How does your organization help new employees transition into the organization?

Even in smaller associations, it’s crucial to welcome the new staffer well and have a smooth onboarding process.

Some tips:

• After an offer has been accepted, send the new employee reading materials such as the marketing plan, membership programs or anything else pertinent
• Additionally, include a FAQ on the organization in the welcome e-mail so you can eliminate some common questions and let the new hire start off on the right foot
• If possible, include a “who’s who” area on your organization’s internal website with names, photos and titles. (This is especially important if the organization is a bit larger.)
• Send out a welcome e-mail to the entire organization, and include some background information on the new employee. Highlight his or her’s past work accomplishments.
• Host a welcome breakfast or lunch with the new employee.
• Have an employee handbook — either online or offline. Keep in mind that an online version will be easier to update and change.
• Provide a list of people to meet with within the organization, as well as key members and volunteers
• Provide technical training for whatever technology your organization utilizes
• Be clear about objectives — especially during the first week — and review them periodically. The first three or four months at a new job are all about finding your footing and making sure priorities are clear.

I think it’s important to not make a new employee’s first day all about paperwork. Encourage them to start developing relationships with colleagues and learn more about the organization, including cultural practices. If your organization engages in Casual Fridays, be sure to tell the new guy before he shows up in a suit. Invite them to social outings. There’s much more to working than just knowing how the office functions and where the printer is.

How does your organization welcome new employees?

It’s been dominating headlines for weeks, but how informed are you about how health care reform will affect you and your organization?

Today, I wanted to examine how the now-signed health care reform bill will affect nonprofits. Specifically, I want to take a look at how small-staff organizations can take advantage of the small employer health credit.

The original version of the bill offered tax-income credits to small employers, not tax-exempt organizations. However, by adopting the Senate version of the health care reform bill, the House of Representatives agreed that tax-exempt nonprofits and small businesses could both qualify for tax credits.

The Small Employer Health Credit is intended to help all small businesses — both for- and non-profits — provide health insurance to their employees.

Basically, there are going to be two phases.

The first occurs between 2010 and 2013. Small nonprofit employers can take a credit (in the form of 25 percent of the employer contribution for employee insurance premiums) and then apply the credit to taxes withheld through payroll. According to councilofnonprofits.org, “employees would still get full credit for taxes withheld from their pay.”

In 2014, the amount of credit will increase to 35 percent.

If your small-staff organizations has 10 or fewer workers and average annual wages don’t exceed $25,000, the full 25 percent credit can be applied to the total amount of actual premiums paid by the employer. To qualify, the nonprofit has to pay at least 50 percent of employee premiums.

If you have more than 10 employees, or if the averages wages exceed $25,000, there’s a sliding scale. Here’s what I found from councilofnonprofits.org:

How much is the credit if I employ more than 10 employees and/or if average pay is more than $25,000?

The calculation of the phase out is complicated and should be determined with the help of an accountant. Here is a general rule of thumb for estimating the benefit of the credit:

Subtract from 25% (.25) either or both of the following calculations.

Number of Employees: Start with the total number of full-time equivalent employees, subtract 10 and divide by 15. Multiply .25 by this new number. (A nonprofit with 15 employees subtracts 10 to come up with 5, and divides by 15 for a fraction of 1/3 (0.33). Multiplying .25 by .33 establishes a Number of Employees deduction of 8.25% (.0825).

Average Wages: Subtract 1% (0.01) for every $1000 in average salary in excess of $25,000. For example, average annual wages of $30,000 would reduce the credit by 5% (0.05) (i.e., $30,000 – $25,000 = $5,000, and subtracting 1% for each $1,000 leads to a reduction of 5%).

In the example given, the maximum credit would be reduced from 25% to 11.5%

Maximum credit – Number of employees reduction – Average wage deduction = Estimated credit value

Using the numbers from above:  25.0% – 8.25% – 5.0% = 11.75%

So if this small nonprofit employer spends $10,000 annually in insurance premiums, it could claim a credit of $1,175 for the year.

A little confusing? Trying to read that many numbers makes my eyes glaze over. The general formula is somewhat complicated, and your accountant will probably come in handy to determine how much credit you can employ.

The credit is available immediately through 2013. Nonprofits regularly send three payroll taxes to the IRS: the employer and employees’ share of Medicare withholding and the federal income taxes withheld by the employer on behalf of the employee. Small employers can claim the credit against those three taxes.

There are more than 1.5 million registered nonprofits in the U.S. By providing this credit, the health care reform bill will allow many of them to provide health insurance to their employers that weren’t able to before.

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I’m so excited to announce a new program we’re launching: Lunch With MemberClicks. Starting April 7 in Atlanta, team members are going to travel around the country to meet with association professionals, talk about technology and treat them to lunch.

Here’s the first few months of the lineup:

April 7: Atlanta
April 21: Washington, D.C.
May 5: New York City
May 6: Boston
May 19: Chicago
June 1: Orlando
June 2: Raleigh

Why should you come? Networking opportunities, discussions about membership management, event maximization, e-marketing, social media and payment processing. We’re really excited to meet with association professionals (especially those of you at small-staffs!) in each and every city.

Everyone who comes will receive a complimentary lunch and have the opportunity to meet with other association professionals in the area.

If you live in one of those cities and have a restaurant suggestion, feel free to e-mail me at shannon@memberclicks.com. (That’s my own little attempt to get some crowdsourcing action in here!)

For more information, including registration info, click here.

We can’t wait to meet you!