As a business owner, you want to avoid costly employer mistakes. But one of the most complicated challenges you’ll face is successfully managing and leading employees. And it’s rarely the “legal” side of being an employer that poses a problem, but the issues surrounding employee happiness and productivity. These crucial concepts are driven by policies... View Article
Most of us don’t think about “ethics” in our business. We have policies and we expect our employees to be honest. If they violate the policies or are not honest, they could lose their jobs. An interesting question, though, is whether you actually would fire any given person for violating the policies or acting dishonestly. ... View Article
We know that hiring, mentoring and growing employees can be one of the best parts of owning a business. These folks become like family and it feels great to be able to help them achieve and grow. However, we also know that having employees is one of the most challenging and risky parts of running a business. For... View Article
When is the last time you looked at your employee handbook? When business owners ask for advise around managing employees or workforce issues, we often begin by asking , “Do you have a policy around [insert relevant issue : Time sheets? Vaping? Bringing your bunny to work]?” We frequently look to the handbook as a... View Article
By Victoria Bartow On April 1st, significant changes are taking effect regarding Seattle labor standards. An overview of the changes and current Seattle laws is provided here by the Seattle Office of Labor Standards (OLS). Some key changes are discussed below: Notice of Employment Information: By April 1st, employers should provide employees (new and existing) a... View Article
By Lauren Burgon Effective February 1, 2016, nearly every employee working even occasionally in Tacoma is entitled to paid sick/safe leave under a new Tacoma law. This applies to private sector employees regardless of where their employer is located or the size of their employer’s business. While the Tacoma law is patterned after Seattle’s paid... View Article
If you ask business owners to describe their biggest challenges, one of the top three is almost always related to managing and leading employees. It’s usually not specifically described as “legal compliance,” but the challenges of ensuring employee happiness and productivity. To achieve these goals, we look to build compensation, wellness, flexibility, and autonomy policies... View Article
Blog written by Asbury Lockett, a business advisor with the Small Business Development Center at Highline College. Lean Thinking starts with the premise that everything that any of us want to accomplish (both at work and outside of work) is a process. Everything that gets done is a series of steps. Some steps take us... View Article
Blog written by Jennifer Olsen, Resourceful HR. If you know you need to focus on bolstering the HR efforts of your organization but don’t know where to start, you are not alone. The HR function includes many aspects that may seem daunting when you have limited resources and time. It is especially difficult when you... View Article