Since the beginning of the pandemic, more companies have transitioned from an office environment to allowing their employees to work from home. Now, many companies and their employees are discovering unexpected benefits and some new challenges brought on by the transition.
According to a 2019 Gartner Artificial Intelligence survey, 17 percent of organizations were already using UI-based solutions for HR operations, and another 30 percent planned to do so by 2022. The reasons cited for making the change include cost savings, an improved employee experience, and support for data-based decision-making. What is Artificial Intelligence? Artificial intelligence […]
Employees can figure out how they spend their time, but support from their employer is critical. Managers who prioritize the health and well-being of their teams should take steps to understand what work-life balance means for each team member and help them achieve it. Here are ten practices managers can use to help their teams […]
Going forward, many companies are planning on adopting a workforce management model that combines on-site, hybrid, and remote office work. According to a survey conducted by HR consulting firm Mercer in May of 2021, nearly 70% of companies plan on moving to the hybrid model even after COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, with only 20% returning […]
Workforce management systems were originated in call centers to increase efficiency. Once productivity increased through the systems and processes, other businesses and industries followed. Today, workforce management is described as a framework that organizations can use to improve time management, forecast staffing requirements, ensure regulatory compliance and produce analytical data about employee skills, training, and […]
Human resource experts have identified various common stages for multiple types of workforce planning. While different experts may say there are three, four, or five stages, all seem to agree on the basic planning process: analyze the current supply of employee talent and come up with a prediction of future demand; identify the gap between […]
To turn a long-term goal from a dream into reality, you can make the work less daunting by breaking it down into bite-sized pieces that are relatively easy to finish. You can turn these chunks into short-term goals. While digital tools like workforce management software streamline the scheduling process for short-term goals, careful planning requires […]
To keep up, more companies will continue to allow many employees to do their jobs from any location, and set their own hours, to the degree it supports the customer base. Thanks to digital workforce management tools, there is no reason to assume that encouraging remote work will negatively affect the bottom line. Silo Mentality […]
Health Risks in the Office While everyone’s health status is different, as a general proposition, overall diet, exercise, nutrition, and other factors all contribute to overall health. Prolonged sitting is less healthy than a combination of exercise, regular movement, and some sitting. Having a regular exercise schedule outside of work doesn’t guarantee to be free […]
James Humes, a speechwriter for five U.S. Presidents, once described the art of communication as “the language of leadership.” In the workplace, use language to build an environment of transparency that makes every team member feel informed about the business and understand how company decisions will affect their role. Transparent communication builds trust, and studies […]
Is Working from Home Here to Stay? Many companies that were previously doubtful about allowing team members to work from home were able to successfully establish remote work programs in 2020. A survey of 800 employers conducted by HR firm Mercer found that 94% reported equal or higher levels of productivity during the pandemic. According […]
Workforce management systems were originated in call centers to increase efficiency. Once productivity increased through the systems and processes, other businesses and industries followed. Today, workforce management is described as a framework that organizations can use to improve time management, forecast staffing requirements, ensure regulatory compliance and produce analytical data about employee skills, training, and […]
To keep up, more companies will continue to allow many employees to do their jobs from any location, and set their own hours, to the degree it supports the customer base. Thanks to digital workforce management tools, there is no reason to assume that encouraging remote work will negatively affect the bottom line. Silo Mentality […]
Is Working from Home Here to Stay? Many companies that were previously doubtful about allowing team members to work from home were able to successfully establish remote work programs in 2020. A survey of 800 employers conducted by HR firm Mercer found that 94% reported equal or higher levels of productivity during the pandemic. According […]
According to a 2020 research report by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), “85 percent of jobs that will exist in 2030 have not been invented yet.” Understanding the future of work and how the workplace will evolve is key to deciding on a career that will take you into the next decade and […]
Employers who want to keep their best workers and attract new talent must pay attention to this year’s workforce trends, or they may find themselves unprepared for the next wave of changes. “We’ve been living through the greatest workplace disruption in generations, and the level of volatility will not slow down in 2022,” says the […]
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that 73.3 million workers were paid an hourly wage in 2020, representing 55.5 percent of all workers. Of these hourly workers, about 1.1 million received pay at or below the federal minimum wage of $7.25 per hour, making up 1.5 percent of all hourly workers. Being paid a […]
Recent studies show that organizations that are more transparent, especially with team members, experience increased engagement, better collaboration, and higher productivity. When everyone is working with the same information and a shared vision, the entire team feels more connected. What is Workplace Transparency? Glassdoor, the employer review site, defines a transparent workplace as “an organization […]
“Project management is the use of specific knowledge, skills, tools, and techniques to deliver something of value to people.” This is how PMI (Project Management Institute) defines project management. Although there are a variety of tools marketed as project management solutions that can help with project management tasks, they don’t replace the need for understanding […]
The activities of many human resources organizations can be categorized into three areas: recruitment, compensation (including benefits), and employee engagement. KPIs in these categories are among those most often used by human resources, provided they’re relevant to the organization’s business goals. Recruitment KPIs Finding, interviewing, hiring and onboarding new employees is one of the most […]
1. Start with SMART Goals Try setting some SMART goals if you find yourself looking at a long to-do list with no idea where to start. According to Norman Vincent Peale, an early advocate of positive thinking, “All successful people have a goal. No one can get anywhere unless he knows where he wants to […]
Workforce forecasting can bring many benefits to a business, including reducing the risk of staffing shortages, providing an understanding of your current staffing skill set, and streamlining your recruitment strategy based on your forecasted needs. According to the Society for HR Management: “There is now an approach for high-performance organizations to develop and sustain high-quality […]
What is a Project Deliverable? Any product or service produced by a project may qualify as a project deliverable, provided it meets a few criteria. First, stakeholders in the project must agree with the deliverable. These may be either internal or external stakeholders. The deliverable must be within the scope of the project and can […]
Why are Labor Management Partnerships Formed? Many of the partnerships of this type are formed by companies that provide critical community services. Employers, especially in the public sector, are faced with mounting challenges to improve performance and the quality of services while reducing costs. Unions have a stake in the ability of employers to meet […]
Where Did the Idea of coAmplifi Come From? The idea for coAmplifi started long before the Covid-19 pandemic began. Technology has evolved, and we realized that the future of work would include more teams working in three types of environments: (a) remote, (b) hybrid, and (c) onsite. However, none of the existing software offered everything […]
What is Workforce Management Software (WFM)? Workforce Management (WFM) is a set of processes and tools used to optimize workforce productivity through strategic human resource allocation and embedded processes. It includes software solutions that automate key human resource functions, time tracking, scheduling, training, data collection, analytics, and forecasting. Initially used in call centers to help automate […]
The office may be ready for employees to return, but are they ready for the office? Many miss in-person contact and are eager to get back, while others have adapted to working from home and enjoy skipping their previous commute. In the middle are those who prefer a hybrid schedule that includes both working from […]
What Does Email Task Management Entail? Email task management means you’re using your inbox to track and manage tasks, projects, and perhaps even larger programs. All the operations associated with task management, including setting deadlines and priorities and assigning tasks to other people, are managed via email software. Most basic email systems only support sending, […]
The National Bureau of Economic Research reports that the average workday increased by about 50 minutes in areas with lockdowns. This wouldn’t be a problem if the additional work time resulted in increased productivity, but the risk of work-from-home burnout is cause for concern. What is Job Burnout? According to the Mayo Clinic, job burnout […]
You’ve recruited, interviewed, and hired a potentially great employee who may be working on-site, hybrid, or remotely, but don’t congratulate yourself yet. Without an effective onboarding process, all that effort might be wasted when the new hire leaves after a few months on the job. First impressions can have an enormous impact on a new […]
Many behavior experts believe that greater transparency in the workplace environment can bring about unintended changes in behavior due to a well-known psychological phenomenon known as the Hawthorne effect. What is the Hawthorne Effect? The term Hawthorne effect refers to the results of studies of workplace behavior conducted by Harvard Business School professor Elton Mayo […]
Wage & Hour litigation can threaten the health of any business, so it’s critically important for companies to comply with current wage & hour regulations. The U.S. has a long history of laws that protect employee rights, especially those related to wage and hour. Unfortunately, adhering to Federal, State, and local regulations adds complexity to […]
Even before the COVID-19 pandemic, a growing number of companies were allowing team members to work from home. That trend gained additional momentum in 2020. A recent Gartner survey reports that over 80% of companies plan to allow part-time remote work after the pandemic, and 47% intend to allow full-time working from home. According to […]
Your company may spend a lot of time defining, tracking, and evaluating strategic goals, but do you have a solid plan for achieving them? According to a survey reported in the Harvard Business Review, an estimated 67% of well-formulated business strategies fail. Many of these failures occur when management and team members lose sight of […]
Having a solid business plan is a crucial step when a company starts out, but many organizations fail to update their plan or develop a new one with each passing year. Lack of planning is one of the reasons 65 percent of businesses fail during their first 10 years, as reported by the U.S. Bureau […]
Companies lose money every year to employee theft of equipment and supplies. Even more prevalent is the theft that occurs when employees are paid for the time that they haven’t worked. This form of stealing can be just as harmful to a business as the loss of physical assets. A study conducted by the American […]
Workplace transparency fosters openness between leaders and team members, creating a trust that leads to success. Transparency that brings real change doesn’t come with a one-time initiative — it requires an ongoing effort and a receptive company culture that allows team members to communicate honestly with management, and feel that their opinions and ideas are […]
Many organizations spend a significant amount of time and money on annual raises and performance reviews without seeing a clear return on investment. Team members often feel they are unfairly evaluated rather than viewing a performance review as an opportunity for improvement. On the other hand, team leaders frequently complain that the review process consumes […]
The number of Americans working remotely grew from 20 percent in March of 2020 to more than 70 percent a year later. While studies have found that some companies experienced increases in productivity during this period, the sudden shift to a work-from-home (WFH) model was challenging for many others. Managers with little or no experience […]
The practice of project management can be incredibly complex, with dozens or hundreds of tasks and dependencies needing to be tracked. Project management software tools have become so popular because of the support they provide in scheduling, organizing, and reporting on project workflows. They can also improve team communication and collaboration. When searching through all […]
Whether held in person or online, face-to-face meetings offer the opportunity for like-minded people to come together for planning, brainstorming, and information sharing. When meetings are correctly planned, they can foster cooperation and lead to group solutions that meeting participants would not have arrived at on their own. Planning a meeting and making sure all […]
Managers often face a tricky balancing act when it comes to requests for time off. There’s denying that everyone deserves time off from work throughout the year for vacation, medical appointments, or illness. The problem is that approving time-off requests without careful consideration may keep team members happy, but the practice can seriously disrupt business […]
For businesses that use time tracking software to bill clients for hours worked, getting team members’ buy-in to the system is critical. Unless they use the system conscientiously, there’s no guarantee that billing hours are accurate. Even if hours aren’t billed, inaccurate tracking by team members can lead to missed deadlines, poor project management, and […]
Your teams are not made up of robots, but of living humans whose well-being depends on satisfying other needs besides work. These needs may include family responsibilities, health issues, or personal development. The difference in personal needs between team members means that work-life balance has many individual meanings. In general, work and personal lives are […]
Project management software helps streamline business operations by increasing team member efficiency and collaboration projects. It can also provide insights into project workflows and tasks. To realize all the benefits of a new project management system, it’s crucial to gain the support and opinions of team members. Transitioning to any new software is challenging, but […]
In the past, attempts at using HR data as a decision-making tool were limited by the lack of tools to help pull meaningful information from team member statistics. Using multiple spreadsheets to derive metrics on complex topics, such as team member turnover and engagement, is challenging at best. The development of more sophisticated analytic software […]
Prioritizing can be challenging when large, complicated projects that frequently change are involved. Project management software is excellent for tracking tasks for a deadline, but human input still needs prioritization. Being able to prioritize and manage tasks to hit a deadline in a dynamic work environment is a skill that takes time to master. The […]
Since mid-level managers and team leaders can have a significant impact on workplace culture, they need to recognize and avoid behaviors that can undermine employee morale, decrease team member engagement, and contribute to team member turnover. Most managers don’t do this on purpose. Lack of experience and inadequate leadership training can lead to bad habits […]
Having a prioritized task list can improve time management by taking the guesswork out of deciding how to spend your time and where to direct your energy. If you sometimes feel overwhelmed by the number of things you need to do, check out these tips for prioritizing your tasks. Commit to Your List Even the […]
Major workplace shifts always come with some level of stress. Still, you can minimize losses in productivity by following a few essential steps based on the experience of companies with long records of using remote teams. These 12 Tips Will Help Managers and Remote Team Members Equally. Set Expectations From the Start. Remote team members […]
With more team members working remotely, individual, team, and departmental goal setting is more important than ever. Focusing on goals can make everyone more productive and successful, providing the goals are measurable and aligned with a company’s overall business objectives. One of the biggest challenges for managers is setting common goals for team members who […]
Staying connected with team members in remote locations has always been a challenge. With more remote team members than ever, many organizations are looking for new ways to increase communication. One of the most popular is the daily stand up meetings, long used by Agile software development teams for quick check-ins. When handled correctly, these […]
Performance reviews are an essential part of organizational and individual productivity, focussed on a review of team member performance. When properly given, they can boost communication, engagement, and productivity. When mistakes are made, the negative impact can lead to a team member becoming disconnected and looking for work elsewhere. Conducting team member reviews is one […]
