Hagel and Company Human Resources Blog - California, Idaho, Washington State HR News

This impressive article regarding Halogen Software was recently released to the press.

Leading AIDS organization brings talent management to employees worldwide

Ottawa, ON —June 7, 2010 — The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation has selected Halogen Software talent management solutions to be used in its global operations. As a leader in the fight against pediatric AIDS, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation operates worldwide, with a primary focus on 12 countries in Africa. The Foundation is deploying Halogen solutions globally within these 12 country programs – to include even our most remote satellite offices. The organization is committed to ensuring that every employee, regardless of location, has clear goals and understands how their work supports the Foundation’s mission.

“With employees spread out worldwide, delivering HR and talent management programs can be a real challenge, but it is critically important that we’re able to engage employees and have them see a clear link between their daily efforts and our ongoing mission to eliminate HIV/AIDS,” said Chrissie Shea, Senior Human Resources Manager for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. “Halogen has been wonderful to work with as we have rolled out its software in Africa to numerous field offices.”

The Foundation’s global field offices have provided some unconventional settings for the use of advanced talent management software – for example, one of the field training sessions for rolling out the Halogen solution in Tabora, Tanzania, was conducted inside a tent. Despite these non-traditional enterprise locations, the organization’s HR team recognized the importance of a simple, unified solution to drive performance management consistency and goal alignment.

The Foundation selected Halogen following a competitive RFP process, in which Halogen proved its ease of use and flexibility.  “Ultimately, the solution we chose had to be flexible to adapt to the needs of individual countries, including culture and language. With Halogen, this need was readily addressed, and we have already deployed in English, French, and Portuguese,” explained Shea. “We’re looking forward to seeing the results that come from this powerful link between action and outcomes for our employees and the impact on our organization as a whole.”

 For more information on the Foundation’s work in the global fight against pediatric HIV/AIDS, visit its web site.

 About Halogen Software

Halogen Software is recognized as a market leader by industry analysts and is strongly endorsed by the thousands of HR professionals who use their talent management solutions. The company offers a complete suite of web-based products that automate, simplify and integrate performance appraisals, 360 degree feedback, compensation management, succession planning and learning management. Halogen’s offering makes HR best-practices accessible to companies of all sizes and its healthcare, financial services, professional services, manufacturing, public sector and education specific suites meet the unique needs of these industries. Halogen is consistently recognized by the industry and its customers for its exceptional implementation and support services. Halogen was named a leader in Gartner’s Magic Quadrant for employee performance management software in 2009 and has won multiple awards for its corporate leadership and product innovation, including HR Technology Product of the Year. For more information, visit www.halogensoftware.com.

 About the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation

The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is a global leader in the fight against pediatric HIV and AIDS, working in 17 countries to implement prevention, care, and treatment; further innovative research; and execute global advocacy activities to bring dramatic change to the lives of millions of children, women, and families worldwide. For more information, visit www.pedaids.org.

 If you have any questions regarding Halogen Software, please let us know at info@hagel.net.

Hagel & Company’s 2010 Sage Abra Users Conference

Friday, July 23rd at Safeco Field, Seattle

Below is our agenda for Hagel & Company’s 2010 Sage Abra Users Conference in the Pacific Northwest and it promises to be a great conference. Again this year we will offer pre-conference classes in the morning, an afternoon of conference sessions and an evening of Major League Baseball. This year’s game is Seattle Mariners vs. Boston Red Sox (it will be a sell out – so register early). Join us for the entire day or portion- it’s up to you!

As always, we try to keep the cost to our attendees as low as possible and we offer discounts for additional attendees from the same organization – for this conference the costs are as follows:

• Pre-Conference Classes (8:30 AM – 11:30 AM)- $199.00

Room A – Quarter End in Sage Abra Payroll

Room B – Benefits Plans & Planning for Sage Abra Human Resources

• Full Conference – Afternoon Sessions/Q&A/Dinner/Game

1st Attendee – $90

Additional Attendees – $80

• Half Day Conference – Afternoon Sessions Only (Noon – 5 PM)

First Attendee – $50

Additional Attendees – $40

Here’s the link to our registration site:

http://www.hagel.net/abra-user-group.asp

 Schedule & Topics Information

• 12:30 PM – 1:00 PM – Check-In at Registration
• 1:00 PM – 1:30 PM – Welcome -General Session
•  Session #1 – 1:45 PM – 2:45 PM:

Room A – Payroll Balancing & Reconciliation in Sage Abra Payroll

Room B – Talent Management – Aligning Your Workforce

• Session #2 – 3:00 PM – 3:45 PM:

Room A – Sage Abra Endorsed Products

Room B – Sage Abra New User Interface

• Session # 3 – 4:00 PM – 4:45 PM:

Room A – 2010 Employment Law Update: Staying Current in an Era of Change

Room B – Introducing the New AWC View Builder

•  5:00 PM – 6:00 PM: Extra Time to Explore Safeco Field if Staying for Game
•  6:00 PM – 7:00 PM: Dinner Served in Group Suites and Q&A with Hagel Staff
•  7:10 PM – 10:00 PM (approx.): Seattle Mariners vs. Boston Red Sox

We hope you will attend!

Hagel & Company

If you have any questions about the conference please contact Kelly Jo Drllevich at Kellyjo@hagel.net or (866) 248-7755 ext. 305.

Employee Self Service Q&A

During a time in which many companies are tightening their belts, Abra ESS is one way to save you both time and money. 

How can it help me?  The software allows employees, managers, and administrators to manage personal and company information efficiently.

Employees – Abra ESS allows employees to view and request time off, access current benefits and dependents, print pay stubs, and view job requisitions and training history anytime, anyplace via the Internet or an intranet. Abra ESS automates activities such as time-off requests and W-4 form changes, and saves you considerable administrative time and expense associated with paper forms and manual processes.

Access Personal Information
Employees can access personal data including skills, events, current job, employment history, and performance reviews. With employee self service, they can update fields such as personal information, emergency contacts, education, and medical conditions.

Time-Off Management
Manage time off with access to time-off balances, attendance plans, and absence transactions. Employees can request time off and edit or delete time off requests.

Benefits Information
Employees view personal benefits information, including dependents, insurance benefits, savings benefits, beneficiaries, employee premium costs, and employer contribution costs.

Payroll Information
Employees access payroll information, including paycheck details, pay history, payroll deductions, tax withholdings [W-4], and W-2. They can view and print pay stubs, and authorize W-4 form changes with digital signatures.

Manager Features
Managers can view personnel and job information of their direct reports, view and post notes, access birthday lists and attendance, and review and approve time-off requests.

Supervisor Features
Allow supervisors to view and approve time-off requests without viewing other sensitive employee information.

System Workflow
Automate business processes with flexible workflow features. These include optional, separate HR, Payroll, Training, and Benefits administrators, the ability for managers to delegate approval rights, notifications via Abra ESS and e-mail, and flexible approval and notification assignment settings.

Security
Protect sensitive employee data using password protection, SQL server database security, and an encrypted Sage Abra HRMS database. Abra ESS supports 128-bit SSL encryption to protect data transmitted over the Internet.

Customization
Tailor the employee self service system to suit your needs with customization tools. Create a central portal for your employees to access important company information.

Integration with Sage Abra
Automatically update changes to the Sage Abra database that are submitted and approved by the appropriate administrator.

Ask us about special pricing!

Now through April 30^th, 2010, you can receive huge discounts on Abra ESS which will improve your efficiency and productivity through employee and manager self-service portals!  

The upcoming release of Sage Abra v9.0 will deliver many important features, including View Builder for Abra ESS. You have an opportunity to add Abra ESS before the release of Sage Abra v9.0 and take advantage of substantial prerelease savings.

View Builder is an exciting information-sharing functionality that will enable executives, managers, and HR staff to securely access on-demand information about the workforce that is tailored to each user’s specific data needs.

Until April 30, 2010, you can add Abra ESS to your current system at incredibly reduced prices.  Please contact us at sales@hagel.net or 253-572-2439 for more information.

March 19, 2010

Sage Abra response to the new HIRE Act-Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment

President Barack Obama this week signed into law the $17.5 billion Hiring Incentives to Restore Employment (HIRE) Act which encourages companies to hire unemployed workers by exempting certain wages from Social Security taxes and by providing employers with a tax credit if new hires are retained for at least 52 consecutive weeks. This legislation impacts companies of all sizes.

Specifically, an employer would be exempt from paying its share of 2010 Social Security taxes on any new hire who has been without full-time employment for at least 60 days. The maximum tax break an employer could gain per employee under this provision would be $6,621, or 6.2 percent of total wages paid in 2010 up to the $106,800 FICA wage cap.

Sage is acting swiftly and is fully committed to helping our Sage Abra clients navigate these changes. We are currently working on implementing changes to our product offerings to help organizations comply with the HIRE Act and will reflect the legislative changes in an upcoming release.

The HIRE Act offers an opportunity to demonstrate our leadership and commitment to our customers. You will receive more specifics on the schedule and changes to the software within the next coming weeks.

Synopsis of the portion of the legislation impacting the payroll:

Social Security tax exemption

The Federal Insurance Contributions Act (FICA) imposes two taxes on employers, employees, and self-employed workers—one for Old Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance (OASDI, commonly known as the Social Security tax), and the other for Hospital Insurance (HI, commonly known as the Medicare tax). The FICA tax rate for employees and employers is 7.65% each—6.2% for OASDI and 1.45% for HI. There is a maximum amount of compensation subject to the OASDI tax (i.e., $106,800 in 2010), but no maximum for HI.

The HIRE Act provides certain employers with relief from their share of the OASDI taxes on wages paid to a “qualified individual.” A qualified individual is anyone who:

1. begins work for a qualified employer after Feb. 3, 2010 and before Jan. 1, 2011;
2. certifies by signed affidavit (under penalties of perjury) that he was employed for a total of 40 hours or less during the 60-day period ending on the date the employment begins;
3. is not employed to replace another employee of the employer unless that former employee separated from employment voluntarily, or for cause; and
4. is not related to the employer (under rules similar to those in IRC §51(i).

The exemption would be available to any employer, other than a federal, state, or local employer (or government instrumentality). However, an employer that is a public higher education institution could claim the exemption. An employer could elect not to receive this payroll tax benefit.

The bill also provides a similar payroll tax benefit to railroad employers.

It is expected that the Social Security tax exemption would be reported on Form 941, Employer’s Quarterly Federal Tax Return. The first quarter return (January 1 to March 31, 2010) must be filed by April 30, 2010. However, the bill does not allow the Social Security tax exemption to be claimed with respect to wages paid in the first quarter of 2010. The tax benefit that employers would have received in the first quarter of 2010 will be claimed in the second quarter of 2010 instead.

An IRS representative has stated that the IRS will be ready to make changes to Form 941 shortly after the bill is enacted.

The legislation calls for the employer Social Security tax exemption for qualified employers, as applicable, for wages paid to the qualified individual during the period beginning on the day after the date of the enactment and ending on December 31, 2010.

~  You’re Invited  ~

to attend the Hagel & Company

Annual User Group Conference

Friday, July 23, 2010, at Safeco Field in Seattle

Network with fellow Sage Abra users, attend seminars, and receive valuable information.

Following the conference join us to watch the Seattle Mariners play the Boston Red Sox!

Register Today!

Need Training?  Click here

~ Cartoon used with permission

I found this on www.ahajokes.com and thought everyone might enjoy a little humor today.

Changed HR Policies

Casual Fridays:

Week 1 – Memo No. 1

Effective this week, the company is adopting Fridays as Casual Day. Employees are free to dress in the casual attire of their choice.

Week 3 – Memo No. 2

Spandex and leather micro-miniskirts are not appropriate attire for Casual Day. Neither are string ties, rodeo belt buckles or moccasins.

Week 6 – Memo No. 3

Casual Day refers to dress only, not attitude. When planning Friday’s wardrobe, remember image is a key to our success.

Week 8 – Memo No. 4

A seminar on how to dress for Casual Day will be held at 4 p.m. Friday in the cafeteria. A fashion show will follow. Attendance is mandatory.

Week 9 – Memo No. 5

As an outgrowth of Friday’s seminar, a 14-member Casual Day Task Force has been appointed to prepare guidelines for proper casual-day dress.

Week 14 – Memo No. 6

The Casual Day Task Force has now completed a 30-page manual entitled “Relaxing Dress Without Relaxing Company Standards.” A copy has been distributed to every employee. Please review the chapter “You Are What You Wear” and consult the “home casual” versus “business casual” checklist before leaving for work each Friday. If you have doubts about the appropriateness of an item of clothing, contact your CDTF representative before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Week 18 – Memo No. 7

Our Employee Assistant Plan (EAP) has now been expanded to provide support for psychological counseling for employees who may be having difficulty adjusting to Casual Day.

Week 20 – Memo No. 8

Due to budget cuts in the HR Department we are no longer able to effectively support or manage Casual Day. Casual Day will be discontinued, effective immediately.

Have a wonderful day!

Frank Hagel has been elected chair of the 9 member Sage Software Employer Solutions Business Partner Advisory Council for 2009-2010. The ES Group publishes Sage Abra HRMS, including HR, payroll, training management and recruiting software.

Johnny Laurent, Vice President and General Manager of the Employer Solutions Group said, “The council was established to provide a vital communication link between Sage and the Employer Solutions Business Partner channel. It will advise Sage management on matters impacting and of mutual interest and concern to the client community and the Business Partner channel within the North American market. The ES BPAC addresses issues dealing with sales effectiveness, product issues and needs, market conditions and the competitive landscape surrounding the business.”

Congratulations Frank!