Yesterday’s CED detailed a highly significant report by the National Academy of Public Administration (NAPA) on the importance of supervisors to business.
In a word, they’re critical.
As frontline managers, where the work is actually done, they can either drive productivity or drag it down, the report said. Supervisors have the same power when it comes to retention, no small matter these days. And when grievances or complaints are filed, you can often trace them to supervisory behavior.
What’s the answer? Training and development, says NAPA, even to the same level as you’d train executives. Because, to the folks on the bottom rungs of your organization, supervisors are executives.
But there are some things even the most experienced supervisors should refuse to touch with a 10-foot pole before talking with you in the HR department. Harassment complaints. Disability accommodation requests. Lawsuit threats.
The key question boils down to this: Do your supervisors know what to handle, and what to hand off to HR?
You won’t want to miss our informative, California-specific webinar next week. And bring your supervisors along, too.
Monday, May 20, 2013
10:30 a.m. to Noon Pacific
The supervisors on your staff should have a decent working knowledge of human resources best practices—what they can do, what they can’t do, what they should and shouldn’t say. But there’s a fine line between knowing enough, and knowing just enough to be dangerous.
When supervisors “play HR,” they can leave companies vulnerable to embarrassing and costly legal action. This is particularly true when garden-variety issues escalate into more complex territory—especially in California, where the rules are particularly complicated and employee-friendly.
No matter how knowledgeable your supervisors may be, there’s always a point at which HR should be brought in. The key is knowing when.
Don’t miss our informative webinar on May 20, this coming Monday—and bring your supervisors along, too!—when our expert explains what your supervisors should handle and what they should hand off to HR.
You’ll learn:
- An overview of how human resources and supervisors can best work together, in a way that is collaborative and constructive
- Key red flags that indicate HR backup is needed (protected classes, protected activity, unionized employees, etc.)
- Techniques to help you better communicate with supervisors before everyone finds themselves in the middle of something complicated and legally risky
- Why ongoing conversations with supervisors are more effective than mandates
- How to get beyond easily buried “do’s” and “don’ts” lists and work effectively with your supervisors on management, leaves, discipline, and other important matters
- How to ensure managers and HR alike know how to conduct effective, legally sound interviews
- What your supervisors can—and can’t—restrict when it comes to their employees discussing pay
- Nonthreatening ways to teach your supervisors what they know and don’t know—so they can accurately assess when HR should be called in
- The hot-button situations in which HR should be called in immediately, no questions asked, before any action is taken
- And much more!
Don’t miss it—sign up today and claim your spot!
Download your free copy of Training Your New Supervisors: 11 Practical Lessons today!
Sometimes the problem is just the opposite, though–supervisors who try to hand off EVERYTHING to HR, whether out of laziness or fear.
Sometimes the problem is just the opposite, though–supervisors who try to hand off EVERYTHING to HR, whether out of laziness or fear.