Shift

Why did you select a career in human resources?
Before human resources, I was in hotel management operations and worked for several large international hotel companies. As I moved up the ladder, I was in charge of multi-million dollar budgets, managing hundreds of employees, P&L responsibility, recruiting, hiring, firing, promoting, developing employees, etc.

Working at Marriott, Hyatt and a major casino in Atlantic City taught me how to work with people and run an efficient organization. I learned how to coach leaders to motivate teams to achieve maximum performance, which in turn boosted results for the organization.

As the managing partner at KardasLarson, I see myself as more than just a human resource consultant. I’m a business consultant focusing on human resources, because I recognize the impact human resources can make on an organization’s ability to succeed.

What is the most common mistake you see leaders making?
Not setting clear expectations up front with employees, and not being consistent in applying their organization’s policies or practices in employment/employee related situations.

At what point should a small to midsize organization create an employee handbook? How often should it be updated? And what is the true purpose of a handbook?
Many state and federal regulations now require employers with only one employee to be compliant with a variety of guidelines, so I recommend all organizations create and implement an employee handbook. An employee handbook is a roadmap that all employees, executives, management and non-management can follow in their day-to-day interactions.

A handbook should be updated every couple of years, unless there are new government regulations, or the organization has changed or implemented a new policy or practice. In those situations, the handbook should be updated immediately.

What do you see as human resource’s most important role in an organization?
To be a driver in organizational performance via the level of talent/people in all organizations. In order to achieve this, HR leaders must develop and implement a comprehensive talent strategy for their organization which will continuously drive change and innovation.