A necessary but often daunting facet of human resources is compliance and administration. There are a myriad of compliance requirements from local, state, and federal agencies facing every organization. Labor laws, health and safety issues, employment and unemployment policies are some of the major areas within this domain.

This field of human resources concerns the management of employment relationships. Organizations establish policies and procedures to maintain good working interactions between employees and employers. In most cases setting policy is not a ‘fun’ part of the job…but when you need it, you’re always glad that the information was there for you. Gathering and maintaining data and records as a way to base HR decisions is necessary for three reasons:

1. Government Compliance
2. Documentation
3. Assessment of Human Resources Activities

It’s never too early to begin your compliance efforts. Case in point, the Civil Rights Act of 1964, which is considered the keystone of antidiscrimination legislation, effects employers with only 15 employees. And consider files/data retention - workers’ compensation files have a different retention period than the family and medical leave act (FMLA) data.

There are a few ways to tackle the compliance and administration part of human resources.

Human Resources Audit
It’s important to know where you are…before you can develop a game plan on where to go. A means for assessing effectiveness is through an HR audit. A human resources audit provides the foundation for your compliance practices. It’s a formal research project that evaluates the current status of your management efforts. An audit will cover the primary subjects in HR: strategic management, recruiting and staffing, compensation and benefits, employee relations, training and development, and safety. The results of the audit will show you where immediate attention is needed and areas to consider in the future.

Once you have conducted an analysis of where you are then you need to decide the best way to get into compliance and stay there. You can take a couple of different approaches to this issue.

Human Resources Outsourcing
Outsourcing allows you to use a third party for all (or some) of your human resources needs. Outsourcing has become increasingly popular in the wake of Fortune magazine’s Thomas Stewart article which argued that outsourcing parts of HR can save companies money and therefore, increase company profitability. Typical areas that can be outsourced are recruiting, compliance, training, and benefits.

Employee Leasing
In a growing number of organizations, partnerships are being created with Professional Employer Organizations (PEO) that will eliminate the need for organizations to hire and retain their own staff. PEO’s allow organizations to ‘lease’ employees and the associated HR functions. This allows companies to receive human resources services while focusing on their business operations.

Human Resources Consulting
With consulting, you have the flexibility to partner with a person or company only when you have a need. Someone in your organization maintains the day-to-day activity, but when you need to tackle a specific project, conduct training or coaching, or receive advice on an employee issue…you can utilize the services of someone with expertise in that area.

Recent pressures and challenges of ethics in the workplace have made many business decisions particularly difficult. Having a third-party available when human resources concerns arise can assist in decision making and reduce issues of liability.

Taking a pro-active approach to human resources management will definitely improve compliance with employment law, recruitment and retention strategies, and employee training/coaching initiatives.

Internal Talent Management (ITM) brings over 15 years of human resources experience to their client organizations. Our role is to help companies take their employee strategy from “hiring, firing and planning the company picnic” to utilizing human resources as the marketing department for a company’s internal clients.

Our company philosophy is that people are the most important resource of any organization. ITM Group, Inc. is dedicated to helping organizations develop their people so they can achieve greater results. As a consulting firm, our goal is to provide the level of service that we would want as a business executive: demonstrate a sincere interest in the clients’ business, be knowledgeable about traditional human resources solutions and modern trends in Corporate America, provide affordable options and work within appropriate time frames.

ITM’s Talent Administration services provide the experience and knowledge to perform all or a part of a client’s human resources function, allowing the client to streamline their operation and concentrate on their core business strategy and profitability.

Our services include:
Human Resources Compliance Audits
Human Resources Outsourcing
Employee Handbook Development
Policy and Procedures Manuals
Employment Law Training
Sexual Harassment Training
Internal Investigations
FMLA Administration and Training
Compensation and Benefit Surveys

Whether it’s called personnel or human resources, in order for HR activities to be effective, the management and staff must interact successfully. Managers and supervisors are responsible for the efficient use of the resources available to them. This includes the human capital resources of the organization. Don’t take chances with your most valuable resource – build a foundation for success by incorporating talent administration into your business strategy.

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Sharlyn Lauby, SPHR is the President of ITM Group, Inc. in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. ITM (Internal Talent Management) provides strategic and technical consulting services to enhance talent in the workplace. For more information, go to www.itmgroupinc.com.