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Practice Areas

Supporting the creation of infrastructure, policies,
pay practices, training, and DEI initiatives.
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Practice Areas

Supporting the creation of infrastructure, policies, pay practices, training, and DEI initiatives.

Training & Coaching

Interactive training of employees should be viewed as an opportunity. Employers can demonstrate a commitment that their organization can be an even better place to work. Training is evidence of that commitment. Strong and positive messaging is an important first step. Let the employees know that training is not simply a “check the box” proposition. Instead, there is top-down support for the program.

Perception is critical with all of these training programs. One goal is to work with the employer to better understand the existing perception and to collaborate to create an effective program to address the existing and desired perception.

Sometimes, surveys can help with this process. DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC works with employers to create surveys that can be used in preparing programs and creating baselines.

Following are a range of topics that DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC trains on:

  • Harassment Prevention: This can be sexual harassment or any form of harassment.
  • Respectful Workplace: This training blends harassment prevention with goals that an employer has for a positive shift in culture.
  • Implicit Bias: Implicit or unconscious bias.
  • Leave Laws: This training helps employees better understand their rights when requesting leave or accommodations.
  • Recruiting and Hiring: These programs help prepare for interviews by identifying needs and concerns and crafting the best questions to ask. This can include a review on past hiring decisions and turnover in order to identify potential pitfalls.
  • Management Training on reports of harassment: This is an opportunity to make clear what is expected of managers and to help them prepare, in advance, for when issues arise. This includes training on what to do if an employee reports harassment or discrimination.
  • Management Training on requests for time off, leave, or an accommodation: This training covers the rights that the employer and employee have under leave and disability laws as well as what the employer expects of the manager.
  • Effective Manager Skills: Training on how to manage a team, issue performance evaluations, and handle discipline of employees.
  • Effective Communication for Managers: Training on how effective communication helps managers clearly communicate projects and expectations of team members and for team members to better interact with leaders. This eliminates missed opportunities and fosters a more collaborative work environment.
  • Whistleblower and Safety: This is an opportunity to make it clear that the employer wants to know if there is a concern, including safety concerns and product development. This training covers what is expected of employees if an employee knows or suspects that there is a problem.
  • Workplace Bullying: Training that would address any form of employee harassment or intimidation, regardless of the reason.

Philosophy

DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC collaborates with companies to identify best practices for training, leading, coaching, mentoring, crafting effective policies, investigating, and resolving issues. We audit, explore, probe, and collaborate with our clients to implement best practices.

Workplace Policies

Creating a viable employee handbook is something that employers should get excited about. This is an opportunity to articulate what is expected of each employee and what each employee can expect from the employer. The language must be drafted in such a way as to avoid ambiguity and the risk of mixed messages. This is also an ideal time to define an organization’s culture, mission, and goals.

Drafting gets tricky when employees work in multiple states. It is also challenging to craft language regarding topics such as appropriate behavior and interaction on social media. Handbooks should also address a remote workforce, which is something that was not anticipated by most companies heading into 2020. Do you have employees who are working remotely? Do you want to continue to allow employees to work from home? Will this help with employee retention? What impact does this have on morale?

A well-drafted employee handbook can be a valuable resource for employers and employees.

Recruitment & Job Descriptions

The first impression that an applicant has of an organization may come from receipt of a notice of an opening. This ranges from word of mouth to social media or even the use of a recruiter. This is an opportunity to put one’s best foot forward. This notice conveys much more than the description of an open position. At the same time, the job description needs to be carefully tailored to the position. There are legal and business ramifications when the description is either overreaching or misleading.

While it is a given that a candidate may try to sell in order to get the position, it is also true that hiring managers are also prone to trying to sell the business. In so doing, some hiring managers paint an inaccurate picture of what life is like in the organization. Moreover, some hiring managers overlook the importance of people skills. Left unchecked, this is also an instance in which implicit bias can impact hiring decisions.

Employee Classification & Pay Practices

Employers are responsible to properly pay employees for every hour worked. This broad statement should come as no surprise. Unfortunately, numerous cases are filed throughout the country on a regular basis. Cases include misclassification of employees as contractors, misclassification of employees as exempt, failure to pay overtime, failure to pay for all hours worked, and unequal pay.

DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC helps its clients ensure that employees are properly paid. In addition, DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC helps identify the cause and find viable solutions.

Audits

DGN Workplace Initiatives LLC conducts audits for employee classification. This includes audits to determine whether an employee is exempt and audits to determine whether a worker is properly classified as an independent contractor. Audits are also conducted of equal pay based upon gender or race.