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When To Hire Help; How To Interview
By carefully delegating your responsibilities you do
not compromise on your work, you only enhance it, says Marcia Guberman,
president of Business Builders, a management consulting company, and
Maid Daily Services/M.D.S. Cleaning, a full service residential and
commercial janitorial company.
Named “Business Woman of the Year” by the Mercer County Chapter
of New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners (NJAWBO), Guberman
will conduct the workshop, “When to Expand Your Staff and How
to Do It” at the NJAWBO State Convention on Thursday, April 29,
at Trump Plaza, Atlantic City. The conference continues to May 1 and
focuses on “A New Attitude for the New Millennium.” Package
registration for the whole conference is $475. Registration for April
29 only is $200. Call 732-560-9607.
Guberman will help employers, especially small business owners, determine
the job description needed, the type of employee to add, and how to
go about finding that person and interviewing.
“Entrepreneurs are very possessive and have a hard time delegating
responsibilities,” says Guberman. “If your company is growing
you can no longer do everything that you did last year. If you are,
the quality of your work and services will suffer. When you’re not
providing the services you were hired to provide, when you’re not
meeting your deadlines, when you’re working so hard that you’re no
longer having a life, it’s time to hire more people,” says Guberman.
A small business owner for over a decade, Guberman bought her janitorial
company in 1986 and grew it over 300 percent. She has 28 employees
and knows how difficult and important it is to have the right people
work for you. “I do business counseling, and often times people
need to add staff and don’t know when they need to do it,” says
Guberman. An adjunct business counselor for the Mercer County Community
College’s Small Business Center, Guberman is also the vice chair-person
of the Trenton Business Assistance Corporation (TBAC), a micro lending
agency that helps start-ups and small businesses.
Small business owners do not often make an accurate job description
that answers the needs of their businesses, says Guberman. When your
accountant is over burdened, for instance, you might make the mistake
of hiring another accountant, when what you really need could be support
staff. The accountant who is hired usually ends up leaving because
the job is not what he thought he was hired to do.
“Small business owners often do not know how to conduct an interview,”
says Guberman. The very human propensity to overlook the faults of
a person you like could be a disadvantage during the hiring process.
Guberman offers some tips for employers to follow while interviewing
prospective employees.
Keep the job description in front of you and stick toit. It is easy to fall in love with a candidate’s personality. Butyou have to stay focused on the job description and the candidate’squalifications. Often employers hire people they were impressed withat the interview and realize they are not suited for the job.Do a lot of listening. Candidates are usually nervousat interviews and talk a lot. By just chatting with them you can gleana lot about their work ethics, whether they are similar to yours,if this job is going to be a significant part of their life or justa 9 to 5 job they could not care less about.Ask the same questions to every candidate. Otherwise youare not comparing apples to apples and you do not get a true readingof every candidate.Find out about their last job. Ask them what they likedand disliked about it. If they did not get along with their boss intheir last job, chances are they will not get along with you.Go over some of the laws about hiring. That will giveyou an understanding of what you can and cannot ask at an interview.The person you hire should not just fit the job descriptionbut should also fit into the workplace, says Guberman. “If youhave a philosophy in your workplace that everybody does everythingthat is necessary to get the job done and you hire someone who isnot a team player, it will create tension and ill-will among yourother employees and that can cause a lot of harm.”It is very difficult to find good employees, and employers shouldknow the right sources to approach, says Guberman. “For my janitorialbusiness, I go to outreach programs. They have lists of people. WorkFirstNew Jersey is a good source for employees.” You have to be awareof newspapers and who they serve. You also have to be creative aboutthe advertising dollars you spend. “In the long run a displayadvertisement could work out to be more profitable than a classifiedadvertisement,” says Guberman. “You should also network andlet others know that you are looking for a specific kind of employee.”Employment agencies can be invaluable resources. Small businessesdo not have the time to interview 20 to 30 people, says Guberman.Employment agencies do the pre-screening, and if you are not happywith the employee they will replace them. They also provide tempsyou can test out before you hire them. The down-side of employmentagencies, says Guberman, is that they can be expensive.”Being a small business owner can be a very isolating experience,”says Guberman. The strongest support for a small business owner comesfrom other small business owners. “They are not proprietary andare willing to share their knowledge with one another.” Organizationslike the NJAWBO help small business owners in that regard, says Guberman.”It is very important for them to align themselves with otherbusiness owners and learn from them.”– Teena ChandyTop Of PageEmployers and ADA:Still on a Learning CurveWhy does the typical employer still hesitate to hirepeople with disabilities? Scott Elliott thinks he knows thereason and has the solution.Elliott is the executive director of the Progressive Center for IndependentLiving, a Ewing-based non-profit specializing in assistance to individualswith disabilities who live in Mercer or Hunterdon counties. Havinglived with a crippling form of muscular dystrophy, Elliott has anintimate knowledge of the experience of those with disabilities, fromhis own personal life as well as professionally.The biggest obstacle to hiring people with disabilities, Scott believes,is employers’ uncertainty as to what the ADA requirements are, andhow the needs of people with various types of disabilities can beaccommodated. For this reason, his organization is co-sponsoring aseries of workshops on the ADA requirements for businesses and localgovernments. The workshops, partially funded by the government, areco-sponsored by the Northeast Disabilities Business and TechnicalAssistance Center (800-949-4232 or https://www.disabilityact.com).The first workshop — “The Americans with Disabilities ActEmployment Update: Highlights from the Equal Employment OpportunityCommission Guidances” — will be Friday, April 23, from 8:30a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the offices of Stark & Stark, 993 Lenox Drive,Building 2. Presentations will be made by experts from Cornell Universityand the Northeast Disabilities Business and Technical Assistance Center.The second workshop, on Friday, June 4, will address the ADA lawsas they affect state and local governments. The third, on Friday,September 24, will focus on requirements for access to businessesby people with disabilities, including discussion of tax credits availablefor making access-related improvements. To register call PCIL at 609-530-0006or write to 831 Parkway Avenue, B-2, Ewing 08618. Cost: $20 registrationincluding lunch and materials.Diagnosed at the age of eight with spinal muscular atrophy, a typeof muscular dystrophy which becomes more debilitating with age, Elliotthimself never experienced discrimination: “I was lucky — Iwas employed at companies owned by good people who appreciated myskills and commitment.”His employers were supportive as the disease progressed. A few yearsback, his employer offered to purchase a scooter for him when he beganto have difficulty moving around — Elliott decided by then hewas making enough money to buy it himself.But others with disabilities are not always so lucky. The ProgressiveCenter for Independent Living is doing what it can to improve theemployment prospects of its clients. Elliott is eager to raise awarenessin the business community of the benefits of hiring individuals withdisabilities.The workshop is designed to provide human resource managers, supervisors,small business owners, and union leaders with an in-depth understandingof the Americans with Disabilities Act as it applies to employment.The workshop will cover in detail guidances developed by the EqualEmployment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) in the last four years, andexamine case studies that provide a practical understanding of howthe ADA is applied. It will focus on the newly released EEOC guidancerelating to “reasonable accommodation.”Examples of reasonable accommodation include modifying existing facilities,modifying work schedules, and providing specialized equipment. However,employers are not required to make accommodations that would posea undue hardship. A guidance document on reasonable accommodationwas posted last month at https://www.www.eeoc.gov.The Department of Justice ADA website at https://www.usdoj.gov/crt/ada/ada.htmloffers these guidelines:Does my business have to comply with the ADA? Yes, ifyou have 15 or more employees.What is the definition of `disability’, and who is protectedunder the ADA? “A physical or mental impairment that substantiallylimits one or more major life activities, such as seeing, hearing,walking, learning, performing manual tasks. The ADA also protectsfrom discrimination those who have a record of such impairments, areregarded as having such an impairment, or who have a known associationwith a person who has such impairments.”Must I give preference in hiring to individuals with disabilities?No. An employer is free to select the most qualified individual withoutregard to disability. However, if an individual with a disabilitycan perform the essential functions of the job with “reasonableaccommodation,” that person must be considered a valid candidatefor the job.What do I need to know about interviewing a job applicantwith disabilities? “You cannot ask about the disability itself.You can, however, ask about their ability to perform specific jobfunctions.”Can I require a medical examination or questionnaire ofan applicant with disabilities? “You can require this after aconditional job offer has been made. However, the examination or questionnairemust be required of all entering employees in the same job category,not just those who have disabilities. Also, if a disability is foundin the examination, the job offer can only be withdrawn for reasonsrelating to performance of the specific job, and if no reasonableaccommodation could be made to the disability.”At least partly because he has worked as a manager for mostof his 25 years in the quality assurance field, Elliott is keenlyaware of the special contributions people with disabilities bringto the workplace, from a manager’s perspective. “They bring ina high level of dedication and motivation that is often an inspirationto other employees. It helps create a stronger, more positive corporateculture,” he says.”In addition,” says Elliott, “especially in this timeof low unemployment, the disabled are a huge pool of skilled, knowledgeablepeople eager to work and contribute. There’s every reason for employersto seek them out.”– Judith MorganTop Of PageHiring Off WelfareEverybody’s hiring,” says Betsy Shimberg,the policy analyst at Mercer Street Friends. “Drive up Route 1and you can see the jobs are there. But can someone just off welfarekeep that job, and can they advance at it?”Her organization and several dozen others have been chosen to be oneof five groups statewide to do a welfare-to-work demonstration projectthat could help both employers and the prospective employees. Thecollaborating agencies (the Trenton 21st Century Cities CommunityPartnership Demonstration Collaborative) will try to help 300 individualsget a job, keep it, and advance in the job.”We are going to be working like a revved up hands-on employmentagency, and as partners we will be working together as a team,”says Shimberg, a 1990 graduate of Wellesley who came to the Trenton-basedagency last year.If, as an employer, you have had difficulty retaining WorkFirst NewJersey employees, monies from this grant would be available to provideyour new hire with more intensive services. The services could rangefrom better assessment (to fit the right person to the right job)to job coaching (to communicate to the new hire exactly what he orshe needs to do) to “barrier resolution.” Barrier resolutionis the bureaucratic way of referring to transportation problems, daycare difficulties, substance or alcohol abuse, homelessness, or domesticviolence.Cooperation among three dozen agencies is not easy, and it was hashedout last year as part of a $30,000 planning grant. Anticipating potentialturf wars (those who do social service work can be as competitiveas those who make widgets), the planners decided to make the fundingprocess as open as possible. “They had to show in the planninggrant that these agencies would not be into turf wars.”The result: Any agency that wants to provide any service must submita bid, a request for proposal or RFP, and the RFP decisions will bemade by an executive director (yet to be named) plus some agency partnerswho did not bid on that RFP. This process increases the paperworkbut decreases unproductive rivalry.Current collaborating members range from private firms such as Caliper,to social service agencies such as HomeFront and the YWCA of Trenton,to government agencies, such as the Mercer and Princeton chambers.Opportunity: Even if your for-profit or non-profit human resourcesorganization did not participate in the planning for this effort,you will still be able to bid on contracts for support services.Are you a counselor? Bid on the job coaching opportunity. “Manyof these people need constant feedback, and the employer can’t doit. Intensive case management is necessary,” says Shimberg.Do you work for an employment agency? You could bid on assessment.”We have worked very hard to get people involved with employmentservices into the collaboration. People will be performing servicesbased on the RFP process which is as open as we can possibly makeit,” she says.A director for the two-year project has not been appointed. For informationcall Reginald Dickerson, chair of the demonstration project,at 609-989-1925.Top Of PageFerreting out FraudEmbezzlers are at work. Employees are diverting andstealing assets from their employers. Occupational fraud and abusein the United States amounts to $500 billion, says Robert J. DiPasqualeof Gikow Bierman and Talesnick in Roseland. “Employers must takean active role in instituting good business ethics and good complianceprograms for their employees,” he says. “The business, culture,and ethical climate starts at the top.”DiPasquale, a former chairman of the national and state associationsof Certified Fraud Examiners, works in the area of occupational fraudand fraud detection, deterrence, and business disputes. He will moderatea New Jersey Institute for Continuing Legal Education seminar on “LocatingHidden Assets” on Saturday, April 24, from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.at the New Jersey Law Center on Ryders Lane off Route 1. The sessionrepeats on Saturday, May 22, at the Cherry Hill Holiday Inn. Cost:$119. For information call 732-214-8500. Also on the panel are FrederickW. Alworth of Gibbons Del Deo; Anthony R. Calscibetta CPAof Kahn Consulting; and John E. Finnerty of Finnerty & LaRocca.The first step in any investigation is to be able to recognize whetheror not assets have been stolen, hidden, or diverted. Then you needto know:How to find assets when someone is attempting to hidethem. Some techniques: using public records, obtaining frequent flyermiles from airlines to track where people have traveled, and tracingtechniques to help family lawyers reveal hidden assets.How people conceal assets accumulated over a lifetime.How to prove the net worth of an individual if there areno records. Private investigators Richard Childs and KittyHailey will go online at the workshop to show what records canbe achieved from various databases.How people form companies that go undetected.DiPasquale tells of a client who could not determine why businessprofits were so low and believed his partner was stealing: “Idid various inquiries and investigative techniques that led me toquestion an insurance expense. I asked to look at all of the insurancebills that were paid, and when I spread them on the table, I noticedthat one invoice was not folded. It was strange that it had not beenput in the mail, so I made an inquiry with the insurance company todetermine if the invoice came from them — and found it was a bogusinvoice.””The partner was forging invoices and paying an insurance broker,who in turn invested in annuities for him.”Another of DiPasquale’s clients was a woman whose husband, a successfuldoctor, claimed he made only $200,000 a year. “The accountantfor the doctor kept on telling how cheap his client was, how he didn’tlike paying his accounting bill, and that the doctor did his own accountingand was really cheap,” says the fraud examiner.”I went through records and wondered why the accountant kept onsaying his client is cheap — but at the same time, why did hepay the accountant the amount of $200,000 over three years if he isso cheap?””When I interviewed the accountant alone, he told me that thedoctor was writing checks to him. He deposited those checks to a bankaccount and used a lot of that money to buy other businesses thatthe doctor was investing in. We then analyzed the books and recordsand found that the income level of the doctor was $400,000. My clientwas very happy — and she got a lot of money.”– Ernie JohnstonTop Of PageEarth Day for ShiseidoAs a small, overpopulated island, Japan needs to takeextra care to preserve its environment for generations to come. Evenmore than in American companies, Japanese firms have an intense concernfor keeping their country’s air pure and its water pristine. Japanhas, therefore, taken the lead in upgrading the international certificationprocess, known as ISO 9000, to add the environmental component. ISO14000 is the environmental management system and ISO 14001 gives actualspecifications on how to comply.Japan leads the world with 1,392 companies certified for ISO 14001,and Britain is second with 950 companies. The United States ranksninth. Just 275 companies in the United States have attained ISO 14001,and only a dozen companies in New Jersey, ranging from electronicsto pharmaceutical to cosmetics firms, are so certified.”By becoming certified for ISO 14001 you are validating your environmentalmanagement system,” says Dan Franzen, facilities managerof the new Shiseido America cosmetics manufacturing plant on Princeton-HightstownRoad. “It is an international recognition that you have done everythingyou can to manage yourself in the most environmentally friendly fashion.We know of no other company registered for this certification in MercerCounty.”Shiseido highlights its certification efforts as part of an EarthDay celebration, and it encourages other corporations to upgrade theirenvironmental standards. On Earth Day, Thursday, April 22, it willstage contests designed to raise employee awareness and give rewardsfor environmental suggestions. John Mulligan, representing CliftonZozzaro (one of Shiseido’s recycling contractors, along with BFI)will speak to the workers. Call Franzen at 609-371-3048 for information.Last April Shiseido opened its new cosmetics filling and packagingfacility in East Windsor; the manufacturing is done in Shiseido’sother facility in Oakland (in Bergen County) and at Davlyn Industries,Shiseido’s affiliate based at 7 Fitzgerald Avenue in Cranbury. At10 filling lines, the raw product (creams, lotions, emulsions, fragrances,and free samples) is bottled, capped, tested, and packaged beforebeing shipped. At this facility there is also an analytical lab, askin care lab, a makeup lab, a microbiology lab with seven incubators,and a room where product stability is tested.On its 86 acre-site Shiseido has upgraded the former 162,000-footCarter Wallace plant and has 75 full-time employees and from 50 to100 temporary line assemblers. From 2000 to 2005 there may be somenew construction — up to 800,000 square feet is allowed.Founded as a western style pharmacy in 1872, Shiseido has a name thatmeans “praise the virtues of the earth, which nurtures new lifeand brings forth new values.” It issued its global “eco-policy”in 1992. “It embodies our desire as a corporation to participatein the protection of the global environment,” says Franzen, whomajored in business management at Thiel College in Pennsylvania, Classof 1983. As a recreational scuba diver has seen the extent of pollutionin the Atlantic.”The ISO 14001 certification enables you to demonstrate that youhave done an environmental management system,” says Franzen. “Itencourages you to conserve and monitor your usage of natural resources.”Franzen notes that in East Windsor “60 percent of what you throwaway must be recycled.” He points out that in his office, onetrash can is blue, for office paper, and the other is grey, for garbage.”We would like to see the blue can grow bigger and the grey growsmaller.”Shiseido uses an innovative process for it 175,000 square-foot plantin Kakegawa, Japan. It turns its sludge into solid fertilizer andliquid effluent. Then the effluent is cleaned and sent back into thefactory’s pipes to be used in the sanitary system (separate from thepotable water).”The ISO 14001 certification is not an end in itself. Once a companyreceives certification, the system must be maintained and improvedwhere possible,” says Franzen. “Many companies already haveenvironmental standards, but the certification is a measure –an objective validation — of your performance.”Previous StoryCorrections or additions?This page is published by PrincetonInfo.com— the web site for U.S. 1 Newspaper in Princeton, New Jersey.
