The HR Department: Smoothing and Streamlining Workflow

If you run a company, whether it's big or small, or maybe a little in between, one thing you are going to need is a Human Resources Department. Even if it's just one guy in a cubicle or an entire floor of staff, it is important that someone handles Human Resources.

The Company’s Backbone

And, if wondering what exactly HR encompasses, it is a kind of catch-all process that includes everything related to staff, including hiring, firing, training, payroll and employee issues. It can often involve a lot of tasks, including mounds of paperwork and time-consuming responsibilities that involve compliance with legal issues.

Behind the scenes, they are also working to help achieve your company’s strategic objectives by working on programs that motivate and incentive employees to be productive and meet targets.

Keeping the Engine of Productivity Running Full Steam Ahead

With so much to do, there is so much that can go easily wrong if there are not structured HR processes and staff in place to handle this role.

At its core, a business of every size and type needs a good and effective work force to keep everything running smoothly and on track. Quality employees and clear practices and processes can equip your company with the right formula for success.

Even with the best processes in place and a talented team at the helm, your HR team is still human and capable of mistakes. There are also times where an organization is undergoing growing pains and the HR staff may be struggling to make the right decisions about how to alter their processes to accommodate this growth.

Calling in HR Support

That’s when it may be a smart decision to partner with a HR consulting firm on the development of a formal HR department or a redesign of your current HR structure to ensure that the engine of productivity in the company continues to run at full steam ahead.

A HR consultant firm has the experience and know-how to visualize the necessary changes to reporting structures, roles and responsibilities, or processes because they have seen and designed all types of HR departments for a wide range of companies across many industries.

For instance, they may be able to suggest that you take an outsourcing route to some or all of your HR processes or help design a custom HR department that fits your company’s size, budget, and strategic needs.

An HR consultant might also be able to help with specific HR roles, including designing company policies to be compliant or developing a hiring, firing, and training process that helps you attract and retain the best staff.

These are just a few of the many ways a HR consultant can ensure your HR department keeps things running smoothly so you can focus on your core capabilities.

Accommodating Small Business and Big Business Insurance Needs

Having your very own business is something that just about everyone thinks about at least once or maybe even fantasizes over time and time again. While some succeed, some fail and others don't even try. Part of the concern for those that have started and those not yet ready is how to understand and create the right set of benefits and insurance coverage to sustain and protect the business as well as attract talent.

Business insurance is a critical part of every business with employees both large and small, so this blog provides some great ideas on what you need to consider as a business owner.

The Benefits of Benefits

On the benefits side, one area to include is insurance for your employees, such as health and sometimes vision and dental. More than anything, these benefits serve as an incentive to gain new employees and keep talent on board. Sometimes, having medical coverage is more attractive than getting a raise in an hourly rate or some type of bonus.

That’s because going to the doctor and dentist can be expensive, so having this additional financial support can give employees peace of mind that they can take care of themselves and their families.

For you, as the employer, you know that a healthy worker is a happy and productive worker, so these types of benefits pay great dividends.

Qualifying for Business Insurance Plans

With so many small businesses now helping our economy grow and thrive, insurance companies recognize the importance of providing business health insurance plans for even the smallest of companies.

A number of these firms offer multiple packages and full support to small businesses, especially with the growing popularity of companies offering health care benefits to their employees. A small business, in the insurance world at least, is decided by its number of employees.

Typically, 2-50 employees defines a small business, and 51 or more employees a large business, with the numbers ever increasing beyond that.  Small business health insurance plans cover a small business and its 2-50 eligible employees, and a large business health plan would cover any employee amount over 51 with obvious increases in fees to accommodate the additional employees.

There are also many flexible plans that allow a small business owner to offer other insurance benefits, including dental, vision, and life insurance, which many employees will also enjoy having as these can help cover other important areas that they may be concerned about handling on their own.

Albuquerque's Small Business Owners

Linton and Associates is an insurance firm that has been working to please clients just like you since 1988 and now has over 1,000 clients! We are locally owned and still deeply rooted in the community. Let us know what type of business insurance needs your small business has so we can provide a wide range of suitable options that fit your company size and budget.

Go Back to School with MyCare

Don’t worry – you don’t actually have to go back to school, but you may need to be schooled in the facts about the Affordable Health Care Act in play. Americans everywhere will need to educate themselves about the new benefits, rights, and laws, concerning the new health care plan.

That is where the MyCare initiative comes in as a way to school Americans all over the country about the available programs and benefits that are active under this new health care law. Time to get your learning cap on so you can know all there is to know about MyCare and the Affordable Health Care Act.

How it All Started

The beginning to it all was March 23, 2010 when President Obama first signed the Affordable Health Care Act. This event led to about $730 million in grants being handed out to community health centers everywhere (chances are even one near you). These grant funds are being used all over the country to improve equipment and conditions for these community health centers  as well as even helping to provide more job.

Employment at the health centers has gone up about 15 percent not to mention that nearly 200 health centers are either under construction while 60 are in the works as brand new construction.  It’s a formula that works: new construction = new jobs.

These community health centers serve dual purposes as job centers, social meet-ups, and places to get everything from prescriptions to dental work. These centers are often times all people have for miles, so without them there would be a plethora of problems that no one wants or even deserves. This aspect of the new Act has certainly provided some positives well-needed in this country right now.

More on MyCare

You may still be wondering what exactly MyCare is and what it means for you. MyCare is a program that is focused on providing Americans everywhere (not just here in New Mexico) with the information they need to understand how exactly they are affected by the Affordable Health Care Act. This includes educating them about new laws, programs, benefits, etc.

The MyCare program has also been encouraging those who have been affected in some way by the health care act to share their stories via Twitter or Facebook, encouraging engagement and interaction through these social media platforms. For more information on sharing your own MyCare story, please check them out here.

Albuquerque City Workers to Enjoy Healthier Lives

With help from the city's various health programs, such as Albuquerque's 'Rise to Good Health' program, city workers are learning more about how to take care of themselves so they can enjoy healthier lives. These programs offer various valuable services to Albuquerque city workers with the overall objective of promoting good health in Albuquerque city employed workers.

The 'Rise to Good Health' program is working to promote a healthy lifestyle for the city's employees and their family members. The program does this by providing workers and their families with a number of services all meant to promote the right food, exercise, and lifestyle choices.

A Plethora of Great Services

The programs are packed with great services that you can’t afford not to take advantage of, including the following:

·         The Annual Health Risk Assessment tool is a tool that helps to discover what ailments you may be suffering from now or in the near future. It also can work to show you how to prevent these ailments whether it’s through a diet change, fitness change, or a medication.

·         Health Fairs held quarterly at the beginning of each season are designed to raise health awareness by providing information and free health screenings.

·         Preventative flu shots are available to you and your family members each Fall to help keep you safe from the flu throughout the upcoming season.

·         Quit the habit! With its 'stop tobacco' resources, you can quit, for good this time. No more resisting for weeks only to have all that progress destroyed by one cigarette as the program can, and will, help you kick the habit for good this time.

·         Online Newsletters are provided to help you on your way to healthier living. Each issues is full of practical tips and tricks for living healthier as well as a wealth of other important information that you can put to work right away

·         Wellness Workshops offer nutritional guidance about the importance of eating healthy and undertaking regular exercise because just one or the other isn't enough.

·         Health E-Flicks are also offered to further educate you and your families on the importance of healthy eating and regular exercise. These serve as a great reminder to the fact that it’s not about a routine that feels cumbersome but it’s actually a way of life that can be enjoyable.   

·         Mammogram Screenings are available year-round to help detect the potential of cancer early on, which has been found to help combat breast cancer.

With all of these benefits and features offered to Albuquerque's city workers, it really shows how much the city cares for the health and well-being of its workers and their families.

As a company that shares these values, we, at Linton and Associates, are also dedicated to showing the same care and concern towards our customers who we believe are family.