Lori Burquez, Director of Human Resources at Cathay Bank, took part in the L.A. Times panel to share insights on Employee Benefits and Effective HR practices. View the complete article here.
I think it’s important to have a strong presence on LinkedIn — have top hiring managers knowledgeable about using it and work in partnership with recruiting managers on it. It’s also critical to stay in touch with candidates, adhering to any timeline that’s been set and keeping warm lines of communication open. It’s good to remember both you and the candidate need to make an informed decision, so make sure candidates have the chance to ask questions — about benefits, hybrid work schedules, location, company culture, etc. — so they have a good feel for what their first 30 days would look like. It can also be invaluable for them to come onsite instead of doing everything online so they can get a sense of the environment they’d be working in.
The biggest mistake is not having stay interviews with high performers because you don’t want to find out why they’re leaving in a resignation letter. Those stay interviews provide the chance for team members to let us know what we’re doing well and what we can do better to support them. In that same vein, it’s a mistake not to provide valid feedback on an ongoing basis — what team members are doing skillfully and what they need to work on — as well as fail to provide robust onboarding that includes more than where their desk and the bathrooms are but includes access to systems and team members who can answer their questions. Another mistake is not providing recognition and appreciation for their accomplishments as well as the opportunity to have career development conversations — showing interest in their current performance and future roles.
Providing resources to tend to employees’ total well-being is increasingly more important. If there’s one thing COVID taught us is that a lot can be going on at home and work — resulting in the need for a support system. We provide a wellness program through Virgin Pulse that includes resources in the app dealing with diet, exercise, and mindfulness. We also offer access to financial well-being information and take team members' pulse with engagement surveys that help us understand their health and well-being needs.
There are three things we do well to communicate with our team members that I would recommend to any organization. First, we have a comprehensive monthly online newsletter that provides a range of articles about current events and company culture — it features different teams and departments, lots of photos, what we’re doing in the community, new initiatives, company performance, new hires, promotions and more. Second, our CEO and top executives produce quarterly videos focusing on financial results and goals, retail banking, lending, and back-office functions. Third, we do an engagement survey every two years and pulse surveys between them to determine team members’ level of engagement and listen to them to better understand how we can make their employment experiences more meaningful.
A well-run internship program can be an invaluable way to give back to the community by helping develop young people, giving them corporate experience, and opening the door to a viable career path. Most young people don’t realize there are many career opportunities past the retail side in areas like cybersecurity, fraud prevention, anti-money laundering, learning and development, human resources, commercial lending, and more. Our Talent Acquisition team, which manages our internship program, also created a program called Four Corners, where they invite college-age kids of team members to spend a few Saturdays learning about careers in banking as well as skills like dressing for success, creating a resume, acing an interview and practicing business etiquette at a spaghetti lunch.
If you are going to be a people manager, you must learn to be an inspirational leader, which includes providing balanced feedback on a regular basis, giving new team members a warm welcome and robust onboarding so they can assimilate quickly and conducting stay interviews to gauge engagement and satisfaction. We have provided inspirational leadership training for the past five years. We want our people managers to be more than just managers but coaches and mentors to their team members — getting to know them, especially what motivates them, and helping them set goals — being involved in their whole experience as a member of the team.
This article does not constitute legal, accounting or other professional advice. Although the information contained herein is intended to be accurate, Cathay Bank does not assume liability for loss or damage due to reliance on such information.
