Publicity Hound, Joan Stewart discovered a brilliant way to help business people understand social networking while still having a life: On November 6, she’ll be interviewing my friend and colleague, BL Ochman at a teleseminar called “How to do Social Networking, Run a Business & Still Have a Life.”

Join Joan on November 6 for a 70-minute teleseminar and hear Ochman explain how she rations her time, uses a variety of social networking tools, and still manages to set aside a huge chunk of her schedule each day for client projects. She’ll also explain how she’ll use social networking to launch a new business.

Will Judy be there? Absolutely. Wouldn’t miss this for anything.

By Guest Columnist Anne Caldwell
President, Outsourcing Solutions
In a job market like the current one, attracting and retaining the best help is challenging. The key to finding and keeping good employees is creating an environment in which they would want to work.

Comprehensive Benefits Package
Start by providing a benefits package that is comprehensive. There are many good plans for medical and dental, plus other benefits you can make available at a good rate with little or no cost to you. Some of these include the following:

• Legal plans
• Pet insurance
• Employee assistance plans
• Vision care
• Credit union memberships
• Auto club discounts.

By providing the vendor with a pool of employees, you automatically qualify for group rates, which are paid by the employees who want the benefit.

Define Performance Expectations
Next, make sure that you are defining performance expectations. Nothing enhances an employee’s chances for success more than being clear about what is expected of them. Knowing where they stand, and what they need to do to increase their compensation or be considered for a promotion provides a powerful incentive to stay.

Be certain that you are acknowledging the efforts that people make. When employees feels like their contribution is noticed and appreciated, it solidifies their connection with the company.

I often ask management groups to close their eyes and remember a time when they felt that their efforts were entirely understood and totally acknowledged. It usually takes them some time to come up with something, but when they do, it’s a vivid memory. This tells us:

1. That it doesn’t happen very often
2. That it feels so good, we remember it for years

Remind Your Staff That You Appreciate Them
Why not make it part of your routine to remind your staff that you appreciate their contribution? Be specific. Don’t just tell them they did a good job. Tell them how effective it was that they found such an innovative way to turn that irate customer into a satisfied, even delighted one.

I often suggest to skeptics to try it for a month as though they really see the value, and they are often surprised with the result.

Click here to go to Part 2 of this article.
Find H/R expert Anne Caldwell at Outsourcing Solutions. http://www.azoutsource.com