President’s Pen
by Betty Lonis, SPHR

Change is a constant in most of our lives, be it personal or professional. An organization such as HRACI is not exempt from such change. As you all know, Jeff George recently resigned his position as HRACI President and I have succeeded him as Chapter President. I am very excited and honored to serve the chapter in this capacity. I look forward to continuing in the strong tradition of past HRACI Presidents and working with our Board of Directors as we embark on our journey to Serve the Professional and Advance the Profession within central Indiana.

Several on the Board recently attended the Indiana State Council Leadership Conference. This was an opportunity to learn more about the SHRM and State Council structure and resources available to our chapter as well as sharing ideas with other chapter leaders. As the keynote speaker, Nancy Ahlrichs, SPHR, shared why this is HR's Decade and helped us understand what that means from both a chapter leadership perspective as well as from a professional work perspective. Nancy stressed that we have the ability to leave our footprints as leaders by delivering on best practices, execution and metrics. We will work hard over the next couple of years to continue branding our organization as a strategic asset to our members.

The Board will be outlining our goals and objectives for the coming year in the next few weeks. We will need additional resources to help achieve these goals and objectives. We will be asking each of you to get involved with the organization in a volunteer capacity. We are the largest chapter in the state of Indiana and the possibilities of what we can do are plentiful. But, we can't do it without you. So, be thinking about what areas might interest you and I hope you'll be ready to "raise your hand" when asked what role you'd like to play.

Please feel free to contact me at 317-277-5345 or president@hraci.org.

I look forward to seeing you at the March meeting!

Q: How can I promote my organization and services to over 700 human resource professionals?

A: Place an ad in our new vendor marketplace section on the HRACI website. We will provide a short description of your services and a link to your website, for the low cost of $50 per year. Click here to take advantage of this offer.

Contact Kellie Miller, HRACI Director of Marketing, marketing@hraci.org, (317) 915-4583 with any questions about vendor marketplace, banner web site ads, employment page advertising and sponsoring the monthly newsletter.

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HRACI Presents: Personnel Selection, Promotion and Recruitment.

A Strategic Approach Using Best Practices a presentation by Jack Leon, PhD. Jack is the President of Leon & Associates. One of the primary areas of expertise for Industrial Psychologists is employee selection and promotion, including testing and other methodologies. There is a rich background of application and research in this area. Based on the research, several conclusions can be drawn concerning which methods work, how well they work, and which methods do not work well. Some of these conclusions differ from commonly accepted practices used in industry and government.
Knowing which processes work best is only part of the answer to the staffing challenge. The interaction between selection methodology and recruitment practices is a critical one. Careful consideration of this interaction can lead to a "best practices" strategic approach to selection and promotion. Based on the strategy, game plans can be developed for each job or job category to maximize the quality of employees hired or promoted. Several examples of systems actually implemented will be described. I also discuss why traditional approaches are embraced, despite their known ineffectiveness. This includes a discussion of the "illusion of validity". The legal issues in using enhanced selection procedures will be touched on briefly.

Location:
Murat Center; Michigan and New Jersey, in downtown Indianapolis. Parking is free.

Time:
11:30 a.m. Registration & networking
12:00 noon Luncheon
12:30 p.m. Presentation
1:20 p.m. Adjournment

Program Cost: Members $20, Guests $30, Students $10

Sponsor: Pre-Paid Legal Services, Inc.

Reservations: Click here to register securely online using your Visa or MasterCard, or call (317) 767-9275 or email meetingreservations@hraci.org by March 14, 2003. Please be sure to include your name, company name, phone number and indicate whether you are a member, student or guest. No reservations will be accepted after this date.

Payment Method: If not registering online, bring payment to the meeting. Checks should be made payable to HRACI.

Cancellations: Cancellations after 5 p.m. March 14, 2003 will result in a billing for the meeting cost.

Next Meeting: April 17, 2003: HIPAA Legislation
A representative from CIGNA will speak about the latest in HIPAA legislation. Also, Mary Jane Gonzalez, Executive Director of the Indiana Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will join us as our Diversity speaker.

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HRACI is offering a $1,500 scholarship to one future human resources professional. Juniors and non-graduating seniors at accredited colleges or universities in Marion County or surrounding counties are eligible to apply. Click here for details. Click here for an application.

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The HRACI website now has a members-only area. Your user name is your membership number and password is your last name. You can make changes to your membership profile there, renew your membership on a secure server and also browse the membership list. You should have received an email earlier in November with a reminder of your membership number and password information. You can email hraci@mprecords.com for technical issues for the website.

You can now pay your membership dues and register for meetings securely online using your Visa or MasterCard.

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Q: How can I promote my organization and services to over 700 human resource professionals?

A: Place an ad in our new vendor marketplace section on the HRACI website. We will provide a short description of your services and a link to your website, for the low cost of $50 per year. Click here to take advantage of this offer.

Contact Kellie Miller, HRACI Director of Marketing, kmiller@EQRWORLD.com, (317) 915-4583 with any questions about vendor marketplace, banner web site ads, employment page advertising and sponsoring the monthly newsletter.

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Tara Avery
Indiana Chamber of Commerce

Wendy Colburn
Indianapolis Motor Speedway

Michael Cork
LLP

Kelly Grinder
Sheraton Indianapolis Hotel & Suites

Kylene Kelsheimer
Finish Line

Tim Miller
HR Dimensions

Meshell Richman
Randstad NA

Kathy Stanley
YMCA of Greater Indianapolis

Nancy Turner
National Institute for Fitness and Sport

Mollis Wools
Finish Line

What: Human Resource and related folks meet, talk, and enjoy a drink or two.

Why: Just a place and time for HR types to "get away" for a bit. No planned agenda or presentations, just casual discussion, advise, war stories, or just relax and network. I'm sure many who are getting ready to take the certification tests can commiserate there!

Who: You and any guest(s) you want to bring along!

When: 6:p.m. Wednesday, March 12, Claddagh Irish Pub, 234 S. Meridian, on the corner of S. Meridian and Jackson St., 822-6274.

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The 2002 Indiana Collegiate Job Fair is scheduled for Friday, March 28, 2003 from 10:00a.m. - 3:00p.m. at the Indiana Convention Center, downtown Indianapolis.

The job fair offers employers the opportunity to meet face-to-face with qualified candidates to fill current or anticipated openings with their companies. The Indiana Collegiate Job Fair targets candidates who are either college seniors or graduates seeking degreed career positions, or students searching for internships.

The event is marketed heavily in central Indiana as well as to the thousands of students at the ten Indiana University and Purdue University campuses statewide. More than 1000 job candidates attended last year’s fair.

Registration includes a continental breakfast, lunch for two recruiters, an 8-by-6 booth table and other amenities, such as company promotion on the Career Center Job Fair website. Participating employers also receive an interactive and searchable database listing resume information on all candidates who attend the event.

Deadline for early bird registration is February 21. Regular registration runs through March 7. Cost is $495 for early bird registration or $595 after February 21. In addition, special sponsorship packages are available for either $500 or $1,000.

Register Online at: www.jobfairs.iupui.edu/icjf_emp.html

For further information contact: Becky Garrett, Job Fair Coordinator at 317-274-3215 or relgarre@iupui.edu or www.jobfairs.iupui.edu.

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Did you know? The SHRM Foundation funds a $30,000 Area Scholarship Program to support SHRM members working full-time and pursuing HR degrees or professional certification. Each of the six SHRM areas of the country receives $5,000 to be awarded to applicants in their region. SHRM members, chapters and state councils may submit an application by May 1 to their SHRM area manager for consideration. Scholarship applications and complete details are available online at http://www.shrm.org/students/ags.asp#fs

The SHRM Foundation: Leadership for Changing Times .

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1. Underestimating the benefit of a company-sponsored retirement plan.
So many employers still just don't get it. A good retirement plan is absolutely one of the most important benefits you can offer employees. But even now, over 20 years after 401(k) plans were introduced, employers still miss by a mile the value they can get out of providing - and promoting - a retirement plan at work. In fact, there are still companies with 500 or fewer employees that don't have a 401(k) plan in place. Finding top-quality employees is hard enough. And trying to recruit them to your firm without a good retirement plan is even harder.

2. Wasting valuable time in the provider selection process
Many sponsors don't put a process in place before they start looking for a 401(k) plan provider - and end up wasting a great deal of time in the long run. Although the word "process" may make you think of endless meetings and paperwork, a selection process doesn't have to be complicated. You simply need to determine right form the start exactly what you want your plan to accomplish and what it will cost. Be sure you understand how prospective providers charge for their services so you aren't caught off guard by any "hidden" fees.

3. Exaggerating the ease of plan conversion.
Every year around 10% of all plan sponsors change providers. But, if you expect the conversion process to run without a hitch, you are probably setting yourself up for a big disappointment. The conversion process is almost always fairly complex and time consuming. So keep in mind that your troubles won't disappear overnight once you choose a provider. Much of the success of any conversion will depend on your old provider supplying information and data in a timely fashion to your new provider. You should partner with your new provider to create a realistic timetable of who will do what - and when. If you are a publicly traded company, don't forget about the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, which requires specific Blackout period notices and restrictions.

4. Settling for poor plan design.
"What exactly do we want this retirement plan to do?" should be the first question you ask, but it's often ignored. Your plan needs to be designed specifically to work for your employees and the particular demographics of your workforce - and that's not as easy as you might think. You should give a great deal of thought to how each provision you choose will affect your plan participants. Employees of different age groups, income levels, and ethnic backgrounds will be affected in various ways by each provision. That doesn't mean, however that you have to spend a lot on a high-powered ERISA law firm to design you plan. Prototype plans are widely available with options to fit very specific needs.

5. Not educating plan participants.
Many plan sponsors say they're dedicated to educating their participations but don't follow through and do what it takes to implement a comprehensive educational program. The more your employees know about the financial realities of retirement, the more likely they are to participate fully in the plan. In fact, communication and education programs have been shown to be just as effective in getting employees to participate in a retirement plan as increasing the match - and that could mean a substantial cost savings for the sponsor. Unfortunately, a lot of providers think education stops at enrollment. Keep looking until you find a provider that will provider ongoing education throughout the life of your plan.

6. Making poor investment selections.
The average number of investment options offered by retirement plans continues to increase. According to Plan Sponsor's 2002 Defined Contribution Services Survey, the average number of funds offered is 15.94 (up from 14). Keep the following factors in mind when choosing the investment options for your plan: the number of choices the plan will offer, and the ability of those choices to meet the various investment needs of a diverse group of participants.

7. Not understanding your fiduciary responsibility.
As a plan sponsor you have a fiduciary responsibility to your participants based on the "prudent man rule", and you are legally obligated to guarantee that the plan complies with ERISA. Make sure you devote the resources necessary to insure that the plan runs smoothly and efficiently - and remains legally compliant. The scope of your fiduciary responsibility is broad. It includes plan design, administration and compliance, investment performance, participant education, and trust and custodial services.

8. Not forming a relationship with your provider.
By forming a solid relationship with your plan provider, they have a vested interest in your plan's success and you get the full benefit of their experience. What I can tell you from my own professional experience is that the success of any retirement plan is dependent on the quality of the relationship that develops between the sponsor and the provider they select. Think of your provider as just another part of your company's total resources - to get the most of this important relationship.

9. Not preparing participants for distributions and rollovers.
For many people, the assets in their retirement plan may be the largest sum of money they ever have access to - even greater than the equity in their homes. They need to know how to handle a rollover or a distribution when it comes time for a job change or retirement. According to Plan Sponsor's 2002 Defined Contribution Services Survey, only 54.7% of employers surveyed provide education to participants taking a distribution. For retirees, the way this transaction is handled could affect the income they receive for the rest of their lives. Just as important, transferees need to be aware that even a modest sum should be protected so it can grow over time. As the sponsor, you also have a vested interest in participants making wise choices so the plan won't have to maintain those accounts indefinitely.

10. Not reviewing the plan annually.
A lot can change in a year. Laws and regulations in the retirement plan industry change constantly, which may necessitate changes in your process, procedures or plan design. And as the demographics of your company change, you may need to make changes that assure the plan remains attractive to your employees and remains in legal compliance. It is also a great time to make sure that the staff and technology you have in place are sufficient to make your plan the best it can be.

Submitted by Leslie E. Lynch, United of Omaha. Leslie can be reached at 877.304.9132 if you'd like to share your thoughts on the above article.

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