Your employee handbook doesn’t have to be boring!
Written by HRuprise founder, Rebecca Weaver.
As an HR leader, I used to think company policies were the most boring part of the job. In fact, when I launched HRuprise I vowed not to let it become just another HR consulting firm that writes employee handbooks.
I. WAS. WRONG.
Over the past four years with HRuprise, more than anything, I have strived to blow up all our assumptions about traditional HR.
Employee policies are the bedrock of your company culture. And it’s possible to blow up your approach to boring company policies just like everything else.
With each assumption we’ve blown up at HRuprise – the assumption that harassment is an individual problem not a systemic one, or the assumption that HR should always report to the boss rather than the employees – I have gotten closer to the greatest assumption of them all: the idea that company policies have to be dull, toothless, and legalistic.
I mean, it’s a justifiable assumption. Employee handbooks have been around forever, but have been shockingly ineffective at actually preventing workplace abuses.
Think about it: every workplace #MeToo complaint occurred in a company with an employee handbook. Clearly, the status quo for company policies does very little to actually protect employees.
Why would I want to spend a single minute of my time as an HR disruptor trying to fix something that is irreparably broken?
Well, because every HRuprise initiative in the last three years has ultimately centered around building more inclusive, equitable, radically human company policies.
And the focal point where company policies are articulated is…you guessed it…the employee fuckin’ handbook.
The employee handbook is the linchpin of our effort to flip HR on its head. It is foundational to building a workplace that puts your people first.
And so, I’m proud and thrilled to announce the launch of HRuprise’s newest initiative: Company Builders!
This 10-part self-guided course is geared towards leaders of small to mid-sized companies who don’t yet have their own HR departments.
It’s not just a DIY course on how to write a handbook – although yes, that’s part of it, and one of the key deliverables upon completion of the course.
But Company Builders will use the employee handbook process to guide you through the deep personal and collective work of building a radically human workplace.
To have a great handbook, you have to have great policies. Policies are the structures and procedures by which you live out your company values on a day-to-day basis. They are a concrete way of putting your money where your mouth is, as a boss and as an organization.
Company Builders will help you build a culture of meaningful equity and inclusion, not just write a handbook that makes it seem like you do.
Company Builders is the culmination of everything HRuprise has done so far.
It’s an answer to individual employees who want to work in environments that respect them as people and provide meaningful protections for their wellbeing and safety.
And it’s an answer to companies who know their cultures need to change, but aren’t sure where to start.
Back when I worked in corporate HR, I coached my HR teams to be a swim coach, not a lifeguard. It’s a lesson that applies to leaders of small & growing companies too, especially those that don’t yet have a designated HR person.
Traditional leadership functions like a lifeguard. It’s up above the pool, comfy and removed, observing the whole system from afar. You don’t hear a peep from them until something goes wrong – then they blow the whistle and interrupt the flow of everybody’s swim time in order to correct something. Their presence is a disruption, not a support.
But Company Builders will teach leaders, particularly those who run businesses without HR departments, how to get into the water with their employees. How to stay next to them, teaching the strokes, helping them improve, giving feedback and encouragement.
Company Builders will address deep leadership questions like:
How can we run businesses in a way that feels truly supportive?
How can we “swim” alongside our employees?
How can we communicate to our employees what’s most important to us, the values we hold most dear?
How can we help employees trust us so they tell us when damaging things are happening on our watch?
How can we live up to our own expectations, and put structures in place that hold us accountable alongside our teams?
The framework for these questions should be laid out in the employee handbook. Your company policies set the tone for the whole workplace, and establish the standard of behavior that employees can expect from you and each other.
Your employee handbook shouldn’t be weapons-grade boring.
It shouldn’t be something to be skimmed on the first day of work and forgotten.
It should be exciting and empowering, filled with clear expectations and the policies to back them up.
To help show the world what I mean, this week I’ve been sharing my 10 Days/10 Ways to a Radically Human Workplace with the Company Builders waitlist.
Every day since last Sunday, I’ve sent out an email with a sneak peek into the Company Builders content, on topics ranging from harassment prevention to PTO to workplace romances.
If you haven’t already, I invite you to join the Company Builders waitlist to receive the remaining 10 Days/10 Ways emails, along with a link to the emails you may have missed.
It’s a great opportunity to learn about HRuprise’s audacious new approach to company policies, and determine if it might be right for you and your business.
Together we can build a more radically human company culture!
In solidarity,
RW
ABOUT THE AUTHOR: REBECCA WEAVER
Rebecca Weaver is the Founder and CEO of HRuprise, a marketplace that connects people with HR coaches to help them grow, develop, and navigate their toughest workplace challenges. LEARN MORE
