Having spent time working in HR Systems and Administration (and now being in a position where I work closely with company executives), the idea of GIGO has always been very close to heart. GIGO, or garbage in – garbage out, describes the relationship between the output of a system or process and the effort spent on the input side of the system, policy or process.

While largely applicable to the HR field in terms of technology like Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and Human Resources Information Systems (HRIS/HRMS), GIGO is also very applicable to processes, policy and programs.

Let’s think about it from a systems perspective – management asks you for a report of all performance ratings against source of hire over the past five years to look at trends (likely to determine if the source of a hire can predeict better or worse performance). Let’s say on the data entry side, you left source blank where your recruiter was unsure of how the hiring manager initially found a person, or you did not chase down performance ratings when managers did not report them (all of this assuming that you do not yet have automated feeds from integrated ATS and PM systems). Now, with time of the essence, you are either presenting your executives with incomplete data or you are scrambling to run around and get the missing data. Garbage in, garbage out.

Another slightly different example – you have created an employee handbook/manual, but to save a few dollars or to get it out quicker, you focus only on “key policies”. You did not include anything on religious observances, and now you have a manager knocking on your (proverbial) door asking whether or not her employee of Jewish faith (one of six in your company) is entitled to non-Christian religious days of observance and whether or not they are paid. Not only are you now likely scrambling to determine how appropriate provincial legislation and case law applies, but you are quickly trying to figure out past precedent at your company and what other managers intend to do. Again, garbage in (because you cut corners on feedback and input into the employee handbook) and while the quality might be good, you have garbage out because the content is not fully inclusive to reflect your employee landscape.

The examples could go on and on. The reason I bring up GIGO again today is because it has been top of mind. Not so much because of a lack of quality or poor processes/quality, but because part of my role over the past year has been in improving the inputs and thinking about future requirements (POTENTIAL outputs). One of those requirements involved digitizing all employee files (old paper contracts, TD1′s, comp statements, etc), and while still catching up on some of the backlog, work throughout the year has paid off in dividends related to having processes and content that has been extremely valuable to have at hand both for quick reference and for online sharing/storage. There are also numerous other projects undertaken throughout the course of the year along the same vein that have also proven to be well worth the initial investment. 

I guess I would boil it down to planning as they key, strongly followed by resourcing and diligence. Having goals and a vision in mind, carefully planning and allocating resources and sticking to a plan (with appropriate strategic realignments) is likely the best way to stay the course and get results. And, whether that is the foresight to get appropriate data into a system years in advance of requiring information for metrics, or having a policy/process in place when charting unknown territory – quality inputs will net you quality outputs. Because, by the time you need to fix mistakes, errors or omissions – it’s going to be too late!

It seems that being an HR professional these days is being more than just a “people person”. If you don’t believe so, refer back to such comments as seen in the Fast Company “Why We Hate HR” article. Do a search in my blog to find a post and copy of the article if you have not read either. In the article, there is a quote indicating that (let me paraphrase) if you want to help people, then get a job in the social services field. While HR deals with people, it is very much a function of business.

While I have taken the above entirely out of context, and it could be argued as true or too harsh on many different levels – let’s leave it at that for now. Point is, if you got into HR to simply help people, then you may find yourself in the wrong profession. Yes, part of the job can be that of counsellor or mentor, but these days, many HR people find themselves being a strategist, accountant (budgets), legal expert, negotiator, mediator, office manager, clerk and sometimes a programmer or IT expert. Specifically, I would like to focus this post on the amount of law that seems to continue to creep into the HR profession.

Why do I bring this up? The new #1search string landing traffic in my blog is for Bill 139, the 2008 (proposed) amendment to the Employment Standards Act. While I have already written about the amendment only a fwe short posts ago, I would like to focus a few brief words on effective ways for keeping yourself up to date on pertinent legislation. Essentially, to have a lot of this information come to you, so that you don’t need to go searching for it once it becomes a priority item for you… because you heard it on the news or because an employee brought it to your attention – or in a worst case scenario, because a government official comes knocking on your door with a compliance order.

First and foremost, there are industry publications which may be relied upon. For members of the HRPA in Canada, you have access to the regular delivery of a magazine covering all the hot issues of the day. Not fast enough? Then you can always subscribe to online feeds or attend chapter events. Aside from the professional associations, check with your external legal conusel – odds are that they publish a FREE e-mail newsletter for their clients and they would be happy to put you on the mailing list. If not, you can do a search to find firms that will put you on their list, even if you are not a client. I subscribe to a couple just to make sure I am covered. One, for example, is provided by Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP. Finally, you can take advantage of all technology has to offer. Find blogs that are specific to employment law and subscribe to their RSS feeds.

The benefits of doing the above are not only to stay current on legislative changes, but also on case law. All of the law firm newsletters I mentioned will also send out updates on major case law decisions that may not change statutes, but may have findings or decisions which could set new precedent for future decision in the application of employment law – decisions which could impact proceeding you or your company have presently within the court system or may in the future.

Point is, be informed. HR is not what it used to be, and it requires more “maintenance” on personal and professional development that it ever has. Imagine if your doctor, accountant or personal lawyer did not keep current by reviewing each of their respective industry journals and publications? Please keep reading my blog for revelant information, and I am happy to keep bringing you interesting articles and information. But, I hope I have also provided you with some additional ideas and resources to help get information to you in a faster, more detailed and more reliable manner.

As I have for my past few entries, I am going to write this one based on common searches that have landed people on my website.

So far this month, the recurring theme has been Human Resources (HR) Networking in Canada.

But, before I get to that, I need to to a bit of my own networking for anyone reading this. As a result of major business changes and a large restructure at my present company, I now find myself looking for my next opportunity. If you are reading this and you know your company may be looking for a full-time senior HR professional, or a contractor to implement immediate projects, please take a look at my resume and contact me about the opportunity. I am quite flexible, adaptable and have over 10 years HR experience across a variety of functions and a wealth of industries.

OK, enough of the advertisement. Back to the topic.

With the continued growth of (online) social and business networking, I suppose it is not surprising to be getting the hits I am related to searches for networking. However, since I assume that most people typically know what sites and tools are available, I get the impression that the information people are seeking related to HR is more along the lines of networking specifically in HR, or how to use the network tools for HR functions (ie. Recruitment). On a side note, I have prior posts on good HR Networking sites to connect with like-minded peers in Canada and the US, so if you are looking for some actual sites, please do a search on my prior posts.

So, new year, new resolutions, new opportunities. As folks ramp up into the new year, I believe many are making goals and resolutions to grow their networks and improve their knowledge base. It is interesting to point out, or at least remember, that social networks are nothing new. “Online” social networks are. Think about the traditional company employee referral program for example – it’s success has historically been based on employees referring like-minded and successful individuals from their own business or social networks. How many of you have taken the opportunity to acknowledge this online trend as part of your traditional employee referral programs? That’s to say, encouraging and motivating employees to actively promote your company in their blogs, Myspace, Facebook, LinkeIn, Bebo, etc and track the success of hires through employees from those sources! Perhaps you can provide your employees content to put on their sites, or start a company jobs page on Facebook and incent your employees for every one of their contacts who joins your company’s Facebook career page.

Back to the HR Networking in Canada part – probably what you started reading this for in the first place. I strongly believe that your network is only as good as the degree to which you maintain it. Set your mandate and determine how it will be successful for you. For example, are you networking to find a job, to build sales leads or to share knowledge. Do you want local contacts or contacts across the country (or globally)? Will you accept invitations from anyone, or do you want a specific type of person (ie. HR people only)? How you setup your network based on your goals will determine the size of your network and ultimately how you will be able to maintain and cultivate that network. Why is this important? When you choose to call upon your network for whatever is your reason - is a broader network of thousands useful or is a more intimate network of people you speak to on a regular basis going to be of more value? Perhaps you can maintain a composition of both. And, what tool will you use to maintain your network?

Whatever your reasons, choosing to network with your peers and local community is a great idea. Figure out up front what you hope to get out of it, and what value you can bring to the table for others. Remember, the idea of networking is reciprocal, and only valuable when all parties are active participants.