I
often ask dealers this simple question, “How many of you have
an employee handbook?” You can hear a pin drop in the room;
it is so quiet. The idea of going through pages and pages of an
employee handbook sounds torturous at best. The thought of
creating one sounds even worse.
Bob Clements is passionate about processes. We live and breathe
them in every area of our business and encourage you to do the
same. Why? When you put processes in place that empower your
employees, you spend less time putting out fires and more time
doing what only you can do.
An employee handbook is an important part of your HR process.
It gives your employees answers to the questions they need
without coming to you! The employee handbook doesn’t sound
so bad after all, does it? An employee handbook gives you 3 key
benefits:
Reduces Questions to Management
Can I take my two weeks’ vacation starting tomorrow? Can I
get an advance on my paycheck? Can I wear this? These things
- and more - are covered in the employee handbook. Will your
employees still ask policy questions? Sure. However, with an
employee handbook you can give them a specific answer that
won’t change from employee to employee.
Reduces the Likelihood of Legal Action
We live in a lawsuit happy world. Anyone you visit can tell you
a story about how someone was out to get “the man”. As the
10
owner or manager of a dealership, it’s easy to become “the man.”
We often receive calls from dealers who are facing legal action
because of oversight. Maybe they let someone go and they didn’t
go through the correct process. It could be that they advanced one
employee a paycheck and didn’t advance pay to another employee.
The processes and policies in your employee handbook can save
you a lot of time, money, and energy regarding legal action.
Allows You to Address Employee Issues as They Develop
Having processes in place for dealing with employee issues as
they develop minimizes the risk of losing your dealerships’ biggest
investment - your people. Internal personnel issues come up.
Your employee handbook outlines how these issues will be dealt
with, which improve the overall work environment for your entire
team. Remember, retaining your best employees is an important
part of your job and an up-to-date employee handbook can help.
Do you need help putting together an employee handbook?
NATDA Dealership Performance Training has the answers. Visit
www.natda.org/dealer-education to learn more.
NATDA Dealership Performance Training program
includes online modules and documented processes,
so dealers can improve every aspect of their
dealership – from the parts department to trailer
sales. For more information and to sign-up, please
contact NATDA at 727-360-0304.
NATDA Magazine www.natda.org