Practical HR Tips, News & Advice. Updated Daily.
Telecommuting has benefits for employees and employers alike, but implementing it fairly is still a challenge for many organizations. Employers want to keep employees happy while still keeping productivity up, so it’s crucial to think through the telecommuting policy in advance so that the program can meet organizational goals.
Even organizations with the most rules and regulations get into trouble, Schickman says. It doesn’t matter how big you are, or how much money you have, or how many rules you have—if the supervisor doesn’t do the job, you’re in trouble. Schickman, who is a partner with Freeland Cooper & Foreman, LLP in San Francisco, […]
From internships to continuous learning opportunities for employees, Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Company (www.northwesternmutual.com) has received numerous accolades for its training and development initiatives. Last fall, Northwestern Mutual’s financial representative internship program earned a top 10 spot nationwide for the 16th consecutive year in the 2012 Vault Guide to Internships. “We’re extremely proud of our […]
Careful planning and follow-up are essential to effective training and neither has to break your budget, according to Sharon Birkman Fink, president and CEO of Birkman International, Inc. “It’s more about creativity than a big budget.” When preparing for a training session, she recommends that trainers find appropriate jokes or funny cartoons to include in […]
“Video training has been around in some way for a very, very long time,” says David Stubenvoll, CEO and cofounder of Wowza Media Systems (www.wowza.com), a provider of media server and media workflow software. However, two-way video—a relatively new technology—is becoming increasingly popular in corporate training settings, he says. “With the Internet and with high-speed […]
“There’s an age-old saying that ‘you can bring a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink,” says AmyK Hutchens, CEO of amyk inc. (www.amyk.com), a business strategy firm. Similarly, “you can’t force people to learn, but you can get them excited about it. You can get them thirsty. When they’re thirsty, they’ll drink.” […]
A PowerPoint presentation can help reinforce concepts you convey during training, but the technology can also undermine your efforts—unless you avoid some common mistakes. Here are four to avoid: Don’t use too much text in your slides. If you squeeze too many words onto a slide, the audience may have trouble reading them or may […]
Many industrial jobs require employees to have specialized knowledge and skills, and to be prepared to deal with a special set of serious hazard exposures. OSHA-mandated specialized training requirements are found in a number of standards. For example: Hazard communication of chemical, carcinogen, and radiation hazards (29 CFR 1910.1200) Combustible dust (29 CFR 1910.22, 269, […]
Boost Compliance and Prevent Injuries,” speaker Michael Lawrence gave guidance on creating an OSHA-compliant safety training program. In the webinar, Lawrence suggested that an effective approach to creating an OSHA-compliant, injury-reducing safety training program involves four basic steps: Define the problem that you’re trying to correct through training. Identify the risks and protective measures. Develop […]
“Skills Mismatch: Business Acumen and Strategy Execution” studies the relationship between business skills and organizations’ ability to execute strategy, the critical skills needed at different levels of leadership, and trends in business skills development through 2018. The survey, which is based on responses from more than 300 senior corporate leaders, was conducted by The Economist […]