Toolbox December 2020

TOOLBOX

THE #1 COMMUNITY OF SUCCESSFUL CONTRACTORS

CCN

DECEMBER 2020 FROM THE PRESIDENT

Time For A Check Up

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xamining your business on a regular basis will ensure its good health.

It’s been a tough year. COVID-19 threw down challenges that would test the strength of any business owner. A service business such as home improvement is especially vulnerable.

Despite being an “essential” business, you have to assure your customers it’s safe to do business with you and safe for employees to work for you.

You have to figure out how to communicate with customers and run an office, as well as crews, digitally.

And you have to manage people through the fear of infection by developing and enforcing safety protocols.

As if you didn’t have enough going on before the pandemic.

SCOTT SIEGAL

Prepared For Problems But as a business owner, you also have to watch over the health of your business in the changed environment the pandemic triggered.

Now we’re dealing with government loans, labor issues, and supply channel disruptions.

For instance, what if you can’t get everything you need from suppliers to finish a job? What if three out of every ten jobs are left hanging?

COVID-19 may be a “one of a kind” event, but it’s exactly the kind of thing that puts a business to the test. If you’re adept at managing the day-to-day, you already had a healthy business and it’s probably remained that way. A healthy business weathers shocks far better than one that’s marginally profitable because it can pivot when a disaster like COVID-19 appears.

But how do you know if your business is healthy?

Just because something has worked in the past, you can’t assume it will continue to work in a rapidly changing environment. This assumption often sets the stage for disaster.

To know the shape my business is in, I make a detailed examination of my sales, admin, and production departments so I can adjust, tweak, or change the things that need it. Without doing that, I wouldn’t know whether or not each of these mutually supportive branches of my business is functioning at a high level of efficiency.

What To Look For Here’s what I look at when I’m giving my business a check-up: Sales: Leads are the lifeblood of any home improvement business. You might think: Scott, we’re getting plenty of leads. continued on page 2

CO N T R AC T O R S . N E T

FROM THE PRESIDENT

TOOLBOX THE #1 COMMUNIT Y OF SUCCESSFUL CONTRACTORS

MISSION STATEMENT To enhance the professionalism, performance and perception of the construction industry. We promote ethics, education, leadership and innovation, so that the construction industry and the community achieve mutual benefit.

CORPORATE HEADQUARTERS 6476 Sligo Mill Road Takoma Park, MD 20912 301.891.0999 800.396.1510 866.250.3270 fax www.contractors.net

continued from page 1

Okay, but how many become sales appointments and how many of those do you close?

Is your company making money on each of those sales? There are a number of important metrics for measuring sales efficiency in home improvement, with “Net Sales Per Leads Issued” being only the first.

Spend an afternoon taking a close look at what’s going on with your sales. You’re probably going to find areas where you can improve.

Admin: At a home improvement company, someone has to answer the phone, process a lead, track costs and job progress through to final payment. Paperwork is the least glamorous but most essential aspect of your business. These administrative tasks hold your company together.

So, how’s that working? Are you getting emails from clients saying they phoned your office and no one got back to them? Do salespeople mention that leads were not being set correctly? Just because people have worked for your company for a while doesn’t mean they’re doing things the way you’ve said they should be done. Set up metrics to clearly communicate standards and check to ensure they’re being met.

Production: You can sell lots of work but if you can’t install it, you can’t collect payments, and there goes your revenue. You can also install it and collect payment but still make nothing if your production process is mismanaged.

Start with job costing. Is your profitability on jobs what you projected? If it’s not, that could signal a problem with sales, or production. For example, if you’re running at 25 percent materials and 25 percent labor, and your labor is suddenly 26 percent, then, a month later, it’s 27 percent, you may have a deficiency somewhere in your system. If it’s not checked regularly you may soon be losing money. Don’t wait until it’s too late to fix it.

STAFF Scott Siegal, President scott@contractors.net John Martindale, Principal johnm@contractors.net Catherine Honigsberg, GM catherine@contractors.net Matthew Winslow, Director of Operations matthew@contractors.net Anthoy Brooks, Director of Sales anthony@contractors.net Sindy Wohl, Director of VIP sindy@contractors.net Denise Metheny, Accounting denise@contractors.net Troy Timmer, CCN Business Consultant troy@contractors.net Dave Harrison, CCN Business Consultant dharrison@contractors.net Daniel Murgo, Events Manager danny@contractors.net Carla Sarabia, IT Manager carla@contractors.net Toolbox is a publication of the Certified Contractors Network.

Toolbox is a member benefit.

Non-members may subscribe for $75 annually. design: Stacy Claywell www.thatdesigngirl.net thank you to our: contributing writers

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Monthly Check Up We’re only too aware of how the COVID-19 pandemic has threatened the health and welfare of everyone. Fortunately, pharmaceutical companies are about to begin distributing vaccines and people will soon be able to get inoculated against infection.

That doesn’t mean the pandemic is going away immediately. It will, at some point.

But one thing that’s clear is we now live in uncertain times. If you’re operating a business in this kind of climate, you need to be sure that that business is as profitable as it can be and that your cash position is stable. Carelessly managed companies are that much more vulnerable.

Examining your business on a regular basis will ensure its good health in any environment.

How often should you be giving your business a checkup? Every month is a good way to catch minor problems before they become major ones. Good, profitable companies regularly take their own temperature and blood pressure. It’s a good way to not only stay financially healthy but to ensure that you have the kind of company someone would want to buy. All a new owner has to do is read the chart.

If you would like help assessing the health of your business, the CCN mentors and consultants can help you, just give us a call.

Implementing and Maintaining Technology Resources for Working from Home

BY CARLA SARABIA

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orking from home is the “new normal” during this pandemic. While not all employees may have the ability to work from home, both employees working from home and employees working at the office need specific technology resources to continue to work efficiently.

Ask yourself, “Do your employees have the resources they need to get their work done.” Your team needs the right hardware and software, with updated processes and procedures, to keep them productive in this new way of working.

Start with hardware basics.

Your team needs working computers and other hardware items to be able to complete their jobs from home. If you’ve already sent your employees home and everything’s going according to plan, then now is a good time to reach out and make sure their equipment is in good working order. This might be a good time to upgrade or replace aging devices. The last thing you need is a computer breaking down in the middle of a customer presentation or an important meeting.

If your users need to access their workstations at the office remotely, you’ll need to have software such as LogMeIn or a VPN/Remote Desktop Connection set up. While these are relatively easy to use, you may need someone in the office to turn on devices in case of a power outage or keep pesky updates from shutting off a computer.

You may need internal communication software such as Microsoft Teams or Slack. These programs improve communication across different departments and keep daily internal emails at a minimum.

You may need virtual “softphone” software to replace your in-office telephones. Your telephone service provider may have

SAFETY PROGRAM

their own version, which you can install on your employees’ computers to make internal and external calls and answer incoming calls.

If you already set these systems up, now would be a great time to check-in and see how everyone feels about the new workflow. Think about ways you can make communicating simpler and easier. Technology is here to empower us to do our best work. It’s not here to make things complicated and slow us down. If something isn’t working for you, verify you’re using it correctly. Still not working? Ditch it and try something else.

Even with perfect gear and systems in place, you may find certain things take longer than usual or aren’t getting done.

Anytime you add new technology into your workplace, it’s time to revisit processes and procedures. Maybe you had a way of scanning paperwork that no longer works. Or maybe you need to update old policies about the usage of work devices.

Surviving and thriving in this “new normal” requires us to embrace new technology and new ways of working.

Time to pull out your binder full of Standard Operating Procedures and update them to fit our new remoteworking world.

BY CATHERINE HONIGSBERG

Accidents. Employees have accidents, and they get hurt. Accidents can be fatal. Would your business survive?

You need to protect your employees and your business by having a working Safety Program.

If someone at your company experienced a severe accident, you’d probably be audited by OSHA, and they’ll want to see your safety program. This can happen within hours of the accident. If you don’t have a good safety program, they may blame you for the accident. The penalties they impose are steep, and if you are a repeat offender, they could be catastrophic for your business.

At Maggio Roofing, we experienced a fatal fall. OSHA came to our office to inspect our safety program within hours of the accident – would you be ready? I started a formalized safety manual and program about a year before, and we were fined. Fortunately, OSHA found the accident to be employee negligence. The fines imposed were minimal because we were able to show we took safety seriously, had a program in place, and performed ongoing training.

A good safety program should include a handbook, developing a culture of safety, and a budget. The handbook should have the Corporate Health and Safety Policy stating the company’s commitment to safety, documented training logs, disciplines and incentives, work rules and practices, and proof of providing PPE – Personal Protective Equipment. Demonstrating a culture of safety is not only setting up the program but following the program. Training, inspection, and correction need to become the way you perform your services. This is no different than training proper contracting installation skills. The program setup, training, inspecting, reporting, and provided proper equipment will have a cost. The cost to implement and maintain this program is a must when developing your Pro Forma for the upcoming year.

Be prepared. Develop your safety program today. The lives of your employees and your business depend on it.

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Turning Conflict Into Cooperation BRAD LINDNER

Warning: Divorce lawyers would prefer you disregard this article and its message. It could have a huge negative impact on their income.

It was no normal Tuesday at Emma E. Booker Elementary School in Sarasota, Florida. Sandra Kay Daniels was preparing her second-grade class to receive a special guest, President George W. Bush.

The reception for the President was warm and enthusiastic.

The excitement in the room was high. After the class settled into their seats, their attention turned to the story of “The Pet Goat.”

In the middle of the story, Andrew Card, Chief of Staff to President Bush, walked briskly into the room and leaned over to tell the President 11 words that changed history, “A second plane hit the second tower. America is under attack.”

As the events of 9/11 unfolded and it became clear the country was under attack, President George W. Bush sits there, almost unshaken by the news. He was criticized later for his lack of response, but I have to admit it was one of the most presidential things I’ve ever seen.

Imagine being told the worst news you’ve ever heard.

Now imagine you’re able to keep it together as well as he did.

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I don’t know about you, but I’ll create a scene when Chipotle is out of guacamole. I can’t imagine being in his shoes, in that classroom, on that day.

If you watch the video of that moment, you’ll notice his expression change, but only slightly. His smile turns into a frown, but otherwise his posture is unchanged.

I don’t use this story to make a political statement, nor do I intend to stir up painful emotions from a horrific day in our nation’s history. Rather, I use this story because it’s a powerful example of how terrible we are at reading other people.

After the event, Sandra Daniels remembered the energy in the room changed. She thought she had done or said something to upset the President. She misread the President’s slight change in demeanor as criticism of her performance. Most people in her place would have done the same. Why? Because most of us believe we can read people well even though, in reality, we get it wrong more often than we get it right.

The reason we are so bad at reading people is because of a myth we believe about human nature. That myth is called transparency.

In his book Talking to Strangers Malcom Gladwell defines transparency as, “the idea that people’s behavior and demeanor – the way they represent themselves on the outside – provides an authentic and reliable window into the way they feel on the inside.”

Books, television, and movies have trained us to believe people’s expressions are a correct reflection of their feelings.

Great authors don’t tell you what a character is feeling, they describe their physical features like, “a smile as wide as the Mississippi” to help us imagine happiness or joy. Great actors can replicate all the facial expressions and body language we expect communicate certain emotions. When we read the same facial expressions and body language in real-life, we expect they are communicating the same emotions we’ve come to associate them with.

In addition to the training we’ve received, our brains don’t want to spend the time or energy to make sense of the enormous amount of complexity in people’s behavior. The default operating procedure our brains use to make sense of the world is what Psychologist Daniel Kahneman refers to as “WYSIATI” or “What You See Is All There Is.” As Kahneman explains,

“The confidence that individuals have in their beliefs depends mostly on the quality of the story they can tell about what they see, even if they see little.”

Our brains aren’t concerned with having the right information about people, just as long as it has enough information to tell a believable story about that person. All we see is all there is.

Remember the movie Jurassic Park? The scientists in that movie didn’t have a complete strain of dinosaur DNA, so they used DNA from toads to fill in the gaps. And how did that work out for them?

When talking to people, we use stereotypes to fill in the gaps of behavior we don’t understand. Happiness is a stereotype we apply to smiling. So, if a person is smiling on the outside, they must be happy on the inside. If a person is smiling at me, then I tell myself they must be happy with me.

But how do I really know what they’re feeling with so little information? I fill in the missing gaps with information that may or may not be true, “They are smiling at me because I did a great job writing this article” or “They are smiling at me because I have a piece of lettuce stuck in my teeth and they enjoy me looking foolish.”

When we fill in the gaps of our understanding while communicating with others, this may not lead to the chaos of

Jurassic Park, but it can lead to big misunderstandings which can affect how we see others and ourselves.

In Sandra Daniels’ case, she didn’t have a complete story about what was going on in her classroom. All she saw was a slight change in the President’s expression. She didn’t know why his expression changed. But that didn’t keep her brain from filling in the gaps and creating a complete story about the President’s reaction to her performance.

When you get an email from a boss or co-worker that seems unusually brief, you don’t have enough information to tell you how that person is feeling. Is your boss or co-worker angry with you? Or are they in a rush to complete other tasks? Even with a shortage of information, your brain will fill in the gaps to tell the most believable story.

When someone cuts you off in traffic, are they just another aggressive driver or are they in a hurry to get to the hospital to see a loved-one?

You don’t have enough information to understand their behavior, but your brain will fill in the missing information so you can arrive at a believable conclusion.

Or maybe your spouse didn’t empty the dishwasher… again.

It could be they didn’t think it would be a big deal to empty it later. Or maybe they were selfishly waiting for you to empty it. Do you have enough information to know which of those stories is true? Unless you talk with them, probably not. But that doesn’t keep your brain making one of those stories true.

Each of these examples has the potential to lead to a confrontation. When we understand people’s behavior doesn’t always correctly show what they’re thinking or how they’re feeling, we can de-escalate a situation before we even enter the conversation.

Before confronting someone about their behavior, consider asking yourself: 1. What story am I telling myself about this person?

2. What information has led to that conclusion?

3. Could there be more going on inside the person than what they’ve displayed on the outside?

Asking these questions can help you avoid making accusations which can lead to a confrontation.

And if someone begins to start a disagreement with you, you might ask these questions to see if they have created a story based on inaccurate or incomplete information about you: 1. Why do you think this happened?

2. Why do you think I reacted that way?

3. Is there anything I’ve done to make you feel that way?

Remember, people may not have the right information about you, just enough information to tell themselves a believable story. Ask questions to investigate that story and make sure the story they’re telling themselves about you isn’t just believable, but also is true.

By understanding this transparency myth, we’re able to get a better understanding of the people around us and give them a better understanding of who we are as well. Learning to ask for more information and listen carefully will reduce conflict and stress in your life, dramatically increase your ability to persuade other people, and make your personal relationships much stronger and happier.

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Why do I need S.O.P.s in my business?

BY TONY BROOKS

What is an SOP? Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) are documented processes your business can create to ensure any product or service is delivered consistently every time. SOPs are also great tools to use when implementing change or adding a new process to your business. By building SOPs, you can build quality-control firewalls, protect profits, and standardize most repeatable tasks. You can use SOPs to standardize training and onboard new people, which increases employee satisfaction and retention.

While SOPs can be powerful tools to control and build change in your company, if done wrong, they can disrupt and create havoc within your organization. Do you need processes in your business that work? If you answered yes and would like to build consistency in your company, then SOPs are the tools for you.

First, there’s a process to building SOPs that work. They’re not as simple as writing down procedures and telling your people to do it “your” way. That may work if you’re standing over them, but as soon as you’re not, you can almost guarantee they’ll stray from your process.

So how do you build a process your people will follow? The answer is easier than you may think. The key is to make it “our” process instead of “your” process. It’s human nature to look for a shortcut or better way. We do it almost instinctively.

To build SOPs that work, you must involve all stakeholders when building the process. You must build it to be repeatable; therefore, be consistent in your message to your team. You’ll also need to create a way to measure results to verify the process is working. A checklist can be an excellent way to track the process. If it’s not producing the results you want, then go back and adjust it until it works.

Once you have an SOP that works, you must ensure it’s followed to the letter. Research shows that it takes 25 times without a break in the process for it to become a routine. If they can break from the process, you’ll have to start over.

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When you have a working SOP, you should revisit it yearly, at a minimum, or if something changes in the process. Changes can be new people, equipment, or technology upgrades.

Creating an SOP 1. Identify a task in your business that should follow the same steps even if the job is different. Ensure the process is consistent even if a different employee completes the task.

Checklists are a great way to ensure the steps are completed consistently.

2. Identify a task that needs to be completed the same way even if a key person is out sick, takes a day off, or is on vacation. This works because the SOP has the same steps, no matter who is doing the task.

Issuing SOPs in a memo or by decree will accomplish nothing.

Encourage anyone on the entire team who will use the SOP to give input. Owners and managers should also provide input.

Getting input from all employees helps to ensure everyone takes ownership and holds each other accountable.

Once a draft of the SOP is created, you must put it into practice and monitor results. If it’s not successful, go back to your team and redesign your SOP until it works successfully.

Print SOPs and post them in areas where they apply. SOPs should be clear and provide highlights of the process. Extended versions of each SOP, including explanations of why each process is done in a specific manner, should be presented to each employee, and kept on file.

Make sure to schedule time to review each SOP at least annually. Scheduled reviews will make your SOPs living documents open to revisions as changes happen.

If you want to know more about SOPs, keep an eye on your CCN class schedule. We are releasing many new classes to help you gain more control, make more money, and grow your business.

I Believe I Can - 3 Keys to Sales Success

BY TROY TIMMER

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o, you want to be a sales superstar? Your goal is to sell the most and earn the most you possibly can, but you find yourself stuck at good, and you just can’t get to great.

Let me ask you a question, what’s more important: skillset or mindset? You probably know the answer. You can have all the techniques in the world, but if you don’t have the proper mindset, then you are never going to get to great.

The top salespeople are consistently working to develop and maintain positive beliefs and the proper attitude. They are winners, and they are highly skilled, but maintaining the proper attitude is far more critical. It doesn’t matter if you have the latest sales app, or the next best sales tool, and are using the newest closing techniques designed to close more sales. If you don’t have the right mental approach and the right beliefs, these trendy approaches will bring you limited success.

If you want to radically impact your sales and build the foundation of success that will take you from “Good to Great,” then start by mastering these three key characteristics of successful sales professionals.

1. Confidence Confidence is one of the most underrated traits of a successful sales professional. Most salespeople understand to be successful, they must be confident, yet they don’t work on raising their level of confidence. In the sales process, you must have enough confidence for both you and the customer. Most customers approached the buying process lacking confidence because it’s unfamiliar to them. If the salesperson has an abundance of confidence, the customer will perceive and adopt their confidence.

That’s why it’s so critical for you to have confidence. Your customers will gain confidence as they interact with you during the buying process.

How do you raise your level of confidence? Confidence is the result of belief and mastery. When you believe strongly in what you’re doing, why you are doing it, and master the skillset, you’ll feel confident.

Think about one part of the sales process, where you feel confident. Maybe it’s the way you build rapport during the Measure Call, or how you present your company’s unique value proposition. Maybe it’s your ability to handle objections. This is the part you always like to do. Why? Because it’s the thing you do very well; you have confidence. You believe in what you’re saying, and you have mastered the skill to do it.

What part of the sales process do you dread, and what do you need to work on in this area? Is it your belief or your mastery? If the belief Isn’t there, then your technique is going to be weak.

Belief starts with believing in yourself, the value of your product or service, and your company. What’s your belief becomes strong, then you can move on to mastery. Mastery is about practicing your technique repeatedly.

2. Persistence Persistence is about sticking to something; not giving up. Doing the little but important things over and over until you succeed.

When it comes to success in sales, you can’t overemphasize the importance of persistence. You must stick with something by doing it again and again until you’ve mastered it.

This applies to every part of the sales process; from the way you greet the customer to the way you ask questions. The way you listen to the customer, the way you handle objections, the way you follow up with customers, and every other aspect of sales.

Don’t confuse persistence with discipline. For the most part, we have all the discipline we need. What we really need are better habits! Ask yourself, what are the habits that will make me the most successful sales professional? Then decide which habit is the most important and commit to building that habit. Then commit to the next habit and, with persistence, work on it every day.

3. Technique The first two success keys, confidence, and persistence, deal with our mindset. You must have your head on straight before you work on your technique. Because, if you don’t, you’ll never execute at your highest level.

Technique is about using confidence and persistence to transform your skillset until you master the different aspects of the sales process. You must continually learn and practice so you can grow beyond your current capabilities.

Most salespeople learn as much as they need to until they get into a groove. But then they level off and stop growing.

Their technique might be good, but it’s not great. Taking your technique from good to great requires two things that make salespeople uncomfortable.

The first thing is you must be open and honest with yourself, about yourself. This means you need to be open to having others critique you. Most salespeople are not willing to open themselves up to be critiqued, especially if they haven’t developed the proper mindset. At the same time, it’s very difficult to self-evaluate your performance. You must be coachable if you want to gain valuable insight into improving your technique.

The second thing you must do to grow your technique is don’t be afraid to fail. Accept the fact that you will make mistakes, know that you will fail, embrace it. Too many salespeople try to avoid failure. They fear that making a mistake will cost them the sale. Because of this fear, they stay with what is “good”.

When you do these two things, your technique will grow from good, then to great, and then to mastery.

By developing confidence, being persistent, and practicing your technique, you’ll increase your close rate and your income. You’ll discover being a highly skilled salesperson is rewarding, fun, and of high value to any organization you’ll work with and for, today and in the years to come.

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2020 YEAR END GUIDELINES

BY ANITA DOMBROWSKI, MBA, SPHR, SHRM-SCP, PRESIDENT & SR. HR CONSULTANT, FOURTH DIMENSION ENTERPRISES LLC

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t’s December and, while much of the world is preparing for the holiday season, employers and Human Resources professionals are finding, it’s the busiest time of the year! Wrapping up 2020 benefit and payroll issues and preparing for the new 2021 plan year, leave little time to decorate the tree!

Below are a few areas to review before you close out 2020.

PAYROLL Bonuses - many companies provide either performance bonuses or holiday bonus rewards in one of their December payrolls. Considering the impact of COVID this year, be sure to check in with your leadership to see if there are going to be changes to your normal process so you can get your bonus spreadsheet prepared and approved. If bonuses are a routine December event, it may be a good idea to communicate to the staff to advise a change this year due to COVID (or whatever the reason might be). It is better to deal with the issue directly then having employees wondering and gossiping among themselves.

Regular Payroll - You still have a little time to make any corrections before the W-2’s are generated so do a little double checking on your numbers before the final pay of the year is generated.

W-2 Prep – Do an audit of employee pay totals, deductions and taxes to make sure your totals are correct.

FSA, HRA and HSA - Take a look at employer contributions and employee deductions totals to make sure your totals are consistent with the employer contributions or requested deduction requests for those employees.

COVID-Related Calculate your CARES Act credit. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) provides a tax credit for employers who kept employees on their payroll during the pandemic. The tax credit is equal to 50 percent of qualified 8

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wages paid to employees after March 12, 2020 and before January 1, 2021. Find additional information on the CARES Act at https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/cares. Please note, if you received a PPP loan, you are not eligible for this credit.

FFCRA Tax Credits. The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) requires employers with less than 500 employees to provide employees with paid sick leave and expanded family and medical leave for specific COVID illness relates reasons as well as specific COVID-related daycare and school closure reasons. The federal government will reimburse for costs related to providing this paid leave to employees. Please see https:// www.irs.gov/newsroom/covid-19-related-tax-credits-for-paidsick-and-paid-family-leave-overview for additional information.

ACA Forms – The Affordable Care Act forms 1094 and 1095 have been updated. Your payroll processor should already have those forms online or check the website for the latest forms if you do this task manually. If you filing by paper the due date is February 28, 2021. If filing electronically, the due date is March 31, 2021. https://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-drop/n-20-76.pdf Payroll Tax Holiday – If you participated in the tax holiday enacted with the President’s Executive Order, you should review what employees participated in this reduction of Social Security taxes. You will want to make arrangements with employees to repay these funds prior to April 31, 2021. Please remember, that if the employee is not able to repay these funds, the employer is liable to repay them.

BENEFITS Open Enrollment - In many companies, December is the final month of current deductions for the current year of medical, dental, vision, life insurance, etc. Many new benefit plan years begin January 1 and so do the new deductions.

Make sure to verify that all eligible employees have submitted their new benefit elections either by entry into your benefit software program or by a form enrolling or waiving participation in the company benefit programs.

Check to see that employees who elected FSA or HSA deductions have not gone over the new 2021 maximums.

Once the final pay of the year is run and W-2s have been run, the new 2021 cost sharing deductions can be input into the payroll system.

ACA Affordability – the threshold for affordability was recently changed to 9.83 percent for 2021. With the cost of medical insurance going up, you will want to make sure your new plans meet this new threshold. https://www.irs.gov/ pub/irs-drop/rp-20-36.pdf It would also be a good idea to double check your FTE headcount. Employers are required to comply with ACA requirements if they have 50 or more full time employees. If you have been fluttering around that 50 employee mark, you may want to check to see if your headcount requires participation in the ACA.

Compliance Due Diligence Form I-9 – This compliance form is required to be completed for all new employees within 3 days of the employee’s date of hire. Penalties are pretty hefty for non-compliance or carelessness in how you completed these forms. In addition, the IRS made some changes in the requirements for employers who have remote workforces.

These new changes for remote employees ended November 19, 2020.

It would be wise to review all of your I-9’s for completeness; to make sure all proofs of employment are checked; the form is signed and also to purge forms according to the I-9 specific guidelines for terminated employees.

Personnel Files – It is a good idea to move the files for terminated employees to your archive or storage area. During the transition, you will want to review the files for both active and separated employees to make sure only the appropriate information is in the file folders e.g. separating any medical related information into a separate file folder.

Employee Handbook – Employers tend to shy away from this project because it is a major undertaking, but this year, due to COVID, it is probably very important.

It is always a good idea to review your employee handbook each year to see what policies may have changed within your organization that need to be updated in the handbook. This could include changes in your benefits such as new PTO/vacation allocation changes, adding or terminating various insurance coverages or adding a remote work policy. Preparing a totally new handbook is the ideal solution but if doing so is challenging this year, you will want to at least prepare addendums to address any significant changes and have employees sign off on those addendums. You don’t want employees or new hires to rely on information that is no longer relevant. Addendums are not perfectly ideal because they are a separate part of the handbook and often forgotten as an addition, but it is a good stop gap to keep your handbook up to date until you are ready to formally review and revise the document. If you have one or two items of significance that need to be addressed, an addendum would work.

If you have lots of areas that need to be changed, it is time to redo the entire handbook. If you need assistance with this task, this is a service I provide to employers.

IMPORTANT NOTE: This year, regulatory laws and deadlines have changed more rapidly than ever before. Please verify your changes with a trusted advisor or government agency that the deadlines or content of your anticipated change is still valid at the time you are considering a change or update.

A PERSONAL NOTE: Wishing all CCN Members a very Happy Holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year!

Anita This article should not be considered legal advice. Should you have any questions regarding this article or any of the HR articles presented in this newsletter, please do not hesitate to contact me at AnitadombrowskiHR@gmail.com

December’s Tip: Making a Task list with your iPhone’s “Notes” app.

BY DANNY MURGO

Whether you are working remotely or out in the field selling or producing, there are several ways you can use your iPhone to make your job easier. Each month, we will explore a new way to use your iPhone to your advantage.

Whether you want to make a checklist of everything you need to bring to a sales call, or you want to make a checklist for your production team to ensure you’re bringing all the materials you need for the job, then this feature is for you.

Here is how it works: Click on the Notes App on your iPhone.

Create a new note by clicking the pen and paper icon in the lower right-hand corner.

Click on the circle icon with the checkmark inside to create your first task.

Once you press enter, a new check box will come up.

You can assign tasks to specific people by entering their name and then entering their tasks below them. You can also organize it by swiping right on the tasks to organize it better.

Finally, hit the ellipses at the top, and you can share the task list with your contacts, and all see once a task is completed in real-time.

C C N T O O L B OX D E C E M B E R 2 0 2 0

I 9

CCN LIVE-STREAM EVENT CCN LIVE-STREAM EVENT CCN LIVE-STREAM EVENT

PRODUCTION MASTERY PROGRAM DECEMBER 8-9, 2020 10:30am-5pm

ADMIN ROUNDTABLE DECEMBER 9, 2020 10:30am-1:30pm

SALES MASTERY PROGRAM DECEMBER 15-17, 2020 10:30am-5pm

BRANDING YOUR BUSINESS JANUARY 7, 2021 10:30am-5pm

For a full schedule of 2021 events & more details visit contractors.net