Sprout Goes Mobile

We are always finding ways to make the Sprout experience better: every day, everyone at HQ is working hard to make Sprout Solutions develop and grow towards our goal, which is to improve business in the Philippines.

What is Sprout Mobile?

This year, we released Sprout Mobile— designed for employees that are on-the-go.

With the app, employees can log in or out from wherever they are. With the geo-tagging feature in place, managers are able to track where each employee checks-in and out.

 

Users are also able to resolve attendance discrepancies, search contact information, call and message, and view payslips all in the app. It’s Sprout HR at the palm of your hand.

 

Building the App

If you just look at the numbers in the Philippines, smartphone penetration is growing exponentially, and any software or tech company that’s not moving towards mobile first is already behind the power curve.

So the Sprout Mobile was always in the line-up for us, we were just waiting for the chance to execute it. 

It was never a question of whether or not we would do it, but rather— when. Then last year, we started seeing more mobile usage from employees that are using Sprout.

When we gained bandwidth from our engineering side, we pulled the trigger and began developing the mobile app. 

Future Plans

The mobile landscape is exciting because it provides unique experiences for users: it is personal and interactive. This provides a lot of room for development for Sprout Mobile and without going into too much detail: we definitely plan to leverage these in the future.

While we are so excited about what Sprout Mobile will grow into, it has a long product roadmap. We can’t wait to see employees be able to do so much on their mobiles in relation to our products!

 

The post Sprout Goes Mobile appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/sprout-goes-mobile/

A Quick Guide to 13th Month Pay [UPDATED FOR 2018]

What is 13th month pay?

The 13th month pay is a mandatory benefit provided to employees pursuant to Presidential Decree No. 851, which requires employers to grant 13th month pay to all its rank and file employees.

Who is supposed to receive 13th month pay?

All employers in the private sector are required to give 13th month pay to rank-and-file employees who have worked for at least one month during the calendar year, regardless of resignation or termination.

The following is a list of employers who are not required to give 13th month pay under PD 851:

• Government
• Employers already giving their employees 13th month pay or its equivalent
• Employers of household helpers and persons in the personal service of another
• Employers of those who are paid on commission, boundary, or task basis, and those who are paid a fixed amount for specific work

13th month pay should be given on or before December 24. Alternatively, it can be given in two batches: one half before the school year starts, and the remaining half before December 24.

What happens when employers don’t comply?

As proof of having handed out 13th month pay, employers have to submit compliance reports to DOLE on or before January 15 of the succeeding year.

Employees who don’t receive their rightful 13th month pay can file a formal complaint and even sue in court.

How do you compute it?

To calculate 13th month pay, get your basic salary earned for the entire calendar year and divide it by twelve.

For example, if your total basic salary earned is P50,000:

P50,000 / 12 = P4166.67

If you don’t know your total basic salary, you can come up with an approximation by taking your basic salary per month, multiply by how many months you’ve been working in the company, and divide by 12. So if your basic salary is P10,000 per month and you’ve been in the company for 3 months:

P10,000 * 3 months / 12 =  P2500

Getting the correct amount can be a source of confusion, mostly because people aren’t sure about what basic salary consists of. According to PD 851, basic salary consists of “all remunerations or earnings paid by an employer for services rendered.” However, it doesn’t include:

• Cost-of-living allowance
• Profit-sharing payments
• Cash equivalent of unused leave and vacation credits
• Overtime pay
• Premium pay
• Night shift differential
• Holiday pay
• Other allowances and monetary benefits that aren’t considered part of the basic salary

This graphic is based on the National Wage and Productivity Commission gives an example of how to compute for basic salary:

Based on the graphic, leaves without pay, undertime, and tardiness have a negative effect on your basic salary (and thus your 13th month pay); maternity leave benefits are also not included.

On the bright side, taxes are not deducted from 13th month pay, unless it goes past P90,000.  

Isn’t this the same as Christmas bonus?

Nope—13th month pay is mandatory, but employers can choose whether to give Christmas bonus or not. Additionally, Christmas bonus can be handed out anytime—there’s no strict deadline. It’s possible for (lucky) employees to get both 13th month pay and Christmas bonus.

If you want to learn more about our HR and Payroll Services, visit our website.

The post A Quick Guide to 13th Month Pay [UPDATED FOR 2018] appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/quick-guide-13th-month-pay-updated-2018/

Vince — Growing with Sprout (Sprout Rockstar of the Month)

Vince is Sprout Solutions’ Product Manager. In this month’s Sprout Rockstar of the Month, he shares his journey of growth with Sprout as the company expanded through the years.

 

Before Sprout

“Before I found Sprout I was looking for a variety of jobs— I studied computer science major in software engineering but I looked at sales opportunities as well. I was actually set on working abroad, so whatever position I found, I didn’t plan on staying long.

When I applied for Sprout I came in with the intention of leaving pretty soon, but little did I know… I was there for the long haul.”

The Adjustment from Corporate to Startup

“Sprout was the first ever startup I worked for; so even though I had work experience, I felt that I was learning how to work again.

I used to work in medium to large corporations, but in Sprout, I was employee number 20. It was a big adjustment, but definitely for the better: before I moved, I felt that I was an underachiever in that outside of “The 8-5,” I did not give work a second thought.

I would go through the motions of the company, which was usually well-established since they were corporate. At Sprout, there was no solid structure yet— I was a part of the pioneer team so I felt pressured and responsible for contributing and establishing methods to grow the company.
The vibe was different from what I was used to. When there was work to be done, I had to do it. I was the only QA, so there was no one else to pick up any slack.”

Growing with Sprout

“As Sprout expanded, I had to take on more roles and I was usually the first to do them.

I was initially hired as Sprout’s first Quality Assurance Engineer: I tested the two products at the time, Payroll Pie (now Sprout Payroll) and HR Hub (now Sprout HR). The workload was heavy since I was doing all the testing myself: I would come in at 8 am I’d leave at 2 am. But come back 8 am the next day again… Needless to say, I no longer felt like an underachiever.
After a few months, I decided I needed help so I started a QA team, which gave me more bandwidth to oversee other things.

I was assigned more tasks outside of my QA role— I started handling the whole engineering team. After working close to that team, they made me the engineering manager. I handled 11 people, a mix of developers and QAs.

While I was Engineering Manager, a lot of Customer Success Managers would involve me with meetings with clients because I knew the product well (since I tested it) and how to explain some issues to the client.
From that, I got to know the problems that clients would encounter with the software, so I would be in charge of coming up with solutions for them. This is when Alex made me a Product Manager. This role had me coordinate with all departments of Sprout: from HR, marketing to sales and CS.”

Finding Balance

“Being Product Manager has made me busier now more than ever— we used to only have 2 products but now there are six: HR, Payroll, Insight, Recruit, Perks, and Mobile app, 4 of which I’m handling.

But now that there are more people involved and we have several teams working on different aspects, it’s easier to make solutions into product features to further solve the problems of our customers. And now, my work hours are more regular, from 10am-7pm, leaving me extra time for my personal hobbies.”

Outside of Sprout

“Before Sprout, I was a triathlete, skater, hiker, and adrenaline junkie. But now that my priorities are different, I have no time for those activities but I do still like to stay active.

I join the free Muay Thai lessons we have at Sprout and the most recent hobby that I’m enjoying is yoga every morning before work.”

Plans for the Future

“I’m here to stay with Sprout and see it grow towards its goals… and into a unicorn company (a startup valued over $1 billion).

I saw this company grow and I want to keep on looking for problems to solve in the HR industry in the Philippines, then eventually to countries abroad.”

 

The post Vince — Growing with Sprout (Sprout Rockstar of the Month) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/vince-sprout-rockstar-month/

Innovate: The Modern HR Recap

Early last week (and the months before that!) everyone at Sprout HQ was bustling in preparation for our last client event of the year, Innovate: The Modern HR.

We invited clients to come celebrate our partnerships with them in 2018 as well as welcome in all the exciting projects we had in store for 2019.

Here’s a recap of what we did last Thursday at the event:

We invited Flip Ruby, HR Director of Zalora Philippines and Entrego Fulfillment Solutions to talk about his knowledge of the newest in the HR industry. He showed us how mobile usage and the development of technology has affected employee experiences. With that, he encouraged the use of data-driven analytics to aid in the development of employee experiences in their company.

We also had Marie Ampeloquio, Chief People Officer at SPi Global, speak about the importance of future-proofing your employees. The concept of upskilling employees to prepare them for the digital age should start as early as now through tried-and-tested programs that help employees grow in both a professional and personal level.

After, we had Bernice Locsin, Head of Customer Success at Sprout Solutions, lead a fun activity where she asked the audience to write down their best takeaway from our speaker’s talks and post them on a board. This way, the audience is able to share what they learn to each other.

After, our CEO and Cofounder, Patrick Gentry announced the latest developments at Sprout Solutions.

It was an exciting afternoon as we comemorated Sprout’s journey through 2018 and into the next year. We are so grateful to have such wonderful clients to continue to grow with and work towards our goal of improving business in the Philippines!

The post Innovate: The Modern HR Recap appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/innovate-modern-hr-recap/

Arlene (aka Atty. A) — Chasing ALL Your Dreams (Sprout Rockstar of the Month)

Arlene, or more commonly known here at Sprout as “Atty. A”, is Sprout Solutions’ Legal Counsel / HR Consultant. She shares with us how she realized that if you have more than one dream, you are capable of achieving them all. 

The Early Years

“People always think I had it all easy.  They are wrong. Well, yes, one could say I was lucky growing up. I was living a comfortable life and didn’t really have to worry about money and expenses. There was, however, a point around college where my dad got sick and most of our funds had to be used to support him. My mom even asked me to stop going to school just so we could save money— it was one of the most difficult times in my life.

From there, I realized that I needed to help myself for me to continue my studies.  This was the first time I had to take charge of what I really wanted. So the first thing I did was apply for a scholarship grant for university. Next, I applied for a job.  Initially, the odds weren’t in my favor– I received a lot of rejections due to inexperience and minority. After a dozen applications and repeated begging, I was accepted at Malacañang as a Researcher Intern.  This, however, was not enough to shoulder my day-to-day expenses.

 

Because of the struggle to make ends meet, I wrote a letter to the Scholarship Committee to possibly consider granting me a full scholarship. Albeit reluctantly, the committee granted the request on the condition that I maintain an overall grade of 1.5 (89-93%). In my head, this was an almost impossible ordeal given that (1) I was working, (2) I was elected as the Policy Board Officer in our organization, and (3) I was being tapped for competitions left and right by the university.  There were a lot of distractions— I barely had time to sleep.  

By a stroke of luck and determination, I managed to reach that “unreachable” grade. I was also given recognition by the Organization and won in all the competitions. Most importantly, for the first time ever, I was able to make ends meet by myself. The thought that kept me going was that “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” By the time I graduated, employers were the ones knocking on my door and not the other way around.”

Dream Chasing

“After graduating, my main goal was to have a high enough salary that could pay for my fees to go to law school. Logic dictated that I should be in a sales position. As such, I applied to a sales position with no background in sales at a small company. On my first week, I was the top salesperson in our office.

This caught the attention of management and they asked me what I really wanted to do career-wise. They told me I had the “potential” to be great.  I told them I had always wanted to be a lawyer and that this sales job was just to help save up for law school. In line with this, they moved me to HR where I was in charge with all facets including Labor Relations. It is where I learned the tricks of the trade.  I was a self-starter and worked 18 hours per day on the average. Why did I do it? I was hungry to learn everything and was focused on my goal. From an HR Assistant, I became the HR Specialist then HR Manager then HR Director. I became an HR Director at age 24.”

Straying from the Goal

“At the time, with more responsibilities than when I began and the company grew to a thousand, management convinced me to quit law school.  Why would I want to be a lawyer when I could make money and hire my own lawyer? So I was then convinced that making money was more important than becoming a lawyer and took a 5-year “leave of absence” from school to focus on working. During that time, and with management’s blessing, I had become a board director for 3 different companies.

However, despite the financial success, I wasn’t completely happy. Something was missing but I couldn’t figure what it was. After careful thinking, I decided to go back to law school. More challenges arose when my professors and classmates advised me to quit work because they felt that what I was doing was suicide. I almost quit when I developed serious health conditions such as over fatigue and other stress-related illnesses.  

I proved everyone wrong.  I graduated from law school and started reviewing for the bar exam (while still working, of course!)”

Passing the Bar and Entering Different Industries

“Passing the bar was one of the highlights of my life. I cried like there was no tomorrow… No words can describe how I felt that day.

But that kind of joy and relief didn’t ease my fear of not “making it” in the legal profession. Because of that, I considered kindling entrepreneurial spirit and opened up my own salon and spa. Given that I am always stressed, I wanted a business that caters to “Beauty and Wellness.”

Initially, my law classmates were doubting the idea– but I knew this is what I wanted and trudged on. In a span of six months, I got my ROI and decided to put up a second branch. It is still doing well and will be up for franchise early next year.

On top of that, several of my former employers and friends reached out to me to hire me as their lawyer. It was then I decided to form my law office. For 2 years, I was doing litigation and corporate work. However, because of the criminal as well as civil and labor cases I was handling, I made a lot of enemies. It reached a point that I was so scared for my own life because of the death threats I had received.  I was forced to rethink my career.”

Becoming a Sproutling

“This is when I found Sprout, perfect timing I should say! It was like Sprout was the answer to my prayer to have a career where I do not have to think about making a lot of enemies and at the same time doing what I do best.  Sprout hired me as Legal Counsel / HR Consultant and Data Protection Officer. I am so grateful to Sprout because here, I can have work-life balance and integration.

With Sprout, I can be myself.  I fell in love with the culture and with the people.  Sproutlings are its greatest asset and I am now proud to be one!”

A Shift in the Meaning of Happiness

“When Matthew came, that was it!  My world stopped and suddenly, I felt happy. I felt complete.  My definition of success has changed significantly. Before, it was having a lot of money. Then, it was fulfilling my dream. Now, success for me is being able to do all the things I want in life while maintaining a healthy relationship with my family. Success is spending time with Matthew and ensuring that he grows up to be the good boy that he is.”

“From my journey through my career, I learned that you should always dream big. Growing up, I always wanted to be a lot of things: a lawyer, a singer, an entrepreneur etc.  When people get older, it’s natural to narrow down your goals. But you can do all the things you want if you put your mind to it. The only limit is you quitting.”

Success

“Through the years, I also learned that there is no secret to success.  It’s really (1) faith in God, (2) faith in yourself, (3) proper planning, (4) hard work, (5) learning from failure and rejection and (6) pursuing that elusive road to happiness.

Always remember, the ultimate pursuit of success is happiness.   Nothing is worth it if you are not happy.

I hope that this has inspired you even in a small way.”

The post Arlene (aka Atty. A) — Chasing ALL Your Dreams (Sprout Rockstar of the Month) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/arlene-sprout-rockstar-of-the-month/

Sprout Solutions at the Asia CEO Awards 2018

The Sprout Solutions team was hand-picked to be a part of the Circle of Excellence awardees last Tuesday, October 16, 2018, at the Asia CEO Awards, the largest business awards event in the Philippines.

The Awards 

Sprout was in the running of three categories under SME Company of the Year, Technology Company of the Year, and Young Leader of Year (for Sprout’s founder, Patrick Gentry).

The companies chosen to be in the running of the SME Company of the Year were from any Profit-Making Company that achieved important success

The Technology Company of the Year nominees were chosen among a group of corporate organizations, academe and startup companies that focus on Information and Communications Technology, Bio Technology & Material Science, Sciences and Math & Engineering.

The candidates of the Young Leader of the Year award were chosen based on the exemplary work of developing young leaders (35 years old and under) that have accomplished remarkable achievements.

The Asia CEO Awards 

This awards event is the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia. Asia CEO Awards aims to promote the Philippines as a premier business destination to the world. Their purpose is to Southeast Asia’s fastest growing economy and celebrate the people and companies that move the country and region forward in the global economy.

To Sprout, we take these awards as a sign of growth and development closer to our goals. We will continue to use these accomplishments to remind us to keep striving for excellence.

 

 

 

 

The post Sprout Solutions at the Asia CEO Awards 2018 appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/sprout-solutions-asia-ceo-awards-2018/

6 Office Personality Types and How to Manage Them

The Cheerleader

This type of employee is ambitious and full of team spirit.

The Cheerleader will be the first one to join (or even the one that plans) company events and activities and will be the one rounding up the rest of the office to attend. This employee is passionate about their work at the company and encourages camaraderie and community.

How to manage them: The Cheerleader’s own personal goals are most likely aligned with the company’s and thus, won’t be so difficult to manage. They are very active in community-building activities but also is aware that the main goal is to help grow the company. Because of this, the Cheerleader knows how to separate work and play when need be.

The Problem Solver

This personality type is naturally hard-working and will often go above and beyond what they’re told to do— not for brownie points, but rather to satisfy their own appetite to find a solution to a problem.

How to manage them: Problem Solvers are passionate about what they do and will have no problem staying late for work just to finish up their tasks. But— if they feel like their work in your company no longer challenges them or does not fulfill their career needs, they will seek better opportunities elsewhere.  

This is a personality type that your company will benefit from, so you will need to give them ample opportunities to grow both as an individual and an employee for them to stay for a long time.

The Natural Leader

The Natural Leader is always one to take charge of any task or project that is given to them and will take the initiative to collaborate with their fellow coworkers.

People tend to gravitate to them for leadership in group projects and knows how to effectively delegate tasks to get things done.

How to manage them: Similar to Problem Solvers, they are also enthusiastic about their jobs but need opportunities to further develop their career in your company. If they do not feel like they are improving or constantly learning, they will have no problem looking for other, more fulfilling job opportunities.

The Ninja

The Ninja is the type of employee that is the last to arrive in the morning and the first one to leave. They are most likely to accomplish the bare minimum of what is expected of them and will not go above and beyond what they are told what to do.

They are often absent in most or all of the company activities and events and won’t be seen hanging out with his or her co-workers outside of the office. The Ninja does not take initiative and may even speak negatively about their experience in your company to their peers.=

How to manage them: This type of behaviour may be signs of a burnt out employee, or one whose goals do not align with the company’s. It’s best to get to the bottom of their disengaged employee by having a discussion on how you as a company and them as an employee can meet halfway and improve the relationship.

To avoid a disengaged employee, you could recruit people who seem to agree with your company’s goals and values, that way, you know that you are both working towards the same direction.

The Office Wallflower

This type of employee is quiet around the office; it could be that they are naturally quiet or they’re just new.

The Office Wallflower prefers to work alone or collaborate based on results rather than be a part of a discussion. They won’t necessarily say no to company activities, but they will typically be found on the sidelines observing rather than participating.

How to manage them: While their timidness does not actually affect their productivity they are easily overlooked for promotions or recognition, which could leave feel underappreciated for their efforts at work. To alleviate that, you could provide them with alternative avenues to show their talents and abilities. You could also have consistent one-on-one meetings so they have the opportunity to share their thoughts and progress in their work.

Mr/Ms. Congeniality

This personality type is friendly with everyone at the office and most probably the first to greet any new recruits. They could hold a conversation with anyone and will most likely be found hanging around different departments at any time.

But because of that, there is a chance that they could be too talkative, disturbing other people or making the office environment unproductive.

How to manage them: Being friends with everyone is harmless, but when it’s time to get work done, all employees are expected to do so. To prevent this personality type from being disruptive, you could establish the work environment is results-based. With that, you would have to give ample opportunities for employees to tell you if they feel like they are being interrupted to the point that they are unproductive. That way, you can base your actions accordingly.

Find out what personality type you are with our quiz! Click here to find out

The post 6 Office Personality Types and How to Manage Them appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/6-office-personality-types-manage/

Jeinz — Sprout’s First Ever Rockstar (Sprout Rockstar of the Month)

Jeinz is a Junior Architect at Sprout Solutions. He shares with us his passion for programming and how he helped build Sprout to what it is today.

Finding IT

“I first got into IT because I was into this video game called Dota. I was playing Dota competitively and I wanted to understand the logistics of how the game worked beyond the actual game, but how to create it.

My interest in IT grew, even more, when I took it up in college. I would even join programming competitions for fun… And it was at that point I realized I could do it as a career.”

Leaving it to Fate

“I actually started working at 18 years old after graduating a two-year course.

My first job was at a big company about an hour away from where I lived— my main responsibility was to help them create an entire turnstile system for them.

It was such an experience… the company didn’t have a budget to provide us with our own computers, so every day I would have to commute from Alabang to Manila, carrying my massive CPU and monitors!

After a while, I was deciding whether I wanted to do another two years of school or find another job. But with an industry so technical like programming, I’ve learned that once you’ve learned the skills it’s all about practicing them through work.

So I left it up to fate: I applied to KMC and was called for an interview. I told myself that if I got the job, I’d keep working but if I didn’t, I would go back to school and do two more years of school.”

The Story of Sprout HR

“In the end, KMC hired me. It was there where I learned the best practices of software and honed my skills for my career.  It’s also where I conceptualized and grew my passion project… I even had my own computer this time!

“Sprout” came about when I was asked to build a software, HRhub (now called Sprout HR), to help automate tedious HR processes for KMC.

The software was working well and Pat decided that he wanted to standardize it for public use. Along with Payroll Pie (now called Sprout Payroll), we started building them and thus, Sprout Solutions was born.”

Developing as a Programmer

“Building Sprout HR was definitely a challenge but it’s fulfilling to see it up, running, and used by clients.

It’s actually been such a whirlwind: I started out as a junior developer, then mid, then senior, and now I am a junior software architect and creator of HRhub (Sprout HR.)

Now, I’m in charge of determining the design the flow of the whole system, what technology we will use, what software patterns the devs will use.

I actually started the project not knowing the rules; we would have clients help us with feedback and that’s how the system matured.

My teammate and manager, Rex, also was a huge influence on my development as a programmer. I used to be the type of dev that was just told what to do, but Rex taught me the best practices in the industry. Because in the industry, there are sloppy ways to code which will work technically, but they won’t be good in performance.”

There’s Always A Solution

“Outside of programming, I do sports, mostly basketball. But in my free time, I still like to program: I have a personal system where I practice and try new software patterns I could apply to work. What I do is check out the newest trends in the industry and try it out for myself.

I have the type of attitude where I don’t give up— when I’m faced with a problem, I will always solve it. Even if it means I have to stay up until the morning to find a solution, that’s exactly what I’ll do. Because when it comes to technical stuff, there’s always a solution, it’s just a matter of finding it.”

Future Plans

“I built Sprout HR and Recruit, so I’d like to see them through and develop them as we take on more clients. They’re my passion projects!

Whatever other ideas Alex and Pat have, I’m ready to make it happen.”

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Sprout Rockstar of the Month is an initiative to highlight and celebrate the awesome people behind the company. Every month, we feature their stories and share how they used their experiences to become the rockstars that they are. Stay tuned next month for the next Sprout story!

The post Jeinz — Sprout’s First Ever Rockstar (Sprout Rockstar of the Month) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/jeinz-sprouts-first-ever-rockstar-sprout-rockstar-month/

Trying to Grow Your Startup? You Need a Solid HR Team

The HR team of any company is the backbone of its success. And achieving this kind of growth is heavily reliant on its HR’s ability to bring in the best minds together and make the workplace a space of innovation.

A company can have a great product or service, but it is the people on its team that moves it forward. You need to find candidates that are truly passionate about what they do and want to collaborate to help the company grow.

This is why building an awesome work culture is arguably one of the most important priorities a CEO could do— and to do that, your startup needs a team of HR rockstars.

It’s a Candidate Market — You Need a Solid Frontline

Recruiting is more competitive now more than ever, so your HR team has to be ruthless in the hiring process. With the bounty of resources so easily accessible, the best candidates have the option to be critical in their choices when they look for jobs.

Therefore, as an employer in a candidate market, you need to show candidates that your company can be used as a platform to excel in their industry.

This important task of attracting the best candidates for your company falls under the responsibilities of your recruiter. Which is why you need to invest in a top-notch HR recruiter to be able to represent your company to the candidate market and attract the best people for your team.

Your HR recruiter needs to be extroverted and have the people skills to be able to coordinate and interact with different personalities that come with the hiring process. He or she doesn’t just have to look for candidates, but also would have to know what kind of skills and personalities would fit the open position, the responsibilities involved, and the role in the company.

But this goes without saying, your company has to be able to walk the talk.

Growth is Key — You Need to Make Sure Your Employees Stay

It’s one thing to be able to appeal to great candidates, but you need to be able to deliver the same value that you advertise to avoid employee disengagement and attrition.

Employees that are not engaged will not hesitate to leave at any given time. And it not only wastes time and money to constantly onboard new people, but it costs money to have disengaged employees as well.

So companies have to keep their employees satisfied and committed to their careers with you— which will come from the efforts of your HR team.

They are in charge of keeping your employees satisfied with their job experience that they don’t leave too soon or become unproductive. To do this, the HR department has to implement learning and development activities that promote growth in employees’ careers in your company.

This process takes careful planning and consideration as HR needs to think about the components of what makes a well-crafted development process for each employee across different departments.

They also need to figure out how to establish a culture of constant learning and improvement. But this is no easy task in that culture cannot be forced, so the team has to figure out how to build the cultural foundation organically.

However, when your employees feel that they are fulfilling their own goals with your company, they are more likely to perform to the best of their abilities and help contribute to the growth of the business.

It’s Not Just About Work — You Need to Keep a Happy Work Environment

We are at a time where millennials (typically defined as people born between the 1980s and 1990s) make up most of the workforce. With the new majority being in a younger generation, the focus is shifting: employees not only consider compensation and benefits in a job but work-life balance as well.

To do this, your HR team plans team building events, creates different work perks, and essentially makes the office a healthy work environment. They have to constantly look for new ways to make employees feel motivated to work and build a sense of camaraderie across departments.

Coupled with that, your HR department needs to have the patience and the right personality to be able to solve any conflict among employees. With the differing attitudes and work habits as well as the number of people that are exposed to each other several hours a day, 5 times a week… conflict will inevitably arise. And it’s HR’s job to be able to handle it in the most efficient way possible.

You Can’t Wear All Hats — You Need to Focus What You Do Best

When you’re in a startup, you assume many roles. Most times, you will need to have your other employees assume more responsibilities outside their scope as well.

But if you are in a startup that plans to grow, you eventually need to find people to do the jobs you aren’t supposed to be doing and so you and everybody else can focus on their main responsibilities.

In the early stages of a company, the HR department is often neglected and left to whoever has the bandwidth, but if you plan on scaling your company, you cannot keep tabs on tedious tasks.

In the HR function alone, there are several time-consuming and technical responsibilities. Under HR falls payroll, employee relations, compensation & benefits, and more… To have to do that on top of the job you already have will burn anyone out.

 

When a business is trying to grow at a rapid rate, a solid HR team is the key to maximizing the potential of your company.

It’s crucial that quality team members are recruited and aim to help nurture the company to reach its goals. And this is no easy feat— but it’s also one of the primary responsibilities of the HR department.

The post Trying to Grow Your Startup? You Need a Solid HR Team appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/trying-grow-startup-need-solid-hr-team/

Owen — Finding a Passion for Payroll (Sprout Rockstar of the Month)

Owen is a Pre-Sales Engagement Manager and the second-ever employee to be hired at Sprout Solutions. Even before Sprout, he always had a keen interest in payroll and on this month’s Sprout Rockstar of the Month, he shares with us his story on how it came to be.

Payroll Prelude

“I definitely didn’t like payroll from the get-go— I actually wanted to be a doctor but my parents couldn’t afford to put me through medical school. So I ended up taking BS Accountancy for college. To be honest, it wasn’t easy since it wasn’t my first choice. Imagine: accountancy itself is difficult enough, it was even more challenging for me because I wasn’t interested in it!

Nevertheless, I graduated and got my first job in the accounting department of an HMO— I stayed there for almost a decade. During that time, I oversaw almost all sectors: payable, accounts receivable, bank recon, operating expenses, payroll, and even accounting supervisor. Of all those, I was the most interested in payroll— it was then when I realized that it was what I wanted to do in my life. It was my specialty.

After the HMO company, I moved to KMC, Sprout’s sister company, where I worked specifically in payroll. I was a payroll assistant, then payroll officer.”

 

Appreciating HR  

“When I worked in the HMO company, payroll was under the accounting department, but I had 15 people working under me. They had different cultures, personalities, and backgrounds so it was challenging for me to adjust and coordinate everyone. Sometimes personal lives would leak into work lives and some of them couldn’t focus. I’d even had people ask me for marriage advice— I’m not even married! So I researched how to be sensitive to them and make them feel consoled but at the same time remind them that they should keep work and personal lives separate.

Then in KMC, unlike in my old company, payroll was under the HR department. It was there I got to see firsthand all the different tasks HR had to juggle: on top of recruitment, employee engagement, and conflict resolution, they needed to process 201 files, reports, and official certificates manually, which was more time consuming than it needed to be.

After being a manager, I understood the effort and trouble it took to do purely HR tasks… coupled with manual processing of files… I saw the burning need for a system— HR shouldn’t be manual.”

 

Helping Companies with Sprout

“That’s why I’m still at Sprout, still doing what I love which is payroll. But this time, I get to talk about a new kind of payroll to other companies. The sales department needed someone with an extensive background in payroll, so I was put in presales.

What I love about this position is that I don’t believe I’m trying to sell a product, but rather I’m helping companies with a solution. I’m not trying to be a part of their expenses, I am telling them how they could lessen their workload so they can focus on what their real job is, as opposed to the manual processes they do instead. As someone who already knows how demanding payroll and HR are, I know that Sprout has the solution to their problem.”

 

Why Payroll?

“I do get asked this a lot, because like I said, I wasn’t even interested in accounting when I started learning about it.

Among the branches that go under accounting, my favorite one was taxation. And part of payroll is in taxation— I just really enjoy it. In my old company, the alphalist was manual and I would process it myself, which means I would have to work overtime until the early mornings. I wasn’t mad about it or I didn’t feel burnt out. When you really love doing something, you won’t complain, you just do it.

That’s when I realized my love for payroll. I also worked at all types of departments when Sprout was starting out: marketing, professional services, support, sales, HR… The only department I didn’t go into was software development, since that required technical skills…

And with all of that, payroll is still what I enjoyed the most.”

 

Plans for the Future

“Actually, one of my childhood dreams was to become a teacher, and I do want to pursue it eventually. It may take a lot of work and determination before I get there, especially since I’ve really established myself in my career in payroll. But I still do think that I can pursue this other passion of mine, not necessarily as a full-time job, but still fulfilling my goal of being able to help people learn and share my knowledge with others.”

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Sprout Rockstar of the Month is an initiative to highlight and celebrate the awesome people behind the company. Every month, we feature their stories and share how they used their experiences to become the rockstars that they are. Stay tuned next month for the next Sprout story!

The post Owen — Finding a Passion for Payroll (Sprout Rockstar of the Month) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/owen-sprout-rockstar/

DJ — Transforming Challenges Into Chances for Growth (Sprout Rockstar of the Month)

DJ is a Junior Engineering Manager at Sprout. She shares with us her experiences starting up her career and how she’s used them to continue to grow.

From Police Academy to Animation, to IT

“When I was deciding what to take up in college, I originally wanted to be part of the police force or do animation… like for Pixar movies. Dev really wasn’t my first choice, but I was limited to the majors offered in the universities’ scholarship program. My next choice was learning about the science behind bug fixes: when I press a button and it doesn’t do what it needs to do. So that’s how I started in IT at Adamson University.” 

The post-grad predicament

“After graduation, I had a difficult time finding a job. I graduated with Magna Cum Laude, but I didn’t have access to any of my records because Adamson’s library had burned down. But because many jobs asked for a transcript of records, I was rejected by everything I applied for. On top of that, I graduated early so companies were reluctant to hire someone so young. So I was forced to find jobs that didn’t require school records.

For 3 months I applied to smaller companies and eventually found a part-time job to keep me by. When I finally got my records, I continued to apply while I was working part-time and finally found a job in Quezon City.”

Calling the shots

“In my first job, I was part of a big group of developers and we had a fixed protocol for working. We were told what to do and never had to think about it— we just had to code. This was the system I was used to.

When I moved to Sprout, there were 5 employees in the whole company (including myself) and the only developer for Sprout Payroll— Sprout Payroll is my baby! This was the first time I was in charge and it was at Sprout that I experienced the most significant turning point in my career.

Without getting into it, I was put into a situation where I was challenged and needed to make a decision. Each option had its own risks and opportunities: they all would upset someone but also make something better. I panicked as I realized that I really had to make a decision; which was something I never had to do in my old job.

Alex pulled me aside and reminded me that the growth and development of Sprout is the first priority: sometimes what I want, what the client wants, or what others want, might not be the right move. I have to be able to take myself out of the situation and see what needs to be done and get closer to my goals for the company. This was the first time I had to call the shots and this is also how I started going about making decisions from there on out… Which eventually became more often.  

Becoming a manager

“As the Sprout team got bigger, I had to take on more tasks and responsibilities, and as my responsibilities grew larger, I had a team to help me out. This is where I had to learn how to delegate— from being the only developer in Sprout to having a team to help me with coding so I can focus on managing the process, it was quite difficult to do. I really had to manage my priorities and with a bigger team, more opinions, and a rapidly growing company, I always had to turn to what I had learned the first time I had to call the shots: what does the company need to grow?”

What’s next?

“I’ve learned so much in my time in Sprout but I still have so much room to grow. Outside of work, I have my own personal project where I get to code— which is what I love to do. I look forward to learning more from the people around me and applying it to my work at Sprout as well as my passion project.”

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Sprout Rockstar of the Month is an initiative to highlight and celebrate the awesome people behind the company. Every month, we feature their stories and share how they used their experiences to become the rockstars that they are. Stay tuned next month for the next Sprout story!

The post DJ — Transforming Challenges Into Chances for Growth (Sprout Rockstar of the Month) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/dj-sprout-rockstar/

Opening Up a Business in the Philippines

I’ve always said that the Philippines is booming with potential— the country has the ideal characteristics that are valuable to businesses, which is why I decided to set up shop and grow Sprout here.

However, despite that fact, starting a company in the Philippines does come with its own setbacks.

The country inevitably benefits from this time of high growth and transformation in business: its population is predominantly made up of a young, hard-working, and tertiary-educated demographic. This gives companies the advantage of having a larger workforce population looking for job opportunities.

With that in mind, the Philippines also has exceptional room for improvement in many aspects and industries. Because of these two aspects, a lot of opportunities for potential business owners arise to provide solutions while using the available resources.

The country is currently undergoing a digital transformation that businesses are finally taking as an opportunity to improve their processes. This opens up opportunities for tech companies to help the Philippines further grow and join the global digital market.

For example, typical Philippine businesses spend up to days in manual processing and too many for HR and payroll. Sprout Solutions automates these processes, allowing companies to focus on other aspects of innovative business growth, which in turn contributes to the growth of the economy.

This development is also is seen in the real estate industry, where office buildings are being built for businesses, as well as tourism with successful, globally recognized campaigns such as “It’s More Fun in the Philippines.” We have reached a time where the GDP of the country is growing as rapidly as its business environment is developing.

On the other hand, before business owners can consider taking advantage of the ripe potential of the country, there are also significant disadvantages to starting a company in the Philippines.

One common example is the tendency of the business culture to be closed and set in its regular ways. This means that it would be difficult to introduce new and innovative ideas that are different from the norm. Another setback is the physical geography of the country— for businesses that require any transport from one place to another, they would have to more meticulously coordinate the logistics of transportation as the Philippine is a country of islands.

However, with these in mind, the government has recently passed a new law that creates a business application form that will make it easier for entrepreneurs to put up or renew businesses in the country. With government backing, we look forward to the success of more businesses in the Philippines.

We can only hope that this effort is a big leap towards a more flourishing economy.

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Sprout Solutions is an HR and payroll software company aimed at transforming the industry in emerging markets through advanced automated technology. Book a demo with us today!  

 

The post Opening Up a Business in the Philippines appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/opening-business-philippines/

Fast Facts: Data Privacy Act (RA 10173)

All companies handle some form of personal information — from employee to client to end-user data — therefore all companies are now responsible to protect the confidentiality, preserve the integrity, and promote the availability of data for authorized use.

Sprout Solutions puts data privacy at the utmost priority and takes advanced measures to maintain confidentiality in information handling.

We encourage all companies to look through the Data Privacy Act (link) and secure the safety of their own data privacy processes.

On the same note, know your rights as data providers and be informed of how your private data should be handled.

The post Fast Facts: Data Privacy Act (RA 10173) appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/data-privacy-act-101/

Building Work Culture with Radical Candor

When starting a business, culture should be one of your top priorities. It’s a unique characteristic in a way that you have to be very purposeful of what you establish– because the kind of culture you start is essentially what you end with most of the time. Part of the reason why my wife Alex is also my co-founder is that she has an awesome track record of establishing a great culture in the companies that she’s been in.

Understanding Radical Candor

She read a book on a concept called Radical Candor, which is quite popular in Silicon Valley these days. The idea here is you care personally and challenge directly. In other words, you need to be extremely honest with the people you work with because you care about them. But at the same time, you need to check your ego at the door to be able to accept the feedback– this applies to everyone at the workplace at all levels.
The reason you set these guidelines is that you want an environment where people genuinely care about each other’s growth– this is caring personally. To challenge directly shows that since you want someone to grow, you give them candid feedback. To not be candid would mean that you aren’t concerned about whether or not the other person improves.

Radical Candor at Sprout

In Sprout, we are a team. Everyone wants each other to get better as a person whether it be in their career or in their personal life. To do this, each team member has to give the other honest, candid, and direct feedback.

In the Philippines, it’s a common instinct to think caring for another coworker means not challenging them or being very empathetic when the workload gets overwhelming. This stems from the non-confrontational characteristic of the culture. But the concept of radical candor urges people to challenge their coworkers by being direct at them about that work, so they know exactly what steps they need to take to improve themselves.

Part of why radical candor is such a big thing for us is that it doesn’t come naturally to the Filipino culture: people are really good at caring personally, but we need to continue to encourage everyone to challenge directly. The concept of radical candor only works with both characteristics– one or the other just won’t facilitate growth as efficiently.

The post Building Work Culture with Radical Candor appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/radical-candor/

The Data Privacy Act (RA 10173): Here’s What You Need To Know

Around 2.5 quintillion bytes of data are created daily. We now live in an age where digital data is part of our daily lives — part of our personalities and identities. Given this fact, there is a real need to change the way organizations handle data and workflows to ensure the protection of private information.

All companies handle some form of personal information — from employee to client to end-user data — therefore all companies are now responsible to protect the confidentiality, preserve the integrity, and promote the availability of data for authorized use.

What is The Data Privacy Act of the Philippines?

The Data Privacy Act (DPA), or Republic Act No. 10173 was passed by the Philippines Congress in 2012 and finally implemented five years later in 2016. RA 10173 assures the “free flow of information to promote innovation and growth”(Republic Act. No. 10173, Ch. 1, Sec. 2) while protecting the users’ fundamental rights to privacy.

How is it implemented?

RA 10173 protects and maintains the right of customers to confidentiality by setting a legal list of rules for companies to regulate the collection, handling, and disposal of all personal information.

Companies legally responsible for keeping their customers’ data protected from third parties or any form of misuse, internally or externally.

What does that mean for data collectors/companies?

The Act applies to any process of personal data by anyone in government or private sectors.

All personal data must have legitimate reasons for collection as well as should be clear to both parties giving and receiving information. With that being said, all collection must be done with the customer the customers’ proper consent.  

All personal information used must also be relevant solely used for its intended and state purposes. Companies must protect customer information from collection to proper disposal, avoiding access from unauthorized parties.

What is “personal information?”

“‘Personal information’” refers to any information, whether recorded in a material form or not, from which the identity of an individual is apparent or can be reasonably and directly ascertained by the entity holding the information, or when put together with other information would directly and certainly identify an individual” (Republic Act. No. 10173, Ch. 1, Sec. 3).

What is “sensitive personal information?”

“(1) About an individual’s race, ethnic origin, marital status, age, color, and religious, philosophical or political affiliations;

(2) About an individual’s health, education, genetic or sexual life of a person, or to any proceeding for any offense committed or alleged to have been committed by such person, the disposal of such proceedings, or the sentence of any court in such proceedings;

(3) Issued by government agencies peculiar to an individual which includes, but not limited to, social security numbers, previous or cm-rent health records, licenses or its denials, suspension or revocation, and tax returns; and

(4) Specifically established by an executive order or an act of Congress to be kept classified.”

(Republic Act. No. 10173, Ch. 1, Sec. ).

What is “consent?”

Consent of the data subject refers to any freely given, specific, informed indication of will, whereby the data subject agrees to the collection and processing of personal information about and/or relating to him or her. Consent shall be evidenced by written, electronic or recorded means. It may also be given on behalf of the data subject by an agent specifically authorized by the data subject to do so  (Republic Act. No. 10173, Ch. 1, Sec. 1).

What are the rights of the data subject?

The data subject or the individual sharing his/her personal information has to be fully informed of several factors of the data collecting process. This list includes, but isn’t limited to:

(1) the reason for use

(2) methods for access

(3) the identity and contact details of the personal information controller

(4) how long the information will be stored for

(5) access to their rights.

What steps do I need to take in compliance with the Act?

Companies essentially have to ensure that their data collection methods are flawless as well as consistently share the entire process with data subjects, including a breach of security, should there be any.

To do this, companies should appoint a Data Protection Officer and create privacy knowledge programs and privacy and data policies to regulate the handling of information, as well as routine assessments to ensure quality data protection.

In addition, companies must also have a proper procedure for breach notification to its customers.

What happens if I do not comply?

Improper/unauthorized processing, handling or disposal of personal information can be penalized by imprisonment up to six years and a fine of not less than Five hundred thousand pesos (PHP 500,000).

Sprout Solutions puts data privacy with the utmost priority and takes advanced measures to maintain confidentiality in information handling.

We encourage all companies to look through the Data Privacy Act and secure the safety of their own data privacy processes.

 

Sources:

Republic Act 10173 – Data Privacy Act of 2012. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2018, from https://privacy.gov.ph/data-privacy-act/#3

 

The Beginner’s Guide to RA 10173 (Data Privacy Act of 2012). (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2018, from https://amihan.net/2017/07/10/beginners_guide_to_ra_10173/

 

Privacy Tracker | Summary: Philippines Data Privacy Act and implementing regulations Related reading: Countdown to GDPR: Part 1 – Essential structures for GDPR compliance. (n.d.). Retrieved April 11, 2018, from https://iapp.org/news/a/summary-philippines-data-protection-act-and-implementing-regulations/

 

The post The Data Privacy Act (RA 10173): Here’s What You Need To Know appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/data-privacy-act/

Encouraging employee engagement

Employee engagement is one of the key drivers of company productivity and success, but it is also one factor that cannot be bought or forced. Rather, it comes from an office culture that nurtures and motivates its employees.

Businesses with the right office culture will inevitably have workers that will advocate the brand, produce exceptional work, and will more likely stay for a longer period of time– given that they share the same values of the company and have the opportunity for career growth.  

With that being said, employee engagement starts from the top: the foundations of good office culture come from the CEO and managers that fosters a sense of community: bosses that have little to no interaction with employees will have less engagement than ones that are open and consistently communicate with their team.

While culture is not coerced but rather happens organically, there are ways for managers to cultivate an encouraging environment where their team will strive to work towards their own and the company’s growth.

Recruit people with the same values

High engagement comes from employees that share the same values as their own. When their passions and drive are similar to that of the company’s, creating and achieving goals will not only be beneficial to the employee but to the company as well.

Employees that aren’t aligned or don’t agree with the business’s vision will not perform to their maximum capacity nor will they achieve goals with the right intentions.

With that, while this process is usually done in the recruiting phase, businesses can also brainstorm with their current employees on how to continue to promote their vision and culture among the entire team.

Recognize Efforts

It’s innate for humans to feel a more of a sense of accomplishment when their efforts are acknowledged, especially by higher-ups.

An award from the manager or CEO increases motivation to continue to work towards improvement; awards could be verbal or physical such as a gift certificate or a printed award of appreciation.

Another example of this would be the Sales bell at Sprout– members of the sales team gets to ring the bell whenever they close a deal. A round of applause and cheering from the entire office follows, which is a small but impactful way of praise and encouragement, and in turn, boosts morale.

Teamwork makes the dream work

While the foundations of office culture come from the CEO and managers, it is survived by the rest of the team.

Thus, it’s important to foster camaraderie among employees to open lines of communication and in turn, increase productivity. When employees are friends with each other and their managers, they will feel more comfortable sharing their thoughts.

This way, they are able to collaborate with one another across any department, sharing their expertise and as a result, increase the company dynamic.  

A good way to foster teamwork like this is through team building excursions as well as a buddy program for incoming employees. It is natural for new hires to be timid, but with a designated person to reach out to, it will be easier for them to communicate their thoughts and ideas in the office.

Open communication

While bosses should always maintain the employer-employee relationship to some extent, employees should still feel like they are able to reach out to them for any query, thoughts, or suggestions.

Performance appraisals are common but are often one-sided and if not, can be a quite passive medium. An alternative option is the One-on-one Meeting; where employees sit down with any or all of their higher-ups separately and talk about any updates or concerns.

This way, both parties have each other’s undivided attention and will have an opportunity to voice out anything in full disclosure and without the pressure that an appraisal brings, as one-on-ones should happen often, regardless if there are any issues or for a mere catch up about work life in general.

Keep the culture fun

Work perks are a great way to boost office morale and engagement. Activities such as free lunch, gym memberships, or a game room will keep the week exciting, reduce work-related stress, and decrease absences.

These kinds of perks will also encourage advocacy of the company culture from employees, whether it’s in social media or word of mouth. This way, word about how your company is a great place to work will spread and will benefit your overall reputation as a business.

The post Encouraging employee engagement appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/encouraging-employee-engagement/

Make Mondays Fun

After a weekend of fun and relaxation, it’s Sunday night again and the dread of Monday starts to creep in. But that kind of thinking isn’t productive or beneficial and will put a negative start to the week.

 

However, there are some things you can do to alleviate these feelings of anxiety and avoid those Monday Blues.

 

Ease into Monday by preparing beforehand

Make Monday a little easier for yourself by prepping for it ahead, giving you more time to take it slower on the actual day.

Prepare your things the day before 

Lay out your outfit, any meals or snacks, and documents you plan to take with you to work the next day. This way, there are few fewer things to think about in the morning and you decrease the chance of forgetting anything.

Keep this day caffeine and alcohol-free 

Maximize your sleep by not intaking anything that will change your energy levels in any way and affect your quality of sleep.

Get things done on Friday 

Try finishing up some tasks before the weekend so that you lessen your workload for Monday.

Don’t check work emails over the weekend 

Replying to emails will make you think about all the work you may have waiting for you on Monday. If it’s truly urgent you will most likely be reached by phone, so enjoy the weekend and tend to replies when you get back.

Make Monday a day to look forward to

Start the week off with fun activities so you have something to be excited about as the weekend ends.

Dress up 

This can mean planning on wearing themed outfits (all blue, floral, 80s, etc) with some of your coworkers, or it can mean putting on more effort on the way you normally dress– sometimes feeling more confident in what you’re wearing will make your day a little better.

Make or plan to eat your favorite meal

Treat yourself to your favorite food for lunch or dinner as a reward for a Monday well done!

Potluck

Some activities are more enjoyable when they’re done with people– try planning a potluck with some of your coworkers to make things more fun.

Make dinner plans with some friends

Maybe Mondays really are a bit busy for you, so planning to go out with your friends or coworkers after work can give you something to look forward to at the end of the day.

Pick-me-uppers for Monday

If your Monday is already off to a rocky start, it doesn’t mean it has to continue to be: there are several things you can take a dull day into a better one.

Inspiring articles and quotes to start the week

Sometimes you just need to read inspiring things to feel more productive. Try following inspirational Instagram accounts or if you have some favorite quotes, pull them up and read them again to kickstart your day.

Take a walk

Spend your lunch break strolling around the area to clear your mind and reset before starting tasks again.

Think about or make a physical list of your blessings

It’s easy to forget about all the positive aspects when your head is clouded with dread. Take the time to really think about all the things you’ve been blessed with to give yourself some perspective.

Make someone else happy

Pick up an extra coffee for your colleague or offer to buy lunch– sometimes making someone’s day can make yours.

When all else fails

Identify the problem 

What part of the Monday don’t you like? What can you do to fix it? Do you need to move jobs? Do you need to change your regular routine? Pinpoint what exactly you dread about the start of the work week so you can find a solution.

Grab a drink after work

Just take the load off and try to unwind at the end of the day. You’ve made it through Monday!

The post Make Mondays Fun appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/make-mondays-fun/

How to Hang Out With Your Bosses

If you spend the average 9 hours (sometimes more!) at work 5 times a week, it’s inevitable to find people that you get along with. If you’re lucky, sometimes the bosses are outgoing and you might find yourself making plans to hang out outside of the office.

Spending time with the bosses can open the line of communication and increase morale as everyone gets to know each other.

So while it’s never a bad thing to get along with your superiors, there are some things you should consider to keep the line between professional and personal associations separate.

Avoid Oversharing

While it’s natural to feel like you can share more things with your bosses as you get to know each other more, there’s still such a thing as sharing too much and acting too familiar.

You must remember you are an employee first and friend second: avoid saying anything that might cross the line and ruin your boss’s image of you or even your professional reputation.

In short, resist sharing too much of your personal life, inappropriate topics or jokes, office gossip, and anything that may portray you as unprofessional.

Maintain professionalism

A general rule of thumb for many industries is you should maintain some level of professionalism even outside work, and even more so when hanging out with your bosses.

While getting invited out for a drink or attending a work event that involves alcohol is meant to take the load off, it’s always best to keep yourself composed and not do anything that you have to apologize for the next day.

Be inclusive

Making an effort to invite other coworkers to come hang out with the bosses as well can make everyone feel included and in turn increase team dynamic.

Exclusivity from hangouts may look like you’re trying to earn some brownie points for yourself, which can increase the chance of tension among the team and may also ruin relationships with your fellow coworkers.

Open lines of communication

Getting to know your bosses more will inevitably make you feel more comfortable communicating any thoughts you have about work. You should take this as an opportunity to express any kind of concerns, opinions, or any productive feedback you might have to make the company grow and improve.

However as said earlier, be careful not to overshare or gossip as to keep your reputation in tact.

Don’t try too hard

Though there are quite a few things to keep in mind when hanging out with your bosses, just have fun and be yourself!

While they are your superiors first and foremost, they’re also regular people with lives outside of work. They will have different interests, hobbies, and opinions that could make for good conversation.

For more articles on similar HR topics, keep updated with us and join our Facebook community here.

The post How to Hang Out With Your Bosses appeared first on Sprout.

source https://sprout.ph/blog/how-to-hang-out-with-bosses/