SWEATING THE SMALL STUFF

In the last few weeks I have been engaged to assist resolve particular issues arising within different small businesses.

In the first case, the owner took on a manager who within three months had caused a series of complaints alleging sexual harassment. Upon further investigation, it was found that the manager had not disclosed a previous conviction for related offences.

In the second case, the owner employed a new bookkeeper who managed to steal over $25k within two months. Further investigation revealed a series of debts arising from a long period of unemployment.

In the third case, the owner had employed an experienced operator who had claimed various certificates and levels of experience which were subsequently found to be inaccurate.

In the fourth case, a senior employee failed to carry out certain instructions, the result of which was that the business lost significant revenue.

In each case the employee left their employment and the business suffered significantly as a result of what took place. The examples only serve to highlight the importance of good procedures for recruitment and managing the business.

It is particularly important to undertake a rigorous selection process – no matter how urgent it is to take someone on, or how much you rely on ‘gut instinct’ always take the time for interviews, reference checks and confirmation of previous employment.

All roles should have at least some written document setting out areas of responsibility, if not an actual job description. Day to day performance and key areas of the work should be regularly reviewed to ensure there are no emerging issues.

The cost of not taking preventative action could prove more costly in the long run.

ENTERPRISE MIGRATION AGREEMENTS – THE NEW BATTLEGROUND

The furore surrounding the approval of the first Enterprise Migration Agreement is to be expected – it is actually something the Gillard Government said it would introduce.

Much of the debate really centres around the issue of whether Australian workers are displaced by the use of EMA’s.

It needs to be understood that Australia has operated a visa system for a number of years. From time to time, Governments amend the rules for business migration to meet specific needs in the economy. The new EMA process merely reflects a more effective means of applying what was a often a complicated and time consuming process to the realities of large scale multi-billion dollar projects.

The reality of course is that such projects are owned by very wealthy individuals or very profitable companies – it really would not have mattered whose EMA was approved first, it would still have been subject to considerable opposition.

What is also clear is that we do need a much more effective system for ensuring that there is no displacement of Australian workers.

Companies which seek to have an EMA must be able to demonstrate that they processed ALL applications from Australian residents who seek work on the same projects. It seems somewhat anachronistic that a company able to develop state of the art extraction and mining processes, cannot process applications in a timely manner. If companies are unable to do this then perhaps Government will need to intervene to establish a better system.

Those seeking EMA’s need to be very clear as the commitment being made to ongoing training to meet future skill needs. This is a requirement for EMA approval and is likely to be the area where Government scrutiny will need to be particularly vigilant.

Recent history suggests that the Government has failed to maintain the standards across industry that are required and it is this focus which will continue to play out in the political arena.

LEADERSHIP AND THE COMFORT ZONE

By Ron Jones
HR Management & Workplace Relations Consultant

I have often wondered how we should prepare those we expect to take on leadership roles in our organisations.

There are many leadership programs in place and a considerable amount of money is spent developing and implementing the right program for the organisation concerned.

It often seems that the only people who get access to such programs are those already in positions of senior management or those on some ‘fast-track’ program for high achievers. Of course, many of these individuals will have been chosen because of their inherent capacity to already meet some of the challenges of their positions. The expectation therefore is that they will rise to the occasion when the organisation needs them to take on a change management exercise, or manage a restructure, or some other significant event.

We also expect that our managers can develop much of their leadership capability through a particular program: that somehow they might acquire the competencies necessary for leading by example, modelling the way or something similar.

My personal view, from reading much of the literature on leadership and from hearing of the personal experiences of those we admire as leaders, is that leadership characteristics are typically highlighted through the behaviour which is exhibited when those persons are forced to act outside of their comfort zone. I cannot think of anyone who I would describe or characterise as a leader because of their behaviour in doing what is normally within their day-to-day sphere of comfort. If you think about the circumstances in which we describe the role of those who have ‘stepped up’, it is always set in a context of the unknown.

Our traditional method of selecting people for senior roles where leadership is required is to choose those who have performed well in what they already do. It is little wonder that many of them fail to deliver the inspirational leadership required of them.

This suggests to me that HR practitioners within organisations have to look for alternative ways of identifying the leadership potential within their organisations.

One area to explore is the development of various experiences which are specifically designed to take managers out of their comfort zone and provide challenges directly linked to key leadership competencies.

For example, a structured program of work providing volunteer assistance within a disability service organisation or assisting the long term unemployed might be specific ways in which potential leaders can be confronted through being taken out of their comfort zone. Being responsible for delivering a particular project within such an agency will provide challenges that directly relate to many of the competencies in any leadership profile and allow for a more effective means of assessing future leadership potential.

HR practitioners need to think outside their own comfort zone to provide more effective leadership solutions for their organisations.

This article was written for Human Resources iQ.