequent breach of the same or any other provision by the other party. If any provision of this Agreement is held to be invalid, void, or unenforceable, the remaining provisions shall nevertheless continue in full force. Each of the parties hereto acknowledges that it has read this Agreement, understands it, and shall be bound by its terms. This Agreement constitutes the entire understanding of the parties with respect to its subject matter and supersedes any prior agreement or understanding, written or oral, between the parties with respect to its subject matter. This Agreement may be amended only by a writing that specifically refers to this Agreement and is signed by duly authorized representatives of both parties. This Agreement may be signed by the parties in separate counterparts which shall together constitute one and the same agreement. Signatures transmitted via facsimile shall be valid and binding as originals.

AGREED: Company A Corporation	AGREED: Partner
Signed ____________________________	Signed____________________________
Name:__________________	Name:__________________
Title:___________________	Title:___________________
Date:___________________	Date:___________________

FromThe Old Girls’ Network. ©2003. Published by Basic Books, A Member of the Perseus Books Group. Used with permission. All rights reserved.

test feature

The employee opinion survey that follows was created and used by a small New England HMO and was one of a series of annual surveys. Because the survey is presented as written by the company, some of the terms used are specific to that company. It is provided so you can review a relatively simple but complete survey that was actually used by a company.

    Also included: an instruction letter. Although this survey is for a specific company, many of its questions and other wording may be of assistance to you. The intro letter includes a references to “personal information”–that’s because participants were asked their race, gender, job type, and length of service along with the survey.

Sample Introductory Letter

(Company Letterhead)
(Date)

To all employees:

You are about to participate in an employee opinion survey. We conduct such a survey every year to provide an opportunity for you to communicate your opinions about the conditions of employment at our company. All employees will have an opportunity to complete a survey, and some will also be invited to participate in small groups to provide any needed additional information.

We will have the results of the survey within two months. At that time, an all-employee meeting will be held to review those results. That meeting will be followed by department meetings in which you can raise questions and develop suggestions for contributing to our company’s conditions of employment.

Your responses to the survey questions will be held in confidence. You will not be asked to identify yourself. For those who wish to do so, a place is provided at the end of the survey, but that is optional. You are not required or expected to give your name.

The completed surveys will be collected by representatives of our employee opinion survey consulting firm. They will tabulate and report the results. They will be the only ones to actually see the completed surveys.

As with past surveys, you will be asked to provide some personal information. Such information allows the results to be reported by different groupings of employees such as department and length of service.

If you are uncomfortable supplying that type of data, you may leave those questions blank, but it is hoped you will see their value and supply the requested responses.

We view our annual employee opinion surveys as an opportunity to continue to improve the two-way communication process at our company.

Thank you for your participation,

(Signature and Title)

Employee Opinion Survey

On this page, the survey questions begin. Note they are each identified here and on the answer sheet by a number. Be sure to mark your response after the appropriate number on the answer sheet.

Each of the following questions requests you to indicate how important to you various conditions of employment at our company are. Indicate your response using the following scale. Be sure to darken the appropriate lettered box.

Very Important	A
Important	B
Neither Important nor Unimportant	C
Unimportant	D
Very Unimportant	E

1. How important to you is it to work at our company?

2. How important to you are employee policies at the company for which you work?

3. How important to you is the consistent administration of company policies?

4. How important is the work you do to our company’s success?

5. How important to you is the job you do?

6. How important to you is the fairness of the way your company treats all employees?

7. How important to you is the overall training and development provided by your company?

8. How important to you is job security?

9. How important to you is the type of supervision you receive?

10. How important to you is it to be involved in quality customer service?

11. How important to you is the way your company deals with change?

12. How important to you is the overall communication at your company?

13. How important to you is the salary you receive?

14. How important to you is your total cash compensation?

15. How important to you are the benefits you receive?

16. How important to you are the overall operating procedures of the department in which you work?

17. How important to you are the opportunities to advance at our company?

18. How important to you is the performance of executive management?

19. How important to you is the quality of customer service provided by your company?

20. How important to you is the recognition you receive from your company?

How important are each of the benefits provided by our company?

21. Vision Benefits

22. Eyeglasses Discount

23. Employee Life Insurance

24. Dependant Life Insurance

25. Additional Employee Life Insurance

26. Employee Referral Plan

27. Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance

28. Travel Insurance

29. Time Away from Work

30. Employee Dental Insurance

31. Dependant Dental Insurance

32. Flexible Work Hours

33. Employee Health Care Coverage

34. Dependant Health Care Coverage

35. Pension Plan

36. Gainsharing

37. Tuition Reimbursement

38. Short-Term Disability Insurance

39. Long-Term Disability Insurance

40. Employee Assistance Plan

41. Prescription Drug Plan

The next statements are concerning your job and our company. Indicate the extent to which you personally agree or disagree with each one using the following scale for your responses:

Strongly Agree	A
Agree	B
Neither Agree nor Disagree	C
Disagree	D
Strongly Disagree	E

42. I am proud to work for our company.

43. Company employee policies are administered the same in all departments.

44. I like my job–the work I do.

45. I am satisfied with the training provided for my current job.

46. I am satisfied with the amount of training offered for advancement.

47. Our company is concerned with the long-term welfare of its employees.

48. I feel secure that I will be able to work for our company as long as I do a good job.

49. I feel I can voice my opinion without fear of reprisal.

50. My supervisor is technically competent.

51. My supervisor is competent in human relations.

52. My supervisor deals with all employees fairly.

53. My supervisor deals with employee problems fairly.

54. Our company handles change well.

55. The communication I receive from the company is accurate.

56. The communication I receive from the company is timely.

57. Our company maintains salary levels that compare well to other companies in the area.

58. Our new incentive program is part of my total cash compensation.

59. Our company maintains benefits that compare well to other companies in the area.

60. I receive cooperation from other departments.

61. My department is well organized for the work it does.

62. The employees in my department work well as a team.

63. Company employee policies are properly and equally administered in my department.

64. I feel there is adequate opportunity for me to move to a better job within our company.

65. The job posting policy and procedure supports the advancement opportunities at our company.

66. My supervisor is concerned with providing quality service.

67. The employees of other departments are concerned with quality customer service.

68. Other departments are concerned with providing quality service.

69. I feel executive management is committed to quality customer service.

70. The company’s executive management is concerned with providing quality service.

71. My supervisor recognizes my performance.

72. I have an annual set of performance standards.

73. Our company recognizes the accomplishments of employees.

74. I receive regular performance reviews.

On this page and the next one are questions to be answered using the following rating scale:

Excellent	A
Very Good	B
Typical	C
Fair	D
Poor	E

75. How do you rate our company as a place to work compared with other companies you know about?

76. How do you rate our company on treating employee problems fairly?

77. How do you rate the overall relationship between the company and its employees?

78. All things considered, how do you rate our company?

79. How do the company’s employee policies compare with those of other companies you know about?

80. All things considered, how do you rate our company’s employee policies and procedures?

81. All things considered, how do you like your job?

82. All things considered, how do you rate the fairness with which our company treats all employees?

83. All things considered, how do you rate the overall training and development provided?

84. How do you rate our company’s business prospects for the next five years?

85. All things considered, how do you rate the job security provided by our company?

86. How do you rate your supervisor’s credibility?

87. All things considered, how do you rate the supervision you receive?

88. All things considered, how do you rate the way in which our company deals with change as it relates to your job?

89. How do you rate the amount of communication you receive from our company?

90. How do you rate the level of communication of employee policies and procedures?

91. How do you rate the amount of communication you receive regarding quality customer service?

92. How do you rate the amount of communication you receive regarding the company’s plans?

93. How do you rate the amount of communication you receive regarding reorganization?

94. All things considered, how do you rate the overall communication at our company?

95. How do you rate the total cash compensation you receive compared to what you could receive for similar work from another company in the area?

96. How do you rate the relationship between the amount of compensation you receive and your performance?

97. All things considered, how do you rate our company’s overall total cash compensation program?

98. How do you rate the benefits you receive compared to those you could receive from another company in the area?

99. All things considered, how do you rate our company’s overall benefits?

100. In your opinion, how do employees of other departments rate your department?

101. All things considered, how do you rate your department’s overall operating procedures?

102. How do you rate your long-term career potential at our company?

103. All things considered, how do you rate the opportunities to advance at our company?

104. How do you rate the credibility of our executive management?

105. All things considered, how do you rate executive management’s performance?

106. All things considered, how do you rate the quality of our customer service?

107. All things considered, how do you rate the recognition you receive at our company?

On this page are questions to be answered using the following scale:

Much Too Much	A
Too Much	B
Just Right	C
Too Little	D
Much Too Little	E

108. How do you feel about the quantity of work you are asked to perform?

109. How do you feel about the quality of work you are asked to perform?

110. How do you feel about the amount of time your supervisor spends with you?

111. How do you feel about the amount of change occurring within our company?

112. How do you feel about the amount of organizational change as it relates to our company?

113. How do you feel about the amount of organizational change as it relates to quality customer service?

114. How do you feel about the number of approvals required to get a decision made?

115. How much concern do you feel our company’s executive management has for our company members?

116. How much concern do you feel our company’s executive management has for our providers?

117. How much concern do you feel our company’s executive management has for our employees?

118. How much concern do you feel our company’s executive management has for customers?

119. How much has the quality of our company’s customer service changed over the last year?

120. What is your level of understanding of quality customer service?

On this page are questions to be answered using the following scale:

Very Satisfied	A
Satisfied	B
Neither Satisfied nor Dissatisfied	C
Dissatisfied	D
Very Dissatisfied	E

121. All things considered, how satisfied are you with our company?

122. All things considered, how satisfied are you with our company’s employee policies?

123. All things considered, how satisfied are you with your job?

124. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the fairness of the way the company treats all employees?

125. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the training and development provided by our company?

126. All things considered, how satisfied are you with your job security at our company?

127. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the supervision you receive?

128. All things considered, how satisfied are you with your level of involvement in quality customer service?

129. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the way our company deals with change as it relates to your job?

130. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the overall communication at our company?

131. All things considered, how satisfied are you with your salary at our company?

132. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the benefits provided by our company?

133. All things considered, how satisfied are you with your department’s overall operating procedures?

134. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the opportunities to advance at our company?

135. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the company’s quality standards?

136. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the changes that have been made to the quality standards?

137. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the quality of customer service?

138. How satisfied are you with the amount of change occurring within our company?

139. How satisfied are you with the amount of organizational change as it relates to our company?

140. How satisfied are you with the amount of organizational change as it relates to quality customer service?

141. All things considered, how satisfied are you with the recognition you receive at our company?

Rate your satisfaction with each of the benefits provided by our company.

142. Vision Benefits

143. Eyeglasses Discount

144. Employee Life Insurance

145. Dependant Life Insurance

146. Additional Employee Life Insurance

147. Employee Referral Plan

148. Accidental Death and Dismemberment Insurance

149. Travel Insurance

150. Time Away from Work

151. Employee Dental Insurance

152. Dependant Dental Insurance

153. Flexible Work Hours

154. Employee Health Care Coverage

155. Dependant Health Care Coverage

156. Pension Plan

157. Gainsharing

158. Tuition Reimbursement

159. Short-Term Disability Insurance

160. Long-Term Disability Insurance

161. Employee Assistance Plan

162. Prescription Drug Plan

For the following question, use the answers shown and respond by darkening the appropriate letter.

163. From what source do you receive most of your information about our company and your job?

163. A Grapevine

163. B Supervisor

163. C Other employees

163. D Company publications

163. E Meetings

163. F Bulletin boards

163. G Newsletter

163. H Other

164. If you have any additional information or comments that you feel will be of assistance to this survey, please write them in the space below.

Excerpted from How to Design, Implement, and Interpret and Employee Survey by John H. McConnell Copyright © 2003 John H. McConnell Published byAMACOM Books, a division of American Management Association. New York, N.Y. Used with permission. All rights reserved.