These Companies Needed a Fresh Perspective
on HR Challenges & Now Their Problems Are Solved

The following case studies will underscore some of the basic principles of human resources that allow Regan HR to design human resource systems that build organizations – including yours!

Case Study #1 — CONTROLLING RUNAWAY SALARY EXPENSE
Case Study #2 — "BEST DARN HR PERSON I'VE EVER WORKED WITH"
Case Study #3 — HANDS ON INTERVIEW TRAINING SEMINAR
Case Study #4 — HR OVERHAUL TO SUPPORT COMPANY GOALS

Case Study #1
CONTROLLING RUNAWAY SALARY EXPENSE

A mortgage funding company of approximately 100 employees engaged Regan HR to design and implement a compensation program from scratch. They didn’t know how they were positioned in the job market in terms of paying their employees, and most people who joined the company were paid on the basis of their salary history and negotiating skills.

Incorporating employee input, we began by writing job descriptions that described what each staff member did in their jobs daily, and addressing all relevant legal and compliance issues. We followed up by conducting a salary survey of jobs in the same industry, matching occupations to the market based upon job content, not just title.

Salary structures were then developed from the market data, and jobs were leveled across the organization and slotted into the new structures. We reviewed each person’s pay against the salary survey results to determine appropriate pays levels for all employees.

In every project we do, we strive to answer the employee’s baseline question, “How does this affect me?” So the final step in this undertaking was to have managers meet individually with their employees to clarify how they were impacted by the project.

Most employees received a copy of their updated job description and had no change in their pay. Some employees received increases to bring them in line with market rates, and others who were already high in their salary range placement continued to enjoy the benefit of receiving above market pay until others could catch up with them over time.

As a result of this project, the company clearly understood their pay position in relation to the market. They knew which jobs to keep at current pay levels, and which jobs they should adjust to retain employees. Most importantly, the company was able to better control its salary and merit pay budgets, normally the largest expense for any company!

Case Study #2
"BEST DARN HR PERSON I'VE EVER WORKED WITH"

A non-profit sales and marketing association had grown to 35 employees and realized that many necessary HR processes and functions were either non-existent or without someone to handle them.

Regan HR was hired to conduct an audit to determine exactly what needed to be done to establish a professional HR Department, and to conduct a search to recruit a new Human Resources Manager for the firm. Audit results were to be used to develop a first-year business plan for the newly established HR Department.

We spent time on-site talking with staff and reviewing processes and files to determine the current status of all aspects of Human Resources Management, from their recruiting process to assessing the level of their benefits package, to recommending placing frequently used forms on their intranet for all employees to access easily.

No stone was left unturned in this comprehensive review. Regan HR delivered the results to the CEO along with an open discussion to assist him in clarify his priorities for the HR function in the short-term.

Simultaneously, we began the recruiting process for the new HR Manager. We talked with senior management about the technical competencies they sought in this position, and explored what personal attributes in a candidate would result in a “good fit” with the association. Mostly, we listened to learn what qualities they were really seeking in a candidate.

A job description was written, and a candidate profile developed. Regan HR advertised the job, received and reviewed numerous resumes, and interviewed the most technically qualified candidates. The CEO and additional staff then interviewed the final three candidates, with questions developed by Regan HR.

The quality of all three candidates was so high that the management team had a difficult time determining which applicant to hire. We brought the final candidate back in for a third interview with a cross-section of the staff, just to make sure she was a good “fit” with the people who already work there.

She accepted the offer, and Regan HR supported her in developing the business plan for the HR department, identifying and mapping out deliverable projects for the next year. Case closed, and another satisfied customer!

Case Study #3
HANDS ON INTERVIEW TRAINING SEMINAR

A non-profit human service organization retained us to perform an all-day training class with their managers on how to interview and select the best candidates for open jobs.

They were interested in developing a system for determining how to hire the “right person for the right job.” Many of the managers had never conducted interviews before. As a result they didn’t know how or where to begin the entire interview and selection process.

Becky’s background teaching a Recruiting and Selection class at UC Davis Extension in their Human Resources Professional Certificate Program, from 1994-1998, allowed her to redesign key elements of the class curriculum into a one-day interactive presentation, renamed "Interviewing & Selecting the Best."

The training was centered around the theory of behavioral interviewing which simply states that previous behavior is the best indicator of future behavior. In exploring this premise, interview questions are layered to dig below the surface and elicit information from the applicant that is meaningful and relevant to the job they desire. Videos, interactive discussion, individual and group exercises were all used to reinforce key elements of the training.

To enhance the experiential learning, managers used job descriptions to create questions for candidates, then role played with other managers to practice techniques learned in the class. On-the-job interview tools and forms were incorporated into the training for managers to use. As a follow-up to the training, an addendum of twenty pages of questions frequently used in employment interviews was sent to class participants. Class participant comments:
    •  "Excellent, experienced presenter. Video and written materials which we can use the
        next time we interview were great. The time needed for an effective behavioral interview
        is a bit daunting."
    •   "Liked resource tools designed to narrow down significant areas of job for interviewing."
    •  "Great content & very pertinent."

Case Study #4
HR OVERHAUL TO SUPPORT COMPANY GOALS

Regan HR was called into an non-profit organization to determine how to better support the front-line managers in the delivery of services to clients. Other objectives were to increase efficiencies across the organization by identifying redundancies and streamlining processes, without reducing staff. The final objective was to position the organization for growth.

To assess these concerns and identify patterns, we designed a questionnaire for key employees to complete. After evaluating the returned questionnaires, we held week-long focus groups and individual interviews to review and confirm questionnaire content. We asked questions, and we listened. We extensively reviewed and assessed the data to identify problem areas in organizational structure, processes, and procedures. Lastly, based on principles of human resource excellence, we developed a comprehensive report, capturing the areas of concern in each division.

In the final analysis, we discovered that the Human Resources division was operating from a “policeman” mentality within the organization. They thought their role was to act as a gatekeeper rather than providing managers with alternatives to accomplish goals and objectives. Because their role had been to minimize legal exposure for the organization, they failed to understand how they could effectively operate as an internal consultant.

Since they were currently a barrier rather than a benefit to achieving business objectives, Regan HR recommended a restructuring of the Human Resources department.

We redesigned the entire HR department for this organization of 600+ employees, switching responsibility for recruiting and employee relations functions from the Program Managers back to Regional HR staff.

Job descriptions and organizational charts reflecting the new roles were drafted and delivered to the company’s senior management team for their consideration. We determined that the current staff in HR did not possess the skills necessary to carry out the newly defined roles, and recommended the replacement of existing staff with a more progressive team.

When the project began, no one foresaw the need for a complete reorganization of the company’s HR department. But the critical nature of the problems that we discovered as we worked through the issues brought us back, time and time again, to the non-advocacy role that HR was operating under at that time. Truly, it operated as an old-fashioned department with a purely administrative function, one that did not support its employees or management team.

The recommended organizational structure was adopted and implemented by senior management. With the changes and new HR staff in place, the senior management team expects a significant reduction in the stress level and workload of the Program Managers. This in turn will result in the delivery of a higher level of service to its clients.

As the new HR team unfolds and grows in its role, a sharp decline in employee turnover and the amount of paperwork completed by the Program Managers is also expected, resulting in cost reductions and increased efficiencies for the organization.