• Home
  • high performance

Posts Tagged ‘high performance’

2020 ABHE Financial Officers Conference ~ Orlando, Florida and Virtual

2020 ABHE Financial Officers Conference ~ Orlando, Florida and Virtual


Join us in Orlando Florida

The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE)

Financial Officers Conference

On-Site and Virtual Options Available

November 5-6, 2020 

Strong institutions are served by astute financial leaders who both accurately manage the financial operations of the organization and provide keen foresight for the financial planning of institutional leaders. Drill one level down and you are quickly immersed into the complex details of effective budgeting and reporting, financial ratios and key performance indicators, governance compliance, auditing standards, HR policy, risk assessment/ management, and the list continues. Embark on this journey of excellence in financial leadership and take your service to your institution and the cause of Christ to a new level.

Employee Relations & Regulations During Crisis

Presenter: Mark Griffin, CEO – In His Name, HR

Overview: For the HR issues of many ABHE institutions, the buck stops at the CFO’s desk. During a crisis, this demands a new level of employee care and understanding. What are the options, implications and regulations for employees? How can an institution best adjust the payroll part of their budget while honoring their staff? Consider:

  • Reviewing the range for employee relations termination, furlough, etc. options
  • Understanding the impact of communications and process respect & honor
  • Knowing the risks and rewards of government payroll assistance opportunities
  • Planning well and minimizing surprises thinking ahead

 

Register Here 

About The Speaker

Mark is an accomplished HR expert with a fresh perspective. He believes in challenging people to think differently when presented with obstacles in any situation. His passions are inspiring, motivating, and helping others. Peers describe Mark as creative, proactive, determined, and eager to learn. Just a few of Mark’s professional skills include organizing, presenting, and problem solving.

Mr. Griffin received his Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resources Administration from Saint Leo University. He earned his MBA from Bloomsburg University while interning for Congressmen Kanjorski as a military liaison during the first Gulf War. Mark has completed several executive education programs at the University of Michigan.

Prior to leading In HIS Name HR, Mark worked for Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., and Merck Inc., and private companies Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, and Valco Companies Inc.

In addition to helping people professionally, Mark also believes in helping people personally through volunteer work. Mark has coached leaders on “Business as a Mission,” traveling to Eastern Europe, India, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic.

 

In HIS Name HR LLC kingdom series

Kingdom Organization Building Blog Posts


 

Mark Griffin is founder and Chief Consultant at In His Name HR LLC. He has over 20 years of HR experience.   Follow Mark on Facebook, Twitterand LinkedIn.    Want to make High Performance HR Systems including Employee Relations a reality in your organization?  Contact Mark and make it happen.

 

subscribe IN HIS NAME HR LLC

 

 

In HIS Name HR, in conjunction with ABHE

2020 ABHE Annual Meeting ~ Rosen Plaza Hotel, Orlando, Florida


The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE) Annual Meeting

February 12–14, 2020 | Rosen Plaza Hotel, Orlando, Florida

Read The Press Release Here 

In HIS Name HR, in conjunction with ABHE, is excited to announce the 2020 Annual Meeting presentation topics.

Presentation One

How to Develop a More Effective Employee Search Process

It’s no secret that your higher education institution wants to succeed. It should come as no surprise that your employees also want to succeed! Naturally, there’s often a strong, positive relationship between the two—when employees succeed, so do the institutions they serve.

A key question: How can organizations most effectively find, train, motivate, and encourage employees’ success?

Primary Topics Covered

  • Marketing your institution in today’s difficult labor market
  • What makes employers attractive?
  • Where do institutions find the best employees?
  • What are the three most important steps of an effective hiring process?

This presentation helps prepare not only those in HR but also anyone who might have an effect on hiring in your organization. The presentation is highly interactive (including table exercises) and gives participants the opportunity to collaborate with other organizations and professionals.

Presentation Two

The Art of Employee Evaluation and Transition/Separation

Here, we examine the concept of a high-performance review process, and how your institution can optimize performance levels through an effective and enjoyable employee review process—a process that your employees will enthusiastically embrace and enjoy instead of dread.

We also discuss performance improvement plans that transition underperforming employees either to more suitable roles or out of the organization, and how to separate employees with grace.

Primary Topics Covered

  • Taking steps – simple, impactful, and timely – to make the process gracefully effective
  • Executing a comprehensive communication plan to all employees
  • Avoiding the common pitfalls in other organizations
  • Setting expectations
  • Employee policy manuals
  • Codes of conduct
  • Counseling and disciplinary procedures
  • Terminations
  • Labor law overview

The training is highly interactive (including table exercises) and gives participants the opportunity to collaborate with other organizations and professionals.

Learn More Here 

 

Visit us- Booth 119 – ABHE Annual Meeting!

About The Speaker

Mark is an accomplished HR expert with a fresh perspective. He believes in challenging people to think differently when presented with obstacles in any situation. His passions are inspiring, motivating, and helping others. Peers describe Mark as creative, proactive, determined, and eager to learn. Just a few of Mark’s professional skills include organizing, presenting, and problem solving.

Mr. Griffin received his Bachelor of Science degree in Human Resources Administration from Saint Leo University. He earned his MBA from Bloomsburg University while interning for Congressmen Kanjorski as a military liaison during the first Gulf War. Mark has completed several executive education programs at the University of Michigan.

Prior to leading In HIS Name HR, Mark worked for Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., and Merck Inc., and private companies Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, and Valco Companies Inc.

In addition to helping people professionally, Mark also believes in helping people personally through volunteer work. Mark has coached leaders on “Business as a Mission,” traveling to Eastern Europe, India, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua, and the Dominican Republic.

 

Protect Your Mission ~ Lancaster PA In HIS Name HR LLC

Protect Your Mission ~ Lancaster PA


HR practices that can best help your “Kingdom-Minded” organization and business protect its mission in todays’ hostile world.

Teague Learning Commons
Thursday November 14, 2019
8AM-Noon

Presenter Mark Griffin has seen it all in his more than 25 years of Human Resources experience gained by working with a wide range of organizations, from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies to Christian Colleges, Ministries and Churches.

Presenter Randall Wenger Esq. has a myriad of experiences from all his years of working on religious liberty cases in Pennsylvania including the Conestoga Wood Specialties case that resulted in a landmark victory in the US Supreme Court for religious liberty and the sanctity of life. Randy understands the pressures and dangers that are facing those who want to run their businesses and organizations in line with their Christian values.

Let Mark and Randy help you by sharing their experiences in helping a variety of organizations manage their beliefs in the reality of today’s workplace.

Leading an organization with Christ-centered values makes organizational sense.

Mark will share why he believes Christ-centered organizations experience:

  • Lower absenteeism
  • Higher quality products
  • Less employee morale issues
  • Safer work environments
  • Better perceptions by customers and vendors

Mark will also share how he helps organizations develop HR practices that reflect their core values and still build a high performance organization.

Topics To Be Covered

  • Legislative and policy dangers
  • Current state of religious liberty in court
  • Creating a high performance culture through practical HR competency development
  • Where most organizations go wrong engaging employees
  • Setting expectations
  • HR tools for creating success
  • Employee policy manuals
  • Codes of Conduct
  • Employee relations and communications
  • Performance management
  • Counseling and discipline procedures
  • Terminations
  • An overview of labor laws

Click Here For Tickets

Teague Learning Commons (Map)

About The Pennsylvania Family Institute

The Mission of the Pennsylvania Family Institute is to strengthen families by restoring to public life the traditional, foundational principles and values essential for the well-being of society. It is  the only full-time, professionally staffed non-profit organization representing family values—your values—in the state capitol. It encourages responsible citizenship and involvement in civic affairs to promote respect for life, family, marriage and religious liberty.

About The Presenters

Randall L. Wenger, Esq. – COO & Chief Counsel
Randall Wenger is Chief Counsel of the Independence Law Center in Harrisburg, a pro-bono law center affiliated with the Pennsylvania Family Institute and dedicated to maintaining those liberties that have made America great and free. He has litigated in federal courts all around the county, and his cases have included the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, bodily privacy, and pro-life issues. In addition to his role with the Independence Law Center, he is COO of the Pennsylvania Family Institute.

Randall has an economics degree from the University of Chicago and earned his J.D. at the University of Pennsylvania. He lives in Lancaster County, and he and his wife Tina have seven children.

Mark A. Griffin, MBA – President and Founder In HIS Name HR LLC
Mark is a human resources professional with 25-plus years of experience in both public (Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., Merck Inc.) and private companies (Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, Valco Companies Inc.), Mark is passionate about building high-performance workplaces by utilizing best practices while leading organizations with strong values.

Speaker, accomplished HR consultant, and the author of How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations and College to Career: The Student Guide to Career and Life Navigation, Mark A. Griffin encourages leaders to build values-led organizations during these increasingly complex times.

People Join Organizations- They Leave Managers


Do you wonder why good employees leave your organization?

Dr. John C. Maxwell gives his opinion about this in his book Leadership Gold: “People quit people, not companies.”.

My conversation with a young professional twenty-something started simply enough.

“How’s the new job going?”

My eyes widened as I listened to this passionate young lady talk for more than half an hour about how she and many of her colleagues want so much to impact the organization they work for, but how management there is weak and how the leadership completely lacks direction. People are not held accountable, she explained. There is no collective vision as a team and new folks are not brought on board with any sense of excitement or motivation.

I nodded. I knew exactly what she was talking about. I’d seen it for myself in many instances. Eliminating the kind of frustration she was feeling is one of my greatest motivators in doing what I do, helping leaders move forward and build high-performance organizations.

So, what’s going to happen? It wasn’t hard to figure out. She made it quite clear—she won’t put up with it for much longer. Instead, she would become one of the many sharp, smart people I’ve encountered who choose to exercise their skills in more fertile fields instead of enduring such barren conditions. They go on to positively fertilize other organizations, contributing to a sustainable harvest by taking them to greater levels of efficiency and performance.

Meanwhile, those organizations with chronically weak and mediocre managers fade, eventually cease to operate, and die. Maybe not right away—it may take time, but ultimately they fail to survive.

If your organization has great leadership, is on the ball, and inspires and motivates all of its employees, including its young All-Stars, then you are indeed building a high-performance organization.

___________

In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.

 

Conflict Resolution – Blessed Are the Peacemakers ~ 2019 ABHE Annual Meeting


 ABHE Annual Meeting
February 20-22, 2019 | Rosen Plaza Hotel, Orlando Florida

While never preferred, conflict seems a part of most every organization. What are prudent principles for peacemaking? What do expert HR leaders understand that makes resolution positive and developmental? Participants will learn from a veteran consultant:

  • Principles for positive conflict resolution
  • Insights gained from experience and research.
  • Warnings to heed and mistakes to avoid

Learn More Here 

 

Visit us- Booth 119 – ABHE Annual Meeting!

About the Speaker

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In HIS Name HR LLC, a human resources outsourcing and career coaching firm created to help organizations pilot the complex issues of managing HR.

As a human resources professional with 20-plus years of experience in both public (Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., Merck Inc.) and private companies (Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, Valco Companies Inc.), Mark is passionate about building high-performance workplaces by utilizing best practices while leading organizations with strong values.

Mark and his wife Gail have two adult children, and and attend LCBC Church. Mark has coached leaders on “Business as Mission” as far away as Eastern Europe, India, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.

Speaker, accomplished HR consultant, and the author of How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations and College to Career: The Student Guide to Career and Life Navigation, Mark A. Griffin encourages leaders to build values-led organizations during these increasingly complex times.

 

Making Your Performance Management System Work


Poor employee performance hurts an organization. Low productivity, incompetence, and unneeded expenses are the last thing organizations want at any time, particularly in today’s tough economy.

After decades of work in the field of business and human resources, I know that few things upgrade and energize an organization like a solid Performance Management System. A performance management system incorporates your organization’s Mission, Vision and Values as well as your annual goals and objectives to create the structure and accountability by which an employee can accomplish these goals and objectives and, more importantly, improve their lives. Only the highest-performing organizations make the performance review process a valued, appreciated, and eagerly anticipated system for the both organization and its employees.

Instead, what usually happens?

Sadly, many organizations do not systematically review or improve employee performance at all! This leads not only to unmet expectations from the management’s point of view, but also creates confusion and frustration for employees. The result is poor performance and money down the drain. Other times, organizations attempt to implement a yearly review but end up doing it backwards and it becomes counter-productive. This article will teach you how avoid this pitfall.

Have you ever weathered “The Dreaded Annual Review Meeting?”

Television and film have lampooned the phenomenon, highlighting the common foreboding employees feel and the waste of time such a meeting can be. How can you implement a Performance Review System that will consistently improve employee productivity and competency, save costs, and have eager employees lining up for it?

Start by avoiding these two biggest, most critical mistakes…

Mistake # 1 The leader fails to include input and participation of the employees at the beginning of the process.

The best performance programs are employee-driven. The leadership works in a “guide and support” role. This is a significant shift, but one that can make or break your organization. When the process of improvement and review is centered on and driven by the employees, it creates an emotionally potent sense of ownership and cooperation. Instead of being hounded and rebuked by a controlling boss, the employee is the source of increased performance through an active and vested role.

It behooves an employee to generate high performance and a good system will take this into account by providing employees the dignity of being responsible to see the improvement process through to the end. The performance program should encourage and reward employees who initiate performance conversations with management. A program executed well will encourage the employee to want to do better as he/she makes the efforts necessary to ensure it happens.

Mistake #2 Leaving out personal development.

Never forget the vital career development component. A simple career development piece can do wonders for employee morale and can be easily built right into your performance program. Employees naturally want to improve their lives and better their circumstances. A career development component helps employees know, envision, and subsequently achieve promotions, positions, and greater responsibility within your organization.

A career development focus gives the employee the opportunity to take ownership of their career destiny.

A good career development component helps the employees ascertain what they need to do to close the gaps in their experience and education in order to be promoted to other positions. Many great programs include education and seminars, but some cleverly include short-term assignments in other positions to gain vital hands-on experience.

Implementing a proper performance program may seem daunting, remember that employees are not just your greatest assets; they are the key to ensuring that you can thrive in challenging economic times.

___________

 

In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.

Why Developing A High-Performance Employee Review Process Matters

Why Developing A High-Performance Employee Review Process Matters


Most employees loath them; many managers avoid them. High Performance Organizations have them, and they do what they’re designed to do—evaluate precisely the performance of each employee.

Feel like you don’t need them? Here are 10 great reasons that should change your mind.

  1. Aligning performance to goals and objectives

Most organization employees we meet with say they have no idea what the yearly top two or three goals are for their organization.  A great performance program sets these goals as their starting point. Ninety-nine percent of employees in this country want to do well at work, but we lack leaders who know how to align their desire to achieve to the organizational goals.

  1. Providing a basis for promotion/transfer/termination

Many organizations are not transparent concerning how to be promoted.  A performance review process more readily identifies those employees who deserve promotion and those who require lateral shift (transfer) or need to enter into a remedial program. This system also aids career planning.

  1. Enhancing employees’ effectiveness

Most people really do want to be better at their jobs! Helping employees to identify their strengths and weaknesses and informing them of the organization’s expectations concerning their performance helps them to better understand the role they play and increases work efficiency. Feedback reinforces good performance and discourages poor performance.

  1. Aiding in designing training and development programs

Instead of creating “programs of the month,” you can use performance review data to more accurately ascertain training needs and identify skills that need to be developed in order to tailor-make the most effective training and development programs.

  1. Building teams

Counseling employees corrects misconceptions, which might result in work alienation. Performance management also helps employees to internalize the norms and values of the organization. (I have met leaders who have not talked to their employees about their performance since 2009!)

  1. Removing discontent

Performance management puts all employees on the same measuring tape. Identifying and removing factors responsible for worker discontent motivates them to perform better at work. Performance management helps to create a positive and healthy work environment in the organization.

  1. Developing interpersonal relationships

Relations between superiors and subordinates can be improved through the realization that there exists a mutual dependence that leads to better performance and success. By facilitating employees to perform introspection, self-evaluation and goal setting, their behavior can be modified. Better interpersonal relationships lead to team building.

  1. Aiding wage administration

Performance management can help to develop fairer and more equitable base lines for reward allocation, wage fixation, raises, incentives, etc.

  1. Exercising control

A performance review process provides a means to exercise control of projects focused on, and helps keep employees aligned to the agreed upon annual goals and objectives.

  1. Improving communication

Performance management serves as a mechanism for improved communication between superiors and subordinates.  Often times managers shy away from counseling employees.  When the right system is in place, especially is it is employee driven, it forces discussions on a regular basis.

In closing, my experiences lead me to support employee driven programs.  Programs that rely on managers and leaders have a higher propensity for failure.  Simple yet meaningful programs that include goals, objectives, behaviors, an employee development component and stretch assignments meet what most employees’ desire.

How important are employee performance reviews in your organization?  We would like to know.  Please leave comments below. 

_________

In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.

How To Ensure You Hire the Right Person


Find the right person for the right job!

It sounds simple, but it won’t come easily without planning and a process. Getting the wrong people not only kills performance but can also damage your reputation.

And, of course, you don’t have the money to do it wrong. Training misfit or unqualified new employees always costs more in the long run than hiring the right person in the first place. Additionally, turnover is higher if employees haven’t been recruited properly. Employees grow disappointed when their position is out of their depth or the job isn’t what they thought it would be. They leave as soon as they find a better fit.

How do you hire people the right way? How do you find talent well suited for your organization and its open job position?

Remember these 3 simple tips

(1) Develop and Finalize a Thorough Job Description.

Craft a job description that matches your need, using the two most critical modes:

  1. Use the right template from the beginning, each and every time you create a position, to ensure that all information necessary is covered; and
  2. Train employees to create their own descriptions, because they know their job better than anyone.

Without a clear job description, when employees discover that a lot more is expected of them, frustration and stress result. Draft a description that is not too generalized—vagaries only hurt your organization and catch new hires off guard.

At high-performance organizations, employees know why they are there and what their specific job duties are. The description should note expectations of the job, skills or education needed, and duties and related responsibilities; plus, who they report to, and when. Include how they will be evaluated, and who will train them or be available to consult if they run into trouble.

Realistically, not everything can be covered in a job description, add a segment stating that related duties and responsibilities may arise or exist that are not detailed in the job description. Otherwise, a worker may take advantage of a concise description to avoid putting in the necessary extra effort by claiming, “That’s not my job.”

(2) Filter Your Resumes

A filter is created from the core requirements of the job description. It gives the resume screener a baseline to efficiently weed out resumes and applications that don’t meet the minimum qualifications of the descriptions. Consider outsourcing the screening process to a professional firm that will funnel the best prospects to you, or enlist someone to handle the slush pile of applications, and then feed you the cream of the crop. Filtering the process is important.

(3) Memorialize the Recruiting Process

Develop key steps to use in the process every time to ensure recruitment efficiency and fairness. Consider including the steps within these four categories as you create your own organizational recruitment process:

How your candidate pool is created (job description, advertising, screening, etc.)

How the interview process is conducted (interview questions, background check consent, candidate evaluation forms, etc.)

How a selection is made (who decides on the new hire, how are they and other candidates notified, etc.)

The elements of your hiring process (pre-employment physical, drug and alcohol testing, notifications, etc.)

It pays to spend the time and money up front to ensure a well-tuned process. An outside Human Resources firm can set up all the details involved in your recruitment and hiring process to streamline and maximize the procedure. The result will be a clear and useful tool to boost organizational performance and save costs.

_______

In His Name HR helps organizations build high performance Human Resources programs. Visit them at In HIS Name HR or e-mail them here.

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In His Name HR LLC. Connect with him on LinkedIn or Twitter.

 

 

Grace and Wisdom When Right-Sizing Your Staff  ~ 2018 ABHE Annual Meeting


 ABHE Annual Meeting
February 21-23, 2018 | Rosen Plaza Hotel, Orlando Florida

Right-sizing – an organizational lifesaver . . . or toxic solution to financial difficulties? But when layoffs are not well thought out and used repeatedly without a graceful strategy, right sizing can destroy an organization’s effectiveness. How you treat people really matters – to the people who leave and perhaps most critically, to the people who remain.
• Taking steps – simple, impactful, and timely to make the process gracefully effective
• Executing a comprehensive communication plan – to students, faculty, employees, alumni and community
• Supporting displaced employees
• Caring for employees who remain
• Avoiding common pitfalls observed in other organizations

Learn More Here 

 

Visit us- Booth 119 – ABHE Annual Meeting!

About the Speaker

Mark A. Griffin is the founder and chief consultant of In HIS Name HR LLC, a human resources outsourcing and career coaching firm created to help organizations pilot the complex issues of managing HR.

As a human resources professional with 20-plus years of experience in both public (Quaker Oats Company, Kodak Inc., Merck Inc.) and private companies (Woolrich, Conestoga Wood Specialties, Valco Companies Inc.), Mark is passionate about building high-performance workplaces by utilizing best practices while leading organizations with strong values.

Mark and his wife Gail have two adult children, and and attend LCBC Church. Mark has coached leaders on “Business as Mission” as far away as Eastern Europe, India, Haiti, Honduras, Nicaragua and the Dominican Republic.

Speaker, accomplished HR consultant, and the author of How to Build “Kingdom-Minded” Organizations and College to Career: The Student Guide to Career and Life Navigation, Mark A. Griffin encourages leaders to build values-led organizations during these increasingly complex times.