The Changing Face of HR

What is Your ROEI, Return on Education Investment?

Should HR be a leader rather than a partner? As a leader and an employee advocate, HR increases employee commitment and productivity through communication, providing educational opportunities not only on work matters but also about finances, health and wealth matters that promote stability in families.

Productivity and Performance ~ Improving Business Results

HR functions provide core services such as compensation and benefits, employee relations, learning and development.  But doesn't it make sense to also focus on improving productivity of the workforce?  And doesn't that often start with finanical health and stability?

A productive and happy employee feels secure in their job and financially stable at home. Best performers are self-confident, are results oriented, can cope with uncertainty and change such as with the current economic market, and are taking action to have finanical stability at home. 

The problem is is that most of us were not taught how to handle finances or how to prioritize our money (cash flow).  Money management has been a big source of Americans troubles over the past 3 years.  Wouldn't it be nice to know that your employees have the opportunity to get the sound advice and direction?

Look ahead at what needs to be done. Be the leader for your team.  Help your employees get the right education, information, and direction they need to feel confident once again!

Society for Financial Awareness

More Job Loss, Increasing Uncertainty.... How Can You Help Your Employees?

In the news, Initial Jobless Claims increased more than expected, indicating ongoing weakness in the labor market. The ISM Manufacturing Index also came in slightly worse than expected.

Just yesterday one of our services providers closed their doors.  This is happening often under the radar more than we know.  How is this affecting your business?  Well for one, many employees are feeling concern about their job security because a companies finanical strength is not always completely known.  And even if the company that someone works for is secure, what if their service or parts providers go under?  Does this leave them hanging?

We often think of  financial distress as a family issue.  What if we think of the dollars at stake in financial hardship in a different context?  Think of it not as the costs imposed on a business by customers that don't pay but as the costs imposed on a business by employees who can't pay.

In 2003, Dorothy Bagwell and Jinhee Kim published Financial Stress, Health Status, and Absenteeism in Credit Counseling Clients. They report on an analysis that they conducted using a random sample of consumers who contacted credit counseling agencies. These consumers were asked questions about their financial stress, absenteeism, and demographic qualities. Bagwell and Kim perform a regression analysis that indicates that financial stress is strongly correlated with missed work days. The effect of financial stress was more profound than many other factors, including marital status, gender, age, household income, and even health.

The study's findings suggest that companies would improve their balance sheets by helping their employees with their balance sheets. Employee absenteeism has high economic costs; businesses interested in reducing such costs ought to consider whether they should be supporting legislation or programs that seek to reduce the incidence of financial stress.

Many companies offer Employee Assistance Programs; given that approximately 3 million households seek credit counseling annually, it would seem crucial that these programs have reliable resources to help employees with financial problems.

The Society for Financial Awareness offers these programs as a Free service to employers.  Lunch and Learn workshops are an excellent way to extend help to your employees especially in this time of need and uncertainty.  And you will FEEL great helping your employees feel secure about their future.