Fundamentals of Human Resources Management: Retention, Separation, Discipline

Introduction 

Employee turnover is one of the most costly aspects of any company. Also known as employee turnover rate, employee turnover refers to the measurement of the number of employees that leave an entity during a specific period ( Harman et al., 2007; Morrell et al., 2004; ). Often, employee turnover is calculated annually. These employees, on leaving the organization, have to be replaced so as not to compromise operations of the organization. Measurement of employee turnover helps employers in establishing its drivers and estimating the cost of hiring again. The latter is vital for budgetary purposes. Generally, turnover is believed to have taken place once an employment relationship comes to an end. However, employee turnover may be involuntary or voluntary ( Morrell et al., 2004; McElroy et al., 2001 ). Involuntary turnover includes employee termination, discharge, or firing, which may be occasioned by various reasons. Notable causes of involuntary turnover include violation of certain workplace policies, absenteeism, and poor job performance ( Iqbal, 2010 ). Layoffs, though handled differently, also constitute involuntary turnover. Voluntary turnover, on the other hand, entails scenarios in which an employee leaves an organization out of his or her own volition. Thus, this form of turnover can be conceptualized as a voluntary termination. Various reasons are given by employees for quitting. Some of these include job offers in other organizations, relocation, or personal reasons. 

When employees leave, they carry all the formal and informal knowledge gained with them, which is quite expensive for any entity. Employee turnover can severely affect a company's bottom line ( Ton & Huckman , 2008 ). While an organization can put measures in place to minimize turnover, it cannot prevent employees from leaving. Nevertheless, any responsible human resources (HR) department has to purpose to reduce the loss of valuable employees and the resultant disruption to company operations. Employers have to pay increased attention to the work environment and take care of the most crucial employee needs (Cran 2012; Ton & Huckman , 2008 ). Discipline, retention, and separation are some of the strategies that a company can use to retain its employees. This paper is aimed at investigating the discipline, retention, and separation processes at Google. 

Google: Background Information 

Since its establishment in 1998, Google is not only a pioneer but also the leading search engine, and internet service provider in the world. It also provides hardware, software, online advertising, and cloud computing, among other internet-based services. The company is amongst the best employers in the world ( Matsangou , 2015; Antonova, 2013 ). Google’s achievements have been made possible by the presence of a strong and progressive human resource management (HRM) arm. Google’s HRM division boasts numerous recruitment and retention strategies that have made the company a favorite employer amongst both youthful and experienced Information Technology (IT) professionals globally. 

Google is amongst the world’s best and most famous recruiters ( Matsangou , 2015). The growth of the company is anchored on its ability to leverage and attract a global talent of highly skilled technologists and business savvy individuals from around the globe. The company’s recruitment and HRM arms are amongst the best in the industry. In particular, the company has been successful in offering a conducive environment for its employees while ensuring that a healthy work-life balance is maintained. Owing to this, Google ranks high amongst the best global employers ( Matsangou , 2015; Antonova, 2013 ) . 

Strategies Used to Retain High-Performing Employees 

Google boasts numerous strategies for retaining its workforce. These include such benefits as flexible working hours, casual office wear, making the work environment dog-friendly, and availing special childcare facilities for newly born babies and their mothers ( Mazur & Mazur-Małek , 2017; Kuntze & Matulich , 2010 ). The company also provides free massage, employee stock options, free gym, and free food, snacks, and drinks throughout the day among other pacts. To increase attractiveness, the company allows employees to direct 20% of their time working on personal projects ( Kuntze & Matulich , 2010) . Moreover, the importance of the company’s compensation package cannot be overstated in retaining the company’s highly talented workforce cannot be overstated. In particular, Google’s compensation package is not only competitive but also highly competitive. This is in the form of high wages, salaries, and other benefits. 

The design of Google’s office space is geared towards promoting creativity and fun ( Krapivin , 2018; Matsangou , 2015; Kuntze & Matulich , 2010 ). Such an environment, besides attracting and retaining innovative and creative workers, aids in boosting productivity. The Google campus boasts such attributes as arcades, climbing walls, bowling lanes, and a volleyball court. Also, the company organizes regular gaming and sports tournaments to allow employees to let off steam and bond. Hammocks and napping pods are offered to allow employees to rest, which boosts cognition levels while reducing stress. Google provides doctors throughout the day to offer comprehensive medical care, including optical and dental care ( Kuntze & Matulich , 2010 ). Other services offered include alternative medicine as well as fertility treatment. To promote mobility within campus, bicycles and electric are provided for use within the campus. Leadership skills are highly desired at Google. Thus, the HRM division has capitalized on mentorship and coaching as a means of developing and retaining individuals that are deemed to have leadership potential. A mentor is assigned to each employee to facilitate leadership development ( Matsangou , 2015 ). Google’s efforts to promote learning further aids in employee retention. 

Policies for Handling Voluntary and Forced Separation 

Given Google's ranking as one of the best workplaces, separation, whether forced or voluntary, is not a key challenge. For instance, to recruit for a new position, the company makes use of trainees, transfers, and promotions. It is due to such tactics that Google’s employee turnover is relatively low. In case of a voluntary separation in which an employee resigns, a two-week written notice has to be written. This gives the management enough time to transfer the leaving candidate’s responsibilities to other employees before hiring and training of the next candidate ( Harman et al., 2007). On the last day at Google, an employee is expected to complete an exit interview ( Allison, 2012) . This interview helps the HR division to obtain the exiting employee’s opinion on the work environment. This interview, though confidential, is not anonymous. Through the interview, employees provide such information as their experiences with co-workers and supervisors. They also offer their opinions on the company’s leadership and working conditions. While the interview is not anonymous, the information obtained is confidential because the detail obtained are not made public but used to improve the company’s working conditions. 

An employee can also be dismissed involuntarily. This happens especially due to poor performance or failure to meet targets at work or due to gross conduct ( Yakushev , 2015; Allison, 2012 ). In this case, the employee is given a termination notice of one month. If termination takes place before the one-month notice period is over, the employee is formally employed and thus entitled to a salary ( Yakushev , 2015). A salary is received even if one is not working. On the last day of work and after completing the exit interview, the employee is required to hand over their badge, hardware, Google payroll, and credit card, as well as any other company property that they may be holding. Later, the company writes a reference letter for the employee. 

Outplacement Counseling and Employee Assistance Programs Offered 

Outplacement services help former employees get a new job the soonest once they cease working for the company ( Martin & Lekan , 2008; Arslan, 2005 ). According to Google, outplacement assists former employees to find new employment through a specialist service or as a benefit offered directly by the company. By doing this, the company gives loyal employees a chance to get a footing in the competitive job market. This takes place against a backdrop of changing approaches to recruitment. Ultimately, outplacement helps transitioning employees to obtain new jobs. Outplacement helps employees overcome the grief and shock of losing their jobs so that they begin to search for a job proactively. This is aided by experienced career coaches. 

Various employee assistance programs are offered a Google. These include mental wellness and health services, education, and prevention services, among others ( Krapivin , 2018; Mazur & Mazur-Małek , 2017 ). With regard to mental health and wellness, Google provides a dedicated physician and staff wellness program; assessments for depression, burnout, and risk of suicide and substance abuse; confidential counseling; stress management seminars; and peer coaching and mentoring. In the context of education and prevention, Google provides retreats, workshops, and speakers targeted at addressing different wellness topics; a lending library; and a monthly newsletter. Additional assistive services include healthy dining options, exercise facilities, mindfulness and meditation classes, yoga, massage, confidential discussion groups, and stress reduction room. Based on the above, Google has prioritized staff wellness. By keeping staff healthy and fulfilled in their work, the company ensures that there is increased job retention, enhanced work morale, and decreased malpractice ( Krapivin , 2018 ). These factors result in increased gains for the company. 

Gaps in the Company's Separation Policies and their Elimination 

Separation policies are aimed at ensuring that transition for both a company and its employees is seamless once the former leaves ( Katou & Budhwar , 2010; Frederiksen , 2008 ) . They also ensure that there is consistency in how the end of employment relationships are handled. This helps to mitigate any risk that a company may have as a result of claims of unfair employment treatment following layoffs, employee discharges, or resignations. Separation, in this context, refers to a scenario where an employee's relationship with his or her company has come to an end. It thus covers such aspects as layoffs, retirement, involuntary terminations, and voluntary resignations. The separation process entails the steps taken in effecting an employee’s departure following retirement and voluntary resignation ( Frederiksen, 2008 ). Though this process is elaborate, it boasts one critical gap in the fact that up to 49.9% of the workers are vendors, contractors, or temporary employees (Lucas, 2018). This implies that Google is not responsible for these employees and thus, does not have total control of the separation process. 

Googles vendors, contractors, or temporary employees, though part of the day-to-day company workforce, are treated differently compared to permanent employees. This is a case of co-employment in which a relationship exists between two or more employers (Lucas, 2018). Each of the employers has potential or actual legal duties and rights pertaining to one employee. If Google is found to be a joint employer of a vendor, contractor, or temporary employee by a court, the company could be found liable for acts and omissions, and employee obligations. This could result in employment-related legal claims (Lucas, 2018). Since these employees are placed at Google by a separate entity, Google does not pay them and is also not responsible for them. Likewise, the company is likely to experience challenges with regard to fair treatment, equal pay, and labor organizing. Google’s role in separation processes targeted at these groups of employees is compromised. Ultimately, eliminating this gap would help reduce the company’s vulnerability to litigation related to acts and omissions and employee obligations. 

Google’s Formal Discipline Policies 

Discipline policies in most organizations are aimed at giving employees an opportunity to rectify any objectionable behaviors and improve their performance ( Lavenant, 2010 ; Franklin & Pagan , 2006 ). These policies entail coaching, training, and counseling, as well as other consequential actions. Ultimately, using the policies, any negative behaviors are duly corrected, and where this is not possible, an employee is eventually terminated ( Lavenant, 2010 ) . Often, discipline policies follow the progressive discipline format. This disciplinary approach offer occasions for establishing vital documentation and may also include an employee appeals process. According to HR Specialist (2011), for the success of a company, managers should strive to obtain employee feedback continuously. Likewise, managers should regularly document employee behavior, discipline, and performance. While this documentation may be informal, the need for it to be strong cannot be overstated. 

Strong documentation is anchored on three core principles, namely immediacy, believability and accuracy, and lastly, agreement (HR Specialist, 2011). With regard to immediacy, notes should be taken immediately, an incident takes place. This helps in ensuring that a manager's motive is not questioned. Detailed observations also aid in increasing a story's authenticity. Thus, increased specificity of documentation enhances a story's credibility. Lastly, if all the parties involved in an incident agree on what transpired, it makes it harder for any party to change his or her position later. Thus, all employees involved in an incident have to take part in its documentation process. 

Google's discipline processes differ from one contractor to another. Likewise, they are likely to differ from one country of operation to another based on the local employment laws. Nevertheless, the policies entail the execution of performance assessments on a regular basis by supervisors. During such assessments, any incidence of low performance is flagged off. Once an underperformer is identified, he or she may be given time to rectify the issue. However, if the situation does not change, then the HRM division is forced to terminate the individual’s employment. Discipline issues at Google are also governed by the Code of Conduct. This covers such aspects as service to others, support for each other, avoiding conflicts of interest, preserving confidentiality, protecting Google's assets, ensuring financial responsibility and integrity, and obeying the law (Alphabet, 2018). Any violation of this code is enforceable by the Ethics and Compliance division. 

Alternative Dispute Resolution Processes 

Alternative dispute resolution processes have an immense impact on the operations and the bottom line of companies ( Bernardin , 2011). A critical alternative dispute resolution process for Google is that the company prefers negotiation as opposed to litigation. Thus, negotiation as emerged as an essential dispute resolution strategy for Google (Shonk, 2019). For instance, the company averted formal charges by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) in 2014 by accepting to make changes to its search practices. A similar deal was reached with European Commission regulators in which case Google agreed to reserve space for its competitors in European search pages so that they also would provide their own search results. However, the competitors' offerings were to be shaded and highlighted as ‘alternatives.' In a similar three-year investigation in Europe, the company chose to work closely with regulators, ultimately offering sweetened deals in a bid to resolve the matter out of court. Such deals have allowed Google to avoid official probes and resultant fines. The company has been keen on avoiding court battles and instead embracing negotiation. 

Conclusion 

Undoubtedly, employee turnover is one of the most costly aspects of any company. Employee turnover may be involuntary or voluntary. Once employees leave, they carry with them all the formal and informal knowledge gained, which is quite expensive for any entity. Thus, employee turnover can severely affect a company's bottom line. Google has capitalized on discipline, retention, and separation processes to reduce its employee turnover. The company uses numerous strategies to retain its workforce. These include flexible working hours, casual office wear, making the work environment dog-friendly, availing special childcare facilities for newly born babies and their mothers, free massage, employee stock options, free gym, and free food, snacks and drinks throughout the day among other pacts. These benefits have helped the company to low its employee turnover, ultimately emerging amongst the best employers. The company also boasts favorable v oluntary and f orced s eparation policies. Further, Google boasts outplacement services to help former Google employees get new jobs as well as such employee assistive programs as mental wellness and health services, education, and prevention services, among others. A notable gap in its s eparation p olicies is the presence of vendors, contractors, and temporary employees in the workforce. These employees make it difficult for the company to enforce the separation policies. Apart from regular assessments and documentation of feedback, discipline issues at Google are also governed by a Code of Conduct whose enforcement lies in the hands of the Ethics and Compliance division. Lastly, in a bid to minimize court fines and avoid litigation, Google uses negotiation as an alternative dispute resolution process. 

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