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There’s a vigorous, ongoing debate over the implications of the sophistication and continued development of AI chatbots. Will they replace human workers? Will they render human-created art in all its forms obsolete? Will they destroy or enslave mankind?
While more philosophically minded observers wrestle with these monumental questions, a more practical and immediate question many businesses around the world are asking themselves is: “How can I use these tools to make my business more profitable?” Of course, the way to boost profits is to boost productivity and reduce costs. AI chatbots may be a great tool to achieve both these aims through improved and more efficient employee training. AI and AI chatbots can improve the delivery and content of training materials, thereby making training both more cost-effective and more effective at boosting staff productivity.
That’s in theory, at least. But we wanted to know how AI chatbots are faring in the learning and development (L&D) context in the real world, so we reached out to industry experts and those with firsthand experience in using AI chatbots for training.
Don’t Buy Into the Sensationalism
AI is a powerful tool and one most Americans aren’t intimately familiar with. Most have heard the term and probably used a few AI tools themselves, including consumer-focused chatbots, but that doesn’t mean the average consumer or employee understands the abilities and limitations of AI. This has led to a considerable amount of fear, hyperbole, and catastrophizing in some corners.
“At University of Phoenix, we see AI like any other new tool that has entered the arena of learning that enhances a student’s access to data and information to process and consumer knowledge more quickly,” says Marc Booker, PhD, Vice Provost for strategy at the University of Phoenix. “Whether it be the internet, the calculator, or even the printing press – all have entered social consciousness as disruptors with some wariness and skepticism, but were ultimately used to change how fast we can learn and share information to enhance the depth of information we pass on to future generations. One must be careful in its use and administration, but definitely not fearful, as it has the potential to do great good in the realm of practical distance education and online learning.”
AI Chatbots as a Complement to Human Training Efforts
One of the most common assumptions about AI—and computers and automation more generally—is it’ll ultimately replace human workers. While technology can and often has replaced workers, there’s also great potential for such tools to complement human labor rather than replace it entirely, making the work of humans much more easy, efficient, and effective.
“Current AI as a linguistic tool and model can actually help curriculum designers enhance the framing around the tone and positioning of their messages or lessons,” says Booker—for example, if an instructional designer wants to take verbiage about nuclear fission that’s very technical in nature and have it presented in a more conversational tone within the classroom for first-year students by asking AI to adjust the verbiage or tone to fit the learners’ needs and levels.
In addition, he says, from a corporate training perspective, AI models could even be asked to take important concepts like workplace diversity and frame these concepts at an executive or a new hire level to build curriculum or quiz questions that feed the outcomes for the learning being created.
“Using AI in this manner can help save time with the creation of more personalized learning materials and can allow instructional designers to do more with their content to serve different parties and their learning needs,” Booker adds. “So far, our experience using AI in curriculum development has been more akin to having another partner to review your work to give you suggestions or different ideas to ponder, rather than a replacement for human capital.”
Drawbacks to AI Chatbots for Training
Just as AI chatbots can do many things better and more efficiently than humans, there are also many tasks for which such tools aren’t yet a match for humankind. Much of that has to do with the difficulty in programming a computer with inherently human characteristics like empathy and lived experiences. This means AI tools may need the human touch to help with things like supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts or understanding the subtleties of human communication.
“ChatGPT can’t be considered a single source of truth. It lacks empathy and should be used with caution when it comes to communicating authentically, creating equitable and diverse programs, and using inclusive language, being wary that ChatGPT may still be seeped with bias and potentially harmful rhetoric in its beginning stages,” cautions Ioana Ellis, Senior Director of People Operations at Marqeta.
“ChatGPT is unable to keep things like privacy/confidentiality, nuance and historical context in mind, and doesn’t provide responses that consistently align with a company’s beliefs, models or best practices,” Ellis cautions. “Every company has a unique vision and set of goals and ChatGPT doesn’t understand the nuances or have the deep institutional knowledge that employees do about their company, and how this knowledge is applied when creating L&D activities.”
There are many fears and apprehensions about AI, and any powerful tool should be treated with caution and care. However, the fact remains that AI and AI chatbots in particular have great potential to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of employee training. As businesses continue to experiment with AI chatbots’ potential for employee training, best practices and informative data are sure to emerge, allowing companies that have chosen to hold off on their AI chatbot training efforts to learn from the bold first-movers.
By implementing data, you’re investing time in tracking how well your organization is doing when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent.
This article was first published on June 14, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
Metrics have always been an important part of HR, but to many HR professionals, 2022 was the year they became essential. In an incredibly tough job market, a political landscape where everything felt flipped upside down, and a rocky economy, companies were desperate to hold onto their employees as priorities shifted and workers made drastic choices.
The human element of HR will always be the most important one. It’s hard to quantify how well you’re caring for your employees in numbers. After all, satisfaction and contentedness in the workplace are nebulous terms that mean different things to different people. Plus, on any given week, an employee may feel good about work one day and not so great the next.
But there are several key performance indicators (KPIs) that can be useful for HR teams.
The Value in People Metrics
These “people metrics” measure what can feel immeasurable: how well your company is doing at finding new employees, filling open positions, retaining talent, and creating a great company culture. KPIs aren’t just bland stats in a spreadsheet. They can give you real information about how well your business is treating its employees.
On one hand, this matters in terms of your bottom line—employee retention is far more affordable than having a high turnover rate. On the other hand, you probably got into HR because you care about people and want to treat them well.
So making sure you’re doing so is just the right thing to do!
By the Numbers
By measuring your data and looking at your numbers, your company can ensure your HR department is thriving. Numbers and analytics can help you zero in on what your problem areas are so you can spend the proper amount of time adjusting your practices.
Metrics can also help you make predictions.
When you’re mapping out hiring timelines, training programs, or recruitment efforts, metrics can help you understand how long things will take and what type of process it will be. These KPIs can also clue you in to where to look for your next employee and how much of your budget you should set toward training efforts. Without HR analytics, you’re flying blind, which isn’t a great place to be.
Metrics That Matter
Here are 12 metrics HR professionals should track to hold onto employees, care for their needs, and help their business do what it does best. Take a look at your own data-gathering practices, and see what you need to invest a little more time into calculating.
Percent of Open Positions
Your percent of open positions is calculated by figuring out how many job openings you currently have. Think: How can you quickly fill those positions to keep your percentage nice and low?
Applicants Per Opening
Your applicants per opening is self-explanatory: How many people apply for each job opening you post? Think: How can you cast a wider net to entice more applicants to come forward?
Time to Fill
Your time to fill is simply the number of days it takes to hire a new candidate—i.e., how long between a job opening is posted and when a candidate accepts an offer. Think: How can you shorten the application process in order to fill open positions more quickly?
Acceptance Rate
Your acceptance rate is the number of job offers your company extends divided by the number of positive responses you receive. Think: How can you convert more job offers into accepted ones?
Cost per Hire
Your cost per hire is your hiring costs divided by the total number of employees you hire within a given time period. Think: How can you lower your hire costs to recruit new employees without spending a fortune or somehow hire in batches?
Source of Hire
Where are your accepted job candidates coming from, and how did they originally connect with your company? Think: How can you focus your time and energy on the most effective recruiting channels?
Training Expenses per Employee
This is calculated by looking at the total cost of training, education, and courses divided by the number of people in your organization. Think: How can you maximize training outcomes while minimizing the cost?
Time of Training Completion
This is how long it takes employees to complete a training program from beginning to end—in other words, how long it takes to get from their accepted offer to when they’re actually able to throw themselves into the role. Think: How can you speed along the training process while ensuring it still runs smoothly?
Revenue per Employee
Your revenue per employee is calculated by taking the total amount of revenue in your company divided by the total number of employees. Think: Which employees contribute the most to your company’s bottom line, and how can you increase your revenue per employee?
Employee Performance
Track how well employees are performing by taking a look at manager assessments, peer reviews, and their own specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals. Think: How can we help our employees knock it out of the park at work?
Employee Satisfaction
Employee satisfaction is how willing your employees are to recommend your business as a place of employment to others. You can gather this data by asking them to participate in an anonymous survey. Think: How can we improve our company culture and make our organization the best place to be employed?
Employee Retention
This is calculated by dividing the number of employees on the last day of a year by the number of employees on the first day of a year, accounting for any new positions created. Think: How can we entice our employees to stick around and continue thriving in their roles instead of seeking new opportunities?
Final Thoughts
By implementing data, you aren’t losing the human element of HR. KPIs aren’t something to be nervous about. Instead, you’re taking HR more seriously—you’re investing time in tracking how well your organization is doing when it comes to attracting and retaining top talent.
As a result, Haris Pylarinos, CEO at Hack the Box, says more cybersecurity and IT professionals are upskilling themselves to stand a chance against cyber criminals. Read on to gauge Pylarinos’ insights about why a gamified approach is needed to solve the skills gap, how recruiters can adapt to this, and more.
Q: How is the game starting to change in cyber? How can recruiters adapt to this?
Haris Pylarinos: Now more than ever, cybersecurity professionals must be equipped with practical skills and knowledge of real-life cyber-attacks. Cybercriminals are rapidly developing new ways of hacking into businesses daily. Meanwhile, the global talent shortage in cyber stands at 3.4 million. Because of this, organizations are beginning to rethink the way they hire. Arbitrary degree and qualification hiring criteria need to be phased out, and recruiters need to prioritize individuals with practical-based skills and training experience. A cybersecurity degree or prestigious credentials alone are not enough to equip individuals with the skills they need for a career in modern cybersecurity.
I know many self-taught hackers who don’t have a degree but are fantastic at protecting systems and keeping up to date with the latest cyber-attacks and trends. Recruiters need to be open to giving these candidates a chance. It’s also important to look out for candidates who have participated in Capture the Flag Competitions or Bug Bounty programs, which are practical ways to test the latest cybersecurity skills. Additionally, technical assessment also must be part of the hiring process for any cybersecurity role. That way, regardless of a candidate’s experience on paper, you test whether they have the skills or potential to keep up with the cybercriminals of today.
Q: Why is a gamified approach needed to solve the skills gap?
Pylarinos: In short, upskilling has to be fun. To plug a crippling skills gap, employees and people looking to enter the cyber industry need to be able to take part in a skills development experience that makes learning engaging, exciting, and fun. Instead of businesses running a one-week intensive course or providing quarterly or yearly training, upskilling should always be available and accessible in a fun, gamified format. This allows professionals to build muscle memory, continuously increase skillsets, l and keep up with the rapid rate of change in an industry like cyber.
Q: Why is upskilling businesses’ internal teams the way to turn the tide?
Pylarinos: The cybersecurity skills gap presents a lucrative opportunity for IT professionals or engineers who have an appetite to upskill and evolve into cybersecurity roles, as they already have a solid foundation for a career in the sector. Upskilling these individuals allows companies to offer new, exciting job opportunities to their current employees internally. For example, you could take an IT engineer and fast-track them through cybersecurity training to fill tier-one SOC Analyst roles or Junior Penetration Testing roles.
Q: Why are businesses “shooting themselves in the foot” by obsessing over hiring more security people? What should they be focused on instead?
Pylarinos: It’s less about hiring security people and more about hiring based on specific cybersecurity or IT skills. If, for example, your business lacks skills or knowledge in areas within Cloud security, Active Directory, Digital Forensics, and Incident Response, focus on plugging those gaps with the right individuals. Looking out for IT professionals or self-taught hackers with soft skills such as problem-solving, creativity, communication, and a wider hacker mindset, will also allow businesses to hire new talent from a wider pool. There are thousands of talented cyber-enthusiasts waiting in the wings to fill the skills gap, businesses just need to give them a chance.
'It's a myriad of things that foster a culture of inclusivity,' says one DEI leader.
This article was first published on June 12, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders, and has been adapted for HealthLeaders.
Human resources (HR) leaders in healthcare can learn and take valuable information from HR leaders in other sectors. In this article, read how one leader is championing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives for their organization.
Christina Schelling is Senior Vice President (SVP) and Chief Talent and Diversity Officer at Verizon. While she was the first person at Verizon to hold this position, Verizon has a long tradition of embracing DEI, and Schelling’s passion for this discipline has helped the company further those goals.
Christina Schelling
An Unlikely DEI Origin Story
Schelling is certainly not the first DEI leader we’ve spoken with who didn’t start her career in DEI, but she may be the first who started her career with a clandestine organization.
“I began my career working at the CIA as a leadership analyst,” she explains. “I never really thought I would end up working in a corporate setting, but I was offered an opportunity to learn management consulting at IBM. That transition was the bridge to the work that I do today.”
Before joining Verizon, Schelling was the Head of Human Resources for The Estée Lauder Companies Global Corporate Functions, and before that, she spent 6 years at Prudential and over 7 years at American Express in a variety of global leadership roles related to people, culture, and organizational strategies.
DEI at Verizon
Schelling then moved to Verizon, where she’s the first person to hold the title of SVP/chief talent and diversity officer. In this role, she oversees all aspects of Verizon’s talent practices, including hiring, learning, career development, succession planning, DEI, and more, for nearly 120,000 employees globally. “Having an integrated Talent & DEI team allows us to work closely together setting the foundation for a differentiated employee experience, a stronger, more inspired workforce and better business results,” she says.
While Schelling’s role is new at Verizon, DEI efforts aren’t. “Verizon has long been a leader in diversity, equity, and inclusion all thanks to the work of dedicated team members, incredible employee resource groups and many strong leaders,” she notes. “I am so lucky to lead a dedicated team within an amazing company with such a strong background in this work. It’s not a trend for us—it’s embedded throughout our organization, it’s core to who we are, and it’s part of who we’ve always been.”
Schelling says diversity and inclusion (D&I) are integrated into Verizon’s systems, processes, and operations. “D&I is in our DNA,” she says. “Not only is D&I good for business, it is who we are as a V Team and how we show up in the communities where we do business. D&I is not a separate stream of thought. It is a shared accountability that requires engagement and action at all levels. The richness in background, experience, thought and all of the elements of diversity throughout our employee base is so powerful and provides the unique perspectives to serve our customers better.”
Verizon also boasts a number of employee resource groups (ERGs):
ADVANCE—Advocates for Disability, Accessibility, Neurodiversity, and Caregiver Empowerment
BOLD—Black Originators, Leaders, and Doers
NAV—Native Americans of Verizon
PACE—Pan Asian Corporate Excellence
PACT—Parents And Caregivers Together
PRISM—Lead with Pride
SOMOS—The Voice of the Hispanic/LatinX Community
UNITED—Progress Through Unity
VALOR—Veterans and Advocates Leading the Organization Responsibly
WAVE—Womxn’s Association of Verizon Employees
Each of Verizon’s ERGs has C-suite executive sponsors and an executive advisory board. “In 2022, we hosted almost 250 ERG events globally to support career development, employee wellbeing and community engagement,” Schelling says. “ERG members completed over 42,000 hours of volunteering last year. Our ERGs are essential to creating and sustaining Verizon’s diverse and inclusive culture and play a significant role in achieving Verizon’s mission to move the world forward.”
A Holistic DEI Approach
Verizon, like most companies that do DEI well, recognizes that DEI impacts and is impacted by every aspect of the business ecosystem, not just a small corner of HR. Accordingly, Verizon’s responsible marketing action plan sets ambitious goals around the creative supply chain, talent, bias in advertising and media, and content policies and includes the following goals:
Increase diversity across the creative supply chain.
Continue to build an inclusive work environment and retain diverse talent.
Fight racism, bias, and stereotypes in all advertising, content, and media.
Responsible content policies.
“And we’re not doing this work just for ourselves,” Schelling adds. “To help other companies implement the responsible marketing practices outlined, Verizon created the Responsible Marketing Action Blueprint—a set of free online tools that packages together the learnings from Verizon’s work around DEI, to help other marketers identify where they can make an impact and take measurable actions to get there.”
Verizon leverages its 10 ERGs to embrace cultural differences and bring awareness to key cultural moments and heritage months and to provide input on business initiatives through grassroots efforts. “Verizon’s 28k+ ERG members account for 23% of Verizon’s workforce and supports Verizon’s Credo to embrace diversity and cultural difference for all employees allowing V Teamers to show up as their authentic self,” Schelling continues. “In 2022, Verizon ERGs accounted for 69% of the total volunteer hours supporting the CSR goal to reach 2.5M hours by 2025. Actions completed during the volunteer events ranged from letter writing to vets, creating stuffed animals for youth, and supporting in-person Junior Achievement Events.”
Staying at the Cutting Edge in a Dynamic Discipline
The business environment and the broader world in which it exists are constantly changing, meaning there are always new challenges to meet and opportunities to exploit when it comes to DEI. The companies that thrive in this dynamic environment are those that are agile and quick to adapt to changing circumstances.
“It’s a myriad of things that foster a culture of inclusivity,” says Schelling. “At Verizon, we’re always examining different ways to be more inclusive, especially with the ever-changing work landscape. To ensure an inclusive culture, we examine and implement tactical things day-to-day that employees can engage in. For example, we regularly come together (whether virtually on BlueJeans or in-person) for moments that matter including all-employee webcasts for big picture business conversations, town halls for teams to dive deeper on the work they are doing, roundtables to gather insights and feedback from our V Team, and volunteering opportunities.”
Schelling and Verizon have had great success fostering D&I in a major global company. While many factors have contributed to their achievements, corporate commitment, passion among DEI leaders, and a holistic approach that embeds DEI into all facets of the organization are a great recipe for success.
Hybrid work settings create new responsibilities that didn’t exist before; here are solutions you can implement to manage your organization.
This article was first published on June 12, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
The average workplace today doesn’t look like it used to. Thanks to evolving technology, remote work is accessible more than ever before, and more businesses are taking advantage of it. Although remote work has been on the rise for the past decade, the COVID-19 pandemic only normalized the decision. Now, even in a post-pandemic society, many businesses and individuals alike have chosen to fully adopt remote and/or hybrid workspaces.
Hybrid spaces in particular can be very beneficial for everyone. They allow for increased flexibility and less time commuting and tend to improve productivity. They also reduce company overhead and can expand talent pools when you’re recruiting.
However, some challenges can come with this type of work model. From an HR standpoint, hybrid work settings create new responsibilities that didn’t exist before.
Let’s take a look at some of the responsibilities that fall on HR’s shoulders in a hybrid workspace and the solutions you can implement to manage your office and your team.
Hybrid Office Obstacles
An effective hybrid workspace can save your business time and money. You’ll enjoy a greater talent pool, reduced absenteeism, and employee engagement. However, some of the common obstacles you’ll face as an HR professional shouldn’t be ignored. If you want to maintain a positive workspace, it’s essential to understand and get ahead of those obstacles as quickly as possible. Some of those challenges include:
Building a strong company culture
Increasing connectivity
Boosting motivation
Stress management
Work/life balance
It’s your job to help employees strike a healthy balance when they’re working part time from home and part time in the office. Sometimes, the biggest benefits of a hybrid model can also be some of the drawbacks. For example, a hybrid model is often accompanied by more flexibility, thus allowing employees to strike a healthier work/life balance.
But that only works if your employees can stay motivated at home and aren’t distracted by things like other family members, electronics, or just the overall comfort of being able to work in their pajamas. That’s not always easy for everyone, especially if they have other family members or roommates who also work from home. A lack of motivation often leads to a lack of productivity, which ends up setting everyone back and causing more stress.
How to Manage Your Team Effectively
There’s no one-size-fits-all plan that works for every hybrid work environment. As an HR rep, you must use the resources available to create an environment that meets the needs of your team and your business—no matter where you’re located.
Don’t be afraid to use technology to your advantage. Without it, hybrid environments wouldn’t be possible. HR can play a pivotal role in the implementation of workplace tech to develop a hybrid office. That includes suggesting and helping to implement a 5G network for your company. 5G can make hybrid work more effectively by ensuring everyone stays connected and is on the same page whether they’re in the office or not. Things like cloud-based software will help to do the same.
On a more personal level, use resources to connect with your team more regularly. Schedule video calls, send out e-mails, and let them know your door is always open if they have concerns. These simple actions promote a company culture of inclusivity and accessibility. Not only will these things make it easier to manage your team, but they will also create a more stress-free environment.
Alleviating the Stress of a Hybrid Setting
A hybrid work environment is a great choice if you want to improve the mental well-being of your employees. But that might not be the case for the department in charge of managing those employees, keeping track of everyone, and making sure the hybrid model is appropriate for every position while recruiting new people all at once.
By using some of the strategies listed above, you’ll have an easier time managing your team and keeping everyone healthy, happy, and on the same page. But don’t lose sight of fostering a positive workplace culture and environment in the process. Be proactive about reducing burnout in the workplace by hosting regular employee meetings, recognizing peers for outstanding work, and creating a safe space for employees to open up if they’re feeling overwhelmed or stressed.
Finally, make sure you’re not ignoring your own mental health. Managing employees in a hybrid work setting can make it feel like you’re keeping track of two separate groups of people, even if they’re all working for the same company. Implement self-care strategies into your daily routine, both on and off the clock. Self-care may not seem that big once you start slowly bringing it into your routine, but it can make a big difference in how you feel in the long term. Try things like:
Meditation
Mindfulness
Taking frequent breaks
Prioritizing sleep
Taking care of your body
Taking advantage of a wellness program at work
Making sure your employees feel safe, healthy, and productive in a hybrid setting can be a fantastic way to improve retention and appear more attractive to potential recruits. Make sure you understand your responsibilities and how you can effectively manage your team whether they’re in the office or working from home.
The idea behind pay transparency laws is that many applicants simply don’t have enough information to know what a fair wage is.
This article was first published on June 7, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
Income inequality is one of the most impactful and persistent sources of broader inequality in the United States, with women, Hispanics, and African Americans earning considerably less than white and Asian men. To address this problem, jurisdictions around the country have turned to pay transparency laws, which require employers to share pay information with job applicants and employees.
Pay Transparency Laws Proliferating
The idea behind pay transparency laws is that many applicants simply don’t have enough information to know what a fair wage is. If applicants know a job they’re applying for typically pays $75,000 per year, they’ll be less likely to accept that job for $50,000 per year.
“Throughout the past year, more and more states and cities across the US have introduced laws designed to force companies to be more transparent about how much they pay employees,” writes Josie Cox in an article for BBC Worklife.
But have these laws had the desired effect? According to some recent analysis, results are mixed at best. Part of the problem is that pay transparency is likely just one factor in a very complicated network of broader income inequality issues, so fixing pay transparency is unlikely to eliminate income inequality on its own.
Pay Gaps Are Not Always About Bias
While discrimination may play a role in some cases, research suggests pay disparities aren’t always related to bias. For instance, women and minority workers may simply ask for less money or not negotiate as aggressively as their white male counterparts.
According to the experts supporting this trend, transparent pay practices could help.
A big challenge with many pay transparency laws is the large number of loopholes, Cox says. For example, New York’s pay transparency law requires employers to use “good faith” estimates of pay ranges, meaning those ranges can be fudged or made so broad as to be meaningless. Similarly, New York doesn’t require employers to post information on bonuses or company equity, which are potentially significant components of compensation.
Time Will Tell
While initial review suggests America’s pay transparency laws may not yet have fulfilled their intended objective of addressing income inequality, the laws have had some initial benefits, but income inequality is a complex problem for which there isn’t a single silver bullet.
A new report was released by the DOL-backed Job Accommodation Network (JAN) and analyzes survey data collected from employers from 2019 to 2022.
This article was first published on June 5, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced a new report finding that nearly half of workplace accommodations made for people with disabilities can be implemented at no cost to employers, and of those that do incur a one-time cost, the median expenditure has decreased when compared to previous reports to only $300.
According to the DOL, an accommodation is a modification to the work environment or the way a job is customarily done to enable a qualified individual with a disability to enjoy equal employment opportunities. Under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), covered employers must provide reasonable accommodations for applicants and employees with disabilities, when requested, unless doing so would cause an undue hardship.
The new report, “Accommodation and Compliance: Low Cost, High Impact,” was released by the DOL-backed Job Accommodation Network (JAN) and analyzes survey data collected from employers from 2019 to 2022. These employers represent a wide array of industry sectors (e.g., manufacturing, service, and wholesale/retail sales) and sizes (from small businesses to Fortune 500 mega-companies). Survey respondents initially contacted JAN to obtain specific information about workplace accommodations, the ADA, or both.
Five Key Findings
1. Employers want to provide accommodations so they can retain valued and qualified employees.
More than half of the (55%) employers surveyed reported they called JAN to retain a current employee. On average, employees associated with a JAN request had been with the company for 6 years and 1 month. Typical (median) wages for these employees were $18.00 for those paid by the hour and $64,100 for those with an annual salary. In addition, 66% of the individuals for whom the employer requested accommodation information had a college associate degree or higher.
2. Most employers report no cost or low cost for accommodating employees with disabilities.
Of the 720 employers who provided cost information related to accommodations they had provided, 49.4% said the accommodations needed by their employee cost nothing. Another43.3% experienced a one-time cost. Only 7.2% said the accommodation resulted in an ongoing, annual cost to the company. Of those accommodations that did have a one-time cost, the median one-time expenditure as reported by the employer was $300. Those with ongoing accommodation costs had a median annual cost of $3,750.
3. Employers report accommodations are effective.
Employers who had implemented accommodations were asked to rank the effectiveness of the accommodations on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being extremely effective. Of the 1,328 responding to the question regarding effectiveness, the majority (68.4%) reported the accommodations were either very effective or extremely effective at helping workers with disabilities perform their job duties. Another 18.3% of employers reported the accommodations to be somewhat effective, and only 13% reported them to be ineffective.
4. Employers who made accommodations report multiple direct and indirect benefits, including increased employee retention and cost savings.
Direct Benefits
Retained a valued employee: 85%
Increased the employee’s productivity: 53%
Increased the employee’s attendance: 48%
Eliminated costs associated with training a new employee: 46%
Increased diversity of the company: 33%
Saved workers’ compensation or other insurance costs: 23%
Hired a qualified person with a disability: 18%
Promoted an employee: 8%
Indirect Benefits
Improved interactions with co-workers: 34%
Increased safety: 31%
Increased overall company morale: 30%
Improved interactions with customers: 22%
Increased overall company productivity: 21%
Increased overall company attendance: 19%
5. Employers find JAN helpful during the accommodation process.
Ninety-seven percent of employers reported that JAN understood their needs. In addition, 93% stated the information JAN sent them met their needs. And 100% of employers stated they would use JAN again.
'The HR leader must be the champion, coach, advocate, and sometimes disciplinarian to ensure we're all building a sincere and meaningful culture.'
This article was first published on June 1, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
Lorraine Ortiz has nearly 25 years of HR professional and executive coach experience in nonprofit, corporate, healthcare, and higher education. Throughout her impressive career, Ortiz has held several executive roles, including Vice President of HR at Riley Children’s Health, Director of HR—Retail Division at Goodwill Industries of Central and Southern Indiana, and Vice President and Chief HR Officer at Butler University, where she implemented the institution’s first strategic HR department to serve the needs of more than 1,000 faculty and staff.
Lorraine Ortiz
Currently, Ortiz serves as Chief People Officer at First Internet Bank, a pioneer in the branchless delivery of banking services since 1999. In her role, she’s responsible for a myriad HR and talent strategies programs, including overseeing the bank’s diversity and inclusion initiatives, employee experience, and talent acquisition and development efforts.
In our latest Faces, meet Lorraine Ortiz.
How did you get your start in the field?
HR was a perfect fit for supporting others in finding and connecting their “why” to the industries and companies where they choose to work.
Who is/was your biggest influence in the industry?
I’m an avid reader, so several authors come to mind. But my executive coach has ultimately been my biggest influence. I’ve had the opportunity to work with the Stephanie Wood Group for individual and team coaching. Not only am I a better employee and colleague because of their guidance, but I’m also a better wife and mother. Hands down, Stephanie has had the most significant impact on my career, and as she continues to coach, she has become more influential in the industry.
What’s your favorite part about working in the industry? What’s your least favorite part, and how would you change it?
My favorite aspect of the industry has evolved as I’ve grown my experience, roles, and myself. I enjoy supporting others in realizing their full potential through their work. Mark Twain wrote, “The two most important days of your life are the day you are born, and the day you find out why.” I love helping my colleagues find their why and realize it daily.
My least favorite aspect of the industry is difficult to define. I’ve had the opportunity to stretch myself, learn, and be challenged in all areas of HR, and I value the experience. But if I have to pick one, it would be when a leader and colleague relationship breaks down, which results in separation at the company—even more so when these individuals take the situation as a personal failure. Lessons learned are essential. Shame, however, is unproductive and can have a lasting effect on your career. It can stifle potential and the ability to move forward.
It sounds like, through your experience, you really care about people, and you want to help them feel safe and comfortable, which is important in the industry. Please elaborate here.
As mentioned, I care about helping people realize their why. But it’s important not to silo the support for employees to one department (as if it’s an initiative). Life can be challenging. We face different hills and valleys at different times. A company’s culture has to permeate every level and every department—from individual contributors to the C-suite. The HR leader must be the champion, coach, advocate, and sometimes disciplinarian to ensure we’re all building a sincere and meaningful culture. To do this, we should be self-aware and vulnerable, celebrate wins, and appreciate each other’s faults and strengths so we know how to bring our best selves to work each day.
How can HR most effectively demonstrate its value to the leadership team?
HR connects the business and its mission and objectives to its audience. Automation and artificial intelligence continue to change the speed and effectiveness of business. It’s imperative that we prioritize our people, as their strengths and creativity enable us to imagine more in order to deliver a better way to bank. From a practical perspective, the business has three lines: the top line, bottom line, and pipeline. It should behoove any company to strongly align its pipeline to the needs of the business so it can be learning-agile, change-ready, and future-focused to move with the speed required to meet our customers’ needs. HR must understand the company’s current objectives and long-term strategic goals. It also requires active participation at the leadership table to create an environment where the company’s talent can tap their inner creativity, develop new solutions to reach business goals, and continue enhancing their skill sets.
What are you most proud of?
Stating the obvious, I’m most proud of my family and the support they’ve provided me as I have grown and failed and stretched myself to be who I am today. I wouldn’t be where I am without their faith in me.
In terms of a more recent professional win, implementing the first strategic HR department for Butler University was an enormous undertaking that will ultimately serve a team of 1,500 employees for many years.
Do you have any advice for people entering the profession?
My advice would be three-fold:
Remain sincerely curious.Approach every day curious about the business, the people, and why they work where they do. Above all else, challenge yourself to remain curious so you continue to learn.
Find ways to manage the bad days. Working with people can be extremely satisfying, but it will inherently bring about sad, challenging, and difficult days. When those days happen, as they will, find ways to center yourself and get to the root cause. For example, one of my favorite bosses kept a warm apple cinnamon pie-scented candle in her office. Whenever we had a challenging moment, she would remind me to smell the candle. It immediately brought me to my grandmother’s house and her baked goods. (I bake because of her influence.) This exercise immediately centered me, reminded me of what’s important, and helped me view the situation with a clearer mind. I now tell my team this story and keep a candle in my office whenever my team or I need it. Wallowing in a problem doesn’t fix it. But if we take time to center ourselves, we can find how we fit into the problem and how we can solve it.
Know who you are.Working on yourself is important for all facets of life. Seek out opportunities for coaching, reading, leadership assessments, peer networking, and the like. Remember that you are where you need to be, and all your experiences—good and bad—are what got you there. Celebrate, learn, and move forward from each of those experiences. Part of the “day you find out why” includes a true appreciation of yourself and an ability to remain authentic and humble.
'As recruiters, it's critical that we deeply understand that society is still dealing with the effects of the global pandemic.'
This article was first published on May 25, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
Meet Eryn Marshall, senior director of global recruiting at Oyster, an employment platform dedicated to creating a more equal world by making it possible for companies everywhere to hire people anywhere. We recently connected with Eryn to discuss how she got her start in the industry, her biggest influences, best mistake, as well as the top priorities talent are seeking in new opportunities.
Eryn Marshall
“As recruiters, it’s critical that we deeply understand that society is still dealing with the effects of the global pandemic,” Marshall shared with HR Daily Advisor. “People’s priorities have shifted, with workers around the globe seeking opportunities that foster improved work-life balance and offer mental health support. In fact, a recent survey we conducted revealed that 50% of global knowledge workers prioritize their mental health above all else—including career advancement.”
In our latest Faces, meet Eryn Marshall.
How did you get your start in the field?
Like almost every recruiter I’ve ever met, I landed here by chance. One of the things I realized shortly after graduating college was that without a network, I would struggle to find a career path. In building out my network, someone referred me to an entry level recruiter position at a Recruitment Process Outsourcing company where they offered extensive training to junior level people. While there, I got to recruit across industries and roles which was an amazing opportunity.
Who is/was your biggest influence in the industry?
The person who has influenced my career the most was a VP of Sales that I reported to in one of my early roles. Building a seamless partnership and learning to use data to analyze the pipeline and essentially, drive hiring like a sales leader would drive revenue, was a true game changer for me.
What’s your best mistake and what did you learn from it?
My biggest mistake was coming into a startup as a new TA leader and immediately trying to fill roles because that’s what the executive team were asking for. What I learned from that is how important it is to set the agenda. There’s a way to balance the needs of the company in the short term with what I know will set the company up for long-term success. It can be hard to do that as a new leader, but it’s a mistake I’ll never make again.
What’s your favorite part about working in the industry? What’s your least favorite part, and how would you change it?
My favorite part about recruiting is the people. That’s why I’ve stayed for so long! I love building teams and enabling managers. What I dislike is how commoditized jobs have become. On the one hand, it’s easier than ever to find your dream job and on the other hand, the number of applicants per job opening has become unmanageable, making it harder for the great candidates to stand out.
It sounds like through your experience you really care about people, and you want to help them feel safe and comfortable, which is important in the industry. Please elaborate here.
I’m naturally a very empathetic person, which I think is one of the things that has kept me in this career for so long. It’s also a reason so many people come to the profession.
How can HR most effectively demonstrate its value to the leadership team?
I think the best way to demonstrate value is by being able to quantify and articulate it to the leadership team. Beyond standard metrics, what was the impact of the work the team did? Did you save the company money? Did you increase retention or time to fill open positions? Having the ability to measure those things and speak to what the leadership team needs is a key to HR’s success.
Where do you see the industry heading in five years? Or are you seeing any current trends?
My function is talent acquisition (TA) and I see this becoming more of a talent role that doesn’t end at the time an offer is signed. I think we’ll see more TA leaders get involved in organizational design, succession planning, talent reviews and performance management moving forward. I love the 360-degree possibilities of this as it will no doubt improve the quality of hires. I’m also curious to see how AI will shape the future of the industry. We’re already seeing great gains with the technology at the front end of the recruiting process (job descriptions, interview design) and it’ll be interesting to see where else we can leverage the tech.
What are you most proud of?
I’m incredibly proud of the work that the Oyster team has done to live out our mission of hiring people everywhere. We’ve hired 650 people in 70-plus countries over the last 18 months. We’re proving that great talent is indeed everywhere and we’re giving people career opportunities that they might not have otherwise, thanks to remote work and our focus on elevating talent.
Do you have any advice for people entering the profession?
Keep an open mind and be gentle on yourself. We’re in the people business and it’s critical that we prioritize being a human first, that’s what will make for the most impactful connections – whether it’s with candidates, recruits, your organization, etc.
These tools can offer tremendous advantages, including use in corporate training efforts.
This article was first published on May 1, 2023, by HR Daily Advisor, a sibling publication to HealthLeaders.
There’s no doubt AI chatbots have gotten increasingly sophisticated in recent years, and there’s certainly no doubt that these mysterious and novel tools have garnered a lot of media attention for their growing capabilities as well.
But, despite sensational news stories, AI chatbots—at least for now—can’t replace lawyers and business executives and aren’t sentient. That doesn’t mean, though, that doesn’t mean these tools can’t offer tremendous advantages, including use in corporate training efforts.
In this feature, we share some insights from training professionals and employers who have leveraged AI chatbots for employee training.
Useful for Small Businesses or Small HR Teams
Most companies struggle with or don’t put enough effort into training their workers. It’s not necessarily that they don’t believe training is important. Rather it’s seen as not a priority given the countless other needs of the business. That can be particularly true for small businesses without large training budgets, a training team or even an HR team!
Erny Peibst, founder and CEO of Inside Bodybuilding, a health clinic offering anabolic recovery and harm prevention services for professional athletes, says that AI chatbots, like ChatGPT, can be cost-effective way for small businesses to get a training program up and running. It may not represent a program up to the same standards as a Fortune 100 company training program, but it’ll be a start and it would certainly be better than no training program at all.
“Many small businesses don’t have formal onboarding or training processes, because they’re usually really time-consuming to create,” Peibst says. “Without experience, it can also be confusing to try to put your processes into words. ChatGPT can help many businesses get started by using just a simple request, providing a platform perfect for iterating to get just what you need.”
A Great Starting Point for L&D Pros
Peibst recommends that the best way to get started with using AI chatbots in crafting a training program is simply by asking questions. “That lets you know what information is available to the AI, so you can edit and adapt from there.
For example, someone in the fitness industry looking to build an employee handbook might start with: “What information should be included in an employee handbook?” Without having to read several blogs or books about handbook construction, the AI can give them a starting place that they can build from. Then, the content of the handbook can be populated.”
Once the chatbot has created the first draft, says Peibst, you can copy it into your own document and edit as needed. “However, with much of the bulk work done from you, building and iterating your basic training tools can be done in just a few days, instead of weeks. Your first training documents won’t be perfect—but it’s best to have them so you can start adapting them for exactly what you need. ChatGPT lowers the barrier to entry for these tools, so small business owners can formalize their processes and make hiring and onboarding their new employees easier.”
Greg Barnett, Chief People Scientist at Top Workplaces, agrees that AI chatbots can be a great starting point for getting a training program or training program material off the ground. “For learning and development leaders, generative AI tools make it possible to use prompts to create a baseline for training content and documents,” Barnett says.
“Tools like ChatGPT can help get content to a point that includes all necessary information, and a human can put their creative touch to create personalized training tools. Learning leaders can use generative AI to develop the mundane parts of training programs and amplify their ability to individualize training programs or materials for employees.”
Adding a Personalized Touch
AI chatbots can also be a cost-effective way to help personalize and customize training efforts to individual employees, something that would typically be cost prohibitive for most businesses if trying to achieve a similar level of personalization through one-on-one training with dedicated human staff.
“One of the ways ChatGPT or other models similar to GPT-3 may be used is to create personalized learning experiences for employees or focused groups of employees,” says Jenn Cooke, Senior Consultant, with global technology research and advisory firm ISG.
“These programs have the potential to significantly impact engagement and retention when they are adapted to learners’ unique needs,” she says.
“While each employee has learning needs that may vary significantly, tools like ChatGPT can be leveraged to create learning experiences catering to those different needs when it comes to learning styles while creating an individualized learning approach,” Cooke says.
A Complement to Training Strategy
While AI tools have often been seen as best situated to tackle some of the more mundane or tactical elements of training, the predictive capabilities of these tools may provide some benefit in the strategic arena as well.
“AI algorithms are also able to take relatively unstructured data to identify new trends and create predictions. These AI capabilities can help L&D teams identify skills gaps or identify skills or competencies employees are struggling with across the organization and create individualized programs targeting specific areas,” says Barnett of Top Workplaces.
“It’s important to note generative AI technology doesn’t replace humans, it only provides better signals on which learning and development leaders can dig in deeper, learn more, and communicate that information to others. Organizations looking to implement AI tools into their learning and development programs should be more proactive about their awareness of AI’s capabilities and how it can supplement and amplify career development and business goals," Barnett says.
"The potential uses of AI are broad, so organizations should analyze what areas AI can remove mundane and repetitive tasks for L&D teams. Removing these tasks will provide employee development teams more time and effort toward creating programs that support individual employee career goals while driving business results.”
Training and development as an inherently human process. However, there are a number of exciting and constantly improving artificial intelligence technologies available commercially and at relatively low cost that can create significant efficiencies and advantages for training and development teams. Taking advantages of these emerging new technologies can help training leaders save time and effort, while maintaining the quality of their offerings.