2024 Top Five HR Best Practices

Over the past 10 years our firm has conducted thousands of interviews and conversations with prospective candidates and employees about what they are looking for in an employer and work environment. Some of these conversations were part of our executive search or recruitment process, while others occurred as part of our check-in with new hires or exit interview process.? We have also gained valuable insight from managers, supervisors, and peers who provided feedback about candidates as part of our reference checking process for clients.? We reviewed the data we collected over the years and found some common themes and best practices for improving employee engagement, retention and efficiency.? Below are the top 5 human resource business practices that made the list:

?#1:? Clear Job Descriptions and Performance Expectations

?This is where it all begins – having a clear vision of why the position exists, how it fits with the organization’s needs and contributes to its success, and what the role looks like when it is performed well. Job descriptions serve as a road map for employees and help them understand what they are supposed to do, how to do it, and how the role they play can help the company achieve its goals.? Clear and well-defined job descriptions focus on more than just the knowledge, skills and abilities needed for the job, they describe the characteristics and behaviors needed for someone to be successful in your unique organization and work environment. Once the “what” and “how” are defined for the job, performance standards and expectations can be created to help employees understand how success will be measured.??

#2:? Planned Interview and Selection Process?

A well-defined job description is the foundation for helping hiring managers develop interview questions that will determine if a potential candidate has the right technical skills to perform the job.? However, technical skills are just one part of the process, understanding how an employee will be able to perform and effectively utilize their skills in your unique work environment is the other piece of the puzzle. Using behavior-based interview questions as part of the interview process can help an employer understand how an individual performed a specific skill or task in the past and if the same or similar approach will have the desired outcome in your organization.? Research has also shown that mission and value alignment between employee and employer is another contributing factor for success.? Part of the interview process should be designed to get an understanding of why the individual is interested in your specific organization and how their passion and career aspirations connect with your mission and vision. A good best practice is to develop a successful candidate profile and potential career paths for the role.? This will help the prospective candidate, as well as the employer see if there is an alignment with how the employee wants to grow and develop in their career and opportunities that exist within the organization or what it could potentially look like in the future.? It’s important to remember that the interview process is a two-way street.? Both parties are ultimately trying to determine if each of their needs and interests can be met.?

#3:? Strong Onboarding and Acclimation Process?

The onboarding process begins once the employee accepts the position.? Studies have shown that an effective onboarding process for new employees can boost retention by over 50%.? Employers who want to retain top talent and make sure employees have a positive experience will benefit from having a strong onboarding process for their new hires as well as employees who transition into new roles. Yes, it takes time and preparation to create a robust onboarding process, but once in place may only require minimal tweaks. What should be part of the onboarding and acclimation process?? Well, aside from the typical new hire paperwork (tax forms, benefits enrollment, handbook acknowledgment, etc.) and technical aspects such as ID badges, passwords and supplies, it involves helping the employee understand how the company works, the culture, values and organizational structure.? There is also a social aspect to onboarding, which is introducing the new employee to the team and helping them to foster positive connections early on.? During the onboarding process, frequent communication and check-ins are essential for helping the employee understand how they are progressing in their new role, how you can support them and any additional training they may need to successfully perform their job.? For more onboarding tips, check out our EJ Insights article at New Hire On-Boarding — EllisJordan Consulting .

?#4:? Open and Effective Communication?

One of the most common reasons for misunderstandings and conflict in the workplace is ineffective communication. Effective communication is essential for establishing and managing performance expectations, building relationships and trust, and maximizing employee engagement. When communication is open, it encourages ideas, solutions, and people feeling valued.? Employees want to feel heard, understood – and, more importantly, that they have someone they can talk to when they have a problem – and not just talk to but truly listen.? Ineffective or lack of communication is often the root cause of many employee relations issues.? Some examples include lack of clarity around expectations, desired outcomes or priorities, or inconsistency with communication and feedback.? Employees generally want to know how they are doing and how they can be successful.? Manager accessibility, open-door policies, scheduled check-ins with employees, in-person conversations, and active listening are great strategies for fostering effective communication.?

#5: ?Investing in Employees – Providing Training and Professional Development Opportunities

The hiring of a new team member is an employer investment, but it's also an investment an employee is making in their new employer.? Employees often see their employment with an organization as an opportunity to develop and acquire new skills and advance their careers.? Providing opportunities for employees to attend training sessions, conferences and education workshops are great professional development opportunities.? Additionally, companies that provide training and professional development are more attractive to candidates, increase the likelihood of retaining talent and have a more productive workforce. There are a lot of advantages to growing and developing talent from within for employers.? Employees who have been with an organization for years possess institutional knowledge and typically have an established track record, which makes investing in their growth a win-win for the employer and employee.? The employee has an opportunity to advance their career and grow with the organization and the organization retains valuable institutional knowledge and reduces the cost and risk of paying for an unknown outside quantity. Building talent depth and bench strength is also a great succession planning tool.? Learning is an innate part of our human nature. Companies that invest in their employees and create opportunities for them to learn and grow also tend to have a more agile and engaged workforce - which translates into a competitive business advantage.

While there are a lot of great HR best practices, these are the ones that we hear time and time again from employees, employment references, candidates and during exit interviews. Which leads us to our bonus HR best practice:? Conducting Stay and Exit Interviews.? The benefit of having conversations with employees who have been with your organization for a long time is priceless! If you want to know what you are doing well or how you can improve as an organization – ask them.? If you want to know what motivates them to come to work or why they stay with your company – ask them.? These are proactive conversations you can have with employees who like their job, enjoy working at your organization and genuinely want to make it a great place to work.? Stay interviews are an excellent way to keep your pulse on employees and morale.? Exit interviews are a gift – they are a way of getting voluntary feedback from employees before they leave your organization.? I am not referring to a survey sent to an employee to complete or a meeting with a separating employee to discuss their final pay or benefits continuation.? I am referring to a scheduled meeting with the separating employee conducted with human resources before their last day of employment.? This is a meeting (and a gift) to learn why they are leaving and what your organization can learn from their choice to leave.? It is a gift because these conversations are typically with an employee who is voluntarily leaving, has provided proper notice, is leaving on good terms – and has agreed to participate in the feedback process.? Exit interviews can help you identify patterns, training opportunities, or concerns that need to be addressed. Remember, not all employees are leaving because something is wrong.? Sometimes there are personal reasons or factors outside of the employers’ control for their departure. ?Regardless of the separation reason, these are valuable conversations that provide you with an opportunity to learn what you are doing really well and how you can continue to advance your organization.? Stay interviews and exit interviews are proactive strategies that can allow you to get ahead of things, make changes before they become a problem in the workplace, or help you to keep moving in the right direction.? Remember to take advantage of these gifts!