Great People = Growing Profit$

Solving Your Workforce Challenges Toolkit

Introducing the Toolkit
It is an understatement to say that Alberta's agricultural producers and agri-processors are feeling the challenges associated with attracting and retaining skilled labour in today's booming economy. Gone are the days of being able to post a job ad or hang a HELP WANTED sign and find your have a stack of resumes on your desk. We are now in an employee-driven market.

This practical, ready to use toolkit was created for employers and was designed to immediately address labour shortage issues in a tight market. this toolkit contains:

• the business case to consider "HR as a Profit Center" by examining the specific cost of hiring workers and cost of employee turnover
• Information to help you plan how to attract and retain great workers
• Ready to use, practical tools that can be used as a stand along system or in conjunction with other resources and/or processes you already have in place. It's easy; select a tool, open and print. We have removed the header and footer on some of the tools to allow you to customize by adding your own log.
• Additional information and resources.
• None of the self-assessments in this toolkit are 'pass or fail' tests; rather they are indicators of both areas of current strength as well as areas of opportunity for further personal/professional development.

• Tool 1: What is the Cost of Staff Turnover
  This comprehensive tool for the business owner details both the direct and indirect costs associated with the cost of employee turnover. This tool also provides the opportunity to calculate, analyze and reduce employee turnover which is critical to increasing your profits.
• Tool 2: Workforce Planning Tools
  These tools help business owners quickly determine your current pool of labour and compare it to your company's requirements. This will highlight the specific areas where you are short staffed, and identify which areas can be resolved through skills training, cross-training, automation, enhancements in technology or hiring of additional people.

• Tool 3: Job Description
  A well prepared job description is a quick tool that helps an employer identify the basic criteria for a job, by detailing the skills, knowledge, personality, attributes and characteristics necessary to fill the position. Too often, employers bypass the screening process and focus their energies on 'selling the position' to the applicant rather than using the job description to define their ideal candidate. Ideally a job description should be completed for every position within a company.

• Tool 4: Recruiting Methods - Pros and Cons
  Describes the most common recruiting strategies and their respective pros and cons.
• Tool 5: Which Recruitment Method is Providing Me the Biggest Bang for My Buck
  This tool helps business owners track the results obtained by various recruitment methods and determines which yields the best return on investment.

• Tool 6: Job Application
  The job application form is a great time-saving way for you to quickly assess and compare each applicant's background, skills and knowledge to see if they possess the needed qualification to do the job. The key question that this tool helps answer is "can the person actually do the job? Are they competent to do the job?"

• Tool 7: Sample Interview Questions
  The key question that an interview answers for both the applicant and the employer is, "how well will this person perform and how well will they fit in with the company?". This tool offers a cross section of excellent questions to consider asking during the interview.
• Tool 8: Telephone Reference Checklist
  One of the best predictors of furture performance is an employee's past track record. The most effective way to gain insights into someone's past performance is to conduct a quick telephone reference check. This tool is designed to guide you through a quick telephone conversation with the candidate's former employer.
• Tool 9: Post Interview Rating Form
  It's important to take a few minutes immediately after the interview to sum up your impressions of the candidate and how you feel that they would do on the job and within your team. If someone else co-interviewed with you, have them commit their reactions down on paper then compare notes.

• Tool 10: How Effective an I as a Leader?
  This tool is a quck "self'check" that covers most of the key mindsets of effective leaders. It provides a quick snapshot of your strengths and opportunities to enhance your leadership effectiveness. The stronger the leader, the stronger the team.
• Tool 11: Self Check: Assessing Others On-the-Job Performance
  A leader's approach to assessing their staff's on-the-job performance and how they provide feedback on that performance has a direct link to employee productivity, job satisfaction, reduction of errors and wastage which impacts your profits. Employees who know what is expected of them on the job, and see that there is a feedback process and that it is fair and effective will be more committed to the company.

• Tool 12: Orientation Schedule
  This tool suggests the main topics that should be covered with the new employee during the orientation period. It makes sense in many cases to space out the majority of items covered during the orientation over a period of several days and the remaining items over the next few months. This provides time for the new employee to both actively work in the capacity for which they were hired, and allows time to absorb the information being covered during the orientation.

• Tool 13: Process to Maximize Your Training Return on Investment
  This tool illustrates every major step of the training process (before, during and after) including the key people who need to be involved in the process.
• Tool 14: Training Needs Assessment and Action Plan
  One of the greatest on-the-job "productivity robbers" is the gap between what the job requires and what the employee is actually able to do. This tool helps the supervisor to quickly and accurately assess the training needs of each employee by identifying their skills or knowledge gaps. It also helps prioritize the training and determine the necessary budget to ensure the employee quickly becomes more productive.

• Tool 15: Staff Satisfaction Survey
  Obviously everyone wants happy, satisfied and productive workers. One of the easiest ways to gauge the satisfaction of your entire team is to invite them to fill out and submit this tool. It will give you very valuable insights on specific areas that can positively impact moral.
• Tool 16: Understanding and Working with Personality Styles
  People's on-the job behavious are often influenced by their personality style. There is no right or wrong style, but there are differences that once understood can greatly improve overall communciations, and team morale. This tool helps every member of the team learn which of the four personality styles they are and what is the style of each team mate. The investment of just half an hour using this tool with your team will pay huge dividends.
• Tool 17: Keeping Your People Connected, Simple Communications Methods
  The glue that connects all your staff is effective communications. This not only impacts productivity and customer service but also improves moral and the overall company environment. This tool lists simple yet effective ways to communicate with your team.
• Tool 18: Developing a Rewards and Recognition Culture
  Motivation does not have to cost a lot of money. All it takes is a bit of creativity and innovation tailored to the needs of your staff. This tool is in two parts: the first is a quick self-check to see how well you are developing a rewards and recognition culture within your company and the second part provides low cost/high impact methods to reward your people.
• Tool 19: Working with Four Different Age Groups
  Today is the first time in history that there are fouor distinctly different age groups in the workplace. This tool is a quick-read chart that will help you understand each group and the best ways to recruit, retain and motivate each.
• Tool 20: Managing a Multicultural Workforce
  The tool provides a simple blueprint of how to manage a culturally diverse workforce and provides insights into developing cultural awareness in the workplace.
• Tool 21: Employee Compensation and Benefits
  There are three key elements required for an effective compensation system. This tool also details and lists a number of possible compensation and benefits options.

• Tool 22: Performance Evaluation Checklist
  This tool is a simple checklist designed to help the supervisor in the preparation, conducting and follow through of employee performance evaluation discusions.
• Tool 23: Performance Evaluation Template
  This ready-to-use tool is a fill-in-the blank form designed to be completed separately by the supervisor and employee prior to their discussion. This allows both parties to contribute constructively to the discussion.
• Tool 24: Talking Through Performance Problems
  This guide offers employers a temple to talk through performance problems with their employee. This tool guides the supervisor through a "conversational approach" to resolve performance problems with their employee.

• Tool 25: Employee Exit Interviews
  The best way to understand what worked and what did not work from a recent employee quitting is to conduct an exit interview before they leave or shortly after. This tool makes it easy to gain valuable insights as to why an employee quits their job, and offers the opportunity to learn from the situation.

• Tool 26: Employer of Choice Checklist
  This tool communicates, educates and explains to employers what the key elements employees are looking for in their ideal company.