HRACI - Consultant's Forum

Accounting Practices for Consultants & Considering the Value of Your Business

Speaker: Jeffrey McKee, CPA, CVA, McKee & Gunderson, P.C., Certified Public Accounts

When: Thursday, October 4
7:30 a.m. – 9:00 a.m.

Where: Indiana Tech
3500 DePauw Boulevard, Pyramid 3010
Indianapolis, IN 46268

No Charge to HRACI Members

Click here to register

Jeffrey McKee, CPA, CVA will highlight the taxation of consulting businesses – organizational structure, revenue and expenses, record keeping required, personnel issues, marketing and profitability, retirement savings and valuation – how to create value to sell. Jeffrey will also be answering any questions from attendees.

Jeffrey McKee is a Certified Public Accountant and Certified Valuation Analyst. He is the currently the owner of McKee & Gunderson, P.C., Certified Public Accounts. He holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Accounting from Indiana University and has been working with small businesses and individuals since 1981. Jeffrey is a member of the National Association of Certified Valuation Analysts, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants and the Indiana Certified Public Accountant Society.

Click here to register

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Join us for an exciting Diversity Networking Event where there will be free drinks, free hors d’oeuvres, live music and a free tour of the new Roman Art Exhibit from the Louvre in Paris, France. Guided tours of the galleries will be provided at no charge. Bring a friend for $15 (any non- HRACI member).

Date: Friday, October 12, 2007
Time: 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
Location: The Indianapolis Museum of Art
What to do:
Food, drinks, galleries, and the Roman Art exhibit, from the Louvre in Paris.

To Register &/or for more information:
http://www.hraci.org/HRACImeetings.htm
http://www.imamuseum.org/


Sponsored by David Wilson Associates, www.dwaonline.com.

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43rd Annual Human Resource Conference Luncheon - Joint Program with the Indiana Chamber of Commerce

Keynote speaker: Bill Karlson, Bringing Infectious Passion into the Workplace

Ogletree Deakins/HR Dimensions Human Resource Professional of the Year Aware Indiana INTERNnet IMPACT Awards

Luncheon only: 11:30 am – 1:15 pm
or attend the entire conference October 17-18!

While enjoying your meal at the Human Resources Association of Central Indiana and the Indiana Chamber HR Luncheon, you will get the bonus of learning innovative plays that will help you up the ante on your current HR practices.

The highlight: featured speaker Bill Karlson presents his game plan of bringing “Infectious Passion” into your organization. Prizes are also in store. Someone will hit the jackpot when the winner of the Ogletree Deakins/HR Dimensions Human Resources Professional of the Year Award is announced. This luncheon is certain to provide quite the payoff, so make sure you get a seat at the table!

For more information and to register, go to URL: www.hraci.org

This program has been approved for recertification credit hours toward PHR, SPHR and GPHR recertification through the Human Resource Certification Institute (HRCI). For more information about certification or recertification, please visit the HRCI homepage at www.hrci.org

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• The Volunteer Recognition Program
• Connecting and contacting all members interested in becoming a volunteer
• Re-designing the HRACI website in order to better communicate our volunteer opportunities.

Submitted by Dee Dee Deffez
Healthcare: The State of the Union presented by Mike Campbell

Healthcare is important to everyone and Mike made it very clear the cost and projection that healthcare is going.

The top seven health industry trends mentioned are:
1. The States Lead
2. Transparency
3. The Federal Challenge to Technology
4. Consumer Centric Care (CDHP)
5. Rx Pricing
6. Obesity and Sedentary Lifestyle
7. Small Health Care Services with a Big impact

Some of the major drives of health care cost were mentioned as: the uninsured, catastrophic claims (only 4% of claims are catastrophic but are 50% of the total amount of all the claims), technology, quality of care, medical and insurance fraud, the aging population (baby boomers), illegal immigrants, and lifestyle.

Two questions we not only as the employers but as employees need to ask:
1. When I must access care, how do I know I should and how do I do it cost effectively, and efficiently and with the best possible outcomes?
2. How do I keep from needing to access care?
The majority of those who go to the emergency room really don’t need to go to the emergency room.

Mike mentioned four determinates of health (why we need healthcare); access to care, genetics, environment and behavior is 50% of the reason why we need to go to the doctor. Some key drivers of the health status in the United States were mentioned. Obesity 66% of the population is obese or overweight, 28% are inactive, 23% smokers, 36% have high stress and 22% are 55 years and older. The smoking rate has gone done significantly since the 1950’s when the rate was at 50% of the US population were smokers. With that information the big four factors affecting health are 1. Tobacco use, 2. Sedentary Lifestyle, 3. Diet and Nutrition and 4. Stress.

So what is the next step? Wellness Programs are starting up all over and some studies of worksite promotion programs are showing some improvement in sick leave and absenteeism, reduction in health cost and reduction in workers comp and disability claims. Several companies have experienced significant savings by introducing wellness programs to their employees. Mike mentioned two types of wellness programs; Non-health factor related and health factor related. Examples of non-health related are incentives to complete health risk assessment or participate in health fair, waiver for well baby visits and reimbursement for health club membership. Examples of health related; cholesterol screening and body mass index screenings.

Some things to remember when starting up a wellness program and that is planning, focus on the activity not just the outcome, and that wellness is a marathon not a sprint, it is going to take time to adjust the company and employees to the program.

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OFCCP Compliance with the Jobs for Veteran’s Act

As many of you may already know, the OFCCP has recently published their revised ruling for the Jobs for Veteran’s Act. Many organizations that had been previously required to comply with this act chose to post their open positions on America’s Job Bank. In June 2007, America’s Job Bank was dissolved, and the law does not define a replacement. Furthermore, the law does not clearly suggest that there is only one method to remain compliant. The law is much more flexible in providing options, but not solutions, for contractors to remain compliant with their posting obligations moving forward.

There are actually two sets of laws that have different provisions, but the ruling itself identifies that the majority of contractors will be covered by part 60-300, which is the focus herein for purposes of discussion. These rules took effect on September 8th, 2007.

1. The Jobs for Veteran’s Act continues to require that all contractors list their openings with the appropriate “employment service delivery system”. They provide guidance that this can be defined to include: state job banks and local employment offices where the opening occurs.
2. The law further clarifies that multiple methods of submission are acceptable: fax, email, other electronic postings, and regular printed mail.
3. Furthermore, clarification is provided that specifies that contractors may use third parties to assist with the transmission of the job postings to the appropriate system.
4. The FAQ’s also help address additional questions such as documentation required and amount of information that must be sent to the local office. The OFCCP defines that documentation must be retained to demonstrate contractor’s efforts to comply. These records can include copies of emails, electronic transmissions, faxes, and letters. The type of posting information is defined as information deemed sufficient for the service delivery system to carry out its responsibilities under VEVRAA. At a minimum, the information sent must include a link to the employer’s website that could store the details about the position.

One important concern that has arisen from corporate compliance officers is whether or not their compliance solution is not only making them compliant, but also a best practice supporting the spirit of the law. The spirit of the law is to make open positions visible to assist veterans in learning about employment opportunities. Some available solutions ensure the company is compliant, but in a way where it is very difficult to ensure that veteran’s have access to the positions. It is important that due diligence is conducted to ensure that not only is the chosen solution making you compliant, but is helping you secure candidates and hires by being accessible to the public.

Mike Jenkins is a Manager of Business Solutions with First Advantage Recruiting Solutions in Indianapolis www.fadvrecruiting.com . He specializes in partnering with companies to maximize their ROI from web-based talent acquisition strategies. He can be reached at mike.jenkins@fadv.com .

Invite them as your “Special Guest” to join us at our HRACI November Luncheon.

We are excited to have Bernard Coleman as our Luncheon speaker in November. Bernard currently serves as the Member Advocacy Specialist at the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM). In that capacity, he is responsible for developing and implementing SHRM’s integrated member advocacy program known as HRVoice. Bernard also serves as a vital information resource to the Society’s volunteer leaders, members, staff and others stakeholders, facilitating the Society’s member advocacy program.

Bernard will be sharing with us how to better interact with our elected officials, and what better way to show our State Legislators how much we appreciate their service to our state than by having them as our guest?

If you would like to invite your State Legislator to the luncheon and have no idea how to do that, please contact the Director of Legislative Affairs, Dennis Stull or any of the Legislative Committee Members for details.

I deal with employee relations multiple times a day, five days (and even sometimes seven days) a week. With an organization that has over 6,000 employees, dealing with an employee’s personal and professional needs can be trying. Although I love my job and responsibility to the employees of our organization, it’s a BIG job!

So, what does the “Legislative World” have to do with my “BIG” job? EVERYTHING! In order for me to be effective in what I do and to do what I can to keep our organization out of legal “hot water,” in conjunction with recognizing the personal and professional needs of our employees, it is important to stay on top of what is happening in the Federal, State and local governments!

In the course of my job, I attended the 2007 HR Employment Law & Legislative Conference in Washington, DC. Already uncomfortable with my degree of knowledge, I began talking with Dennis Stull at the Conference, only to discover he is the Chairperson of the Legislative Committee!! He began to tell me about the goals of the committee and what they hope to achieve this year. As I talked with Dennis, I finally admitted saying, “Dennis, I don’t know a lot about the legislative piece and I think there are a lot of people out there like me. We are hesitant to “dig in” to the Legislative World because we just don’t know how to.” This conversation motivated me to become more involved and to join the Legislative Committee.

I have always been interested in the Legislative World…but scared to tackle it. As I began talking with the Committee members, I realized it’s not as scary as you may think. You begin to understand how to approach your legislators, ie, speak the language. You begin to understand how to make changes in law you don’t agree with or believe will cause employers undue hardship. You begin to understand how important it is to stay on top of legislative issues. You begin to understand that YOU can make a difference!

As someone who didn’t understand and who would be considered to know “not much” about the Legislative World, take it from me…join the Legislative Committee, attend the November HRACI luncheon or find a way to impact the Legislative World on your own to make a difference. Doing so will increase your value as an employee and help keep your organization out of legal “hot water. It is also a networking avenue. I promise; it’s worth it!

Amy Housel, PHR.
HR Manager

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HRACI Needs YOU...To Get in The Game!

Do you remember what it was like the first time you attended our monthly luncheon and saw a room full of people but didn’t know anyone? It can be a little intimidating to say the least! Now YOU can make a difference for a new member joining HRACI or coming to their first event. If you enjoy meeting new people, and are enthusiastic about our wonderful organization, then becoming an HRACI Ambassador could be the perfect volunteer opportunity for you!

This new Ambassador program is designed for busy HR professionals or associate members. As an Ambassador, you will introduce HRACI to a new member via the phone, meeting before the luncheon, or going for a quick cup of coffee during the week. Your primary role is to share your HRACI experience, answer questions, and help the new member feel welcomed into our organization. This volunteer opportunity does not require a set time for commitment, instead, you have the flexibility to be an Ambassador as often as your schedule allows.

For more information contact Connie Whisner at connie.whisner@elwoodstaffing.com or Cat Bates at cbates@cort1.com. Additional information regarding this exciting new program can be found by clicking here .

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Bill Coit, Dean, DeVry University/Indianapolis

As a member of HRACI, you are aware that human resource professionals are recognized as essential business partners who create programs and activities that impact business and contribute to its success.

While HR generalists typically perform a variety of functions and may be in demand by small companies, larger organizations usually look to hire HR specialists, those with technical knowledge and skills in specific areas of human resource management. A master's degree is highly recommended for those seeking general and senior management positions in the field. Such positions include: director of human resources; employment, recruiting and placement manager; training and development expert; compensation and benefits administrator; employee and labor relations specialist; health, safety and security manager; and human resource information systems specialist.

Students enrolled in Keller Graduate School of Management's master's degree program in Human Resource Management (MHRM) learn the current best practices that increase their marketability and open new career opportunities in this exciting field.

Flexible scheduling
Keller's flexible graduate curriculum allows our students to further their education and build their skills on either a full-time or part-time basis. To make an education work with their schedule, our students personalize their course schedules by selecting from evening or weekend classes as well as online options.

Learn from the experts
Our instructors are accomplished professionals who focus on teaching students to apply human resource competencies to real-world problems and opportunities. They lead students to a deeper understanding of human resource planning, strategic staffing, training and development, compensation, benefits and employment law. Students learn to support company personnel during periods of change. An ability to analyze and meet the needs of an organization helps our students to find their path to success among the many career opportunities open to human resource managers.

To learn more about the master of human resource management degree program at our Indianapolis location, visit us on the Web www.devry.edu/keller/ or call us at 317/581-8854.

Carl Wert
Kathy Quinn
Jacqueline Hubbard
Julie Conrad
Terry Walker
Debbie Glidden
Catherine Howland
Brian Huxford
Crystal Kottlowski
Scott Robinson

Sarah Ellis
Ja Marlon King
Lorna Griffin
Jodi Newell
Brian Phillips
Lara Clark
Cindy Templin
Jennifer Seffrin
Kenneth McCoy