Employees are more likely to discuss workplace issues with their managers (61%) than with HR (48%). But are your people leaders comfortable addressing workplace issues and having difficult conversations with employees? In these situations, it’s not uncommon for managers to seek guidance from HR.
In our recent webinar, Empowering Managers to Handle Employee Issues, I sat down with Tory Niceswander, Head of Global Employee Relations at The Hershey Company, and Kelly Rew-Porter, Chief People Officer at Reformation, to discuss how ER and HR can support people leaders in taking control of employee issues and addressing problems in the moment.
Check out some of the highlights from our conversation below, but I also encourage you to listen to the recording to hear the invaluable insights firsthand.
1. The common challenges managers face when dealing with employee issues
Preparing managers to deal with employee issues independently takes work. But what are the typical challenges ER usually sees managers run into, and how can we course-correct them? Essentially, when do people leaders tend to tap on ER for help?
One of the biggest hurdles for managers is that they often need guidance on responding to employee issues. Because of this, managers may turn to ER before having a conversation with the employees themselves. “Oftentimes, [the challenge] is just pure articulation of what is happening,” said Kelly Rew-Porter. “They can describe what’s happening to ER, but have trouble thinking of the perfect thing to say.”
Managers genuinely want to do the right thing but are worried about messing up. “They are fearful they will say the wrong thing,” said Tory Niceswander.
Managers can use encouragement from HR to understand that you can be consistent and a rule follower, while also being kind. “They’re not mutually exclusive,” said Kelly.
If we can give managers the tools to be empathetic and consistent in their approach, that’s when they’ll thrive. Achieving this takes transparency and training, and the ability to document their conversations to capture key details and ensure issues are resolved. It is also crucial to reference this information not only to have a full picture of an employee’s history, but also to maintain consistency across the board and prevent risks in the event of a lawsuit.
As HR and ER leaders, it’s important to be there for your people managers, but give them tools that enable and empower them to show up, too. By helping managers communicate transparently and frequently, we can enable them to make more independent decisions and ensure employee issues are being heard (and addressed) right away.
2. Maintaining consistency in a distributed workforce
For ER or HR professionals in the retail and manufacturing industry, managing a diverse range of workers and managers across different locations can be challenging. Yes, consistency is important, but it’s also crucial to recognize when it’s appropriate to take an individualized approach to a situation. And in my opinion, this is what makes what we do in ER and HR so complex.
Generally, it’s better for managers to avoid applying a blanket solution to every situation. Each scenario is unique, and we need to remember to put the human and individual first and give every particular issue and scenario the full attention it deserves. “Don’t let bias from other times interfere because it looks or feels similar. It’s important to be present in what’s happening in this particular dynamic,” said Kelly.
But there are benefits to being consistent in delivering feedback, because that’s practice. Consistency allows people leaders to refine their management style and become more proactive instead of reactive.
3. Using data to inform how you work with managers
Data is an incredible resource to help both managers and HR refine processes and be more proactive in addressing employee issues. We discussed how data can be used to pinpoint trouble spots and which KPIs are useful for helping managers be more effective.
Some of the most effective data points for assisting managers include:
- Substantiation rates: Substantiation rates arguably tell the most comprehensive story about what’s going on in the organization, particularly if there is a hotspot with repeated issues. “It helps us dive in and see ‘what is the root cause?’ Tory said.” Then, you can see if there’s a training or development opportunity or anyone who repeatedly is involved in workplace issues.
- Pulse surveys: Pulse surveys can be conducted to look at manager behaviors and get a better picture of how employees feel/employee sentiment, so HR and ER can more clearly figure out where to steer managers in the right direction or provide support. But it’s important that before these surveys are done, your organization should be prepared to act on findings of the survey right away.
With comprehensive data, HR and managers can more effectively work together to address workplace challenges. Data is the key to making informed decisions and proactive problem solving.
To empower managers to lead with confidence and empathy, HR Acuity’s managER solution provides people leaders with tools to effectively handle employee issues. The solution includes built-in processes, documentation, support and analytics so managers can take action in the moment. If you want to see how HR Acuity helps our customers handle employee issues, schedule a curiosity tour today.
To listen to the webinar, Empowering Managers to Handle Employee Issues, view the webinar recording here.
