The HR Answer Book or Grant Writing for Dummies

The HR Answer Book: An Indispensable Guide for Managers and Human Resources Professionals

Author: Shawn A Smith

The HR Answer Book addresses 200 questions that every employer needs to deal with, from recruiting and hiring to discipline and termination, compensation and benefits to training and employee relations. Accessible and concise, this on-the-job companion offers expert guidance on all types of "people" issues, enabling managers and human resources professionals to:

• Save time, money, and trouble
• Increase employee productivity, satisfaction, and retention
• Attract and hire the best candidates while avoiding the inferior ones*
• Handle tough issues like sexual harassment, Internet and e-mail usage, performance problems, and more — fairly, sensitively, and legally.

The HR Answer Book is an easy-to-use problem solver that can be read cover-to-cover or as a quick reference in specific situations. An appendix of tools, templates, and lists of additional resources completes this excellent and valuable guide.

Author Biography: Shawn Smith (Harrison, NY) is an attorney, former corporate executive, and the founder of Next Level Consulting, LLC. Her articles have appeared in numerous legal and business publications. Rebecca Mazin (Larchmont, NY) is cofounder of Recruit Right, an HR consulting firm, and has held key positions at organizations including Hyatt Hotels, Owens Corning, and the National Labor Relations Board.

Training magazine

"...a handy guide to the various facets of Human Resources administration."

Soundview Executive Book Summaries

What Human Resource Managers Should Know
HR managers and other professionals in the field need to know what to do in sticky employee situations, whether they involve compensation and benefits, or discipline and termination. To help those in human resources deal with the tough questions that frequently come up during the course of their work, attorney and consultant Shawn Smith and HR expert Rebecca Mazin have compiled 200 questions and answers to some of the most vexing problems in HR today.

The HR Answer Book tackles numerous employee issues in a format that poses a question, then answers it with professional guidance backed up by several bulleted points highlighting the specific elements of the solution. Within those points, the authors present questions that should be asked and ideas that should be taken into consideration. What results is a well-rounded description of a complete HR response, which includes reflections on greater issues that comprise the problem as well as straightforward advice from professionals who have used the strategy in their work.

Worth Repeating
Along with the questions, answers and points that comprise these words of guidance, the authors also present several boxed sidebars that put their solutions into perspective. For example, when discussing an organization's need for a mentor program, the authors offer a boxed paragraph called, "Worth Repeating: Mentor Up." In it, the authors write that "Intel Corp. and some other large companies have instituted mentor programs that encourage learning relationships up the hierarchy. Senior managers can find out firsthand about new levels of the organization, and gain the confidence of the next generation of managers." These types of real-world examples provide HR managers with standards by which they can balance their own business practices.

Another type of boxed sidebar that appears throughout The HR Answer Book is a "Better Forgotten" story that describes an HR mistake made by a company that should have chosen a different tack when making a crucial management decision. In the boxed story titled, "Better Forgotten: 'What Were Those Survey Results?'" the authors describe a scenario where a midsized employer hired an outside consultant to design and administer an employee opinion survey. After the results were compiled, sent to key managers, and a committee was formed to create action plans, nothing was done. Later, when another survey was distributed around the company, only 5 percent of employees responded.

When discussing employee recruitment, the authors provide HR managers with detailed descriptions of the best ways to find candidates, conduct interviews, test prospects, and make job offers.

To help HR managers create an effective employee handbook, the authors present their readers with extensive lists of relevant topics from which they can choose policies for employment and compensation, equal employment opportunity, time off, employee benefits, safety, discipline and termination. After providing the options that are available, the authors describe the ways language and tone can make the handbook even more accessible and useful for employees.

Other helpful bits of advice in The HR Answer Book include when to use an attorney, how to develop a performance management system, how to keep good employees, how to make a benefits package competitive, and the best ways for handling violence and substance abuse in the workplace.

Additional Resources
Not only does The HR Answer Book provide numerous guiding examples of sound HR management principles, but it also contains a lengthy resource guide that holds dozens of addresses, Web sites, and telephone numbers of the agencies and organizations that can be invaluable in the quest for a successful HR program.

In addition to these links to the current universe of HR experts, the authors also provide readers with a section filled with tools and templates, including questions HR managers should ask candidates before scheduling an interview, an application flow log, a trainer's checklist, an exit interview questionnaire, several sample forms, as well as many other helpful documents that can serve as a starting place for a comprehensive HR management system. By presenting so many tools and strategies in a single resource, The HR Answer Book serves as a convenient reference book that can provide any HR manager with the knowledge and know-how to navigate through the many expected and unexpected situations that can arise during the course of managing an organization's employees.

Why We Like This Book
The HR Answer Book not only offers thorough solutions to the many human relations problems and questions that arise in day-to-day business operations, but it also asks the proper questions that should be considered to get to the right results in times of crisis. The authors have presented their expertise in an easy-to-use format that makes referencing their wisdom effortless. The inclusion of an up-to-date reference section makes this book a vital resource for perfecting the HR system of any organization. Copyright © 2004 Soundview Executive Book Summaries

Table of Contents:

	Foreword	ix
	Preface	xi
1	Employee Selection: How Do I Find, Attract, and Select the Best?	1
	Finding Your Candidates	1
	Conducting the Interview	15
	Preemployment Testing and Screening	21
	Making the Job Offer	25
2	HR Policies: Why Do We Need Them and What Should They Look Like?	29
	The Employee Handbook	30
3	Performance Management: How Do I Evaluate Performance and Conduct Meaningful Performance Reviews?	41
	Developing a Performance Management System	42
	The Performance Appraisal Process	46
	Conducting the Performance Appraisal	55
4	Training and Development: How Do Successful Companies Improve and Enhance Workforce Skills?	60
	Orienting the New Employee	61
	Continuing Employee Development	64
5	Employee Relations and Retention: How Do I Keep Good Employees and Maintain Working Relationships at All Levels?	75
	Fostering Effective Workplace Communication	75
	Structuring Reward and Recognition Programs	83
	Maintaining Work-Life Balance	87
	Resolving Workplace Conflicts	93
	When Employees Leave: Conducting the Exit Interview	96
6	Compensation: How Should Employees Be Paid?	98
	Wage and Hour Laws	98
	The Compensation System	104
	Variable Pay: Bonuses and Incentives	113
7	Benefits: What Makes a Benefits Package Competitive?	117
	Legally Required Insurance Programs	118
	Benefits That Provide Economic Security	121
	Benefit Days: Holidays, Sick Days, and Vacation	125
	Health Insurance	127
	Employee Assistance Programs	136
	Retirement Benefits	136
	Other Benefits	141
8	Regulatory Issues: What Are the Major Employment Laws and How Do I Comply with Them?	143
	Laws Prohibiting Discriminatory Practices	143
	The Family and Medical Leave Act	158
	Occupational Safety and Health Act of 1979	162
	Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986	165
9	When Bad Things Happen to Good Employers: How Do I Handle Volatile Workplace Issues?	169
	Electronic Mail, Internet, and Computer Usage	171
	Violence in the Workplace	175
	Substance Abuse in the Workplace	179
	Monitoring Other Workplace Dishonesty	184
	Conducting Employee Investigations	188
10	Termination and Discharge: How Do I Fire an Employee Legally and Humanely?	194
	The Termination Process	195
	Post-Termination Compensation and Benefits	200
	Other Post-Termination Matters	206
	Resource Guide	209
	Tools and Templates	219
	Index	235

Look this: Guia Sobre la Hepatitis C or The Forever Factor

Grant Writing for Dummies

Author: Beverly A Browning

Are you writing a grant application for the first time? Maybe you’re a veteran fundraiser looking to sharpen your grant writing skills. No matter how experienced you are at writing requests for money, people and organizations are not going to support you just because you’re in need.

Grant Writing for Dummies, 2^nd Edition shows you the most effective way to compose a grant proposal and get funding from governments, corporations, foundations, and more! This hands-on, step-by-step guide leads you through researching options, dealing with application forms, handling potential sponsors, and getting the money you need. Revised and up-to-date, this book covers everything you need to know to:

• Fill out federal grant application kits

• Win grants from corporations and foundations

• Gain support from an individual grantor

• Obtain grants from international funds

• Meet the review criteria of government grants and contracts

• Choose the right word to win funds

• Master cover letters, abstracts, and more

• Let prospective grantors know your deal

• Put the finishing touches on your application

Demystifying the process of grant writing, this all-out guide gives you just the facts with no information withheld. You’ll get savvy tips on organizing your writing, developing your style, personalizing your requests, and how to handle your rejection and move forward. Also included is a complete example of a grant application narrative. With Grant Writing for Dummies, 2^nd Edition, you’ll be able tocraft effective proposals and go for the gold!