Basic Guide to Staffing and Supervision

Written by Carter McNamara, MBA, PhD, Authenticity Consulting, LLC. Copyright 1997-2008.
Adapted from the Field Guide to Leadership and Supervision.

Description

This booklet provides basic guidelines for practices in staffing and supervision. The guide is basic in nature, yet comprehensive, so it will be useful to new supervisors. Each section includes World Wide Web addresses to additional information (addresses are included in the text). Therefore, the reader might best benefit from this guide by printing it out for continued reference. Sources of additional information are listed at the end of this guidebook, as well.

Table of Contents

Introduction -- Scope of this Guidebook
Defining the New Job Role (including job descriptions)
Hiring to Fill the New Role (including interviewing and job offers)
Orienting New Employees
Foundation for Effective Supervision (basic communications)
Effective Delegation
Guidelines for Ongoing Performance Management
Basics of Regular Performance Reviews
Firing Employees
About Personnel Policies
Developing Personnel Policies and Manual
Samples and Lists of Personnel Policies
Additional Resources

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Introduction -- Scope of this Guidebook

Small organizations typically do not have the resources necessary to carry out all of the formal practices suggested by personnel management experts. However, there are certain basic activities in which 20% of effort generates 80% of needed results. Therefore, the reader might benefit most from printing this guidebook and referring to it as needed.

Note that the following supervisory practices should be described in the organization's personnel policies, and ideally for
a) review by an experienced personnel consultant,
b) review and authorization by the board (if the organization has a board of directors), and
c) review by the organization's management to ensure conformance to the practices.

Note that if management's behaviors do not conform to the personnel policies, courts will consider the related policies to be superseded by the behaviors.

Note that the following guidelines may not be applicable to situations governed by union rules or other contractual agreements. (See Policies (Personnel) at http://www.managementhelp.org/policies/policies.htm

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Defining the New Job Role

1. Recognize the need for the new role
Often, managers realize the need for a new organizational role when employees continue to report being short-handed and mention the same tasks are not being done. Ideally, planning for a new role is done during strategic planning or when a new product or service is added to the organization. (See Workforce Planning at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/planning/planning.htm.)

2. Draft a job description
At that time, management should draft a job description which specifies the general responsibilities of the position along with some of the specific duties to be conducted by the role, the title for the position, and any special skills, training or credentials required. (Do not seek job descriptions from other organizations and merely adopt those. Your open position is unique and job descriptions are very important so you should develop your own -- the process of completing the job description is usually enlightening.) Note which job activities are essential and which are non-essential. Add whom the position reports to and note if the position is full-time or part-time. Consider if the position requires any special physical skills (this may be important when considering accommodations to candidates with physical disabilities and effects from the Americans with Disabilities Act). If the position must be filled by a paid employee (see the next paragraph to consider if a volunteer or consultant is more appropriate), consider if the position is exempt or non-exempt (exempt from being paid overtime). Usually, highly skilled and/or professional roles are exempt, while entry-level positions are non-exempt and will be paid for over-time. Invite staff to review and edit the drafted job description. Consider including a six-month probationary period for the new position and if you do so, be sure to update your personnel policies to describe your organization's use of the probationary conditions. A probationary period allows you to fire an employee during the six months if you have concerns and greatly decreases the chances you will be sued for wrongful termination. (See Specifying Jobs, Roles and Competencies, at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/specify/specify.htm)

3. Would a volunteer (in the case of nonprofits) or consultant be appropriate?
At this point, consider if the new position might be filled by a volunteer or consultant. If the activities associated with the role are highly critical for an extended duration, e.g., over six months, and require both critical and general skills, you may be better off to count on hiring an employee. On the other hand, if the role's activities are entry-level and if you are not sure that the position is really needed for the long term, consider getting volunteers to fill the role. If the role requires highly skilled personnel for a fixed duration, consider hiring a consultant. (See Hiring a Consultant at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/outsrcng/consult/consult.htm and Volunteer Programs at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/outsrcng/volnteer/volnteer.htm)

4. Determine the approximate cost of the new role
Estimate the salary range for the new position. Set this range by talking to other organizations with similar product or services, or by scanning classified sections of newspapers with ads for similar roles. Finalize how much the position will cost the organization by adding "fringe" to the salary. For planning purposes, fringe might be estimated at 40% of the salary. Fringe includes costs of benefits planned for the new role, including health and dental and life insurance, and retirement benefits, along with required unemployment taxes, worker's compensation and any pension plans. Note that, depending on the state in which you live, you may be required to required to pay certain employment taxes for part-time people, often if they are at or over half-time. (You should develop a compensation program, with policies that outline the procedure for determination of salary and benefits. (See Benefits and Compensation at http://www.managementhelp.org/pay_ben/pay_ben.htm) Additional costs of the position result from training, equipment, rental of space, postage, copying, etc.

5. Get feedback and authorization from the board (in the case of corporations)
Propose the new position to the board by attaching a proposal letter to the drafted job description along with description of how the position will be funded and sending it to all board members for their review before the next board meeting. At the board meeting, invite open discussion and questions about the new role.

6. Finalize the job description
Update the job description with relevant feedback from the boar (in the case of corporations). It's important that the job description be as accurate as possible because it is the basis for determining initial compensation, conveying the role to the new employee and conducting regular performance appraisals. Be sure to note the version of the job description by including the date on the bottom. The job description should be reviewed and updated annually, usually by the employee and supervisor during the performance review cycle (described later on in this section). See Job Descriptions at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/specify/job_desc/job_desc.htm)

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Hiring to Fill the New Role

1. Advertise the position
Post ads in classified sections of local major newspapers. In the ads, include the job title, general responsibilities, minimum skills and/or education required, whom they should send a resume to if they are interested and by when. Consider having a closing date after which you won't accept resumes. Mention the role to clients or customers. Send cover letters and job descriptions to professional organizations. Be sure to mention the role to all staff to see if they have any favorite candidates. (See Advertising for Employees at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/recruit/advrtzng/advrtzng.htm)

2. (Note that current employees should be able to apply for the job.
Considerations in hiring them for the new role will have to include the impact on the organization if the employee leaves behind a critical and unfilled role in the organization. Some organizations may elect to give internal candidates the first shot at the job.)

3. Screen resumes
When screening resumes, note the candidate's career objective -- or the lack of it. If not specified, the candidate may not have considered what they want to do in the future, which may impact their commit to your new role. Note if they stayed at jobs long or did they leave quickly. Are there holes in their work history? Note their education and training. Is it appropriate for the new role? Consider what capabilities and skills might be evidenced in their past and current work activities. If you have lots of resumes, it helps greatly to enter in a word processor, the "highlights" and "concerns" information about each candidate; otherwise, after about 10 resumes, they all look the same. Having information online helps you keep perspective and you can go back later and have a strong overview of the candidates. Consider routing resumes past key staff members to collect their rankings. Interview all candidates that meet the minimum qualifications. (At this point, be sure that you're not excluding candidates because of unfair biases.) (See Screening Applicants at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/screeng/screeng.htm)

4. Interview candidates
Send the job description to candidates before they come to the interview meeting. While interviewing candidates, always apply the same questions to all candidates to ensure fairness. All questions should be in regard to performing the duties of the job. Ask about their compensation needs and expected or needed benefits. Attempt to ask open-ended questions, i.e., avoid "yes-no" questions. Talk for at most 25% of the time -- for the rest, listen. Don't rely on your memory -- ask permission from the interviewee to take notes. Find out when they can start if offered the job. Consider having multiple people at the interview; although this can be intimidating to the interviewee, this practice can ensure them a much more objective and fair presentation. Have the same people as interviewers in all of the interviews. Consider asking some challenging, open-ended questions, such as What skills do you bring to this job?, What concerns do you have about filling this role?, What was your biggest challenge in a past job and how did you meet it? Don't ask questions about race, nationality, age, gender, disabilities (current or previous), marital status, spouses, children and their care, criminal records or credit records. Have all interviewers share/record their impressions of the candidate right after the interview meeting. Explain to the candidate that you'll be getting back to them soon, and always do this. Ask if you can get and check any references. Always check references and share them with the interviewers. Be sure to tell candidates of any relevant personnel policies terms, such as probationary periods. (The best way to deal with a poor performer is not to hire him or her in the first place. It is often wise to have a probationary period of, e.g., six months, wherein if the employee does not meet the responsibilities of the position, you can terminate the employee.) If practical, look into the applicant's background to ascertain if they have a criminal record. (See Interviewing Job Candidates at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/screeng/intrvwng/intrvwng.htm)

5. Select the candidate
Usually, this is not as easy as one would like because two or three candidates come in close. Have a highly focused meeting with all interviewers. Have each suggest their favorite candidate. If there is disagreement, focus discussion to identify the one or two areas in which interviewers disagree about the candidates. Then have each interviewer explain their impressions. At this point, interviewers usually come to consensus and agree on one candidate. (See Screening Applicants at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/screeng/screeng.htm)

6. If there does not seem to be suitable candidate
Consider if the job requirements are too stringent or are an odd mix. For example, you might not find someone who's highly interested in a certain technical skill or service and who also shows strong interest in general skills, such as supervision. Reconfigure the job so that required skills and training are somewhat similar and the role becomes more standard. Or, consider hiring the candidate who came in closest and plan for dedicated training to bring their skills to the needed levels. Or, re-advertise the position. Consider getting advice from a human resources professional (at this point, your need for them is quite specific, so they might provide services on a pro bono basis). Or, consider hiring a consultant on a short-term basis, but only as a last resort as this may be quite expensive. (See Workforce Planning at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/planning/planning.htm)

7. If everyone turns down the job
The best strategy is to ask the candidates why they turned the job down. Usually, you'll hear the same concerns, e.g., the pay is too low or the benefits incomplete, the organization seems confused about what it wants from the role, the interview process seemed hostile or contentious, etc. Reconvene the interviewers and consider what you heard from the candidates. Recognize what went wrong and correct the problem. Call back your favorite candidates, admit the mistake and what you did, and why you'd like to make an offer to them again.

8. Offer letter
If they accept an offer, always follow-up with an offer letter, specifying the compensation, benefits, and starting date and reference an attached job description. Ask them to sign a copy of the offer letter and return it to you. (See Job Offers at http://www.managementhelp.org/staffing/selectng/job_offr/job_offr.htm)

9. Start a personnel file
Include in the file, the signed offer letter, tax withholding forms, the job description and any benefits forms. (See Personnel Records at http://www.managementhelp.org/policies/prsn_rec/prsn_rec.htm)

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Orienting New Employees

Develop an employee orientation checklist and consider the following activities for inclusion on the list. The following activities should be conducted by the employee's supervisor. (The following Web address will guide you through this orientation -- see Employee Orientation at http://www.managementhelp.org/trng_dev/orientng/orientng.htm)

1. Before the employee begins employment, send them a letter welcoming them
to the organization, verifying their starting date and providing them a copy of the employee policies and procedures manual. Note that you'll dedicate time for them to review the manual later.

2. When the employee begins employment, meet with them
to explain how they will be trained, introduce them to staff, give them keys, get them to sign any needed benefit and tax forms, explain the time-recording system (if applicable), and provide them copies of important documents (an organization chart, last year's final report, the strategic plan, this year's budget, and the employee's policies and procedure manual if they did not get one already).

3. Show them the facilities,
including layout of offices, bathrooms, storage areas, kitchen use, copy and fax systems, computer configuration and procedures, telephone usage, and any special billing procedures for use of office systems.

4. Schedule any needed computer training,
including use of passwords, overview of software and documentation, location and use of peripherals, and where to go to get questions answered.

5. Review any policies and/or procedures about use of facilities.

6. Assign a staff member to them as their "buddy"
who remains available to answer any questions.

7. Take them to lunch on the first day
and invite other staff members along.

8. Meet with them at the end of the day
to hear any questions or comments.

9. Meet with the new employee during the first few days
of employment to review the job description again. Remind them to review the employee manual and sign a form indicating they have reviewed the manual and will comply with its contents. Review any specific goals for the position, e.g., goals from the strategic plan. In the same meeting, explain the performance review procedure and provide them a copy of the performance review document.

10. Have one-on-one meetings with the new employee on a weekly basis for the first six weeks,
to discuss the new employee's transition into the organization, get status on work activities, hear any pending issues or needs, and establish a working relationship with their supervisor.

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Basic Communications -- Foundation for Effective Supervision

Supervision is often considered to include designing the job, hiring someone to fill the job, training them, delegating to them, guiding them via performance reviews, helping them develop their career, noting performance issues, and firing them, if needed. Obviously small organizations may not be able to afford full attention to all of these activities.

However, there are several basic and regular activities which provide a solid foundation for effective supervision. These basics ensure that everyone is working together -- as important, that staff feel they are working together -- towards a common cause.

Ironically, these basics are usually the first activities that stop when an organization is in a crisis. Consequently, an organization development specialist, when "diagnosing" an organization, often first looks to see if these basics are underway. The following activities should be conducted by the new employer's supervisor.

The following Library topics provide more information:
Communications (Interpersonal) at http://www.managementhelp.org/commskls/cmm_face.htm
Meeting Management at http://www.managementhelp.org/grp_skll/meetings/meetings.htm

1. Have all employees provide weekly written status reports to their supervisors.
Include what tasks were done last week, what tasks are planned next week, any pending issues and date the report. These reports may seem a tedious task, but they're precious in ensuring that employee and their supervisor have mutual understanding of what is going on, and the reports come in very handy for planning purposes. They also make otherwise harried staff and managers stand back and reflect on what they're doing.

2. Hold monthly meetings with all staff together
Review the overall condition of the organization and review recent successes. Consider conducting "in service" training where employees take turns describing their roles to the rest of the staff. For clarity, focus and morale, be sure to use agendas and ensure follow-up minutes. Consider bringing in a client or customer to tell their story of how the organization helped them. These meetings go a long way toward building a feeling of teamwork among staff.

3. Hold weekly or biweekly meetings with all staff together if the organization is small (e.g., under 10 people); otherwise, with all managers together.
Have these meetings even if there is not a specific problem to solve -- just make them shorter. (Holding meetings only when there are problems to solve cultivates a crisis-oriented environment where managers believe their only job is to solve problems.) Use these meetings for each person to briefly give an overview of what they are doing that week. Facilitate the meetings to support exchange of ideas and questions. Again, for clarity, focus and morale, be sure to use agendas, take minutes and ensure follow-up minutes. Have each person bring their calendar to ensure scheduling of future meetings accommodates each person's calendar.

4. Have supervisors meet with their direct reports in one-on-one meetings every month - This ultimately produces more efficient time management and supervision. Review overall status of work activities, hear how it's going with both the supervisor and the employee, exchange feedback and questions about current programs and services, and discuss career planning, etc. Consider these meetings as interim meetings between the more formal, yearly performance review meetings.

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Effective Delegation

(Information at the following Web address will help you in this section -- Delegation at http://www.managementhelp.org/guiding/delegate/delegate.htm)

The hallmark of good supervision is effective delegation. Delegation is when supervisors give responsibility and authority to subordinates to complete a task. Effective delegation develops people who are ultimately more fulfilled and productive. Managers become more fulfilled and productive themselves as they learn to count on their staffs and are freed up to attend to more strategic issues.

Delegation is often very difficult for new supervisors, particularly if they have had to scramble to start the organization or start a major new service themselves. Many managers want to remain comfortable, making the same decisions they have always made. They believe they can do a better job themselves. They don't want to risk losing any of their power and stature (ironically, they do lose these if they don't learn to delegate effectively). Often, they don't want to risk giving authority to subordinates in case they fail and impair the organization.

However, there are basic approaches to delegation that, with practice, become the backbone of effective supervision and development. Thomas R. Horton, in Delegation and Team Building: No Solo Acts Please (Management Review, September 1992, pp. 58-61) suggests the following general steps to accomplish delegation:

1. Delegate the whole task to one person.
This gives the person the responsibility and increases their motivation.

2. Select the right person.
Assess the skills and capabilities of subordinates and assign the task to the most appropriate one.

3. Clearly specify your preferred results.
Give information on what, why, when, who, where and how. Write this information down.

4. Delegate responsibility and authority -- assign the task, not the method to accomplish it. Let the subordinate complete the task in the manner they choose, as long as the results are what the supervisor specifies. Let the employee have strong input as to the completion date of the project. Note that you may not even know how to complete the task yourself -- this is often the case with higher levels of management.

5. Ask the employee to summarize back to you, their impressions of the project and the results you prefer.

6. Get ongoing non-intrusive feedback about progress on the project.
This is a good reason to continue to get weekly, written status reports from all direct reports. Reports should cover what they did last week, plan to do next week and any potential issues. Regular staff meetings provide this ongoing feedback, as well.

7. Maintain open lines of communication.
Don't hover over the subordinate, but sense what they're doing and support their checking in with you along the way.

8. If you're not satisfied with the progress, don't take the project back.
Continue to work with the employee and ensure they perceive the project as their responsibility.

9. Evaluate and reward performance.
Evaluate results, not methods. Address insufficient performance and reward successes (including the manager's). See the next section, "Guidelines for Ongoing Performance Management."

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Guidelines for Ongoing Performance Management

(The following Library topics will give you additional information -- see Employee Performance Management at http://www.managementhelp.org/trng_dev/orientng/orientng.htm)

(Note that if your organization's policies about performance management indicate a specific procedure for handling performance issues, that procedure should be followed very carefully. Otherwise, a court may interpret your official policies to be modified by how you actually handled a performance issue and you may lose protection from your related policies in court.)

1. Performance issues should always be based on behaviors that you see, not on characteristics of the employee's personality.

2. Convey performance issues to employees when you see first see the issues!
Don't wait until the performance review! Worse yet, don't ignore the behaviors in case they "go away."

3. When you first convey a performance issue to an employee, say what you noticed and would like to see instead.
Be specific about what you saw that you have a problem with. Ask the employee for feedback. Ask the employee if there's any special training or more resources they need to do their job. Explore if the job is configured so that must people would probably fail, and so the job needs to be redesigned. Tell them that you want the behavior to improve. If they react strongly and claim they will quit, give them a day to think it over. In any case, remind them that you support them in their role.

4. Consider special circumstances.
You can usually fire someone if they committed certain gross acts, such as theft, blatant insubordination, a major impropriety, e.g., telling information to competitors or spreading confidential information about clients or customers, etc. However, if there is poor performance or chronic absenteeism because of potential verified alcoholism or depression, it's best to consult an expert to deal with this situation.)

5. Make notes about the first meeting and its results, and keep it in a file for yourself. You might mention the situation to your board (in the case of corporations).
This note may come in handy later on if the performance problem persists. The board will likely be a precious and objective asset to dealing with this situation, especially if things with the employee get worse.

6. If the problem occurs again over the next two months, immediately issue them a written warning. Also, update the board (in the case of corporations).
In the memo, clearly specify what you saw, mention the previous meeting and its date, say the behaviors have not improved, warn them that if this occurs again over some period (e.g., the next month), they will be promptly terminated. Meet with them to provide them the memo. If you are convinced that the employee is trying hard, but can't improve, consider placing him or her elsewhere in the organization. Attempt to have this meeting on other than on a Friday. Otherwise, employees are left to ruminate about the situation without ready access to you for at least three days.

7. On the third occurrence, consider firing the employee. (See below.)>

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Basics of Regular Performance Reviews

(The following Library topic will give you additional information -- see Employee Performance Management at http://www.managementhelp.org/trng_dev/orientng/orientng.htm)

Yearly performance reviews are critical. Organization's are hard pressed to find good reasons why they can't dedicate an hour-long meeting once a year to ensure the mutual needs of the employee and organization are being met. Performance reviews help supervisors feel more honest in their relationships with their subordinates and feel better about themselves in their supervisoral roles. Subordinates are assured clear understanding of what's expected from them, their own personal strengths and areas for development and a solid sense of their relationship with their supervisor. Avoiding performance issues ultimately decreases morale, decreases credibility of management, decreases the organization's overall effectiveness and wastes more of management's time to do what isn't being done properly. Conduct the following activities.

1. Design a legally valid performance review process; consider these legal requirements of the performance review process:
Patricia King, in her book, Performance Planning and Appraisal, states that the law requires that performance appraisals be: job-related and valid; based on a thorough analysis of the job; standardized for all employees; not biased against any race, color, sex, religion, or nationality; and performed by people who have adequate knowledge of the person or job. Be sure to build in the process, a route for recourse if an employee feels he or she has been dealt with unfairly in an appraisal process, e.g., that the employee can go to his or her supervisor's supervisor. The process should be clearly described in a personnel policy.

2. Design a standard form for performance appraisals,
and include the name of the employee, date the performance form was completed, dates specifying the time interval over which the employee is being evaluated, performance dimensions (include responsibilities from the job description, any assigned goals from the strategic plan, along with needed skills, such as communications, administration, etc.), a rating system (e.g., poor, average, good, excellent), space for commentary for each dimension, a final section for overall commentary, a final section for action plans to address improvements, and lines for signatures of the supervisor and employee. Signatures may either specify that the employee accepts the appraisal or has seen it, depending on wording on the form.

3. Schedule the first performance review for six months after the employee starts employment.
Schedule another six months later, and then every year on the employee's anniversary date.

4. Initiate the performance review.
Tell the employee that you're initiating a scheduled performance review. Remind them of what's involved in the process. Schedule a meeting about two weeks out.

5. Have the employee suggest any updates to the job description and provide written input to the appraisal.
Have them record their input concurrent to the your recording theirs. Have them record their input on their own sheets (their feedback will be combined on the official form later on in the process). You and the employee can exchange each of your written feedback in the upcoming review meeting. (Note that by now, employees should have received the job descriptions and goals well in advance of the review, i.e., a year before. The employee should also be familiar with the performance appraisal procedure and form.)

6. Record your input to the appraisal -- always reference the job description and associated formal goals for basis of review.
Be sure you are familiar with the job requirements and have sufficient contact with the employee to be making valid judgments. Don't comment on the employee's race, sex, religion, nationality, or a handicap or veteran status. Record major accomplishments, exhibited strengths and weaknesses according to the dimensions on the appraisal form, and suggest actions and training or development to improve performance. Use examples of behaviors wherever you can in the appraisal to help avoid counting on hearsay. Always address behaviors, not characteristics of personalities. The best way to follow this guideline is to consider what you saw with your eyes. Be sure to address only the behaviors of that employee, rather than behaviors of other employees.

7. Hold the performance appraisal meeting.
State the meeting's goals of exchanging feedback and coming to action plans, where necessary. In the meeting, let the employee speak first and give their input. Respond with your own input. Then discuss areas where you disagree. Attempt to avoid defensiveness; admitting how you feel at the present time, helps a great deal. Discuss behaviors, not personalities. Avoid final terms such as "always," "never," etc. Encourage participation and be supportive. Come to terms on actions, where possible. Try to end the meeting on a positive note.

8. Update and finalize the performance appraisal form.
Add agreed-to commentary on to the form. Note that if the employee wants to add attach written input to the final form, he or she should be able to do so. The supervisor signs the form and asks the employee to sign it. The form and its action plans are reviewed every few months, usually during one-on-one meetings with the employee.

9. Note that if the supervisor has been doing a good job supervising, then nothing should be surprising to the employee during the appraisal.
Any performance issues should have been conveyed when they occurred, so nothing should be a surprise in the review meeting.

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Firing Employees

(Additional materials regarding the firing of employees can be found in the Library topic Firing Employees at http://www.managementhelp.org/emp_perf/prf_issu/firing/firing.htm.)

1. You should consider firing the employee only if you have:
a) given the employee clear indication of what you originally expected from him or her (via a written job description previously provided to the him or her);
b) have clearly written personnel policies which specify conditions and directions about firing employees and the employee initialized a copy of the policy handbook to verify that he or she had read the policies;
c) warned the employee in successive and dated memos which clearly described degrading performance over a specified time despite your specific and recorded offers of assistance and any training (the number of memos depends on the nature of the problem, but should be no more than three or four); and
d) you clearly observe the employee still having the performance problem. (Note that if the employee is being fired within a probationary period specified in your personnel policies, you may not have to meet all of the above conditions.)

2. Take a day or so to consider what you are about to do.
Consult with members of your board (in the case of corporations).

3. If you still decide to fire the employee, do so promptly,
both for your credibility with other staff members and so as not begin procrastinating about this rather painful, upcoming event.

4. Write a letter of termination to the employee.
As with the previous letters of warning, be clear about the observed behaviors, when you saw them, earlier warnings and their consequences, what you did in response, and the consequence that must now be enacted according to your policies.

5. Tell the computer system administrator to change the employee's password,
and assert that this action should be done promptly and in complete confidence.

6. Meet with the employee. Provide them the letter. Explain how the termination will occur,
including when, what they must do, what you request from them and when. Ask for any keys. Give them a half hour or so to remove personal items (you may choose to monitor them during this removal, depending on the nature of the grounds for dismissal). Consider changing the door locks to the facilities. Change the passwords on phone systems, if applicable.

7. As with other meetings, make notes of what was said and exchanged.
Keep them in your records.

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Developing Personnel Policies and Manual

(Additional materials regarding personnel policies and employee handbooks can be found in the Library topic Personnel, Policies and Records Management at http://www.managementhelp.org/policies/policies.htm.)

Developing Policies

From review of the above personnel management information, it's clear that there are numerous considerations and potential areas for litigation when dealing with personnel issues. There are numerous rules and regulations which regulate the nature of the relationship between an employee and his or her organization, e.g., about affirmative action, managing personnel files, employee retirement, rights of privacy, discrimination and harassment, wrongful termination, etc. Consequently, it's better to have thought out these potentially controversial situations before they occur and establish guidelines by which they might or will be addressed. These general guidelines are called policies. Specific activities resulting from the guidelines are often called procedures.

Each organization should carefully consider what policies it requires and how they should worded. Many organizations begin developing their personnel policies by reviewing policies from other organizations. This is fine as long the organization carefully reviews each policy, modifies them according to the nature and needs of the organization and has all policies approved by the board (in the case of corporations).

Therefore, note that the online information referenced from these Web pages and the associated examples should be considered as guidance, rather than as policies to be adopted as is for any organization. When developing policies, always use a lawyer who's well versed in federal, state and local laws regarding employment practices, e.g., the Employee Law -- Civil Rights Act of 1964, Americans with Disabilities Act of 1992, and Occupational Safety and Health Acts.

Consider setting aside a half day per year for employees to review the policies and procedures to ensure they are up-to-date. Any recommended changes should be discussed with and approved by the board (in the case of corporations).

Developing an Employee Manual

Document all intended policies and procedures and collect them in a policies and procedures manual. Having all policies and procedures in a manual facilitates training about them to all employees. All employees should have read the manual to understand and accept its contents. They should sign a form indicating so, and provide the signed form to the organization's administrator.

All supervisors should be trained about the policies and procedures. A large number of suits brought against organizations is because, although the organizations had clear policies, supervisors did not enact the policies because they did not understand them. Note that courts may consider policies and procedures as superseded by the actual behaviors displayed by supervisors.

The board (in the case of corporations) should authorize all policies in the manual and every employee should receive a copy of the manual.

Each policy should include wording to the effect that the policies are for general guidance in the relationships between staff and the agency, the board (in the case of corporations) has authorized the policy, that policies can be changed at any time and that the policies do not constitute a contract between the organization and the employee. Consider the following wording on the cover of your policies manual:

"Nothing contained in or implied by this manual creates or shall be deemed to create or constitute a contractual obligation to employees on the part (of the organization). The policies, procedures and guidelines contained in this manual are subject to change at any time, do not confer any obligation (on the part of the organization) and do not create any right to employment on the part (of the organization)."

(return to top of document if desired)

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Samples and Lists of Personnel Policies

(Additional materials regarding personnel policies and employee handbooks can be found in the Library topic Personnel, Policies and Records Management at http://www.managementhelp.org/policies/policies.htm.)

The following list is intended to portray the range of policies that might exist in an organization. It is likely that an organization will not have or need all of these policies. Many of these policies are available in the Minnesota AIDS Project Supervisor's Manual, available from the University of St. Thomas at (612) 962-4300.

Work Schedule

Work day hours
Lunch periods
Holidays
Vacation
Sick Time
Personal Leave
Leave of Absence
Severe Weather
Jury Duty

Hiring Procedures

Americans With Disabilities Act
Interviewing job candidates
Checking references
Offering employment

New Employee and Internal Orientation

New employee orientation -- general information
Agency-wide new employee orientation
Intern orientation
New employee and internal orientation checklist

Compensation

Paydays
Overtime and compensation time
Classifying employees as exempt or non-exempt
Salary ranges
Positioning pay within a salary range
Maintaining competitive salary information
Reclassifying positions
Salary review policy
Promotional increases
Withholding salary increase due to performance
Withholding salary increase due to leave of absence

Payroll Information & Timekeeping Procedures

Payroll information -- General
Payroll information -- Direct deposit procedures
Payroll information -- Required and voluntary payroll deductions
Timekeeping -- General discussion of non-exempt and exempt employee classifications
Supervisor's signature

Benefits

Eligibility and general information
Types of available benefits
Medical insurance
Dental insurance
Disability insurance
Supervisory communication
Life insurance
Confidentiality note
Retirement plan
Social security
Employee advisory resource

Workers' Compensation Information and Procedures

When there is an injury or accident on the job
What is covered under Workers' Compensation
Type of injury covered by Worker's Compensation Insurance
Medical expenses resulting from a work-related injury
Resources available

Performance Assessment Procedures

Performance assessment cycle
Performance assessment process
Dealing with performance issues
Discipline: when the positive approach does not work
Separation from employment checklist
Communications by the supervisor regarding personnel issues
COBRA (Consolidated Budget Reconciliation Act)
Leave-taking procedures

Financial Management

Budget management
Capital expenditures
Supervisor's responsibilities in maintaining the budget
Operating management
Financial reporting

Supplementary Information

Discrimination or sexual harassment complaints
Complaints regarding MAP programs or staff

Data Practices

Policy
Procedures
Definitions
Security of Records
External releases
Internal releases
Use of data
Legal procedures
Destruction of records
Staff access

Duty to Warn

Purpose
Definitions
Procedure to follow in duty to warn situations
Mandated reporters
Immunity

Vulnerable Adults

Purpose
Definitions
Procedure to follow in vulnerable adult situations
Identify of the reporter
Mandated reporter
Immunity
Liability for not reporting

Child Protection Reporting

Purpose
Conditions of abuse and neglect
Procedure to follow regarding child protection reports
Mandated reporters
Immunity
Failure to report
Disposition of report
Client or customer records
Reporting of prenatal exposure to controlled substances

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For the Category of Supervision:

Related Library Topics

Recommended Books

For Supervising Yourself, See
Personal Development -- Related Books

For Developing Individuals, See
Training and Development -- Recommended Books

For Supervising Teams, See
Facilitation and Teams -- Related Books

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General Information About Supervising Other Individuals

The following books are recommended because of their highly practical nature and often because they include a wide range of information about this Library topic. To get more information about each book, just hover your cursor over the image of the book. A "bubble" of information will be displayed. You can click on the title of the book in that bubble to get more information, too.

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Also See

Human Resources -- Recommended Books

Leadership -- Recommended Books

Management -- Recommended Books

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