As an HR professional or manager, employee terminations are something that will need to be addressed, whether frequently or infrequently - and we all hope it end up being less frequent. However often it happens, the resulting turnover can end up being a very costly expense to organizations. A look inside the numbers illustrates how important retention really is.

Our knowledge is your knowledge! That is the common expectation in the HR world, right? It's all about sharing resources, training, updates, and knowledge with employees, clients, and even other human resource professionals in our network. We do it because everyone in this role knows what a constant challenge it can be to keep up with changing legislation, benefit offerings, trends, policies, and compliance requirements. You can never have too many tools in your toolbox of HR information.

• Can and should we screen social media accounts as part of the hiring process?
• We have good reason to believe an employee has been stealing from the register. What should we do?
• How do we keep an employee at-will but require them to give notice before leaving?
• Can we ask an applicant why they are leaving their current job?

Where do you turn for answers to these and other HR questions? Google? Colleagues? A coin flip?

Businesses spend an average of 25 hours per month trying to understand and resolve HR issues, and in too many cases much of that time is spent guessing or following poor advice. There's a better way to get reliable information faster, and we're inviting you to see how it works.

If you're an employer who is or will soon be hiring, then you are probably all too aware of what the historically low unemployment rate the country is currently experiencing means: employee scarcity. That leaves prospective employers scrambling for ways to attract new candidates and retain existing workers needed to provide value and keep their businesses competitive. Here's a look at some of the facts and figures that describe - and impact - employee retention.

Is this a familiar scenario?

You have a new applicant coming to interview for a job opening. She or he is due to arrive within the hour. You've looked over the candidate's résumé at length, but you still haven't assembled any questions for the impending discussion. Desperate, you scratch out some questions on a piece of paper; something about the person's greatest strength or worst day on the job or how would s/he define excellent customer service? Fine...but what will these questions really tell you about a candidate's suitability for the exact position you're hiring for?

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.