30 minute THRIVE

In this episode with James McDevitt, Vice President of Human Resources at MRA, we talk pre-boarding, onboarding, and orientation best practices! James shares real-life stories and advice from his 25+ year HR experience and proves his belief that a company’s most valuable assets are its people!

Listen to Discover:

1. According to the most recent Gallup Poll, about 1/3 of U.S. employees are engaged in their work and workplace. How can you increase this number?
2. Effective onboarding does not end on day 3 or day four. It's a continuous process. And this is where companies who succeed build cultures where personal development and continuous improvement is part of the culture.
3. The pre-boarding, onboarding, and orientation processes need to be individualized to the new hire, their role, their interests, and goals.

Let's Connect:

James' LinkedIn Profile

Transcript:

INTRO | 00;00;00;03 - 00;00;23;05

Hello, hello, everybody and welcome to 30 minute THRIVE, your go-to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA - The Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We’ll be the first to tell you what’s hot and what’s not. I’m your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you’re here. Now, it’s time to THRIVE!

Sophie Boler | 00;00;23;17 - 00;00;49;16

Well, with all the conversation around employee engagement and retention, we thought it would be a great idea to really tackle that topic today on our podcast and follow up to Jim Morgan’s episode last week on candidate experience. So according to the most recent Gallup Poll, about one-third of U.S. employees are engaged in their work at their workplace.

Sophie Boler | 00;00;49;16 - 00;01;17;01

And we’re talking a pretty low percentage. So one way that we can increase employee engagement from the very start is by really focusing on the employee experience with a strong onboarding program. And in fact, according to another study from TalentWise, 91 percent of employees stick around for at least a year when organizations have an efficient onboarding process, which is a pretty large percentage.

Sophie Boler | 00;01;17;14 - 00;01;49;29

So today I’m joined with James McDevitt. He’s our vice president of human resources here at MRA, and is an absolute pleasure to work with. But James comes with a ton of experience, having worked in HR for more than 25 years and really has a lot of operations experience working for both large and small companies. But while James has transformed human resource organizations into a strategic vehicle for growth, he really holds the belief that a company’s most valuable asset are their people.

Sophie Boler | 00;01;50;24 - 00;01;54;09

So welcome, James. Let’s talk onboarding process.

James McDevitt | 00;01;54;09 - 00;01;55;22

Thank you. Thank you for having me.

Sophie Boler | 00;01;56;00 - 00;02;07;24

Absolutely. But before we get to the actual onboarding talk, we should first talk about the preboarding stage. So do you have any suggestions for preboarding a brand-new employee?

James McDevitt | 00;02;07;25 - 00;02;32;15

Absolutely. And as you said, employees are the most valuable assets of any organization. Without the people, there is no product, no services, no nothing. So it’s really important that employers do everything they can to engage, to motivate, retain, and develop their employees. And as you suggested, that really starts even before they start. Pre-boarding is an important part of the process.

James McDevitt | 00;02;32;15 - 00;02;50;27

It’s often overlooked. And sometimes not a lot of thought goes into what happens before they start. But a lot of it happens after they start. So what tends to happen? People are not sure when they’re supposed to start. They’re not sure what the dress code is. They’re not sure of where they’re supposed to be. They turn up at the wrong location.

James McDevitt | 00;02;51;07 - 00;03;12;28

They turn up at the wrong time, and suddenly you’re off to a bad start. You really are. So I think it’s really important to put a process in place where you recognize the importance of pre-boarding. So for example, make sure you call and speak to the candidate now that you hire before they start. Make sure they know where they’re going.

James McDevitt | 00;03;12;29 - 00;03;30;08

Make sure they know what time they’re supposed to be there. Make sure they know what the dress code is, but also plan ahead. Have a backup. What happens if the person is supposed to call, who would ideally be the hiring manager as a really important step in building that relationship? But what if the hiring ...

JUST IN: The results are in for MRA’s 2022 Compensation Trends Survey, and expert Mike Kopczynski is here to give you answers! Does your organization need to re-think it’s compensation strategy? We’ll cover pay increase, compensation strategy, talent shortage, total rewards, and more.

Listen to Discover:

1. With the dynamic environment of the last two years, more and more companies are investing in a compensation strategy. What should be included in the strategy?
2. How employers can differentiate themselves and adapt quickly to the intense competition for labor
3. What makes MRA’s Compensation Trends Survey stand out – learn how we stay in tune with the current business trends

Bios:

Mike Kopczynski, Custom Surveys and Business Research Lead

Let's Connect:

Mike's LinkedIn Profile

Resources:

Are you an MRA member that participated in this year's Compensation Trends Survey?

The report can be viewed on the MRA Website through the user dashboard. If you participated in the report, simply log in to the website, head over to your user dashboard, and locate surveys on the grey bar! From there you will see your report under “View Survey Reports”.

Are you an MRA member but did not have a chance to participate in this year's Compensation Trends Survey?

The full report can be purchased for $545, with applicable sales tax. To do so, login to the website, head on over to your dashboard and locate surveys on the grey bar. Click on it and it will take you to the survey page, scroll down to Purchase Survey Results and follow the steps on screen for the report you wish to purchase.

Not a MRA member yet?

Access our executive summary This is a small portion of the survey that includes key information from MRA's Compensation Trends Survey.

Transcript:

INTRO | 00;00;00;03 - 00;00;23;03

Hello, hello everybody and welcome to 30 minute THRIVE, your go-to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA - The Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I’m your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you're here. Now, it’s time to thrive!

Sophie Boler | 00;00;23;17 - 00;00;55;14

Well, I'm excited to continue the Compensation Trends Survey series and really move into more of the results of the survey. So last week, Brittany went into the ins and outs of the production of the survey. But this week I'm joined with Mike Kopczynski, Customer Surveys and Business Research Lead here at MRA. And Mike has over 20 years of leading research teams and really plays a key role in the production of MRA surveys, which is awesome.

Sophie Boler | 00;00;55;27 - 00;01;11;09

And you actually just spoke at the Comp Trends event last week, which was great, and I know that went well, but really this week we want to go into the results of the survey. So welcome to the show, Mike. How are you doing today?

Mike Kopczynski | 00;01;11;10 - 00;01;25;08

Great, Sophie, thank you and yeah, thank you for having me on board. Last week was pretty intense. Yeah, it was fun to express the results. Inform members, obviously, of this year's challenges of this year's findings.

Sophie Boler | 00;01;25;09 - 00;01;25;29

Absolutely.

Mike Kopczynski | 00;01;26;09 - 00;01;26;25

Thanks for having me.

Sophie Boler | 00;01;26;29 - 00;01;40;13

For sure. Well, really, just want to start out by asking the main question that's on employer's minds right now, and that is what percent pay increase can employers expect based on the survey results?

Mike Kopczynski | 00;01;40;22 - 00;02;06;03

Yeah, it is typically asked in our survey, and one of the questions that we historically trendd is payment merit increases. And as you alluded to, 4.0% is this year's number. It's the highest incremental increase that we saw in 15 years as we've tracked the survey and many companies are using that to pin their number based on their merit increases on top of base pay.

Mike Kopczynski | 00;02;06;11 - 00;02;08;07

So 4.0% this year.

Sophie Boler | 00;02;08;21 - 00;02;28;24

And 4%, it's a lot. I mean, considering that past years have been 3%, but we've even heard this upcoming year that some companies are going as far as 4.7%, which is huge. So how can an employer really ...

Description:
Are you staying up-to-date in the recruiting world? We sit down with MRA Manager of Recruiting Services, Kathy Seidel, as she shares the top “7 Things You Wish You Knew About Innovative Recruiting!” From search engine optimization, to salary information sharing, to having a “hunting mentality”, Kathy covers it all.

Key Takeaways:

1. Search Engine Optimization is your best friend! Know the key words, and use them in your descriptions and postings!
2. Be transparent when recruiting! Share the important details of the job!
3. Sometimes you can get stuck doing the same recruiting process you’ve always done. Network with other recruiters inside and outside of your organization – They can help bring new ideas and solutions to your challenges!

Let's Connect:

Bio - Kathy Seidel

Kathy's LinkedIn Profile

Transcript:

Transcripts are computer generated -- not be 100% accurate word for word

INTRO | 00;00;00;03 - 00;00;23;05

Hello hello, everybody and welcome to 30 minute Thrive, your go-to podcast for anything and everything H.R., powered by MRA, the Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I'm your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you're here.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:27:01 - 00:00:50:11

Hello, everybody. I’m here with Kathy Seidel today. She’s our manager for recruiting services team and she really started as a recruiting business partner and made her way up to leading the team. So, she comes with a lot of knowledge and expertise in the recruiting world, but she’s actually come prepared today with the top seven things people need to know about recruiting in today’s market.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:50:18 - 00:01:01:13

So, we’re going to cover that today. You’ll be able to walk away with seven points by the end of the episode, but thanks for being on the podcast, Kathy. I’m excited to talk recruiting with you today.

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:01:13 - 00:01:03:03

Yes, thank you so much for having me.

Sophie Boler | 00:01:04:10 - 00:01:17:22

Absolutely! But before we get into your top seven things that people need to know about recruiting in today’s market, let’s talk a little more big-picture ideas. So, what are some trends that you’ve been seeing in the recruiting world?

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:18:15 - 00:01:45:23

Yeah, it’s definitely been really difficult to recruit for probably the last 2 years. But we are seeing things lighten up a little bit. We’re seeing less jobs posted. Unemployment numbers are still really low. So, there’s not a lot of candidates in the market. And so, we’re really seeing a shift from passive recruiting to that really active recruiting. So, you have to be okay with reaching out to people who aren’t applying to your jobs or targeting that perfect candidate.

Kathy Seidel | 00:01:46:10 - 00:02:00:18

And it’s a scary place for some people. You kind of feel like you’re stalking at times! And so how do you know where that line between being a professional, you know, doing what’s best for your company, but also doing what you’re comfortable with when you’re recruiting.

Sophie Boler | 00:02:01:18 - 00:02:12:14

So, what’s going to your top seven list right now? The first thing you mentioned was search engine optimization for posting. So, what can you say about that?

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:12:15 - 00:02:37:19

Yes, definitely. Even though it is a very you have to be active, you do still want to make sure your postings are getting in front of people. And the job boards like Indeed and LinkedIn have leaned towards search engine optimization so that you’re showing up with things like Google searches. So, you want to make sure that your job posting is, or your job title is in your posting five to seven times, which seems really weird when you’re writing it.

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:38:01 - 00:02:57:13

You quite literally want to say, “As a recruiting business partner with MRA, you will be doing...” and then have your bulleted list to be a recruiting business partner with MRA, you need to have. It feels really weird as you’re writing it, but when you read it back, and if you think in a candidate mindset, it’s fine and it works really well.

Kathy Seidel | 00:02:58:01 - 00:03:20:21

So, but that will help your job perform better than jobs that don’t have the title in there as often. In addition, as you’re f...

Description: In this special edition episode, we welcome Dr. Chris Kuehl, expert economist, on the show to touch on the 2023 economic outlook. He addresses what the key leading indicators are telling us, the outlook for the market segments most important to your industry, and what you should consider as you begin your 3, 5, and 7-year planning.

Key Takeaways:

1. We're moving more towards self-service and automation. We're looking for anything that can be done with a machine, even though it means more of an investment.
2. Much of inflation is driven by the fact that wages have gone up. Wages have gone up on average by around 6%. Part of the reason for that is mass retirement.
3. The number one way that companies are hiring now is by poaching each other. So you've got to protect your own staff from being poached.

Let's Connect:

chris.kuehl@armadaci.com

Chris' LinkedIn Profile

Transcript

Transcripts are computer generated -- not 100% accurate word-for-word.

INTRO | 00:00:00:02 - 00:00:23:03

Hello, hello, everybody, and welcome to 30 minute THRIVE, your go-to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA - The Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We'll be the first to tell you what's hot and what's not. I'm your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you're here. Now, it's time to thrive.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:26:00 - 00:00:53:14

Hello, everybody, and welcome to this episode of 30 minute THRIVE. Today is a special one because we're joined with Dr. Chris Kuehl. He's an expert economist and Director of Armada Corporate Intelligence. He's a frequent speaker on economic issues in the US and globally, and he's spoken at a bunch of different conferences devoted to manufacturing, logistics, finance, credit, retail, accounting, and many others.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:53:21 - 00:01:20:08

So overall, his specialties include corporate and competitive intelligence, strategy, development, international market analysis and market development, and economic trending. So, Chris, I know you just got done speaking at our fall-featured event on the 2023 Economic Outlook. So thank you so much for joining us today and taking the time to spend it with us and share your expertise and knowledge on this topic.

Sophie Boler | 00:01:20:08 - 00:01:28:20

But let's dive right in with the first question. So if there is one economic impact business leaders should be looking at, what is that one thing?

Chris Kuehl | 00:01:29:03 - 00:01:54:06

It's probably the percentage of concern over whether there will be a recession or not, because we're kind of on the edge of going either direction. We could go into a downturn, come next year or we can kind of avoid it. It's going to depend a lot on how the consumer handles their extra savings. They've still got about $3.5, $3.6 trillion in excess savings, which they could spend this year.

Chris Kuehl | 00:01:54:17 - 00:02:14:13

If they do, then we basically spend our way out of the recession. If they don't, and they hang on to it for next year because they're worried about next year, then we could see more of a downturn. So really, it comes down to how realistic is the notion of a serious downturn; how bad is inflation going to be or continue to be?

Chris Kuehl | 00:02:14:23 - 00:02:19:09

And then from the audience that you've crushed, like, what does this mean to employment?

Sophie Boler | 00:02:19:16 - 00:02:33:14

Absolutely. And kind of switching gears a little bit, we know that we lost 21 million workers last year due to retirement. So how is this and the labor shortage just in general really affecting the economy?

Chris Kuehl | 00:02:33:15 - 00:02:50:13

Hugely. I mean, if you look at what's going on with inflation right now, a lot of it is driven by the fact that wages have gone up. Wages have gone up on average around 6 percent. Part of the reason for that is that you've had that mass retirement. You have a lot fewer workers in the system than we used to.

Chris Kuehl | 00:02:50:13 - 00:03:13:04

The baby boomer kind of protected us from that for a while because the boomer was reluctant to retire. But now they are. And we hit retirement at the rate of about 10,000 a day. So it's taken a toll. The workers never had more leverage. Anybody in HR is well aware of that now. They're asking for more money; they're asking for better benefits.

Chris Kuehl | 00:03:13:04 - 00:03:23:22

They want more flexible schedules. All of that becomes a challenge. And then you just look at the impact from...

Susan Fronk, President and CEO of MRA - The Management Association dives into the history of MRA and its mission of helping businesses thrive. Fronk opens up into her personal and professional background, the greatest business challenges heading into the year, the benefits of 30 Minute THRIVE, and more.

Listen to Discover:

1. Over the past 38 years that Susan has been with MRA, she has seen a lot of changes. Main changes include: complexity and regulations HR professionals need to be aware of
2. Good leaders paint a vivid picture of the future, make sure there isn’t uncertainty, and communicate clearly
3. Key business concerns: Comp trends, talent acquisition, talent retention (consider lowering your turnover and becoming that employer of choice. Provide what employers and employees need and you have fewer spots to fill! Employee retention may be even more important than talent acquisition

Bios:

Susan Fronk, President & CEO | MRA - The Management Association

Resources:

For more information on MRA, visit www.mranet.org

Transcript:

Intro | 00:00:00:01 - 00:00:23:02

Hello, hello everybody, and welcome to 30 minute THRIVE—your go-to podcast for anything and everything HR, powered by MRA - The Management Association. Looking to stay on top of the ever-changing world of HR? MRA has got you covered. We’ll be the first to tell you what’s hot and what’s not. I’m your host, Sophie Boler, and we are so glad you’re here. Now it’s time to THRIVE.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:23:13 - 00:00:31:14

I am joined with Susan Fronk, president and CEO of MRA. Good morning, Susan. It’s great to have you on.

Susan Fronk | 00:00:31:17 - 00:00:33:13

And it’s great to be here. I’m looking forward to it.

Sophie Boler | 00:00:33:13 - 00:00:41:18

Good. Me, too. Well, as we dive in, I thought it would be a good start to start at your journey here at MRA. So how long have you been here?

Susan Fronk | 00:00:42:01 - 00:01:07:09

Well, I’ve been at MRA most of my professional life, and I hurried through college, was fortunate to be hired by a large manufacturer—2,200 employees, five plants, three bargaining units, 74 general foremen. They were all men at the time, and I was the factory employment supervisor, so I had a lot of on-the-job training. I worked for great bosses.

Susan Fronk | 00:01:07:17 - 00:01:27:05

That doesn’t always mean friendly bosses, or the nicest bosses. They were bosses who expect a lot out of me and gave me a lot of feedback so that I could do my job and be the best that I could be in human resources. So that was a really exciting time. And, you know, I learned to love manufacturing and I still do to this day.

Susan Fronk | 00:01:27:07 - 00:01:43:15

I love seeing what our members do and I really honored and respected the people that I hired into the plant and the people that I supported with human resource services. It was a great foundation for then moving to MRA.

Sophie Boler | 00:01:43:21 - 00:01:48:02

Absolutely. And you’ve been here for 38 years. That’s pretty impressive.

Susan Fronk | 00:01:48:08 - 00:01:53:02

I don’t want to ask how old you are. And before you were born, I’m pretty sure.

Sophie Boler | 00:01:53:03 - 00:01:59:17

Thirty-eight years is very impressive. So I would like to know what you started out as, at MRA; what role were you in?

Susan Fronk | 00:01:59:20 - 00:02:21:05

Well, it’s kind of funny, actually, because I was employee 16 and I was the “labor guy.” That was what I was hired to do. I was labor guy and I had just a few years of experience. So when I came on board, I was on the Human Resource Hotline, which is one of our most favorite and valued member benefits still today.

Susan Fronk | 00:02:21:15 - 00:02:46:20

I wrote content for our publications. I stepped into the classroom to do HR training. So, much less specialized and much more of a generalist. And I kind of loved that—it played to my strengths and I got to do a little bit of everything. But as labor guy, which was not on my business cards, but that’s what I was, I worked with a lot of our members, primarily manufacturing.

Susan Fronk | 00:02:47:06 - 00:02:55:06

If they had employee relations issues or specifically labor issues, I was the go-to and I loved that.

Sophie Boler | 00:02:55:12 - 00:03:08:14

Right. Like you said, it’s pretty inspiring that you’ve got to experience each component that makes up MRA. So you’ve been here for 38 years, like we said. So you’ve seen the ins and outs of the organization.

Susan Fronk | 00:03:08:16 - 00:03:09:02

I have.

Sophie Boler | 00:03:09:05 - 00:03:14:07

What is the biggest change that you’ve seen in HR since y...