With the continued addition of new clients and client projects, impactHR once again is expanding its team! We’re delighted to announce the hiring of Tammy Besser and Terri Collins as Senior HR Consultants, Client Services; Sam McLennan as a HR Consultant; and Stacy Booker as Office Manager/Executive Assistant.
Tammy Besser is an HR business leader with over 25 years of experience in strategic and operational HR. With specialties in talent acquisition, talent management, employee relations and HR compliance, Tammy has held numerous HR operations and generalist roles as a practitioner and consultant focused on building HR departments from the ground up. 
Tammy has worked in various industries including engineering, aircraft, information systems, accounting, finance, as well as life sciences, medical and healthcare services. She has SHRM-SCP and SPHR certifications, a Senior HR Management Certificate from Villanova University, and holds a BS in Human Resources from the University of Maryland, College Park.
Terri Collins is a seasoned HR professional with over 20 years of experience in HR compliance, talent development, succession planning, performance management, compensation, full life-cycle recruiting and employee and labor relations.
Terri’s experiences include progressing responsibility and scope working in a diverse range of industries, including call centers, financial services, building materials manufacturing and non-hazardous waste and recycling industries. In these sectors, Terri partnered closely with leadership to excel through frontline leadership development, process improvements and enhancement of the employee experience.
Over the course of her career, Terri has long been an advocate for employees at all levels, while never losing sight of organizational missions and values. She is a graduate of the University of Virginia with a B.A. in Psychology and holds a SPHR Certificate.
With 15 years of learning and development experience, Sam McLennan is an experienced leader in the assessment, design, implementation and
evaluation of training and professional development programs. Sam has spent a significant part of her career managing instructional designers and trainers in a corporate environment. She also has an extensive background in performance management, employee engagement and succession planning.
Prior to joining impactHR, Sam has held L&D roles in a variety of industries including healthcare, higher education, retail, entertainment and IT. She holds several training certifications including Situational Leadership, DiSC and Myers-Briggs. Sam is also currently working on obtaining her Certified Professional in Talent Development certification.
Stacy Booker brings over 15 years of experience in a variety of responsibilities, including office management, recruiting, logistics and accounting.
In her current role, Stacy is responsible for providing a wide range of office management and support to the impactHR team, including accounting, administrative support and office facility management. Stacy holds a BA in Sociology from Eastern University.
Developing an Employee Retention Plan To Ward off Resignations
As is well known, the US economy is going through a period being dubbed “the great resignation.” In fact, a record-high 4.3 million US workers voluntarily quit their jobs last August, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics.
With this dynamic, it’s a good time to think about how your current employees are doing in their jobs – that is, it’s time to examine and evaluate your organization’s employee retention capability.
For recruiting, the fact is the return of better business conditions with new remote work options mean potential job candidates have more choices in picking their next job. It’s no longer the case, for example, that your typical job posting will automatically attract high-volume interest, giving you many candidates from which to choose.
The bottom line is employers can’t afford to lose their talent. A more fluid job market means employees and job seekers have more options. So now it’s all about employee retention.
We know employees voluntarily quit their jobs for a variety of reasons, including relations with their managers, poor engagement in their work, lackluster compensation and benefits packages, or non-recognition for their work. And now include differing employer vaccination plans and remote/hybrid workplace policies.
With members of Gen X and the Millennials, for example, one common trait they share is their need to have meaning in and recognition for their work. Putting this into further perspective, a 2020 Gallup poll found nearly 51% of U.S. workers are “disengaged” or “actively disengaged” in their jobs.
So for employers, one way to stay ahead of this new era is to create an employee retention plan. To start, you would want to determine the extent to which turnover is (or isn’t) a problem in your organization. Diagnosing your turnover involves knowing how many employees leave voluntarily relative those involuntarily dismissed.
So, for employers, here are some key questions to ask:
- Is turnover a problem in my organization?
- How many people are leaving over a period of time?
- Who is leaving in terms of roles?
- What are the relative costs and benefits of our current turnover?
One key tactic to include as part of your retention strategy is to conduct pulse checks with employees to determine engagement and productivity levels. The information you gather from these check-ins will provide additional information to further develop your retention strategy.
From there, you can determine new ways to position your employees for success (and to stay with your organization), such as: allowing employees to work remotely; reviewing their compensation and rewards; giving them new projects or additional responsibilities; and even finding ways to bring more fun into your workplace.
In addition, another step to consider is conducting employee engagement surveys. Employee surveys can help you gain a more accurate picture of how employees view their work lives and, in turn, allow you to work to improve overall employee satisfaction and culture.
impactAction: If you need assistance in preparing an employee retention plan, contact us at info@impacthrllc.com or 443-741-3900.
Federal Contractors: Staying in Compliance with HR policies
Doing business with the federal government means adhering to an array of rules and regulations, especially for HR.
To this end, here is a snapshot guide to three HR-focused regulatory programs critical to comply with if you are a federal contractor or aim to become one:
Affirmative Action Programs (AAP): All government contractors with 50 or more employees and $50,000 or more in government contracts are required to develop written AAPs to ensure the participation and utilization of women and minorities in the contractor’s workforce. There are also related rules in place prohibiting employment discrimination against veterans and persons with disabilities.
The Service Contract Act (SCA) requires contractors and subcontractors performing services on prime contracts in excess of $2,500 to pay service employees the local prevailing wage (including benefits and overtime) paid on similar work and projects. The SCA stipulates that federal contractors are required to pay the federal minimum wage to their employees for contracts at or below $2,500.
The Defense Contracting Audit Agency (DCAA): This DoD agency, established in 1965 to avoid overcharges and over-payments on defense-related contracting expenditures, performs contract audits to ensure taxpayer dollars are subject to “fair and reasonable contract prices.”
The DCAA also ensures contractors adhere to the Federal Acquisition Regulations, including those for HR, that apply to all federal contractors serving defense and civilian agencies and departments.
impactAction: If you need help complying with federal HR contracting rules, contact us at info@impacthrllc.com or 443-741-3900.
DC City Council Expands Universal Paid Leave Benefits
The DC City Council last month enacted an expanded set of benefits under its Universal Paid Leave law. This updated policy includes the following provisions for DC-based employees:
- New: Provides six weeks of paid leave for taking care of personal medical needs (previously two weeks)
- New: Allows medical leave to be used in the event of stillbirth or miscarriage
- New: Provides employees two weeks of paid leave for prenatal medical care
The law continues to:
- Provide eight weeks of paid leave for caring for a newborn or newly adopted child
- Provide six weeks for tending to a sick relative
DC’s universal paid leave law applies to all employees with DC-based private businesses. In addition, note that residents of DC who work for employers outside of the city and all federal employees are not eligible for these benefits.
impactAction: If you have questions or need assistance complying with this policy, contact us at info@impacthrllc.com or 443-741-3900.