"By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail". Benjamin Franklin

Human Resources (HR) is one of the biggest challenges nonprofits face. According to the Nonprofit Leadership Center, here are the four “critical HR policies” that nonprofits need to have in place:

· Code of Ethics and Conflict of Interest

· Self Promotion and Compensation

· Employee Manual

· Hiring Best Practices

There are templates for these items that you can use to get started but remember to consult an attorney, preferably an attorney with some experience in labor or human resources law, to be sure you are meeting the requirements of the law in your state and in the federal government.

One of the most important elements in policies is to make sure that employees are aware of these policies. Yes, it can be part of the onboarding process but you want to be certain that your team members have read and understand all of these policies. How do you do that? During onboarding, ask them each to take the policies home and study them. The next day, answer any questions they have about the policies. On their first day, have them each sign a document attesting that they have read and understand the policies.

Want to have smooth human resources situations? Put polices in place and live them.