The impact of unemployment is not just limited to whether or not a claimant receives benefits. They’re generally either eligible or not as determined by the laws of the state. Equally, if not more important, unemployment is a symptom of an underlying issue that when addressed can lead to significant improvement not only in finances, but in culture, productivity, and long-term sustainability. That’s where partnerships can help.
Partnerships provide outside perspective, extra horsepower, specialized skill, and safety. When you’re working with a partner who’s been there before and worked with other organizations to solve a similar problem, you gain all of that experience in a shorter timeframe. The focus of any partner isn’t to change the organization for the sake of change. It’s to focus on solutions that work within the complexity of your existing structure.
8 Requirements for Effective Partnerships
Sometimes partnerships are difficult because as people it’s not easy to take our feelings out of the equation. Sometimes partnerships feel like a threat rather than an opportunity. With that in mind, the following are eight key requirements for effective partnerships.
1. Solid Understanding of Your Organization
Initially, it may feel like more work is required as a consultant begins to learn about the organization. The work that a consultant does is different than the work HR does on a daily basis. A learning curve is required, but that curve is small. To do the job well, a consultant will look beyond unemployment towards policies, procedures, and practices. Having this foundation ultimately reduces the amount of work over time.
2. Start with What You Have
The best consultants start with what you have instead of trying to change your organization to fit into a specific model. They work with what you have. There are no new systems to implement or learn.
3. Challenge Inefficiencies
Keeping your current process is fine as long as it’s working for you. Your consultant may need additional information to win the claim, and a good consultant will always challenge you to consider improvements that drive the organization forward.
4. Extra Horsepower
Organizations often feel like they can do it themselves and that they don’t need others to come in and help. You still run the show and are ultimately responsible for the results. Consultants provide extra horsepower and practical insights or best practices with one primary objective – to improve the bottom line.
5. Seek to Understand the Past
Once the employee is terminated, you’re ready to move on. You’ve got lots to do and don’t want to focus on looking back. But, there is so much information about why the person left or was terminated that can help you understand what’s going on in the organization. You don’t have time to deal with the past, and with the right consultant, you don’t need to.
6. Positive Perception
Perhaps you believe that having consultants make others feel that you’re not doing your job well and don’t have things under control. This is far from true. The problem isn’t you. It’s capacity. You don’t have enough capacity in your organization to free up the right people to successfully tackle this issue. Using a consultant shows others that you do whatever it takes to make the organization successful.
7. Knowledge
You know more about your organization than an outsider knows. That’s a good thing! You don’t hire consultants to do what you already know how to do. You hire them to bring a proven process and way of thinking that improves your position and helps your organization further develop.
8. Cost
While consulting isn’t free, it can be offset by the savings that you’ll receive. The best way to know how much it will cost you is to speak with us. Like many others, we think you’ll be pleasantly surprised. At S3 Management Group, we don’t just respond to the claims. We go the extra mile and dig to the root of the issue to understand what is actually creating the risk. Clients who utilize the information we provide ultimately see lower unemployment costs and their overall organization is strengthened.
Hiring a consultant isn’t about change. It’s about understanding what’s currently being done and taking steps to make it better. It’s about educating, understanding, and incorporating new things that you hadn’t considered.