Another day brings me another tranche of social media posts from HR Consultancies offering to keep employers out of tribunals. 

 

Is that really all HR is? Your secret weapon for getting rid of problem employees without falling foul of the law? 

 

I have to be honest, HR that just focuses on avoiding the bad stuff makes makes me really sad. And it makes me angry too, and very frustrated with some of my profession. And I feel frustrated for employers who feel they are just going round the same hamster wheel, recruiting the wrong people, managing them ineffectively, and then deciding enough is enough and dismissing people. 

 

HR should be delivering your business so much more than just keeping you out of trouble. 

What makes the difference between a workplace you want to stay in, and a workplace you can’t wait to leave? 

 

You might think that money and perks can make a bad job bearable, but most motivation theories tell us that financial benefits are only a short-term motivator. 

Several times in recent weeks line managers have told me that, in their experience, young people today lack the skills and attitudes necessary to join the workforce, with communication, teamwork and planning being top of the list of “missing” skills. Somehow, the “youth of today” seem less motivated to work, and less work ready, than previous generations. 

 

These conversations came back to me last week as our local secondary school celebrated the Year 11 Prom. 

1. Having too many rules about how employees should behave. 

Particularly the rules that no-one can remember the reason for introducing, the rules that no-one enforces, and the rules that contradict other rules. It’s important to set out expected standards of behaviour, but these need to be reasonable, justifiable and not only accepted, but also rigorously enforced by every manager in the organisation. 

If I could suggest to you a few changes to the way your organisation operates which would 

 

a) cost you very little money - and may save you a fortune 

b) be likely to improve productivity and the quality of your products or service 

c) lead to employees using their initiative to solve more problems themselves, and 

d) reduce absence levels, and the chances (and expense) of your best employees leaving... 

If you’ve recruited recently, you’re probably not in a hurry to do so again anytime soon! How many other business activities are as time-consuming, expensive, and angst-filled? (Will they fit in? Will they be any good? Will they stay?). Holding on to good staff is vital, but as the number of jobs advertised across the UK increases, how confident are you that you will be able to retain your best employees? 

Have you been thinking about engagement this February? How motivated and engaged are your team right now? How many of your employees do you think have made a New Year’s resolution to change jobs in 2015? Who would you hope is on that list - and who do you hope is not?