Ask HR: We got a bad review after an employee having a bad day snapped at a customer. What do I do?
As originally published on gardencentermag.com. BEST is excited to partner with our friends at Garden Center magazine on their “Ask HR” column. Click here for the original article. QUESTION: Customer service is key in my business. Recently, an employee was having a bad day and snapped at a customer, who gave us a bad review on Google. I feel empathetic about what she was going through, but her behavior was unacceptable. I think firing her would be too harsh because she’s been an otherwise great employee. What are my options? THE ADVICE: Oh, the joys of navigating the human experience of emotions, especially when they’re not your own! This is such a valuable question for any position and company, and even more so for leaders. Whether we choose to act like we have them or not, feelings and emotions are a part of being human, and as much as some try to foster the “leave it at the door” mentality in the workplace (as if that’s fully possible or healthy), we are each bound to endure hardships, stressors and tough times. Sometimes bad days, can even impact our mental state and how we perform both personally and professionally. However, it is still our responsibility to control and process those emotions and be able to healthily channel them without negatively impacting the world around us. For friends, family and employers, it’s certainly beneficial to hold space and provide support and empathy for the person hurting — but to an extent and within certain bounds. There’s a line there, especially when running a business. Let’s touch on the importance of customer service! While there’s something to be said for having quality products, providing excellent service, maintaining smooth logistics, etc., customer service is the backbone of any company and can make or break your brand. People often remember the experience they had with your company long after the product or service has run its course, and high-level customer service is the saving grace to mend a relationship or save a customer when things go wrong. All in all, your company needs to consistently provide that top-tier experience — even when the last thing they want is to deal with people, especially unhappy ones. You’re on the right track in thinking that firing this person right off the bat is too harsh, especially if this is a first offense. This is where constructive leadership comes in, and it can be done by balancing empathy for your employees while protecting the integrity of your business. A good place to start is with a one-on-one with this employee, addressing the unacceptable behavior and the negative result of it. Let this transition into an attempt to understand and hear out what they’re going through. From there, provide support. This can look like encouraging them to lean on loved ones or a professional (let me be clear that this does NOT mean coworkers or customers; even in a “family” culture, there is a line here), spending time on their hobbies, perhaps a bit of time off to collect themselves, or, if your budget allows, investing in mental health resources for them. To conclude the conversation, make it a point to let them know that you empathize and are here to help in the ways you can, but that you, their team and their customers/clients are relying on them to bounce back and continue to be a high performer. The rest is theirs to sort through; that’s the part that no one can do for them. While this may sound harsh, the world keeps turning even when yours is falling apart. Learning how and when to process your emotions is imperative to harnessing the power of emotional intelligence and running your feelings so they don’t run you — and possibly cost you your relationships, your health or your job. As a leader, it is your job to look out for your people and your business. When you take care of your people, they take care of you. But I’ll end by saying this: If you’re at capacity for the resources you can provide this employee and there is still no change in behavior or they do not demonstrate consistent improvement, know when to let go. Unfortunately, sometimes it gets to a point where addition by subtraction is the solution, but only when you can say that you truly tried investing in this professional with no ROI. Hope this helps and best of luck to you in navigating this situation and all to come! As originally published on gardencentermag.com. BEST is excited to partner with our friends at Garden Center magazine on their “Ask HR” column. Click here for the original article.
Trends Challenging Successful Hiring: Relocation
To Relo, or Not to Relo for Hiring— That is a Major Question Nothing in this world is certain except death, taxes, and change— constant change is happening faster than ever in business today. There are many drivers of change, including the impact of technology on what different generations value in their careers. Hiring is no different, and several significant trends impact the process. There is no foolproof method for hiring talent. Each company, position, and candidate is different, but there are important trends to be aware of so you can shift your hiring process appropriately. One of these trends that has shifted dramatically is the number of professionals open to relocation. What has caused the substantial reduction in candidates being open to relocating even for the best career roles? What can be done to alleviate this? Relocation Location It is fascinating how much of a topic the idea of relocation has become. How much does it cost to relocate? How much time will it take? What percentage of professionals are willing to relocate? Looking at what a relocation looked like pre-COVID compared to today in 2024, we see that things have radically changed and, in most cases, have become more complicated. There has been a sharp behavioral and generational increase in people not wanting to relocate as they place a higher value on living wherever they call home, with family and friends nearby. The increase in remote work has led to additional resistance to moving for a job. Added to this complexity are geographical relocation trends. Those moving out of state in higher numbers are leaving California, New York, New Jersey, Illinois, and Massachusetts. States benefiting from candidates relocating are Texas, Florida, Arizona, and the Carolinas. Do take into consideration where your company is located as you begin hiring. Even if the state benefits from the migration of people, individuals are still less inclined to relocate than ever before (since the statistics have been tracked). According to fortune.com, only 1.6% of all professionals open to work are open to relocating. With horticulture being such a production and geographically focused industry, this number may be a bit higher. Relocation and Inflation The cost of relocation is a crucial factor to consider. We’ve all experienced inflation in our daily lives, whether at grocery stores, gas stations, or entertainment venues. Inflation has also dramatically affected the cost of relocation. Rising housing prices, whether for renting or owning, coupled with increasing interest rates, have led to a significant hike in relocation costs. Picture a young professional who is currently renting, not married, and does not have kids. In this situation, relocation was once achievable for around $2,500-$3,500. According to movingapt.com, the average cost of moving oneself (individually packing, loading, driving, unloading, and unpacking) per 1,225 miles is around $4,500. To achieve a move for this amount, the individual would need to be doing all the work. As a company, you want this individual’s relocation to be completed as efficiently and stress-free as possible so they can hit the ground running in their new position. Allowing the new employee to utilize a full-service moving company may cost up to $8,700 per 1,125 miles. If you factor kids and a significant other into the move, the number could reach as high as $16,650 per 1,125 miles. The Relocation Equation Inflation has caused both companies and candidates to rethink what career opportunities genuinely make sense for their situation. Imagine hiring a new President for your medium-sized ($2m-$10m) horticulture company. You offer a competitive salary, even a bit higher than the industry standard. Top-tier candidates share this is their “dream job,” but they are unable to make a move based on them having to trade their current 30-year mortgage at the average rate of 2.68% in 2020 for a new 30-year mortgage rate at the average of 7.05% in 2024. They would take one step forward in their career and two steps backward in their socioeconomic status to make it happen. A recent article from the Wall Street Journal shared that as of June 21st, the national median existing-home price rose 5.8% in May 2024 from a year earlier to $419,300, a record increase since 1999. Prices are not adjusted for inflation, and elevated mortgage rates have dramatically limited the number of sales this spring. Every company and situation is different. Start your search locally with less emphasis on the expertise of your product, customer, or industry and more focus on the right behaviors for success. Thoroughly vet all local talent before beginning to look nationwide. Is there a local candidate who may need some training and development but has the right behaviors for success? Many of these open roles are backfills for highly experienced contributors who have retired or left. You cannot expect the new professional to come in right where the previous individual had left in terms of impact. Having a robust onboarding alongside a training and development plan will help widen the candidate pool. Slowly branching out the geography of the search will keep candidates fresh and ensure you have completely sourced local/regional options. If a professional is having trouble selling their home and can only relocate once they find a buyer, it may be worth looking at a virtual onboarding period. This would allow time for a sale and enable the candidate to map out a practical moving agenda while becoming part of the team. Including salary and relocation coverage in the Job Description will add transparency and clarity for candidates. This may push candidates open to exploring relocation to pursue your role over others who do not include these metrics. Lightening up on the years of experience needed in the role will further open your candidate pool. Younger professionals usually have fewer hurdles to overcome when moving and are more open to relocation to continue advancing their careers. The Horticulture industry has been fortunate in the post-COVID years, and interest in our industry is higher than ever, so
Why is Emotional Intelligence Important in the Workplace?
In this age of artificial intelligence, social media, remote work, and an increasingly digitized society, we are seemingly moving further and further away from the fundamentals of humanity. We have never had more ways to connect, yet in the wake of this shift, social and emotional intelligence (EI or EQ), or “soft skills,” have declined, causing significant workforce issues such as disconnects in communication, poor decision-making, and lack of employee engagement and satisfaction. Now more than ever, EI is a valuable and highly sought-after skill in the workplace, especially in leadership. To better understand the benefits and need for EI in today’s workplace, we will define it and its contextual application in the workplace, evaluate its influence on the workforce, and explore resources and strategies for leaders and employees to improve EI in their organizations. What is Emotional Intelligence? According to psychologists and leading researchers Peter Salovey and John D. Mayer, emotional intelligence is the ability to recognize and understand emotions in oneself and others. EI comprises five distinct components: self-awareness, self-regulation, internal motivation, empathy, and social skills. In the 1990s, emotional intelligence was initially established as a psychological construct and gained momentum with Daniel Goleman’s 1995 publication “Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ.” Goleman, an EI expert, argues that while traditional intelligence is essential, emotional competencies are a critical factor in the workplace, ultimately impacting leadership ability, stress management, employee performance, and interpersonal functioning— “The interest in emotional intelligence in the workplace stems from the widespread recognition that these abilities – self-awareness, self-management, empathy, and social skill – separate the most successful workers and leaders from the average. This is especially true in roles like the professions and higher-level executives, where everyone is about as smart as everyone else, and how people manage themselves and their relationships gives the best an edge.” (Goleman, 2012). According to a recent study published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, seven key traits deem someone as emotionally intelligent: Emotional stability (greater ability to manage their own emotions and tolerate stress) Conscientiousness (tendency to be diligent, hardworking, and control impulses) Extraversion (a personality trait that makes people more open and better at establishing relationships with others) Ability EI (individuals’ ability to perform emotion-related behaviors, like expressing emotions, empathizing with others, and combining emotion with reasoning) Cognitive ability (IQ; studies suggest there is at least some overlap between IQ and EQ) General self-efficacy (confidence in the ability to cope with the demands of our job) Self-rated job performance (Bailey, 2015). It may seem obvious how these competencies positively influence the workplace, but understanding the how and why of EI implementation is imperative for your future hiring and employee engagement. The Benefits of EI to Your Organization While there are many areas that emotional intelligence benefits the workplace, two are of vital consideration: job satisfaction and job performance. Not only is higher job satisfaction linked to employees with strong EI, but also to those whom leaders with high EI manage. Many studies have shown a negative correlation between EI and burnout and a positive correlation between EI and internal job satisfaction. In addition to employee happiness, job performance is positively impacted by high EI levels, displayed through increased performance metrics, a boost in employee productivity, and improved evaluations from management. However, how exactly does emotional intelligence influence job performance and benefit businesses? In the hospitality sector, EI is considered extremely important, and according to an article in Elite World Hotels, they have identified five significant advantages of EI in the workplace that can be applied to any industry: Motivation – High EI/EQ translates to better control of our motivation and perhaps even more motivation for our coworkers. Common Vision – Those high in EI/EQ can more effectively understand and communicate with others, making it easier to develop and maintain a shared team vision. Change – Highly emotionally intelligent people can handle the stress, uncertainty, and anxiety that come with working in business. Communication – Clear communication is a telltale sign of emotional intelligence, and it contributes to better relationships, an easier time getting help from others, and more effective persuasion and influence of others. Leadership – Self-leadership, leading others, and influencing others— all of these are vital for those in business. (Elite World Hotels, 2018) Therefore, a lack of emotional intelligence in the workplace can negatively impact a company’s communication, decision-making, and organization. Moreover, much like standard workplace metrics, emotional intelligence can be assessed and measured in the workplace. Strategies and Resources There are many reliable and valid measures of EI available, two of the most credible being the Multidimensional Emotional Intelligence Assessment – Workplace (MEIA-W) and the Work Group Emotional Intelligence Profile (WEIP). The MEIA-W measure provides a personality-based measure of EI through 144 short items that are intended to measure ten distinct facets of emotional intelligence: recognition of emotion in the self, regulation of emotion in the self, recognition of emotion in others, regulation of emotion in others, nonverbal emotional expression, empathy, intuition versus reason, creative thinking, mood redirected attention, and motiving emotions and takes about 20 minutes to complete. The WEIP is a self-report measure consisting of 30 points rated from 1 (strongly disagree) to 7 (strongly agree) between two scales determining the ability to deal with one’s own emotions and the ability to deal with others’ emotions. Utilizing these two resources is essential in beginning the process of measuring EI in an organization. From there, leaders can further train their employees on EI and how to teach it to their staff and themselves. A helpful guide created by EI experts (Cherniss et al., 1998) details four phases to use when implementing emotional intelligence training in your organization: Phase One: Preparation Assessing the organization’s needs Assessing personal strengths and limitations Providing feedback with care Maximizing learner choice Encouraging participation, not requiring it Linking learning goals to personal values Adjusting expectations Gauging readiness. Phase Two: Training Fostering a positive relationship between the trainer
The “Why, Not That” Approach: The BEST Way to Assess Job Hopping
According to a recent Business Insider article (1/22/2023, Stacey), Gen Z is not ashamed of “job-hopping.” But does that make all of them “job-hoppers”? What is a “job-hopper,” and is it a bad thing? What does this mean for employers? Most managers see “job-hopping” as less than two years at a single employer or more than three employers in a career history over 10 years. Gen X and Baby Boomers, even some early Millennials, have all been raised believing job-hopping is a bad thing. However, the Great Recession taught us very differently, and this is the era of Gen Z’s formative years, the time when they began to be aware of and influenced by the world around them. The Great Recession taught us that bad things happen to good people. Just because you left a job that the employment market deems as a “good employer” or you have a gap in employment of 3 months or more, that does not mean you are a bad hire, a poor-performing employee, or lazy. There are many reasons people leave an employer or the job market that have nothing to do with the negative pre-conceived notions of prospective employers. Why, not that, is most important. What this Pandemic has taught us is that sometimes there are serious health issues impacting the family that necessitate leaving your employer or changes in your spouse or other family members’ employment status necessitating relocation. There are many different reasons. Additionally, the Great Recession and the Pandemic have uncovered how poorly some employers have treated and still are treating employees, giving them all the more reason to want to find a better place to share their talents. Job-hopping is not necessarily a bad thing. However, what is more important than how many jobs a person had in the last 10 years, or how long a gap between employment, is the reason for the job change and how they spent their time during a gap in employment. If the reason for a job change is a positive one, such as a move that improves the ability of a person to support their family; an opportunity to expand knowledge, skills, and abilities; or because of a spouse’s promotion necessitating a relocation to a place where there was no employer presence, then there should be no reason job changes should be looked at as negative. Even gaps in employment are not necessarily a bad thing, though you must tread carefully as to how you inquire. HIPAA, ADA, GINA, and other employment laws prohibit inquiry about a candidate’s or relative’s Private (personal) Health Information (PHI) or genetic history. You can ask an open-ended question such as, “how did you occupy your time during this gap in employment?” and let the candidate fill in whatever they want. However, suppose they volunteer that it was for health reasons, either for themselves or their family. In that case, you must be very cautious about what you do with that information and your decisions about whether or not to advance the candidate in the process. Still, the question should be asked as it is relevant and will likely remove any negative concerns about why the gap exists. If they have a reasonable explanation, the gap should not be a negative that keeps them from being considered. The labor market has been a candidate-driven market since before the Pandemic, dating back to late 2017 when the number of open positions finally surpassed the number of unemployed. What this labor market has taught us is that there may be enough labor out there for most positions, but the location of the labor relative to the location of the position is very often mismatched. So, even when there are gaps in employment, that does not mean a candidate is lazy. Instead, it may mean their skills are not aligned with the jobs in the market where they reside. In addition, despite the strong desire by candidates for remote or hybrid work, not all jobs can be performed remotely. For example, the recent tech layoffs have left many people with very specialized skills and a history of high wages unemployed. Tech positions of similar scope won’t be readily available for many of these people for a while. So, just because there is a manufacturing machine operator position open in a food processing plant within a reasonable daily commute of a recently laid-off software developer, that does not mean that person is the right fit to fill that role. It may not pay anywhere near what this person needs, given the lifestyle they built from their previous job. But, of course, the reverse is also true. A recently laid off Project Manager of a corrugated box manufacturer likely is not the right alignment for a Director of FP&A position at the logistics company just down the street from them. Let’s not forget that not all employers are as employee-centered, kind, considerate, and caring as you may be. Not all employers understand that when you care for your people, your people will care for you and your business. In fact, too many employers take the skills from their people and give back as little as possible in compensation and benefits. Can you really be upset at a person who makes a change because their previous employer operated in an unethical manner, violated compliance regulations, or treated their people poorly? Likely, a good candidate will not disparage their prior employer, but there are ways of getting the message across in a positive manner. Likely, a candidate with high integrity knows when their employer is unwilling to act ethically and will make the professional decision to leave. That candidate is likely the right employee for you as you can be assured of their ethical focus and care for your business. There are also benefits to employers for people with numerous jobs on their resumes over a 10-year period. Employers today are looking for a lot of soft skills. They need flexibility, adaptability, innovation,
How LEAN is Too LEAN?
Business strategies today drive profitability using many continuous improvement methodologies, including LEAN and Six Sigma, Kaizen, 5S, and several others. Profitability is critical for business sustainability and viability as a going concern. But how LEAN is too LEAN? Some may scoff at the perceived absurdity of the question. Still, according to the Wall Street Journal Article, “Threat of Rail Strike Reveals Persistent Supply-Chain Risks to US Economy” (Harrison, 12/3/2022), “The strike threat highlighted a distribution network in which businesses have sought to reduce delivery costs by becoming as lean as possible… While the approach has improved profits, it also has made it more difficult to respond to shocks such as a global pandemic.” In the December 2022 issue of the Turnaround Management Association’s “Journal of Corporate Renewal” (vol. 35, No. 10), the article “Tough Row to Hoe Ahead for the Agriculture Industry” (Zwick et al., 2022) sheds light on the consolidation of food processing companies Tyson Foods, Cargill, National Beef Packing Company, and JBS which collectively consolidated their market share in the period of the 1980s through today “… from 36% to 85%.” This consolidation, driven by LEAN principles, reduced significant overhead costs but at the expense of a system that is so lean that the current economic shocks are forcing the consumer to bear the burden of price hikes in food that far outpace the hikes in many other products and services throughout this inflationary time. Even the labor market’s tightness today is partially driven by the treatment of employees and reductions in force, stemming all the way back to the Great Recession and the Housing Market Crisis. Past decisions on the treatment of people, driving LEAN today for immediate profitability, are coming home to roost as the labor market remains extremely tight despite the Fed’s actions which have historically had the desired impact of slowing the economy at a faster rate than we are seeing today. As an outcome of the financial crisis of 2007, the Dodd-Frank act was passed. Among the many provisions, it imposed cash reserve levels by banks at much higher than pre-crisis levels. The intent of this additional liquidity was to ensure the sustainability of the financial institutions should another disruption of a similar magnitude occur. Additionally, stress tests were frequently conducted – hypothetical scenarios intended to simulate such shocks and to see how the institution(s) would be able to handle the situation and if the cash reserves were sufficient. As a result, most banks today are in a very secure place, more able to manage and weather such economic shocks than ever before. So, how LEAN is too LEAN? We see the economic impacts of inflation, supply chain struggles, and the tight labor market, all of which have created a harmful national and even global economic situation that is driving us closer and closer to another recession. We also see the slack built into the banking industry through increased financial reserves intended to weather shocks to their business models and the high confidence that such institutions will survive, and quite well. By lowering cash reserves, there would be more profitability, shareholder value, and even higher dividends. So, how LEAN is too LEAN? As 2023 unfolds, there will be more economic pain. That is sometimes a good thing. Economic activity cannot go up forever. Markets are never a straight line with an endless upward trajectory. But what comes down also goes back up. Preparing for the coming economic downturn, whether it achieves the definition of a recession or not, and whether it is a severe or light recession if it does happen, is the right business move. History shows us that many business leaders respond to recessions by reductions in staff, pullbacks in production, and other protectionary stances. As you look at what may be right for your business, look at the pending economic downturn as an opportunity to stabilize your business for the future. Build in a “certain” level of redundancy in labor by not reducing your headcount as much. Plan for the curve to shift back upward. As you would on a slick road where your car fishtails, turn into the curve to right size, level set, and propel your company and all the employees who depend on you towards future growth.