The Society of Human Resources Management (SHRM) defines human resources management as the design of formal systems in an organization that ensure the effective and efficient use of human talent to accomplish organizational goals. Put simply, human resources is a business function established to take care of an organization’s personnel needs; to take care of the needs of an organization’s personnel; and to take care of needs created by the organization’s personnel. Human Resources departments, once referred to as personnel departments, have traditionally recruited and screened applicants, orientated new employees, created and maintained personnel records, administered benefits and compensation programs and advised managers and supervisors on employee matters. The scope and range of human resources responsibilities has grown steadily in response to economic, social and political changes and trends. Factors contributing to the enlargement of human resources responsibilities include the following: • Increasing complexity of compliance with employment laws • Increased sophistication and empowerment of employees • Shift from manufacturing to services • Greater emphasis on intellectual property • Greater public access to company information • Heightened importance of brand and reputation • Increased costs of living/Lower wage growth • Changing definition of family/Need for two incomes/Need for “balance” • Joblessness, outsourcing and global Economy • Rising health care costs • New job types and the impending skills gap • Increased competition and need to identify competitive advantage Human resources departments now provide the basic services once provided by personnel departments, as well as higher order services such as assessments and analysis, compliance, environmental health and safety, training and development, strategic planning, organizational development, performance management and career development. The major human resources disciplines include: • Recruiting • Staffing • Compensation and Benefits • Employee Relations • Organizational Development • Training • Administration • Labor Relations

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Human resources department staff usually includes administrative personnel (generalists, coordinators, payroll representatives, administrative assistants), specialists (benefits specialists, trainers, employee relations representatives, recruiters), managers (Business Unit HR Managers, Field HR Managers), and executives (HR Directors, VP, HR). Administrative Staff Administrative HR staff generally creates, files and maintains personnel files, enters employee data into databases, collects and reviews applications, conducts new employee orientation, assists employees in completing enrollment forms for benefits programs, generates and/or maintains payroll records, and posts job vacancies. Specialists Many HR departments employ specialists for nearly all human resources functions—from leave of absence specialists to benefits and/or retirement program specialists to compensation analysts, employee relations specialists and training specialists. In addition to administrative or generalist functions, specialists will perform data analysis (on compensation data, benefits data or EEO data), conduct research, answer technical questions, prepare reports and disseminate information about their specialty. Managers As in other functional departments, managers in human resources supervise direct reports, usually administrative personnel and specialists. The essential function of HR Managers is to direct, assign and manage the work of their direct reports. HR Managers may perform some of the duties of administrative staff and specialists. They will certainly be ultimately accountable for the efficient and effective operation of the department. Some HR Managers will design local procedures and policies and set performance goals for the department. Most will advise line, or operations, managers on matters related to employee performance, conflicts, employment, diversity and EEO compliance. Professional Specialists Professional specialists are human resources practitioners who specialize in disciplines such as organizational development, industrial psychology, career development, performance technology, instructional design, employee communications, and human resources information systems. They usually hold advanced degrees. Professional specialists generally do not perform administrative or management duties. Instead, many work on a project-to-project basis, creating infrastructure, designing processes and systems, assessing and evaluating programs and talent. Executives HR executives work closely with top executives in other functional departments. Generally they are partnered with a line manager of similar rank. HR executives perform very few administrative functions. Some do, however, perform specialist functions such as dissemination of information regarding a specialty area (Organizational development, performance management or Career Development). HR executives generally develop departmental or functional mission statements, set functional or departmental objectives, partner with operations executives to develop long-term strategy, postulate staffing needs, formulate training solutions and manage departmental budgets.

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Beyond the obvious benefit of removing administrative and other personnel-related tasks from the work lists of line managers, HR staff provides several invaluable benefits to any organization. They include: • Implementing your firm’s strategy via their relationship with the firm’s employees • Imparting an impression of caring, as in “We (the employer) Care”, to employees • Communicating with, and soliciting feedback from, employees • Mediating and resolving conflicts which lead to productivity drains • Training employees to increase speed and quantity of output • Managing and communicating the “Why’s” of change, and other key information • Helping managers develop leadership skills which lead to retention, productivity • Minimizing distractions from production caused by unmet employee needs • Avoiding drains on profitability caused by litigation and third-party claims • Ensuring that employers can attract and retain the “best” workers • Assisting management in measuring the extent to which strategy has translated into results and achieving objectives • Identifying key talent and valuable intellectual property

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If your business is to be competitive in the new “Knowledge Economy”, then you ABSOLUTELY need a human resources department. Companies like Microsoft and Google and EBay—intellectual property firms—rule the marketplace. The economic pendulum has swung away from firms that use large amounts of physical capital to produce widgets and toward firms that employ the “best” people to deliver the “best” service. The global economy in which you now operate is defined by unfettered access to relatively inexpensive and indistinct physical capital. You can log onto the Net and buy heavy machinery and raw materials to produce any widget. You can even log on and outsource the manufacture of goods to a manufacturer located a world away. In a business world like this, one where anyone can copy your products, mimic the look of your storefront, and rent your customer mailing list, it is tough to compete. If you cannot out-buy or out-sell the competition, you are left with one last source of competitive advantage—your PEOPLE. Needless to say, if it’s people you need to mobilize, it’s the people department you need to tap.

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The answer to this question is very subjective. The best use of your HR resources depends on the state of your business, on what stage of development your organization has entered, on your business objectives and on the needs of your staff. A startup organization may not need an HR department if the organization has only 1-14 employees and neither plans nor funding for growth. Most sole proprietorships or mom-and-pop businesses will employ only minimal staff. Most cannot provide health benefits, and so have no need of benefits specialists. Most do not use a human resources information system, or database, to maintain personnel records and do not need generalists. Some will issue handwritten checks to their small cadre of co-conspirators and will have no need of payroll representatives. Still, even the smallest organizations can use HR help to ensure compliance with state and federal employment laws. Startup organizations with a well-planned vision for growth or expansion can use their HR staff to create job profiles and competencies for positions necessary to accomplishing customer service and production goals. Your HR staff can create/customize recruitment and assessment tools to identify, hire, train, reward and retain the “best” candidates. The “best” candidates will stay and help the firm grow into its next stage. Firms that are in the growth stage may utilize their HR staff to create/refine competency or job profiles; to design and implement short-cycle training programs for new employees; to assess and fill training gaps; to devise and implement employee communication plans in order to share information on organizational changes; to allocate/re-allocate talent; to write and revise job descriptions; to create working policies and procedures; to source and manage benefits vendors; and to design working compensation plans. Firms that are stabilizing, or entering the maturity stage, will need HR personnel to formalize staffing, compensation and reward programs; to formalize policies and procedures; to increase the efficiency of employee communications processes; to formalize and improve training programs; to create retention and performance management strategy; and to assist management in measuring the extent to which organizational objectives are being achieved through the work processes, customer service and productivity of their line employees. Firms in the withering or declining stage will need HR personnel to analyze jobs to determine which are key to the survival of the firm; to assist management in determining which employees the firm should separate, and when; to design and deliver outsourcing services; to revise staffing, compensation and reward programs to drive productivity and improve efficiency; to revise job descriptions to enlarge responsibilities; and to communicate changes to employees. Regardless of the stage of development your firm has entered, you may find that you need help meeting your business objectives.

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Human resources managers are not the first folks to come to mind when line management and executives are brainstorming ways to increase production efficiency, reduce costs, increase margin, improve customer service, reduce delivery times, fill service gaps, increase market share or attract investors. But, your HR staff can help. • Ensuring your human resources staff understands your firm’s bottom line or business objectives can help you achieve those objectives by • Assisting line management in identifying human assets, or talent, that is central to creating or maintaining competitive advantage, or taking market share • Identifying positions and work processes that are essential to achieving the objectives • Identifying employee competencies and behaviors that are key to achieving objectives • Designing and implementing training to teach skills and build competencies • Assessing employees to determine presence of competencies in key employees • Creating a performance management system to encourage and reward desired behaviors, and discourage undesirable behaviors • Developing a feedback process to ensure that employees receive needed information, and that management hears the “voice” of those in direct contact with their customers • Ensuring that employee needs are understood and met, so that employees will develop loyalty to the organization • Creating and developing an employment brand to attract and retain “the best” Any combination of the above will lead to the achievement of your firm’s objectives through optimal use of your most valuable assets—highly effective, highly motivated employees.

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We’ve all heard it said that people are the most valuable assets of any firm. The truth is people can also be the greatest liability of any firm. If your employees do not perform well, do not meet productivity standards, do not provide good service, your business is doomed. No matter the industry or product, your organization must employ people who can and DO get the job done. Your firm must also employ people who can develop and implement support programs for the people who sell your goods or services. And finally, your firm must “believe”! Every level of your organization must wholeheartedly support and participate in the support programs and their capacity to create a world class, high-productivity workforce, and thereby create a competitive advantage. Of course, it goes without saying that you must invest the appropriate resources (time, money, talent, tools). Your human resources department is THE support department when your goal is to create or maintain competitive advantage through your people.

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Your employees are the best source of competitive advantage because they are the only assets that cannot be copied by competitors. Sure, they can recruit them away, but if your HR staff (and management staff) has done a good job of implementing compensation, performance management, training, reward and retention programs, your organization may be able to stave off competitors. And if you cannot retain all employees, you should have a bench of trained successors waiting to take their places.

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There are several options for those firms who wish to outsource the human resources function. Each has its unique benefits. Among those benefits are increased operational efficiency, better economies of scale, access to skills and resources not present internally, and freedom to focus on core business functions. Options: Professional Employer Organizations (PEO)—Staffing firms that co-employ most or all of your firm’s staff and share responsibilities for their benefits, insurance and other employment costs. In many cases, PEOs provide co-employees access to health insurance, retirement savings plans, and other employment benefits they might not otherwise have access to due to the size of the employer. PEOs are full-fledged partners with hire/fire and decision-making rights regarding co-employees. They do not, however, have a say in your core business. PEO-client relationships are generally long-term due to the integrated nature of the relationship. When the relationship is ended, co-employees cease to be employed by the PEO, but remain employed by the client. For more information on Professional Employer Organizations, go to the National Association of Professional Employment Organizations website at www.napeo.org/peoindustry/faq.cfm . Temporary Employees (Temps)—Temps are employed by the staffing agency from which you sourced the candidate. Your firm pays the staffing agency for the temp’s time; the staffing agency incurs the employment costs associated with the temp. Temps generally work at the client site for a short period of time (as with seasonal help) and perform lower level administrative tasks, such as filing, data entry and payroll processing. Once the work is complete, the temp returns to the staffing agency for a new assignment. In many cases, hiring temp employees is an excellent way to preview employee performance before hiring the employee full-time (referred to as temp-to-hire). For more information on temporary staffing firms, visit the American Staffing Association website at www.staffingtoday.net. Contractors—Contract HR staff are similar to temps in that they are not regular employees of the client firm, usually work at the client site, and are employed on a temporary basis. Contractors are different than temps in that they are usually self-employed individuals hiring themselves out for a time-bound project or assignment. Contractors do sometimes work through temporary staffing agencies that “market” their services to firms who have interim needs for a percentage of the dollar amount of the contract. For instance, your HR Director may take FMLA leave to care for an ailing parent. Your Director is set to return in 8 weeks, but you cannot operate without someone in the position for 8 weeks. So, you call a staffing agency or place an ad for a contract or interim director to cover the 8-week period. Consultants—Consultants are very similar to contractors, except that they are generally more highly compensated, require more complex contracts and perform more advanced tasks. Consultants can be self-employed individuals, but most often are employed by consultancies. Consultancies usually employ professionals with advanced degrees and significant work experience. Services offered by consultancies include research, design, development, implementation and evaluation of assessment tools, job descriptions and training, compensation and performance management programs. You might employ a consultant or consulting firm to design your new organizational structure, and to design and develop the jobs therein.

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Break periods vary by state. Federal law does not require that you provide paid rest breaks. But, many states do require that employers provide one or two 10- to 15- minute paid rest breaks, depending on the length of an employee's shift. For information on your state's laws regarding meal and rest breaks, visit Minimum Rest Periods by State.

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No. Most states require employers to provide at least one 30-minute lunch period. There are some exceptions for factories and other types of work situations. To find out about state-specific requirements for providing meal breaks, visit Minimum Meal Periods by State.

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Some states don't allow tip credits, so the minimum hourly wage for tipped employees (waiters) must be the same as that of untipped employees (hostesses). There are a few states that allow tip credits. To see if your state is one of them, visit Minimum Wages for Tipped Employees

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The most important things you need to know are really basic: Whether your state requires work permits; that minors must also be paid minimum wage; and that many states require that teens only work certain hours and certain days. Beyond that, safety is important. Minors may not work in high-risk work environments, or sell liquor or other age-limited products. Visit State-specific Work Hours & Days for Minors for more information.

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Most states require that you pay employees at least semi-monthly or monthly. Some states require that employees be paid weekly or bi-weekly. Find your state requirements at State Pay Day Requirements.

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The Family & Medical Leave Act (FMLA) allows workers to take time off to take care of immediate family members who are seriously ill or injured. Your real question seems to be whether domestic partners should be allowed to use this leave. The easy answer is "yes", IF your state and/or employer recognizes domestic partners in its handbook or insurance guides). IF your state is silent on the issue, and you ARE the employer, you'll have to decide based on the value of the employee to your business.

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Most obviously, you are obligated to provide some safety training since it seems you are may work with heavy equipment or in a warehouse environment. Next, you should provide basic training on employment law--anti-discrimination laws and anti-harassment laws. While the latter may not be required in your state, it is highly recommended that you offer this training, at least to managers/supervisors.

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I recommend that you ask for a demo of more than one service to ensure that you get what your company needs. I have worked with ADP for several years and find their service to be comprehensive--they cover all of the bases from taxes to paychecks to unemployment to WOTC. They also offer HR services, such as advice, legal information. The services are pretty basic, but helpful if you don't have an in-house HR department.

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Help your managers to see what's in it for them. Specifically, help them to figure out what their staff does that benefits them on their own performance appraisals. Create incentives for developing employees, perhaps tying a small portion of their bonus to performance management or employee development. You might also create incentives or rewards for managers that develop the most employees to fill open positions and grow the company. Maybe you explain how the leadership of the company is focused on employeee performance management or development, and show them how managers who excel at it receive career advantages like high-profile assignments.

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