Joining the show this week is a retirement processional with over 20 years of experience who helps people save for their futures. Please welcome to the show, Director of Plan Design Consulting at Vestwell, Kevin Gaston.

Kevin joins Host Mike Vannoy to dive into the benefits and effects of Secure Act 2.0. Kevin shares the different types of tax credits available to employers, the way to use vesting periods to your advantage, and why benefits are better for retention than pure salary alone.

Takeaways:

• Secure 2.0 modernizes retirement rules by making it easier for individuals to save by encouraging employers to implement 401k plans and offer matching contributions through tax credits.
• To maximize startup credits under Secure 2.0, ensure your company benefits from the increased credit of 100% of costs for companies with fewer than 50 employees and consider making contributions to employee accounts.
• For qualifying businesses, Secure 2.0 offers a credit for qualifying employer contributions. The first two years are matched at 100% through credits, the 3rd year is 75% match, the 4th is 50%, and the 5th is 25% before expiring.
• The primary concern for small businesses regarding automatic enrollment in a 401k is the potential for employee backlash. To avoid this, small business owners should proactively communicate any changes to payroll.
• To enhance employee satisfaction, shorten vesting periods to one to two years and consider offering end-of-year bonuses for immediate incentives. Streamlining these benefits can make them more appealing and ensure employees value them more highly.
• Employees with student loan debt can benefit from student loan matching, where repayments are counted as retirement plan contributions for matching purposes. This allows individuals to build their retirement savings while still making loan payments.

Quote of the Show:

• “Benefits on a dollar basis buy more goodwill than dollars do.” - Kevin Gaston

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevingaston/
• Company Website: https://www.vestwell.com/

Ways to Tune In:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2XThTdn7YC1lkAm0PgZUkj
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent/id1725890976
• Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/328dddd0-3c4f-4b07-a0d3-13bdcb418486/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent?refMarker=null
• Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Mission-to-Grow-A-Small-Business-Guide-to-Cash-Compliance-and-the-War-for-Talent-Podcast/B0CS71KQFM?qid=1706208857&sr=1-1&ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=83218cca-c308-412f-bfcf-90198b687a2f&pf_rd_r=A1ME8MBECSVZ6K4D7CNT&pageLoadId=QBtg12mqKsuZPLGY&creativeId=0d6f6720-f41c-457e-a42b-8c8dceb62f2c
• Podchaser: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/mission-to-grow-a-small-busine-5591006

In this episode, we welcome Mary Simmons to discuss the latest developments in workplace violence prevention laws in California. Mary and Mike sit down to discuss the impacts of the law, and how businesses can best prepare. Mary gives advice on how employers should best construct their plans, the need to get feedback from employees, and the risks employers face by not complying with the new law.

Takeaways:

• To ensure effective employee engagement and adherence to safety policies, it's crucial to encourage staff to provide suggestions and feedback during the creation and review of these policies.
• Your policy should clearly outline actions to take when individuals feel threatened, regardless of whether the threat is explicit, or more subjective. Emphasize the necessity of having a predefined plan to address these situations as required by law.
• It's crucial to ensure employees know they can provide feedback and find the policy easily. Additionally, thorough training and clear communication channels will help facilitate questions, comments, and suggestions about the plan.
• Ensure transparency by providing feedback on suggestions, explaining why they were or were not implemented. This fosters trust and acknowledges the importance of each contribution.
• Given the urgency and the need for interaction, live virtual training is the most effective approach. While e-training is an option, it lacks the real-time feedback and interaction that in-person or live virtual sessions can provide.
• Employers need to maintain a comprehensive log of all workplace violence incidents, including detailed information without personal names in order to stay compliant with California OSHA.
• When preparing workplace policies, ensure they are documented, easily accessible to all employees, and kept for a minimum of five years to comply with California’s legal requirements.

Quote of the Show:

• “You don't want employees to be scared to bring a concern forward because then you're going to hear about it too late.” - Mary Simmons

Links:

• CAL OSHA doc: https://www.dir.ca.gov/dosh/dosh_publications/WPV-General-Industry-for-employers-fs.pdf
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marysimmonshrconsultant/
• Company Website: https://www.asuresoftware.com/

Ways to Tune In:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2XThTdn7YC1lkAm0PgZUkj
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent/id1725890976
• Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/328dddd0-3c4f-4b07-a0d3-13bdcb418486/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent?refMarker=null
• Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Mission-to-Grow-A-Small-Business-Guide-to-Cash-Compliance-and-the-War-for-Talent-Podcast/B0CS71KQFM?qid=1706208857&sr=1-1&ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=83218cca-c308-412f-bfcf-90198b687a2f&pf_rd_r=A1ME8MBECSVZ6K4D7CNT&pageLoadId=QBtg12mqKsuZPLGY&creativeId=0d6f6720-f41c-457e-a42b-8c8dceb62f2c
• Podchaser: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/mission-to-grow-a-small-busine-5591006

On this episode of Mission To Grow, we’re featuring a presentation delivered by Mike Vannoy at the 32nd SHRM Long Island annual conference. The presentation dives into the transformative impact of AI on the HR landscape and how HR professionals can adapt. Key topics include the intersection of AI and revenue growth, labor supply shifts, evolving HR laws, and the rapid technological advancements reshaping HR. The episode also addresses the profound demographic changes affecting the workforce and provides actionable insights on how HR can strategically align with revenue growth amidst these tectonic shifts

Takeaways:

• HR professionals need to look beyond immediate crises like politics and economic bubbles; the true driving forces are deeper shifts in labor supply, HR laws, and technology.
• Employees now hold more power and are making choices based on workplace flexibility and policies. Employers must adapt by offering competitive leave policies and remote work options to attract and retain talent.
• The rapid adoption of modern technology, like ChatGPT's meteoric rise to a hundred million users in just two months, underscores the need for businesses to stay vigilant. Companies must be ready for technological disruptions to avoid being caught off guard.
• HR professionals need to embrace AI technology to free up time from administrative compliance tasks for more strategic initiatives. By doing so, they can significantly enhance employee cultures and talent development.
• HR best practices strongly correlate with revenue growth, and HR must align itself with revenue generation to gain a respected seat at the senior table. Focusing purely on compliance will keep HR as a necessary but not strategically critical part of the business.
• Incorporating HR best practices significantly correlates with business growth, even if the practices are not perfectly executed. The key is that these practices indicate to employees the intent to improve and value their contribution.

Quote of the Show:

• “Technology is going to change HR. It just is. And so you can get run over by it, or you can embrace it and lean into it and use it.” - Mike Vannoy

Links:

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikevannoy/
• Company Website: https://www.asuresoftware.com/

Ways to Tune In:

• Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/2XThTdn7YC1lkAm0PgZUkj
• Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent/id1725890976
• Amazon Music: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/328dddd0-3c4f-4b07-a0d3-13bdcb418486/mission-to-grow-a-small-business-guide-to-cash-compliance-and-the-war-for-talent?refMarker=null
• Audible: https://www.audible.com/pd/Mission-to-Grow-A-Small-Business-Guide-to-Cash-Compliance-and-the-War-for-Talent-Podcast/B0CS71KQFM?qid=1706208857&sr=1-1&ref_pageloadid=not_applicable&ref=a_search_c3_lProduct_1_1&pf_rd_p=83218cca-c308-412f-bfcf-90198b687a2f&pf_rd_r=A1ME8MBECSVZ6K4D7CNT&pageLoadId=QBtg12mqKsuZPLGY&creativeId=0d6f6720-f41c-457e-a42b-8c8dceb62f2c
• Podchaser: https://www.podchaser.com/podcasts/mission-to-grow-a-small-busine-5591006