Comments on: Policy Problem https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html Everything to make HR better Thu, 17 Sep 2009 19:06:24 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=7.1.4 By: interestingly average https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3165 Thu, 17 Sep 2009 19:06:24 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3165 I am just wondering about the HR Manager's reaction in this situation… is it possible that the manager overreacted to the link, for some reason assuming (or possibly having been told by the e-mail recipient) that the employee found the information on the company web site/extranet/Internet instead of on the company's internal network?

]]> By: Jason https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3164 Tue, 18 Nov 2008 05:35:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3164 Just wondering why it took six months for the individual to take the initiative to go online to look for the document himself…? Poor HR responsiveness notwithstanding, letting someone else’s shortcomings unnecessarily hamstring him for over 1/2 a year is not exactly the sign of a winner

]]> By: Corey J Feldman https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3163 Tue, 28 Oct 2008 15:13:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3163 No response is a problem. Since there were 3 emails I doubt it was something as simple as his/her question getting caught up in a spam filter, unless there was something in the language of each email triggering the spam filter. As a rule if someone doesn’t respond to one of my emails I tend to follow up with a phone call. But chances are HR dropped the ball.

EHRL I totally agree with you on the intranet security, if you don’t want something read by your employees, make sure it is not accessible. While not being privy to the actual email he/she received from the HR Manager, or what’s in her head, I can think of a few reasons a policy might not be meant for the “public”. Maybe it was still in draft form and not yet implemented. Maybe it is for corporate staff only or for a particular business unit. Maybe it was a history file and was revamped or removed. Either way someone certainly dropped the ball. But I can certainly see situations where you may have policies that are not applicable to everyone and would only create issues if publicly posted.

]]> By: Anonymous https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3162 Mon, 27 Oct 2008 06:58:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3162 Interesting post. I wonder if the reason why the info was posted publicly to begin with was because there was a high non-response rate from the HR person herself!

Our company doesn’t have an intranet so we rely on our website to relay info to all stakeholder audiences – including employees.

So our rule of thumb around HR communciations is – if you want to post it, it’s public. If it’s confidential, find another means to communicate it.

Our PD policies (vacation, sick days, etc) have always been available online. I think it’s a positive sign of how clearly you want your employees to find the information if it’s easily accessible.

]]> By: Anonymous https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3161 Sun, 26 Oct 2008 17:39:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3161 Guess we got a little too negative for a few posts. To point out a positive…I credit my years of HR experience for shaping the person I have become today – someone who respects policy and procedure, who sees the benefits of providing policies as a source of uniform application, someone who knows that knowledge, and sharing of it, is a good thing, someone who completely respects confidentiality and the privilege we have of access to sensitive emeployee data. Lastly, I have become more appreciative of the business side because I have seen what not aligning HR objectives to business goals can do to the bottom line.

Regarding HR employees….Because of the reasons listed, it is absolutely critical that HR hires be of the utmost calibre. HR professionals need to see themselves as critical to the success or failure of an organization and treat recruitment of our open positions as important as those that we fill for line managers. If we make a bad hire, we also need to be the ones to lead by example and initiate a performace plan asap to address the issues presented and get that person back on their feet or, if necessary, out the door.

]]> By: Just another HR lady... https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3160 Sat, 25 Oct 2008 17:14:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3160 Yikes, I would hate to tell people that I’m in HR after some of this, apparently we all suck and are useless to anyone! lol.

I totally agree with everyone’s comments about the poor customer service and just plain lack of courtesy involved in the original posters story. It seems a simple situation (just answer promptly and give the policy!!) was made much more complicated than required.

However, I would like to just comment that every profession (not just HR) has individuals who are low-performers or who are not the right fit for the job. Because HR deals with every single person in the organization at every level, HR low-performers or those who make mistakes/errors/missteps are much higher profile in the company than someone who only deals with one department. Every decision, communication, project, or process is reviewed and commented on by the entire company, and when someone is not happy with HR for whatever reason, valid or not, everyone knows. Clearly though, someone out there is not managing the HR low-performers properly for our profession to get such a terrible review.

Anyone have a positive HR story to share that will help restore my self-confidence and motivation to go to work on Monday? lol. And by the way, the rule I have set for my HR department on response time to employees is within 24 hours, even if the only response they are able to give initially is “I received your message, am looking into it, and will get back to you by DATE/TIME X”. You’d be surprised at how often that’s all people need to know to be satisfied.

]]> By: Career4Change https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3159 Thu, 23 Oct 2008 20:49:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3159 Evil,
I just found your blog and it is hilarious (I used to be on the corporate HR world!). On this particular entry it is very frustrating to find the ‘ball’ on the HR side for soooo long with no response, whatever kind of response would have worked better than the actual e-mail got from HR explaining how suddenly a benefit that should be explicit and well known by all employees, suddenly becomes secretive and confidential. I just imagine the implications of it. Some people getting the reimbursement due to their ‘HR contacts’ and some others completely discriminated against due to the secrecy of a policy!!!!

]]> By: Emily https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3158 Wed, 22 Oct 2008 21:33:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3158 You’ve got several different issues going on here. Let’s talk about issue number 1: HR not returning e-mails. You have a simple question—what is the tuition reimbursement policy? Now, depending on the size of your company the person you know as “HR” may not (and judging from the lack of response, does not) know what the policy is. So, she ignored your e-mail. Or she forwarded it and that person ignored it and she didn’t follow up. This is completely unprofessional and downright rude.

If she didn’t know the answer and didn’t know whom to ask, the proper response is to e-mail you back and apologetically tell you she doesn’t know the answer. Then the other proper response is for her boss to fire her because she should either know the answer to that question, know who to ask, or be willing to wade in and find out who knows.

This is exactly how our HR contact person is. She absolutely refuses to respond to emails or phone calls. And if you hunt her down in person, she’ll act like she’s going to do what you ask, but never does. Would that she could be fired, but I work for the gov’t, so that’s not going to happen.

I just added your blog to my favorites today. I’ve actually had your blog come up several times in google searches and you always have good answers. I look forward to reading more.

]]> By: Trends in Human Resources https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3157 Wed, 22 Oct 2008 11:15:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3157 Great Post,
Am HR person is the brand ambassador of the organization. He should ensure that people are able to access information which needs to be shared and strictly can’t have access to unauthorised documents.
Rather than complicating issues, the HR person must ensure that the person goes through all policies at the time of his induction and should be updated on any changes or additions in the same.
One has to be well connected and informed.
Loved your last quote 🙂

]]> By: DrinkingTea https://www.evilhrlady.org/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3156 Wed, 22 Oct 2008 01:06:00 +0000 http://localhost/wordpress/2008/10/policy-problem.html#comment-3156 Playing Devil’s advocate, if the company is anything like mine has been until fairly recently, there’s a chance that the company president said that the policy is changing without telling HR what it was. When the question came up, HR could have gone to the president to find out what it was, only to be told, ‘I’m still thinking about it’ every time the HR person went to the president for five months straight. Or maybe the president said, ‘I’ll call the employee myself’ (and never following through) after dismissing all potential solutions to the policy and/or the specific employee with the question.

HR should have gotten back to the employee with a ‘I’m sorry, but upper management is in the process of changing the policy and I hope to have an answer for you on x date.’ But I can see how the question never would have been answered in the first place.

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