Category Archives: COVID-19

Effective Ways to Manage Employees in a Remote Environment: Workforce Automation

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There’s no doubt about it: our workplaces are going to look very different post-COVID-19. This might mean keeping some of your team remote indefinitely, changing the layout of your offices, or switching up your workflow to fall in line with health and safety guidelines. We can’t force things back to how they were but we can focus on setting you and your employees up for success in the “new normal”. 

A few weeks ago, we gave a webinar on “Effective Ways to Manage Employees in a Remote Environment” in which we shared how companies can streamline their HR processes and maintain company culture.  We’re excited to bring you the webinar in four parts: Workforce Automation, the New HR, Benefit Package and Company Culture. 

Part 1: Workforce Automation

According to Capterra, 91% of professionals who work at small and medium sized businesses say workforce automation software is crucial, but almost 58% of them are not using it. That’s a huge gap. In our post-COVID-19 new normal, we believe more teams will adopt work from home policies which will make automated HR management software even more necessary. 

The Danger 

What’s the danger of not having a workforce automation system? Companies have done it the old-fashioned way with paper for over 50 years. What’s the fuss? 

The reality is too many things can fall through the cracks. The fact is, relying on paper processes when you have a remote team becomes inefficient very quickly. A simple paid time off (PTO) request can mean piles of paperwork, redundant requests, and scrambling to calculate accrued balances—all leaving opportunities for potential oversight. With the technology available today, it’s a no-brainer to make the switch to an automated workforce system. With an automated system in place, your employees can submit a paperless request via their self-service portal, their time gets deducted, and it automatically updates in payroll. 

How to Avoid 

Help your employees help you by giving them self-service logins that allow them to access and edit their information. There’s a dual-sided benefit: if employees are able to make edits to their W4, change their address, view and sign items, submit PTO requests, and enroll in benefit plans, then they’ll feel empowered AND it will relieve the stress of managing manual processes.

The Opportunity 

In addition to making things run more smoothly, there’s also an opportunity to eliminate potential lawsuits. Instead of worrying that employees can cite “you never told me”, you can keep track of everything in one database. This ensures nothing gets lost in the mix. Integrating employee lifecycle events into one system means that events are readily accessible at all times.

CorpStrat Tip:

We’ve seen many employers embrace workforce automation, but only in part. The market is filled with systems that offer piecemeal solutions: some just do new employee on-boarding, others only do benefit enrollment. Adopting separate services that don’t work together creates more manual work for your team.

We think employers should focus on making sure to streamline all employee lifecycle events into a single database that connects payroll and employee benefits into one system and has a powerful mobile application.

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Interested in streamlining your workforce automation? Schedule a call with a CorpStrat agent: info@www.corpstrat.com

PPP Reform Bill Features Extended Forgiveness & Updated Guidelines

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(UPDATE as of July 4th 2020: On Saturday, July 4th, President Trump signed an extension of the small business loan Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) into law, according to the White House. PPP will now remain open to applications through August 8th.)

Many business owners who have received their PPP loan are struggling to ensure all their spending falls within the right parameters in order to receive forgiveness. Last week we broke down those strict guidelines and answered some of your most pressing questions. This week, we have some great news for business owners: the Paycheck Protection Program reform bill was signed into law. This means small business owners will gain more flexibility and time to use their PPP loan money. Read on for all the notable changes you need to know about the PPP reform bill and what it means for your loan forgiveness. 

Forgiveness Period Has Been Extended

Originally, the PPP loan allowed for 8 weeks to use the allocated funds in order to receive forgiveness, this is now being extended to 24 weeks OR until the end of the year (12/31/2020), whichever is sooner.

New borrowers now have five years to repay the loan instead of two. Existing PPP loans can be extended up to 5 years if the lender and borrower agree. The interest rate will remain at 1%. The bill allows businesses that took a PPP loan to also delay payment of their payroll taxes, which was prohibited under the CARES Act.

Payroll Cost Requirement Has Been Reduced

The previous requirement of using 75% of the PPP loan towards payroll costs has now been reduced to 60%. This means that if you received a $100,000 loan, you now only have to use $60,000 towards payroll costs, freeing up more funds to allocate towards eligible non-payroll costs such as rent and utility payments.

One important note: Previously, payroll cost forgiveness was based on a sliding scale, it is now a cliff. Before, if you spent less than 75% of your loan on payroll costs, it would just reduce your eligible forgiveness amount. Now, if you spend less than 60% of your loan on payroll costs, none of the loan will be forgiven.

More Time to Restore Workforce

Once small business owners received the PPP loan, they had to use it to restore 90% of their workforce. This means that if you had 10 Full-time Equivalents (FTE), you had to hire back 9 of your employees back. Under the this reform bill, employers now have until the end of the year (12/31/2020) to restore their workforce to pre-pandemic levels.

Previous guidance excused employers from bringing back workers if they can document that they were unable to rehire. For example, if an employer extended a good faith offer to a previous employee and that employee rejected the offer to return, the employer could provide documentation that this exchange occurred and be excused from bringing back the worker. The exemptions under the new bill allow borrowers to adjust if they 1.) could not find qualified employees or 2.) were unable to restore business operations to pre-pandemic levels (employment levels before Feb. 15, 2020) due to COVID-19 related operating restrictions.

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Our shareable graphic rounds-up all the notable changes to the PPP Loan. Feel free to share and tag us on Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

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We’ll keep you posted as more updates arise. If you have any additional questions, please email us at marketing@www.corpstrat.com.

Confused About Your PPP Loan? We’ve Got Answers For You

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(UPDATE as of July 4th 2020: On Saturday, July 4th, President Trump signed an extension of the small business loan Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) into law, according to the White House. PPP will now remain open to applications through August 8th.)

Update: As of June 4th, 2020, the House-passed Payment Protection Program reform bill was approved by the Senate. The PPP Loan forgiveness parameters have changed, please see all updates at our new blog post.

So you just received your PPP loan and you still have a lot of questions. You’re not alone. It’s a new program and the Small Business Administration (SBA) is still releasing new guidelines. The most pressing question we’re hearing from employers who’ve received the loan is: How do I receive forgiveness on my PPP loan? Read on as we answer this and more FAQs you have about PPP loans. 

What is the PPP Loan? 

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, or CARES Act, was enacted to provide immediate assistance to individuals, families, and businesses affected by the COVID-19 emergency. Under the CARES act, the SBA was able to temporarily guarantee loans under a new program called the “Payment Protection Program” (PPP). PPP loans are designed to help small businesses, independent contractors and self-employed persons keep their workforce employed during the economic hardship many are experiencing due to COVID-19. Loans guaranteed under the PPP loan will be 100 percent guaranteed by SBA, and the full principal amount of the loans may qualify for loan forgiveness. 

What expenses are forgivable with my PPP loan?

In order to receive PPP loan forgiveness, you need to use the loan for eligible expenses. It is required that at least 75% of your PPP loan is used to cover payroll costs. The remaining 25% can go towards specified non-payroll costs that are essential to running a business. (Updated forgiveness parameters as of June 4th, 2020. See our new blog post.)

Speaking of forgiveness, is the PPP loan all or nothing?

No. Whatever portion is not forgiven can be retained and repaid over a 24 month period at just 1% interest. (Updated forgiveness parameters as of June 4th, 2020. See our new blog post.)

If I laid off employees – do I have to hire them back?

No. But, the loan forgiveness amount will be reduced if the business has reduced its number of full-time equivalent (FTE) employees or has reduced the salary or wages of certain employees based on the following formulas:

Formula for reduction in FTE employees:

What percentage of the loan has to be used towards payroll?

Not more than 25 percent of the loan forgiveness amount can be used towards non-payroll costs (i.e.,mortgage interest, rent and utilities). Additionally, proceeds from any advance up to $10,000 on an Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) will be deducted from the loan forgiveness amount. (Updated forgiveness parameters as of June 4th, 2020. See our new blog post.)

When does my eight-week period start?

The covered period begins on the date the lender makes the first disbursement of the loan, this means it begins the first day a loan payment is sent out. 

After 8 weeks I can’t afford to keep my employees – what do I do?

Once the 8 weeks is up, continue running your business as you would otherwise do so. Even though it’s a difficult step, moving forward with furloughing or termination if necessary will allow your employees to sign up for state and federal resources. Note that any change in employment status requires paying out any PTO or unused leave. (Updated forgiveness parameters as of June 4th, 2020. See our new blog post.)

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We understand that these are confusing and uncertain times. That’s why we’re always here to help, contact your CorpStrat rep with questions, anytime! Call us toll free at (800) 914-3564 or email us at info@www.corpstrat.com.

Learning with CorpStrat: Free Courses for Clients

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We understand there are many businesses struggling during this very challenging time.

With most people working remotely now, it is easy for employees to feel disconnected from the rest of their team, having to manage stress and learn to adapt each day. While we have also been adjusting to remote work, some have also been juggling their other jobs as parents, teachers, & employees.

As part of our 21st Century HR Solution that uses technology to simplify and streamline HR procedures, we are offering CorpStrat Learning: a platform for employees to come together to connect and collaborate, which allows companies to assign, track, and educate their staff and managers on a host of subjects.

Our CorpStrat Learning tool is for clients to empower employees during these times when everything can start to feel rather bleak.

Here are the 5 courses we have identified as the most purposeful and helpful during this time:

  1. Coronavirus Preparedness for Managers and Employees
    This course informs managers and employees of simple steps they can take to stay healthy and prevent the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). (Recommended for: Managers and Employees)
  2. Crisis Management and Emergency Response Planning
    This course teaches managers how to safeguard their employees and the reputation of their organization with advance planning and swift, effective actions during a crisis or emergency situation. (Recommended for: Managers)
  3. Handling Stress
    In this course, managers and their team will learn effective techniques to learn how to best manage their stress levels, allowing them to not only improve their overall sense of well-being but also to work more productively. (Recommended for: Managers and Staff)
  4. Working Remotely
    Whether your business has always been remote, or this is the new normal for you given the circumstances around COVID-19, our “Working Remotely” course offers managers and their team strategies on how to be an effective, remote employee. (Recommended for: Managers and Staff)
  5. Managing Remote Teams
    As we touched on earlier when it comes to working remotely, feeling connected and touching base frequently is important to keep your team productive and engaged. Not to be confused with our “Working Remotely” course, this course focuses on providing managers guidance on how to strengthen their team’s synergy during times of remote work. (Recommended for: Managers)

We know times are tough, so CorpStrat is proud to offer this platform for FREE to our existing agency clients. Contact us now to enroll and roll out these courses.

P.S. (If you have more “downtime” and want to get ahead of the compliance curve, CorpStrat also offers a full set of California compliance training courses. As a reminder, it is required by California law that employers of 5 or more employees are required to provide Sexual Harassment Prevention Training. Although the current stay-at-home order may give us all a sense of comfort with this issue, it is important to ensure this is completed before January 1, 2021.)

Ready to feel empowered to tackle working remotely?
Email us at Learning@CorpStrat.com to get started.

 

The Value of an HR System Amidst COVID-19

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With Los Angeles County extending the “Safer At Home” emergency order through May 15, 2020, employers and their employees have had no other option but to adjust and get comfortable working from home. Even furloughed employees need a way of interacting with the basic processes of HR.

While human resource teams are dealing with the changes in the workforce the last thing they need to worry about is how to properly relay all new information to their employees now that everyone is out of office. With that in mind, an HR system is critical to help keep businesses running smoothly and efficiently during these remote, unprecedented times.

Here are some ways employers with a robust process can make the best use of their HR system during COVID-19.

Ensure Contact Information is Current

With the news around Coronavirus changing day by day, it’s important to make sure your system contains all employees’ most current contact information should you have to make any company announcements. It is also good to have on hand now that everyone is working remotely and it can be harder to get an immediate response from an employee since you cannot physically stop by their desk to grab their attention.

Keep Employees Updated on Policy Changes

If there are any important policy changes and/or relevant COVID-19 news for your employees, it should be added accordingly to your HR system. Make sure your employees also know how to access this information themselves so they can easily locate any important documents they may need regarding taxes or pay statements.

Help to Keep Your Team Accountable and Engaged

Social distancing by working remotely can be an adjustment period for some, especially companies who are more “old school” and thrive on in-person connections. As employees are working from their homes, it can be harder to check-in with each other throughout the day as well as figuring out logistics that one may not have had to consider pre-Coronavirus. Utilizing an HR management system can alleviate these frustrations through various collaboration features to help rally your team to work on projects together and feel a little more “normal” even if it’s temporary.

Learning and Training

Seek and push out any and all ways that can help your team stay mentally fresh and positive. There are many companies offering training, continuing education, and advanced learning. Now is a great time for people to work on getting their credentials, enrolling in secondary learning classes, or completing state or federal required training.

How CorpStrat Can Help

With these challenges during COVID-19, employers have enough to worry about. CorpStrat’s cloud-based HR Management System will take the HR stress off your plate and transform your workplace administration. By being properly equipped with our streamlined process for HR management, this will help you overcome your COVID-19 HR obstacles by easily tracking your company’s HR needs including payroll, benefits, time off, and employee data – all through one tool.