HR Handbook PDF

Orientation and Onboarding 1
Armstrong and Mitchell have provided a comprehensive and concise

overview of human resources with practical advice, tips, forms and check-
lists. A must read for managers, small business owners, and individuals new
to the HR profession.
Cornelia Gamlem, SPHR, president of GEMS Group ltd.
www.gemsgroup-hr.com
Armstrong and Mitchell have given us an excellent primer to educate our

newly hired or promoted people managers on the must-know elements of human
resource management. From the perspective of both historical and emerging trends,
they succinctly present a pragmatic and uncomplicated explanation of why and
how these issues are essential to business success. Among the many nuggets
they offer are numerous, practical and proven ways to safely say what needs to be
said in employee conversations, interviews, and evaluations. Even this old dog
learned some new tricks!
Gary Cluff, manager, Corporate Recruiting, The MITRE Corporation
As a HR practitioner of 26 years, I strongly recommend this book to all

HR professionals who want to bring added value, and who wants to become a
significant strategic partner in their organization. This book is a must have for
any HR professionals library.
Ben Lastimado, ED, author, Increasing Your HR Professions Value
Make Them Want You For a Strategic Partner
If you want to know the core elements that any Human Resources
professional should have in mind as they map their strategy and advise their
organization, Sharon Armstrongs and Barbara Mitchells work is a great
source. And a strong manager should be keeping the points in The Essential
HR Handbook front and center in their leadership of people! This is a great
straight-forward resource for any desktop!
Naomi Morales, deputy vice president, Human Resources and Ad-
ministration, PhRMA
As promised in their introduction, the authors of The Essential HR

Handbook have really made it all about the people. This is a handy reference
for anyone trying to be an effective manager of people. If nothing else, be
sure to read Chapter 12 and know the challenges for the future.
Dr. Janet Stern Solomon, SPHR, professor of management, The George
Washington University
2 The Essential HR Handbook
This book should become The Source for professionals in Human
Resources. It covers the essential considerations in the field in a well-
written, authoritative and yet very readable style. If you are at all inter-
ested in the growing area of Human Resources, I strongly urge to read The
Essential HR Handbook .
Henry P. Baer, former Chair of the Labor & Employment Law Practice,
Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP
This concise handbook gets to the heart of human resource man-

agement by providing both practical guidance on essential HR activities
and loads of useful samples, checklists and tools to help you do HR
effectively and efficiently.
Wendy Bliss, J.D., SPHR, author, Employment Termination Source
Book and Legal, Effective References: How to Give and Get Them
This book delivers on the promise made in the title. It offers great
examples, useful templates, provocative questions and all the data that an
HR person might want to have at their fingertips. It is easy to read and gets
the reader to the main point quickly and easily. The appendix is superb. A
must have for your shelf.
Beverly Kaye, founder/CEO, Career Systems International, author
of Up Is Not the Only Way
Look no further than The Essential HR Handbook for the right ad-
vice to make the human resources function indispensable for the success
of an organization. This book spells out practical approaches to the criti-
cal issues faced by leaders to effectively manage a fast-changing workforce.
It is a must-read for all managers, not just HR professionals.
Brad Taft, president, Taft Resource Group, Career and Workforce
Development Consultants, coauthor of Boom or Bust...Career Manage-
ment Guide for Baby Boomers and Beyond
The title says it all. This handbook succinctly lays out the key prin-
ciples and protections that every Human Resource professional needs to
know and put in place. Its also a reference source that wont remain on
your shelf for long.
Francis T. Coleman, Esq., Williams Mullen
A00 Endorsements.pmd 2 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

The Essential HR Handbook is a superb compendium of human
resources tools and techniques for HR and other professionals at all lev-
els of organizations whether your company is large or small. This hand-
book provides extremely useful information on all facets of human
resources and the sample documents (from applications through exit in-
terviews) are especially helpful.
Gail Hyland-Savage, COO, Michaelson, Connor & Boul
I am confident that you will find The Essential HR Handbook, truly

thatessential in establishing a significant HR infrastructure relevant to
all organizations. Not only do the authors address the fundamentals nec-
essary to support a growing organization, but they walk you through the
importance and process of defining a strategic human resource plan. The
Essential HR Handbook should be a part of every HR Tool Kit!
Kathy Albarado, SPHR, president of Helios HR, principal author of
Guide to HR Administration
HR is no longer trying to find a seat at the table. It has become an

inherent part of every process and priority that enable an organization to
achieve its goals. Armstrong and Mitchell have transformed years of mean-
ingful experience into one practical, comprehensive work. The Essential HR
Handbook is a nonpareil; it clearly specifies the core elements of human
resource management that help lead organizations to sustained success.
John G. Kitson, senior vice president, chief human resources of-
ficer, First Banks, Inc.
Reading this extraordinary book, I asked myself how I have man-

aged thus far without it? Not only is this a comprehensive guide to every-
thing an HR professional needs to know, but the samples contained at the
end of almost every chapter and the appendix loaded with every tool
necessary, made me think I had hit the mother lode.
Karen Bloom, principal of Bloom, Gross & Associates, Inc.
Regardless of the business size or industry; profit, non-profit, or

government, this book reinforces what I have learned throughout my HR
careerwithout strategic alignment between HR & the business manager,
the dynamics of organizational effectiveness are absent.
D.J. Strauss, chief, branch of recruitment/training, DOL Office of
Inspector General

The Essential HR Handbook is a practical, comprehensive toolbox
for HR professionals, filled with forms and checklists to assist with the
critical everyday work of selecting, orienting, training, developing, re-
warding, and retaining todays workforce. The sample forms alone make it
a valuable desk reference.
Leigh Branham, founder/principal, Keeping the People, Inc.
The Essential HR Handbook is really Human Resources made easy

for managers! This comprehensive overview is a one-stop guide for man-
agers who want to create a productive and legally compliant workplace
using time-tested HR techniques. Every manager needs a copy!
Mark Stevenson, president, SmartHR

The Essential
HR Handbook
A Quick and Handy Resource for
Any Manager or HR Professional
By Sharon Armstrong and

Barbara Mitchell
The Career Press, Inc.

Pompton Plains, NJ
Copyright 2008 by Sharon Armstrong and Barbara Mitchell
All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copy-

right Conventions. This book may not be reproduced, in whole or in
part, in any form or by any means electronic or mechanical, including
photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval
system now known or hereafter invented, without written permission
from the publisher, The Career Press.
THE ESSENTIAL HR HANDBOOK

EDITED AND TYPESET BY GINA TALUCCI
Cover design by Jeff Piasky
Printed in the U.S.A.
To order this title, please call toll-free 1-800-CAREER-1 (NJ and Canada:
201-848-0310) to order using VISA or MasterCard, or for further infor-
mation on books from Career Press.
The Career Press, Inc., 220 West Parkway, Unit 12

Pompton Plains, NJ 07444
www.careerpress.com
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Armstrong, Sharon, 1951
The essential HR handbook : a quick and handy resource for any
manager or HR professional / by Sharon Armstrong and Barbara
Mitchell.
p. cm.
ISBN 978-1-56414-990-9
1. Personnel management. I. Mitchell, Barbara, 1943 II. Title.
HF5549.A89786 2008
658.3--dc22
2007052475
Making a Plan, and Sticking to It 7
Dedication
This book is dedicated to my father, Charles B. Scott,
who taught me the true meaning of perseverance.
Sharon Scott Armstrong
This book is dedicated to my parents, Anne and

Tom MitchellI wish they were here to celebrate
this achievement with me.
Barbara Mitchell
Acknowledgments
Most people understand that writing a book takes a village!
There are many folks behind the scenes who helped us, so there
are some thank yous due.
Three major heroes were Anne Goodfriend, who skillfully and
kindly edited our thoughts and words while remaining calm through-
out; Susan Devereaux, who put the final manuscript together in her
typical (and wonderful) professional way; and Joyce Oliner, who
went above and beyond with some important critiques and sugges-
tions. Another significant and special friend was Mike Strand, who
contributed two important chapters without breaking a sweat.
More shout-outs go to: Kathy Albarado, Marilyn Allen, Richard
Armstrong, Kimberly Barton, Patti Bicknell, Jann Bradley, Irene Cardon,
Ann Casso, Madelyne DAngelo, Angela Dabbs, Amy Dufrane, Laurie
Friedman, Saunji Fyffe, Cornelia Gamlem, Diane Gold, Allyn Gutauskas,
Lisa Haneberg, Bob Hoffman, Anne Hull, Natalie Loeb, Joanne
Lozar Glenn, Taren McCombs, Cheryl Mirabella, Naomi Morales,
815
A02 Dedi.pmd 7 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Kerri Koss Morehart, Tom Morris, Julie Perez, Jane Pettit, Ane
Powers, Michael Pye, Leah Rampy, Maggie Saponaro, Gail Hyland-
Savage, Priscilla Vazquez, and Elaine Winfrey.
And finally, two special thanks to our literary agent, Marilyn
Allen, for getting us started on this journey, and to our Career Press
editor and formatter, Gina Talucci, for gently bringing the book to
completion, thereby ending the journey.
To paraphrase the words of William Butler Yeats, Think where
mans glory most begins and ends, and say our glory was we had
such friends.
Sharon Armstrong
Barbara Mitchell
Washington, D.C.
A02 Dedi.pmd 8 6/30/2008, 12:38 PM

Making a Plan, and Sticking to It 9
Contents
Introduction 11
Chapter 1: Strategic Planning

and Mission Statements 15
Chapter 2: Optimal Staffing 27
Chapter 3: Orientation and Onboarding 44
Chapter 4: Training and Development 49
Chapter 5: Useful Performance Evaluations 62
Chapter 6: Benefits 77
Chapter 7: Compensation 94
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Chapter 8: Employee Relations 107
Chapter 9: Legal Considerations 121
Chapter 10: Managing a Diverse Workforce 138
Chapter 11: Technology 148
Chapter 12: 21st-Century Workplace Challenges 159
Afterword 178
Appendix: Additional Resources 180
Glossary 228
Bibliography 240
Further Reading 243
Notes 246
Index 249
About the Authors 254
A03 Contents.pmd 10 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Introduction 11
Introduction
Leading today is like being a first-time parent

you have to do the right thing long before you
fully understand the situation.
Warren Bennis, distinguished professor of busi-
ness, and founding chairman of the Leadership Institute
at the University of Southern California
I
n 14th-century England, masons, carpenters,
leather workers, and other skilled craftsmen or-
ganized themselves into guilds, which they used
to improve their work conditions.1 These guilds were
the beginning of unions.
John Ivancevich, in his book Human Resource
Management, tells us that, with the Industrial Revo-
lution of the late 18th and early 19th centuries, how-
ever, everything changed: divisions of labor, wages
and hours, working conditions, and more. A new
11
A04 Intro.pmd 11 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

character in the workplace replaced the owner: the boss.2 He fo-
cused on getting the job done fast and done right.
Conflict grew between bosses and employees, and as busi-
nesses expanded they established new departments to deal with
issues in the workplace. During the 1930s and 1940s, personnel
departments began appearing to address hiring, firing, and the con-
flicts that occurred in between.
Around this time, personnel managers focused on employees
and their well being, sharing their observations and suggestions with
management to improve employees working lives.
Business guru Peter Drucker, the father of modern management
and a prolific author, wrote that the role of personnel staff was partly
a file clerks job, partly a housekeeping job, partly a social workers
job, and partly firefighting, heading off union trouble. 3
Gone are the days (we hope) when managers wanted only that
the work be done right and fastwithout regard to the human
resources, the workers. Both good managers and HR profession-
als need to understand their organizations employees and, on their
behalf, create a workplace that helps them do their best work.
Some organizations have renamed their personnel/human re-
sources units People or Human Capital departments to em-
phasize the importance of their paramount resource. They know
that, without good people management, nothing else matters.
Today, leaders of successful organizations understand the im-
portance of good human resources principles and practices for
maintaining a healthy business: They expect their managers to inte-
grate good human resources management into their day-to-day
work.
In fact, in order to survive in todays increasingly challenging
world of work, managers have to be lifelong learners. They have to
be open to not only learning new things, but also to incorporating
those things in their everyday approach to work. These two behav-
iors are among the most critical for honing managerial skills.
A04 Intro.pmd 12 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Introduction 13
That sounds simple, but we know that human resources is a
complex field. HR tools and techniques draw on a wide and grow-
ing body of knowledge and requirements. The challenge for man-
agers is to stay informed of the fields best practices.
What does human resources mean today? It is the process
of acquiring, training, appraising, and compensating employees while
attending to their concerns about labor relations, health and safety,
and fairness.4
This book covers these critical functions, working conditions,
and the management actionsmajor or minorthat support them.
It provides practical information, tools, and techniques to help man-
agers and HR professionals excel.
When Joe Gibbs, former coach of the NFLs Washington
Redskins and three-time NASCAR champion, was asked to de-
scribe the differences between professional football and profes-
sional car racing, he replied, There is none; its all about the people.5
Now thats a worthy mantra for managers and HR profession-
als: Its all about the people.
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Strategic Planning and Mission Statements 15
Chapter 1
Strategic Planning
and Mission
Statements
Strategy connects the purpose and values of
your organization with those of its customers and
other external shareholders.
Tony Manning, Making Sense of Strategy
I
f you dont know where youre going, how
will you know when you get there? Thats why
every organization needs a statement of its pur-
pose or mission, and a strategy for planning its
future.
Organizational strategy
Managers are responsible for allocating resources
to achieve their organizations stated goals, and this
is where organizational strategy comes into play.
Successful management of resources depends on
15
B01 Ch 1.pmd 15 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

effective planning. Managers need to set the organizations strate-
gic direction and develop a plan to implement the strategy.
That plan defines the organizations path into the future, and
implementing it involves making decisions about the allocation of
resources to reach the goals.
Organizational resources include intellectual capital, products,
and financial capital, but the most important resource of all is hu-
man capitalthe people who make it all happen. And because most
organizations spend the largest percentage of their dollars on their
labor force, firms that align their people strategies with their organi-
zational ones are the most successful.
If you dont know where youre going, how will you know
when you get there? It all starts with deciding what the organiza-
tion wants to achieve throughout a reasonable period of time. In the
past, standard business practice was to plan for long periods, such
as five, 10, or 20 yearsbut, in todays volatile business climate,
most organizations plan for shorter periods such as one, three, or at
most five years.
For your organization to remain competitive, it is essential to
revisit your strategic plan frequently, and explore the business cli-
mate in your organizations field to understand changes that may
affect your company and its strategy. Strategy development in-
volves evaluating the organizations current business situation and
determining where it wants to go in the future. Managing strategy
is never cast in concreteit is a continuous, recurring process.
Developing a strategic plan

The most enlightened organizations include human resources
(HR) in the development of the strategic plan, so that the human
resources plan can link directly to the strategic plan (discussed later
in this chapter).
The typical approach to strategic planning is a three-step process:
1. Establish why the organization exists, its mission.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 16 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

2. Define what you want the organizations near future
to be.
3. Establish what needs to be doneand what needs to
be done differentlyto reach the stated objectives.
Crafting a mission statement

Organizational strategy consists of concisely, clearly, and care-
fully communicating to everyone in the organization where the com-
pany is headed, which is the first step in creating a mission statement.
This document describes what the organization is today, and what it
values, in succinct and measurable terms.
See the end of this chapter for an example: the mission state-
ment of the grocery-store chain Wegmansa highly successful
organization consistently listed on Fortune magazines annual list
of 100 Best Companies to Work For in America.
The Wegmans declaration clearly states what the company val-
ues in its employees and articulates its primary goal: meeting the
needs of its employees and exceeding the needs of its customers.
Elements of a Mission Statement
Mission statements should be succinct and easy for em-

ployees, customers, and the general public to understand. Some
of the elements to consider as you craft a mission statement
include your organizations:
3 Desired image in the marketplace.
3 Target market for products or services.
3 Products or services (described).
3 Local, national, or global reachwhere your clients
are located.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 17 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

A place where you can begin to develop a strategic plan is to
ask a series of questions that will produce the information you need
to take the next step in defining the organizations future direction.
Here are some sample questions:
3 What are your plans for growth?
3 What is your ethics statement?
3 What challenges are you facing today?
3 What are your competitors doing that you arent
doing?
3 What sets you apart from the competition?
3 What changes have occurred in your industry or
service area?
3 How has globalization affected your organization?
3 Have your competitors entered the global market?
3 Are there opportunities outside your current market
to consider?
3 Is your technology up-to-date?
3 What affect has technology had on your customers,
members, or employees?
3 Have your customers or members expectations
changed?
3 What are you doing to retain any competitive advan-
tage you have?
3 What are your distinctive, competitive strengths, and
how does the plan build on them?
3 How will changes in your strategy affect your
employees?
3 Do you have the people resources you need to reach
your desired goals?
3 What effect will changing demographics have on your
strategy?
B01 Ch 1.pmd 18 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

3 What legal or regulatory changes do you anticipate
that may affect your strategy?
3 How and why is this plan different from the previous
one? Were all your elements completed? If not, why?
How could you have prevented that?
3 How different is your strategy from those of your com-
petitors, and why? Is that good or bad? What do you
know about your competitors strategies?
3 How accurate have your past budgets and projections
been? What could have made them more accurate?
3 Who will measure the outcomes of the strategy, with
what tools? How often will you monitor progress?
After answering these questions, you can decide how the or-
ganization will capitalize on its strengths, eliminate or minimize its
weaknesses, exploit opportunities, and defend against threats.
Putting your plan in motion

If the organization sets out a good strategic direction and sets
goals and measurements to ensure the goals are met, it can envi-
sion its future.
But after the vision is set forth, nothing will happen without an
implementation strategy. This is where responsibilities are deter-
mined and accountabilities defined. A time line should be created,
and milestone reviews should be scheduled, so that the strategic
plan is constantly in front of the leadership and discussed at staff
meetings. The time line should be reviewed and updated in order to
keep it as current as possible.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 19 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Communicating the plan
Once the strategic plan is developed and easily understood, it is
extremely important to share it with the employees. This can be in
writing, sent as an e-mail from the leader of the organization, or
communicated in person at an all staff meeting. How the mes-
sage gets out isnt nearly as important as the fact that it is commu-
nicated. Employees need to know where their organization is headed,
and how the work they do fits into the plan.
Linking HR planning to the strategic plan

Organizations that link the overall strategic plan to their plans
for finding and keeping employees tend to be the most successful in
todays competitive marketplace. After an organizations strategic
plan is in place, it is important to identify the roles the human re-
sources department will play in achieving the organizations goals.
Once the strategic areas that will affect employees are identi-
fied, the planners need to determine whether the organization lacks
any resources that will prevent HR from fully participating. For
example, the organization may not have developed a robust ben-
efits package yet, inhibiting its ability to compete for the talent it
needs.
It is at this point in the process that HR issuesa critical ele-
ment in the strategic planreally come into play. Organizations
that involve HR in the strategic planning process soon learn that
issues about people have an affect on nearly every organizational
activity.
For example, if the plan calls for building a new manufacturing
facility in South America, it is probably HR that will need to re-
search labor markets and union activity in different countries, look
at compensation plans, investigate the process for obtaining work
permits and visas for U.S. nationals, research applicable benefit
plans, and gather data on whether the organizations current health
plan covers workers out of the country.
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If growth is projected in the strategic plan, HR should consider
creating a workforce plan. This involves looking at the current
workforce in depth and asking questions such as:
3 What are the strengths and areas of concern with the
current workforce?
3 Who is eligible to retire?
3 Are there current employees with performance issues?
3 Does the projected growth mean additional workers
will be needed?
3 What skills and abilitiestechnical, administrative,
managerial, and leadershipare needed to accom-
plish the work?
3 Are there gaps in the current skills of the workforce,
and what will be required to achieve the new strate-
gic direction?
Once these questions are answered, HR can begin to address
how gaps can be filled. For example, if the strategy involves in-
creasing the number of technical employees in a particular depart-
ment, some solutions might be:
3 Hiring new employees.
3 Training existing employees.
3 Transfering employees from another location.
3 Doing all three.
If the choice is to hire new employees, the organization needs
to plan how to assimilate them into the workplace culture and en-
sure a smooth transition.
Linking HR and the organization

A typical criticism of HR professionals is that they do not un-
derstand the businesses in which they work. They are too focused
on their own area of the business, say critics, and dont always take
the time to understand marketing, finance, and business operations.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 21 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Although HR is increasingly complex, it is not a stand-alone
function. For HR professionals to be true business partners, they
must learn as much as possible about the operation of their organi-
zations business. Studying business plans, strategic plans, annual
reports, and other written documents is one of the best ways to do
this; so is networking with others in the organization.
Some successful HR people say that when they join a new
firm, they make a list of people they want to meet, then start asking
them to lunch or coffee. While out of the office, they ask a series of
questions about their colleagues function in the organization. Most
people enjoy sharing their expertise, and, if you approach these
conversations properly and respect colleagues busy schedules, this
strategy can be very effective. Possible questions can include:
3 How long have you been with the XYZ Company?
3 What about this organization attracted you to it?
3 What has been your greatest challenge at XYZ?
3 What has been your greatest success?
3 What keeps you up at night?
3 How does your department fit into the companys
overall mission?
3 How can the HR function help you and your staff
achieve your goals?
3 What has XYZs HR done well in the past, and where
can it improve?
3 Can you recommend books or other reference mate-
rial so that I can learn more about what you do as
[position]?
3 Are there organizations you recommend I join to net-
work with people in this field?
3 Is there anything else you can tell me that will help
me be the best possible business partner for you and
your department?
B01 Ch 1.pmd 22 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

These conversations should be dialogues, not interviews, and
as informal as possible. Ideally, you will be asked to share your
background and goals as well.
It is critical for people in the HR function, whether they are
full-time HR professionals or managers who bear HR responsibili-
ties, to learn the language of the organization and participate in
discussions about overall strategy. This may take some time to de-
velop, but it is extremely important in order to link the people issues
to the rest of the corporate strategy.
HR people need access to information about changes in em-
ployment laws and government regulations. They also need access
to others in the HR field so they can share best practices or ask
for help with a particular problem. The Society for Human
Resource Management (SHRM) provides a wealth of learning op-
portunities as well as resources on its Website at www.shrm.org.
The organization also has local chapters, most of which meet monthly
for professional development programs and networking.
Main message for managers

Organizations need to set a strategic direction to know where
they are headed and how they are going to get there. HR manag-
ers, along with amanagers of other departments, should be key
players in defining the strategic plan. Once the plan is developed,
attention should be paid to developing an HR plan that links to and
supports the organizations strategic planbecause, without the
right people in the right positions, odds are the strategic goals wont
be met.
Anyone who has responsibility for HR in an organization needs
to understand the business the company is in and be able to speak
the language of that business.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 23 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Sample mission statements
Used with permission of each organization.
Wegmans, grocery store chainWhat We Believe1

At Wegmans, we believe that good people, working toward a
common goal, can accomplish anything they set out to do.
In this spirit, we set our goal to be the very best at serving the
needs of our customers. Every action we take should be made with
this in mind.
We also believe that we can achieve our goal only if we fulfill
the needs of our own people.
To our customers and our people we pledge continuous im-
provement, and we make the commitment, Every day you get our
best.
The National Council of La Raza (NCLR), the largest na-

tional Hispanic civil rights and advocacy organization in the United
States, works to improve opportunities for Hispanic Americans.
Through its network of nearly 300 affiliated community-based or-
ganizations (CBOs), NCLR reaches millions of Hispanics each year
in 41 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. To achieve
its mission, NCLR conducts applied research, policy analysis, and
advocacy, providing a Latino perspective in five key areas
assets/investments, civil rights/immigration, education, employment
and economic status, and health. In addition, it provides capacity-
building assistance to its affiliates who work at the state and local
level to advance opportunities for individuals and families. Founded
in 1968, NCLR is a private, nonprofit, nonpartisan, tax-exempt or-
ganization headquartered in Washington, D.C. NCLR serves all
Hispanic subgroups in all regions of the country and has operations
in Atlanta, Chicago, Los Angeles, New York, Phoenix, Sacramento,
San Antonio, and Puerto Rico.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 24 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Michaelson, Connor & Boul. We exist to be a real estate
services corporation that is profitable through continued growth
and diversity. We are technology driven, efficient, and results-
oriented, but flexible to exceed our clients needs. Integrity is of
utmost importance.
The National Association of Federal Credit Unions is a

direct membership association committed to advancing the credit
union community through its relentless focus on membership value
in representing, assisting, educating, and informing its member credit
unions and their key audiences.
As a trusted advisor, Helios HR provides its clients a com-

petitive advantage: the creation of a culture that attracts, retains,
and engages an exceptional workforce.
The mission of the Optical Society of America (OSA) is to

promote the generation, application, and archiving of knowledge in
optics and photonics and to disseminate this knowledge worldwide.
The purposes of the Society are scientific, technical, and educa-
tional. Founded in 1916, OSA brings together optics and photonics
scientists, engineers, educators, technicians, and business leaders.
OSA is dedicated to providing its members and the scientific com-
munity with educational resources that support technical and pro-
fessional development. OSA publications, events, and services help
to advance the science of light by addressing the ongoing need for
shared knowledge and innovation. The Societys commitment to
excellence and long-term learning is the driving force behind all its
initiatives.
PhRMAs mission is winning advocacy for public policies that

encourage the discovery of life-saving and life-enhancing new
medicines for patients by biopharmaceutical research companies.
To accomplish this mission, PhRMA (Pharmaceutical Research and
B01 Ch 1.pmd 25 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Manufacturers of America) is dedicated to achieving in Washington,
D.C., the states, and the world:
3 Broad patient access to safe and effective medicines
through a free market, without price controls.
3 Strong intellectual property incentives.
3 Transparent, efficient regulation and a free flow of
information to patients.
Farmington Country Club is a traditional, family-oriented

private club with a proud history, rich traditions, and commitment to
the customs of Southern hospitality and gracious living. As the pre-
mier, full-service private club in central Virginia, Farmington shall
provide excellent facilities, programs, and services to serve the so-
cial, athletic, and recreational needs of its members, their families,
and their guests.
NeighborWorks America creates opportunities for people

to live in affordable homes, improve their lives, and strengthen their
communities.
The White Hawk Group LLC is dedicated to providing pro-

fessional, high quality guidance and related services to individuals
and organizations in the process of change and/or transition. In the
delivery of career management and leadership development coaching
and training, WHG is committed to assisting clients understand and
communicate current realities; assess strengths and potential ob-
stacles to success; clarify goals; and develop and implement effec-
tive plans for goal attainment.
B01 Ch 1.pmd 26 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 27
Chapter 2
Optimal Staffing
The ultimate throttle on growth for any com-

pany isthe ability to get and keep enough of
the right people.
Jim Collins, Good to Great
T
he hiring process is critical to the success of
your company. Done well, it can build a hard-
working, loyal staff and help grow your busi-
ness; done poorly, it can increase turnover and stunt
your staff.
Finding applicants
It used to be simple: You ran an ad in the news-
paper, and applicants either mailed in a rsum or
applied in person. Now, applicants also use your
companys Website or one of the many online job
sitesfrom general ones such as www.monster.com
27
B02 Ch 2.pmd 27 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

or www.careerbuilder.com, to industry-specific ones such as
www.journalismjobs.com. To stay competitive and attract appli-
cants, you may also need to participate in job fairs, recruit at local
colleges or trade schools, run ads on the radio, or hold open houses
at your workplace.
When you advertise or post a position, it is important to stress
the benefits of working for your organization. That is what appli-
cants want to know (Whats in it for me?). Another critical ele-
ment is setting your company apart from all the others that are
hiring for the same type of position: What can you tell job seekers
that will excite them enough to contact your organization? Of course
include the job requirements and what is expected of the chosen
applicant, state the date by which applications must be received,
and always provide multiple ways for applicants to contact your
organization, including online applications, a fax number, and a street
address to send a paper application. Direct applicants to your firms
Website to learn more about the company.
One of the best and the most cost-effective sources for appli-
cants is an employee referral program. It produces high-quality
applicants (because your current employees wont want a bad re-
ferral to reflect on them personally) and lets you gauge employee
morale (because employees wont refer others if they are not happy
in their jobs).
Employee referral programs can range from a simple e-mail
asking all employees to refer friends, to contests with cash awards
or prizes for employees whose referrals are hired. If you use a
recruitment agency, it can design a program to meet your needs.
Keeping in touch with former employees youd like to hire again
is another excellent strategy. Some of the worlds largest and most
successful companies bring such boomerangs back by letting tal-
ented employees who leave know that they will be welcome to
return. Top companies stay in touch with such employees and keep
them connected to the organization by sending them announce-
ments of new clients or awards. Then, when the time is right, they
invite them back. When boomerangs return, they come with new
skill sets and, typically, renewed commitment to the organization.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 28 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 29
Reference Checking Form
Applicant:
Date:
Reference provided by: [name]
Organization:
Dates of employment:
Title:
General responsibilities:
Relationship to applicant:
We are considering hiring [name] for [position] in [organiza-

tion]. How well do you think he [or she] will do in that position?
Please comment on the overall quality of the applicants work

at your organization.
Please discuss how the applicant worked with others in your

organization.
Why did [name] leave your organization?
Is he [or she] eligible for rehire?
Is there anything else youd like to share about [name] that will
help us make a good decision?
Thank you for your time and comments.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 29 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

(Note: Many organizations require that all requests for employ-

ment information be directed to the HR department or to a desig-
nated individual. Generally, the only information those companies
release is factual, such as date of hire, title, or length of service.
Subjective informationsuch as comments on performance or rea-
sons for a former employees terminationis not shared.)
Reviewing resumes
When the resumes start pouring in, be prepared with a plan for
determining whom to interview. First, have a thorough understand-
ing of the position: Identify specifically what you want the new
employee to do and the results you want him or her to achieve.
Determine which elements of performance or behaviorsuch as
teamwork, reliability, and toleranceare critical in this job, and what
skills, abilities, and knowledge the successful applicant must have.
If your list of requirements is long, prioritize them.
As you review rsums, here are some red flags to watch out for:
3 No dates for previous jobs.
3 Gaps in employment.
3 Job-hopping with decreasing responsibilities.
3 Accomplishments listed but not tied to a particular
position.
When youve narrowed down the stack of rsums, you may
want to do a quick screening interview by phone to ask very spe-
cific questions before setting up a face-to-face interview. Focus
your screening interview on determining whether the applicant has
the basic skills for the position and is within your salary range. To
save everyones time, let the job seeker know the range at the
beginning of the call, and ask whether the interview should con-
tinue. It is among the first things that applicants want to know, yet
theyre very reluctant to specify their most recent salary or their
B02 Ch 2.pmd 30 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 31
desired range, for fear theyll limit themselves or be dismissed as
over- or under-qualified. Be sensitive to this. Here is a sample tele-
phone screening form:
Telephone Screen Form
Position: _____________________
Date:_______________
Candidates name:____________________________
Interviewer:_________________________________
Background and education:
Does not meet requirements

Meets minimum requirements
Exceeds requirements
Technical skills:

B02 Ch 2.pmd 31 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Interpersonal and communication skills:

Salary requirements:
Below position range

Within position range
Exceeds position range
Recommendation:
Reject candidate Rejection letter sent
Schedule in-person interview Interview scheduled
Hold rsum/application for future opening
Interviewing applicants
Once you set up an interview, find a private place to conduct it
where you wont be interrupted. Thats just common courtesy. It is
extremely important to treat applicants courteously so they feel
B02 Ch 2.pmd 32 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 33
good about the interview experience and your organizationeven
if they arent selected for the position. Try to create goodwill for
your company regardless of the outcome.
Most of us have made the mistake of hiring someone who ei-
ther lacked the necessary skills or didnt fit the organizations cul-
ture. But we can reduce the risk of doing that with behavioral
interviewing, a systematic, analytical, and objective technique.
A behavioral interview is carefully planned and based on the
job and its outcomes, according to the principle that past perfor-
mance is the best indicator of future behavior. Specifically, it as-
sumes that the way a job applicant has used his or her skills in the
past will predict how he or she will use them in a new job. Manag-
ers should design questions to draw out candidates stories of real-
life experiences that illustrate their ability to perform the essential
functions, reach the applicable goals, and excel in the job.
Good behavioral interview questions allow you to draw out the
candidates strengths, areas for development, and suitability for your
open position. They also will help you determine whether the appli-
cant will fit into your work environment.
Those good questions will often start with:
3 Tell me about a time....
3 Give me an example of when....
3 Walk me through....
3 Describe for me....
For instance, if the person you hire must be flexible, consider
asking, Give me an example of a time when priorities were shifted.
How did you react? Is quality of work important? Tell me about
a time when your boss was not satisfied with an assignment you
completed.
Make sure that interview questions do not solicit information
that employers are legally barred from considering in the hiring
process, such as age, gender, religion, race, color, national origin,
and/or disability. (See Chapter 9.)
B02 Ch 2.pmd 33 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Sample behavioral-interview questions
Ability to accept constructive criticism
3 Describe a time when your work on an idea of yours
was criticized.
Ability to work under pressure
3 Describe a situation in which you were required to
work under pressure and how you reacted.
3 Describe a time when you were given a job or as-
signment for which you had no prior training. How
did you learn to do it?
Accomplishments
3 Describe your three greatest accomplishments on the
job.
3 What was the most satisfying accomplishment in your
last job? What made it so satisfying?
3 Give an example of a time when you set a goal and
met or achieved it.
3 Describe a time when you set your sights too high.
3 What are some obstacles that you have had to over-
come to get where you are today? How did you
handle them?
Challenging situations
3 Describe a situation when you faced a challenge and
how you met it.
Communication skills
3 Talk about a time when you had to communicate ver-
bally to get an important point across, and tell me
how you did it.
3 Did you ever have an experience at work in which
you had to speak up and tell other people what you
thought or felt? What was the outcome?
B02 Ch 2.pmd 34 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 35
3 Give an example of a time when you were able to
communicate successfully with another person who
might not have liked you personally.
3 Have you ever made a presentation? When? Why?
What was the outcome?
3 Describe the most significant document, report, or
presentation you have created.
3 Have you ever had to sell an idea to your colleagues,
team, or group? How did you do it? Did they buy it?
3 Describe an instance when you had to think on your
feet to extricate yourself from a difficult situation.
Conflict management
3 What is your typical way of dealing with conflict?
Give an example. Talk about a time when you had to
manage a conflict or dispute among staff who re-
ported to you or members of a team.
3 Describe a time when you worked with others who
did not work well together. How did you deal with
that?
Coping skills
3 Describe a time when you were faced with problems
or stresses at work and how you coped with them.
3 Talk about a high-stress situation when you needed
to keep a positive attitude. What happened?
3 When you find yourself frustrated by a roadblock,
what do you do? Give an example.
Creativity
3 Describe your most creative work-related project.
Customer service
3 Give an example of a time when you used your cus-
tomer philosophy to deal with a problem.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 35 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Dealing with difficult people
3 Talk about a time in the past year when you had to
deal with a difficult team member, and describe what
you did.
3 Think about a difficult boss or colleague and what
made him or her that way. How did you interact with
this person?
3 Describe your worst-ever customer or co-worker and
how you dealt with him or her.
Decision-making
3 What is the riskiest job-related decision youve ever
made?
3 Describe a difficult decision youve made in the past
year.
3 Give an example of a time when you had to make a
decision relatively quickly.
or:
3 Give an example of a time when you had to make a
split-second decision.
3 Describe an unpopular decision you were forced to
make.
3 Have you ever had to refrain from speaking or mak-
ing a decision because you did not have enough infor-
mation? What happened? What did you learn from
this experience?
3 Describe a decision you made within the past year
that youre very proud of.
Delegating
3 Give an example of an instance in which you del-
egated a project effectively.
3 Talk about a time when you were given a vague as-
signment yet completed it successfully. What was the
situation? What, specifically, did you do? What was
the result?
B02 Ch 2.pmd 36 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 37
Initiative
3 When and how have you shown initiative?
3 Give an example of a time when you had to go above
and beyond the call of duty to get a job done.
3 Have you ever performed duties beyond the scope of
your job description? How did you handle this?
3 Have you worked on a difficult assignment with few
or no resources? What did you do, and what was the
result?
Leadership
3 One leadership skill is the ability to accommodate dif-
ferent views in the workplace, regardless of what
they are. What have you done to foster a wide num-
ber of views in your work environment?
3 What personal qualities define you as a leader? De-
scribe a situation when these qualities helped you lead
others.
3 Give an example of when you demonstrated good
leadership.
3 What is the toughest group from which youve had to
get cooperation?
3 Have you ever had difficulty getting others to accept
your ideas? What was your approach? Did it work?
3 Describe a situation in which you had to change your
leadership style to have the desired impact.
Motivation
3 Whats important to you in a job?
3 Why does this position interest you? What attracts
you to our organization?
or:
3 What have you learned about our organization?
3 How do you motivate people? Give a specific ex-
ample of something you did that helped build others
enthusiasm.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 37 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

3 How have you motivated yourself to complete an as-
signment or task you did not want to do?
3 Describe techniques youve used to recognize or re-
ward staff performance.
3 Talk about a time when you led a group to achieve a
goal.
Persistence
3 When has your persistence had the biggest payoff?
3 Give an example of an important goal and describe
your progress in reaching it.
Persuasion
3 Summarize a situation where you persuaded others
to take action or to see your point of view.
or:
3 Describe a time when you used facts and reason to
persuade someone to take action.
Planning
3 Talk about a complex assignment you planned and
executed. How did you do it?
Problem-solving
3 Describe a major problem you faced and how you
dealt with it.
or:
3 Describe a situation in which you solved a problem
by combining different perspectives or approaches.
or:
3 Think about a complex project or assignment you re-
ceived. What approach did you take to complete it?
3 Describe an instance when you, or a group you were
in, were in danger of missing a deadline. What did
you do?
3 Give an example of how you used your fact-finding
skills to get information you needed to solve a problem;
B02 Ch 2.pmd 38 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 39
how did you analyze the information and reach a
decision?
3 What do you do when your priorities dont match those
of your colleagues?
3 Describe a specific instance when you used good judg-
ment and logic in solving a problem.
3 Think of a time when members of your group dis-
agreed but you had to achieve consensus. What was
your approach? What was the outcome?
3 Did you ever have to seek out experts in your or-
ganization to understand something? How did you do
it? What were the results?
3 How do you approach an unfamiliar task? Give an
example.
Quick study
3 Describe a situation when you had to learn some-
thing new in a very short time. How did you do it?
Process improvement
3 Describe a couple of specific examples of your mak-
ing something better or improving a service or prod-
uct. How did you do it?
3 Talk about an improvement you wanted to make in a
process and the steps you took to do so.
3 Have you ever recognized a problem before your boss
or co-workers did? What did you do?
3 Describe presenting a new idea to your supervisor.
What was the result?
Supervision
3 How many people have you supervised? If we talked
to them, what three things would they say about your
managerial style?
3 Whats the hardest part of managing people?
B02 Ch 2.pmd 39 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

3 Describe a situation in which a staff member was
not performing to your expectations and how you
handled it.
Teamwork
3 How do you turn people who work for you into a
team? What has worked? What hasnt? Give spe-
cific examples.
3 Describe a time when you worked with someone who
did things very differently from how you did them.
How did you get the job done?
3 What did you do in your last job to contribute toward
an environment of teamwork? Be specific.
But questions aloneeven great onesdo not make an inter-
view good! What does? The interviewers capacity for listening
effectively, avoiding quick judgments, accepting silences, and re-
maining objective.
Tom Morris of Morris Associates, Inc., reminds us:
Sometimes you have to guide the interviewee through
answering behavior-based questions, since they havent
been trained how to respond to them. One way to do this is
to ask an open-ended behavioral question at the outset, and
tell them how to respond: [Name], could you tell me about
something you did in your most recent position that you
were particularly proud of? Tell me the challenge you were
faced with and what steps you took how you did it, and
what the end result was.
As they give their example, guide them back through
the steps above so they learn the process while answering
so they know how to frame their responses to other behav-
ior-based questions you will ask.
Youve already established your standards for evaluating the
candidates; make sure your evaluation of them is an objective tool.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 40 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 41
Sample Applicant Evaluation Form
Applicants name:________________
Interviewer:________________
Position:________________
Date:________________
Technical skills Excellent Poor
[Criterion] 5 4 3 2 1
Comments:
Education Excellent Poor
Comments:
Work habits Excellent Poor
Comments:
Interpersonal skills Excellent Poor
Comments
B02 Ch 2.pmd 41 7/8/2008, 12:28 PM

Heres a suggested format for your interviews:
3 Set the tone. Make the candidate feel comfortable
and establish rapport.
3 Let the candidate know you will be asking questions
about his or her workplace behavior and taking notes,
and that he or she will have time to ask questions
after youve completed yours.
3 Ask your prepared behavioral interview questions.
Politely return to the original question if the candidates
answer is evasive. If the response is incomplete, ask
follow-up questions.
3 Describe the position and the company. (Dont describe
the position in detail before this point, because a sea-
soned interviewee will just parrot your words to show
you that he or she is the ideal candidate.)
3 Respond to the candidates questions.
3 Explain the next step in the process and the time line
for the employers decision. Never give an applicant
reason to believe that he or she is either a shoo-in or
already rejected.
3 Close the interview by asking, Is there anything else
you think we should know that we havent already
discussed?
3 Thank the applicant for his or her timeand remember,
every applicant is a potential customer or member.
Some organizations rely on pre-employment testing to evaluate

applicants skills and abilities. Before you conduct any test, check
with your firms labor attorney to ensure that every question is
work-related and non-discriminatory.
Main message for managers

Attracting and retaining skilled staff is one of your most impor-
tant strategic priorities.
B02 Ch 2.pmd 42 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Optimal Staffing 43
To make a successful hire, have a clear understanding of the
job, prepare targeted behavioral interview questions, and be a good
listener. Your job during the interview is to objectively assess the
applicant by describing the job and the work environment positively
and honestly, creating goodwill for your companywhether the
applicant is hired or not.
Once a candidate is hired, its time to celebrate, orient, and
assimilate the new staff member!
B02 Ch 2.pmd 43 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Bibliography
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Further Reading 243
Further Reading
Armstrong, Sharon, and Madelyn Appelbaum.

Stress-free Performance Appraisals, 1st ed. Franklin
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Bliss, Wendy. Legal, Effective References: How
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Branham, Leigh. The 7 Hidden Reasons Em-
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Buckingham, Marcus, and Curt Coffman. First,
Break All the Rules: What the Worlds Greatest
Managers Do Differently. New York: Simon and
Schuster, 1999.
Buckingham, Marcus, and Donald Clifton. Now,
Discover Your Strengths. New York: Simon and
Schuster, 2001.
243
C04 Further.pmd 243 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Burkholder, Nicholas, et al., On StaffingAdvice and Per-
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Career Press, 2007.
Collins, Jim. Good to Great. New York: Harper Business, 2001.
Daniels, Aubrey. Bringing Out the Best in People. New York:
McGraw-Hill, 1993.
Davis, Brian L., et al. The Successful Managers Handbook
Development Suggestions for Todays Managers. Minneapolis,
Minn.: Personnel Decisions International, 1992.
Drucker, Peter F. The Practice of Management. New York:
Harper Business, 1986.
Eppler, Mark. Management Mess-Ups57 Pitfalls You Can
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Career Press, 2005.
Fournies, Ferdinand F. Coaching. New York: McGraw-Hill,
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Kohn, Stephen E., and Vincent D. OConnell. Six Habits of
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Kouzes, James and Barry Posner. Leadership Challenge. San
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Kushel, Gerald. Reaching the Peak Performance Zone. New
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Levering, Robert. A Great Place to Work. New York: Harper
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C04 Further.pmd 244 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Further Reading 245
McKirchey, Karen. Powerful Performance Appraisals.
Franklin Lakes, N.J.: Career Press, 1998.
Miller, James, and Paul Brown. The Corporate Coach: How
to Build a Team of Loyal Customers and Happy Employees.
New York: Harper Business, 1994.
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Pfeffer, Jeffrey, and C. OReilly III. Hidden Value: How Great
Companies Achieve Extraordinary Results with Ordinary
People. Boston, Mass.: Harvard Business School Press, 2000.
Sember, Brette McWhorter, and Terrence J. Sember. The Es-
sential Supervisors Handbook. Franklin Lakes, N.J.: Career
Press, 2007.
Sirota, David., et al. The Enthusiastic EmployeeHow Com-
panies Profit by Giving Workers What They Want. Trenton, N.J.:
Wharton School Publishing, 2005.
Swan, William S. How to Do a Superior Performance Ap-
praisal. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 1991.
Wilson, Jerry. 151 Quick Ideas to Inspire Your Staff. Franklin
Lakes, N.J.: Career Press, 2007.
C04 Further.pmd 245 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

About the
Authors
SHARON ARMSTRONG began her career in human

resources in 1985 as a recruiter and trainer at a large
Manhattan law firm, where she was promoted to a
managerial role within six months. Following that
position, she was director of human resources at an-
other law firm and at three nonprofit associations in
Washington, D.C.
Since launching Sharon Armstrong and Associ-
ates in 1998, she has consulted with many large cor-
porations and small businesses. She has provided
training and completed HR projects for a wide vari-
ety of clients in the profit and nonprofit sectors as
well as in government.
Sharon received her BA cum laude from the
University of Southern Maine and her masters
254
C07 Authors.pmd 254 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

About the Authors 255
d egree in counseling from George Washington University. A certi-
fied Professional in Human Resources, she is a member of the
national Society for Human Resource Management and its local
chapter. She also serves on the Advisory Board of Disability Leave
and Absence Reporter, published monthly by the Bureau of Business
Practice.
Sharon is the coauthor of Stress-free Performance Appraisals:
Turn Your Most Painful Management Duty Into a Powerful
Motivational Tool and the tongue-in-jowl Heeling the Canine
Within: The Dogs Self-Help Companion.
BARBARA MITCHELL has more than 25 years of experience in

HR management and consulting, and is a principal and coowner of
The Millennium Group International, LLC, a Washington, D.C.based
consulting firm dedicated to building organizational capacity.
Much of her career has been in senior HR positions with Marriott
International, including staffing, employee relations, and employee
communications. She also served in senior leadership positions with
Eon Corporation and Human Genome Sciences, Inc.
A past president of the Employment Management Association,
a professional emphasis group of the Society for Human Resource
Management (SHRM), Barbara is also a past president of the
Personnel and Industrial Relations Association (PIRA) of Los
Angeles, the Leesburg/Greater Loudoun (VA) SHRM chapter, and
WTPF, the Forum for HR Professionals.
She is completing a book, Finders Keepers: A Back to Basics
Approach to Attracting and Retaining the Best, and she contrib-
uted to both On Staffing: Advice and Perspective from HR Leaders
and Cover Letters for Dummies. She recently served on the Society
for Human Resource Managements Special Expert Panel on
Consulting and Outsourcing. Barbara is also a frequent speaker on
topics related to recruitment, retention, generations at work, suc-
cession management, consulting, and human resources outsourcing.
C07 Authors.pmd 255 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

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Orientation and Onboarding 1

Armstrong and Mitchell have provided a comprehensive and concise

Armstrong and Mitchell have given us an excellent primer to educate our

As a HR practitioner of 26 years, I strongly recommend this book to all

As promised in their introduction, the authors of The Essential HR

This concise handbook gets to the heart of human resource man-

A00 Endorsements.pmd 2 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

I am confident that you will find The Essential HR Handbook, truly

HR is no longer trying to find a seat at the table. It has become an

Reading this extraordinary book, I asked myself how I have man-

Regardless of the business size or industry; profit, non-profit, or

A00 Endorsements.pmd 3 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

The Essential HR Handbook is really Human Resources made easy

A00 Endorsements.pmd 4 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

By Sharon Armstrong and

The Career Press, Inc.

All rights reserved under the Pan-American and International Copy-

THE ESSENTIAL HR HANDBOOK

The Career Press, Inc., 220 West Parkway, Unit 12

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Sharon Scott Armstrong

This book is dedicated to my parents, Anne and

A02 Dedi.pmd 7 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

A02 Dedi.pmd 8 6/30/2008, 12:38 PM

Chapter 1: Strategic Planning

Chapter 2: Optimal Staffing 27

Chapter 3: Orientation and Onboarding 44

Chapter 4: Training and Development 49

Chapter 5: Useful Performance Evaluations 62

A03 Contents.pmd 9 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Chapter 9: Legal Considerations 121

Chapter 10: Managing a Diverse Workforce 138

Chapter 11: Technology 148

Chapter 12: 21st-Century Workplace Challenges 159

Appendix: Additional Resources 180

Further Reading 243

About the Authors 254

A03 Contents.pmd 10 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Leading today is like being a first-time parent

A04 Intro.pmd 11 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

A04 Intro.pmd 12 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

A04 Intro.pmd 13 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

B01 Ch 1.pmd 15 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Developing a strategic plan

B01 Ch 1.pmd 16 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Crafting a mission statement

Elements of a Mission Statement

Mission statements should be succinct and easy for em-

B01 Ch 1.pmd 17 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

B01 Ch 1.pmd 18 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Putting your plan in motion

B01 Ch 1.pmd 19 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Linking HR planning to the strategic plan

B01 Ch 1.pmd 20 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Linking HR and the organization

B01 Ch 1.pmd 21 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

B01 Ch 1.pmd 22 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM

Main message for managers

B01 Ch 1.pmd 23 6/30/2008, 12:29 PM