Hiring and Training Multi Dimensional Staff

Transcription

1 Hiring and Training Multi Dimensional Staff By: Julene Franki ALI ABA Pamela J. Jester Continuing Education of the Bar California Presented at: ACLEA 48 th Mid Year Meeting January 28 31, 2012 New Orleans, LA

2 Julene Franki ALI ABA Philadelphia, PA Julene Franki is a graduate of the University of Texas School of Law and has been a member of the bar since She was in private practice until 1987, when she began her career at the State Bar of Texas. After serving as a program director and director of new projects, she was named Director of the Professional Development Program in February In 2004, she received the Gene Cavin Award for excellence in continuing legal education. In July 2005, Ms. Franki was named Executive Director of American Institute American Bar Association Continuing Professional Education (ALI ABA). She is a member of the American Law Institute. Pamela J. Jester Continuing Education of the Bar California Oakland, CA Pamela J. Jester is Executive Director of Continuing Education of the Bar California. She has been involved in legal publishing at CEB since 1981 when she began working as a research attorney in the Estate Planning Book Department. She moved into management in 1992 as manager of the Book Department and, later, the Product Development Department. From 1997 through 2002, she was the Co Director of CEB. An active member of the State Bar of California, she has served as President of California Women Lawyers, co chair of the State Bar of California Committee on Women in the Law, and, in 2006, President of the Alameda County Bar Association. CEB s publications, in print and in electronic form, include over 100 books, 50 Action Guides and five Reporters; CEB presents about 60 programs each year at an average of seven locations each.

3 Hiring and Training Multi-Dimensional Staff Julene Franki Executive Director, American Law Institute American Bar Association (ALI-ABA) Getting the right people on your staff is more critical than ever for a successful organization. Jim Collins, author of the bestseller Good To Great calls it getting the right people on the bus. Finding staff with the technological skills, emotional intelligence, work ethic and creativity needed to do the people-centric business of CLE is difficult. Motivating, training, energizing and keeping them interested once you hire them is a challenge that is faced by the smallest business and Fortune 500 companies. Looking at the concepts that are being used by large companies to grow and keep good staff is a good idea. Many of these ideas are being used by the large law firms that CLE faculty and authors work in. If we take some of these ideas and work them into living strategic plans we ensure that our governing boards agree with the use of resources to enrich our staff. We also need to identify staff members who will ensure that our goals are carried out into the day-to-day functions of hiring, training and evaluating staff. Finally, understand what your compensation strategy is, especially if you are counting on the non-monetary aspects to win the day in recruiting talent. Talent Management Talent Management is a concept that began to develop in the 1990s and is now used in many firms, especially law firms, where it is tied to the development of competencies. Other concepts associated with talent management are performance management, succession planning, systems integration and leadership development. The term war for talent is a common one that we read about in the literature related to these concepts. A book that I picked up a few years ago is the Talent Management Handbook, Creating Organizational Excellence by Identifying, Developing and Promoting Your Best People edited by Lance and Dorothy Berger. In summary, they identify three strategies for managing human resources: 1) identifying, selecting and keeping the very top 3-5% of your staff; 2) finding, developing and positioning highly qualified backups for key positions; and 3) allocating resources to employees based on their actual/or potential contribution to organizational excellence. These strategies involve tools for identifying the core competencies of organizations, identifying staff performance criteria related to these competencies and analyzing, evaluating, hiring and promoting all employees based on these tools. There is software that can be purchased to support this process. Very few, if any, CLE organizations have the resources to embark on this process fully. Good managers have long instinctively done these things in some form or another. No matter how well you think that you are doing in developing your staff, working toward a systematic approach will go a long way to ensuring that the organization stays on track.

4 Strategic Plan Even if your organization is a small one or a department in a larger organization it is a good idea to have a strategic plan. ACLEA has presented a number of sessions on strategic planning that can assist in devising a strategic plan. The best strategic plans are put together with staff and key board members or other stakeholders so that staff and volunteer leaders are aligned on what is important and where to expend resources. Staff is the largest share of the expense budget and most valuable resource of most organizations. Because of this it deserves a prominent place in the strategic plan. It is here that the plan for managing this resource and the action items associated with it should be set out. Of the eight strategic priorities of ALI-ABA, two are included in the staff and board working group Strengthen Staff and Maximize Potential. (Attachment A) Coming up with core values was the first step. Although values and competencies are not the same thing, our values statement represents characteristics we want to foster as an organization. In order to get all levels of staff involved we, unlike many organizations, got a first draft from a staff committee drawn from all levels of the organization. It was then reviewed and revised by the staff and board members who are part of the working group. Some of the values were easy ones for us, but others difficult to come to a consensus about. Getting the core values into job descriptions is a way of making sure that you are hiring or promoting individuals with characteristics that advance the organization s overall goals. Another way of getting these values into the DNA of the organization is to include them in the evaluations of all staff (Attachment B) Included in the strategic plan are our training goals, including cross-training. This ensures that training opportunities will not be forgotten in the budgeting process and sets out that technology training, which supports many of our core values is specifically identified and set as a goal. We utilize online training program resources as well as inperson training suited to staff needs. We also conduct in-house training. One of the most difficult parts of implementing new software, whether developed by staff programmers or purchased, is getting staff fully trained. Yet if staff isn t properly trained, the money expended on these technological resources is wasted. We also enshrine in the strategic plan the goal of being open to and encouraging staff involvement in the change process. Without this sort of structure it is difficult to stay focused on getting the right people with the right characteristics in all parts of the organization. Even with a plan it is a challenge not to get lost in the weeds of individual jobs instead of looking for staff members who have multi-dimensional talents and characteristics. 2

5 Our working groups (board and staff) meet at least once or twice a year to review and tweak this plan so that it is a living document and the changes are reported out at board meetings. Future changes that have been discussed for this working group include the development of organizational and individual staff competencies and performance measures based on those competencies. Meaningfully tying the strategic plan to staff performance measures is a challenge for all organizations, but getting them into an evolving document will be one step toward making them a reality. Human Resources Support Making the goal of staff development part of the organization s strategic plan helps get leadership, both volunteer and staff, on board and on the same page. Making it part of board committees and board meetings keeps it on the front burner. But, how do you carry it out day-to-day? If you are in a stand alone organization and have an HR Director, this is easier, especially if you have a talented and energetic professional involved as ALI-ABA does. The HR Director ideally will work closely with the executive team to help execute the goals of the strategic plan that relate to hiring, training and supporting staff. Our HR Director is the staff coordinator who works with the board chair of the working group that deals with these issues. She is very much involved with the creation of the action items and of making sure that they get implemented. The HR professional can get the core values and other strategic goals incorporated into job descriptions, interviews, orientations, and evaluations which are the daily stuff of that department. They will help you get core values posters created and placed around the organization. They can help you look for opportunities for cross-training and creating cross-departmental projects that will help you get to a staff that has multiple dimensions, is flexible and can be deployed to different parts of the organization as needed. I am sure that many CLE organizations either don t have an HR department or are part of a larger organization which has an HR department that has its own agenda. As department head you should be in tune with the goals of the larger organization; however, you can put your own stamp on your employee development even if HR doesn t report to you. Some Directors of CLE are the best people to implement employee development. Some interview everyone hired in the organization, do all the evaluations, and are engaged in the day-to-day management of all the staff. It could be that there is someone on your staff, maybe your assistant or another individual who could serve as your department or organization s staff go-to person. You can task that person with the job and it might be done even better than you would do it. Someone should make sure that all job descriptions, interview questions, evaluation forms and orientation documentation are reviewed to include reference to the values and goals of the organization. Compensation: 3

6 How important is salary in compensation? The role of money in retaining and attracting employees is the subject of controversy. Some say that the pay needs only to be fair and competitive. A key issue for CLE providers is that they will likely lose a salary competition if that is the potential employee s main concern. Many are not-for-profit organizations without the ability to compete against for-profit companies in the monetary aspects of compensation. Others are part of larger organizations which dictate the perimeters of pay they can offer potential or current employees. There are many other things that CLE organizations may be able to offer that others may not: 1) Work environment: Encourage esprit de corps wherever you can. Build teams that are energized and feel they contribute to the successes in the organization. A sense of humor is a critical part of an attractive work place. Praise and encouragement are should be part of every manager s toolkit. 2) Mission: Don t overlook the intangible benefits of working in a business that has an educational mission that contributes to the ultimate goal of justice. People leave the for-profit world all the time to be a part of something more meaningful. 3) Challenges: The CLE business is one filled with many exciting challenges and opportunities to develop skills for those who want to be a part of the changing world of technology, law, communication, marketing, and managing volunteers. 4) Opportunities for control : Many people are looking for places where they can exercise some form of control over the decisions that impact their work, their environment, and the direction of the organization. Look for ways to give people the opportunity to be part of creating and running programs, developing marketing, giving input to and design of products, websites, and other major projects. The product will be better and the people will have greater buy-in. 5) Flexible schedules: If your organization can give people flex time and telecommuting opportunities this can be a plus. 6) Whether or not you are a not-for-profit, can you offer less stress than the large for-profit sector? Can you be more family friendly, and emphasize a family-type environment? 7) Benefits: Compare the benefits offered by your company with those offered by other businesses. Your vacation time, sick leave, health care, retirement plans may be better than small businesses you are competing with. Understand that benefits are a factor. Know all the non-monetary reasons someone would work for your company and try to develop others. Summary Clearly understanding the characteristics of employees, and indeed, of the organization you want to foster will help you to make this part of your strategy to hire, promote and retain individuals with those qualities. Evaluate all HR tools, such as job descriptions, evaluations, interview questions, and orientation documentation to make sure that these 4

7 characteristics are wound throughout. Make training part of your strategy and budget. And have a strategy for compensation. Ultimately, hiring and training a multi-dimensional staff will come down to planning and working through your plan. If you are not the right person to do it, get some help. Your staff is your organization s most important resource and they are worth the time you put into them. 5

8 Attachment A WORKING GROUP D: Strengthen Staff and Maximize Potential (Formerly, Develop Human Capital) Board Members: Staff Members: Strategic Goals (Includes 2006 Strategic Priorities 6 & 7) 1. Continue the ongoing commitment to supporting and increasing diversity Action Items: Continue to build pool of diverse* volunteers. Continue ongoing efforts to identify diverse attorneys with specialties in the areas of our programs, with the goal of obtaining commitments to participate and placement of interested individuals as authors or speakers. Explore collaborative relationships with the law schools, law firms, governmental units, and bar associations that have undertaken to evaluate and implement the recommendations of the ABA s Presidential Diversity Initiative to coordinate resources in the identification of diverse candidates for ALI-ABA programs and products. Explore collaborative relationships with firms that have consistently achieved high Diversity Scorecard rankings for the purpose of coordinating resources in the identification of diverse candidates for ALI- ABA programs and products. Explore collaborative relationships with relevant ABA Commissions (Mental Health and Physical Disability; Sexual Orientation; Women in the Profession; Racial and Ethnic Diversity) for the purposes of remaining abreast of cutting edge diversity concepts and coordinating resources in the identification of diverse candidates for ALI-ABA programs and products. Target additional outreach to specialty affinity groups and bar associations to gain insight on emerging diversity issues and to identify diverse candidates for ALI-ABA programs and products Institute an internship program for diverse law students Promote the ALI-ABA Scholarship Program as a means of assisting diverse lawyers and law students to participate in our programs. Continue to seek diverse contributors for articles and publications 6

9 Strongly encourage diverse staff members to post for open positions and/or refer qualified diverse candidates. *Includes, but is not limited to, racial, ethnic and gender diversity Post open positions on diversity websites Encourage departments that contract with vendors to be mindful of including and building diverse relationships whenever possible. Obtain current list of diverse vendors Coordinate with strategic priority working group B on their CLE collaborative efforts to capitalize on any diversity opportunities. Track other CLE organizations to determine best practices Critical Success Indicators Successfully establish the collaborative relationships outlined in the Action Items, above. At least one diverse attorney will intern with us each summer. Our scholarships to diverse attorneys will increase by at least 10%. Diverse vendors will be contacted at least annually with opportunities to do business with us. Be able to identify best practices with regard to what works and results that can reasonably be expected. 2. Make the identified core values a touchstone for staff and Board. Action Items: Thread core values throughout job descriptions. Ensure core values are displayed and within easy access to all staff members. Critical Success Indicators: Staff members will be able to see how their jobs relate to the organization s core values The majority of staff members and Board members will be able to cite at least 4 out of our 7 core values from memory. 3. Cultivate a culture wherein organizational structure changes occur organically. Action Items: Continue to create an open environment where new ideas are welcome Encourage staff members to think globally as far as how what they are doing relates to what other staff members and departments are doing Provide positive feedback to those suggesting changes and/or volunteering for new projects 7

10 Critical Success Indicator: Staff members will have a creative response to change opportunities because they will be aware of the reasons and benefits for change in this dynamic environment. Update as of January 2011: 4. Expand cross-training and capitalize on skills learned. Action Items: Encourage and motivate staff to seek new opportunities and build skill sets within their department and as well as other departments. Make opportunities for those new skills to be used on a recurring basis to ensure newly-acquired skills are not lost Set up specific and regular trainings sessions, especially in the technology area Encourage more cross-departmental projects Critical Success Indicators: At least 50% of staff members will have been trained (or re-trained) on at least one new computer program or function All staff members will have had the opportunity to attend at least two onsite training sessions each year. At least 10% of the staff will be trained in the basics of a job other than their own and will have had the opportunity to work in another department, ideally one day a month. ALI-ABA Strategic Plan 2010 ALI-ABA s Core Values Integrity Uphold the legal profession s standards. Commitment Premium education for the nation s attorneys and practitioners. Leadership Take the forefront for providing quality continuing legal education. Innovation Always seek cutting-edge opportunities. Excellence Provide the best services and products. Nimbleness Respond with flexibility and adaptability to seize opportunities. Diversity Value inclusiveness in all aspects of our organization. 8

11 Attachment B Performance Review Addendum ALI-ABA Core Values How they relate to the employee holding the position of: Integrity: Commitment: Leadership: Innovation:. Excellence: Nimbleness: Diversity: 9