Effective brainstorming, made easier

When was the last time your team or company had a successful brainstorming session? By “successful,” we don’t mean you were able to get side work done while everyone else tossed out a few ideas in hopes that they wouldn’t be loaded down with extra work. Did everyone leave the meeting encouraged and recharged or did they leave feeling like they wasted the last hour or two? Effective brainstorming sessions can help companies innovate. Ineffective brainstorming meetings can be time-wasters and drag down morale.

What’s the secret to brainstorming done right? For starters, don’t keep the brainstorming topic a secret before the meeting. If you want people to contribute ideas, give them time to prepare. Some people are great at coming up with ideas on the spot. But many people need time to process and think through options.

It’s vital to make sure your employees feel safe in the brainstorming sessions. How do other employees or even managers respond to the ideas presented? What happens to those who go against conventional thinking or who question the aspects that have “always been done that way?” Are they made to feel unhelpful or, worse, chastised?The reaction to ideas can have a huge impact on further employee suggestions.

And you might want to reconsider any rewards for those “best” ideas. A reward system may cause others to not even make suggestions if they know their ideas aren’t worthy of such high regard. Each idea contributes in some way to the session.

An idea is only an idea until it is implemented into your business’ practices. Don’t just ask for ideas but ask how they can be implemented and who will handle them. Don’t end the brainstorming session until employees are empowered and ready to implement a plan for further action.

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The liability risks of remote workers

For many of us, working remotely is the new norm, and studies show most employees love working at home at least part of the time.

Yet allowing employees to work at home can expose your company to risks that you don’t encounter when your workforce is physically located at your company’s facilities. At Accurate Protection, we specialize in working with companies to better manage ever-evolving risks. That’s why we wanted to share with you some great ways employers can better manage the liability risks of remote workers:

Create a telecommuting policy. Setting clear work-at-home guidelines and communicating them to employees can help prevent misunderstandings. Make it clear that you have the right to rescind their work-from-home privileges at any time and for any reason. Have all employees review and acknowledge your company’s telecommuting policy.

Re-evaluate your insurance coverage. Make sure your insurance program effectively addresses the unique risks of having some of your employees working remotely. (We can help with that.)

Make sure employees are using secure wi-fi. All of your employees should be using private and secured Wi-Fi networks while working remotely. Using an unsecured network — public wi-fi — can put your company’s private information at risk.

Make sure employees are using devices that are secure with up-to-date firewalls and anti-virus software. This applies to laptops, tablets, and smartphones. It’s your responsibility to keep your customer and client information safe.

Use secure virtual meeting rooms. Make sure that private conversations and presentations cannot be monitored by unauthorized third parties.

Make sure you’re complying with federal wage and hour rules. To avoid violations under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), employers should require non-exempt employees working from home to record the time they work each day and stick to the hours they should be working each day. Non-exempt employees are entitled to overtime pay whether they are working at your company’s facility or at home, so it’s important that employees know they must adhere to their normal working hours and that they are prohibited from working additional hours without your approval.

Make sure you’re classifying workers correctly for workers compensation insurance. When employees switch to working from home, some workers compensation insurers may want to change classification codes. As an employer, it’s important to know that you could be potentially be held liable if an employee is hurt on the job and employees may be eligible for workers’ compensation if they are hurt while working at home.

We’re here to help your company better manage its risks.

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