B/P Impressions

Did you know that employees who manage Human Resources for an organization spend up to 25 hours a month just searching for HR answers? If your business is spending that kind of time (and money), consider this better way of quickly finding quality information that you can rely on.

When you are seeking that next great hire, what specific qualities are you looking for? Someone who has a strong work ethic, is dependable, displays a positive and can-do attitude, and is team-oriented but has potential leadership skills? If you answered yes to any or all of these qualities, you are not alone. It takes a lot of work and a great deal of time and planning to make sure you have the right fit, regardless of the level or position you are hiring for. And none of this takes into account the other companies that are probably trying to compete for that same great new hire, since the job market continues to shift causing many more open positions than there are qualified job-seekers to fill them.

You may have recently received a phone call from a Sage Software representative – or you will probably receive one in the very near future. They are calling regarding moving from your current Sage Business Care Plan to a Sage 100cloud Subscription. The urgency around this latest push has to do with a price hike coming as of April 1, 2019, and we want you to have all the information you need before that deadline arrives.

We are very excited about his month’s Human Resource theme: Recruiting and Hiring Great Employees. Recruiting high-quality employees is a challenge that HR and hiring managers face on a regular basis, and with the unemployment rate remaining so low, it has been especially difficult recently.

As the old saying goes, "It takes a village" to overcome this type of challenge. So we are asking you to join our village. We want to hear about the creative methods you are using to find great people, and we plan to share the ideas and stories we get from our "village" in a blog post published later this month. If you have a couple of minutes to answer the following questions, we'd love to include your feedback.

For employers, knowing what to do when an employee requests time off under the Family and Medical Leave Act is often like trying to follow directions on a winding road with no signposts. Even if there are no active leave requests or cases open, certain provisions may need to be followed in order to be in compliance with the regulations. When those requests do come in, a fully integrated and automated Human Capital Management system can help HR manage the cases while ensuring that the Payroll Department receives accurate information about employee leaves. Even still, you have to know where to begin...and where the road is expected to go. If you're just getting started with the FMLA, let this roadmap offer you a sense of direction.

Are you still using Windows 7 on your work computer? Do you have servers in your office that have Microsoft Server 2008 installed on them? If so, then there are a few important things you need to know regarding these and similar Microsoft products.

On January 14, 2020, Microsoft will end support for many popular operating systems and software platforms used by businesses today. The most important of these are Windows 7, Windows Server 2008 R2, SQL Server 2008 R2, and Microsoft Exchange 2010. Support for Office 2010 will end in October of 2020.

In recent weeks, we’ve learned about multiple companies in the Portland area that have confronted some kind of embezzlement in their business. Embezzlement certainly isn’t unique to the type of software we sell and support – it can happen anywhere at any time.

Years ago, I was asked to testify to a Grand Jury about embezzlement at a public utility company. “How could that happen?” was the biggest question jurors wanted an answer to. Without explaining to you everything I explained to them, let me just assure you that it can and does happen. So, rather than telling you how to embezzle, this article seeks to provide information that might help prevent embezzlement.

Is your business required to offer leave under the Family and Medical Leave Act? Do you have a process and form for employees to request leaves of absence? If not, click on the link below to download a template that your employees can use to make leave requests.

Using this document, you can move those requests through the approval process - like making copies of the form and walking them around to the decision makers - and then track the status and manage the resulting leave of absence cases...perhaps on an Excel spreadsheet that captures all the details.

Yeah. That's one way to do it.

An alternative method is using a fully integrated Human Capital Management system that automates the request and routing processes for you, as well as maintains all records electronically. Here's how that more efficient and precise process might work.

Navigating employee leave acts can be one of the most confusing and stressful tasks for employers and HR professionals. These regulations are typically complicated and must be handled correctly, or there can be serious consequences. Many employers encounter events that cause them to ask, "Is this a Workers’ Compensation situation or an ADA restriction? And when does FMLA apply?"

Excel can be a real know-it-all sometimes. Do you find yourself fighting with the software when it wants to auto correct certain letters or words that you type in...and that you know are correct? For example, I have a customer number that is WYA and Excel changes it to 'WAY' every time. Well, you can tell Excel not to make these types of corrections anymore!