Help Wanted: The Complete Guide to Human Resources for Canadian Entrepreneurs

Louise Karch is a career consultant with Carswell Partners in London, Ontario.

The author of this do-it-yourself human resources manual has a
background in human resources and consulting. The book, which draws on
interviews with successful entrepreneurs and experts, covers HR basics
for business, the recruitment process, compensation, development, and
special issues such as advisory boards, managing succession, and hiring
consultants.

To drive their companies’ continued success, Butteriss argues,
entrepreneurs need HR savvy. Butteriss lays out functional areas in
great detail, linking HR with strategic planning and management. Her
book reads like a good how-to manual. Want to hire good staff? Here are
12 steps. Want to guarantee failure? Here is how. Want to attract the
right candidates and assess that difficult area of fit? Here’s the
process. Want to ensure that profit and productivity continue as a
result of training, development, incentives, and succession planning?
Read on.

The book is characterized by clarity and wisdom. In the section on
compensation, Butteriss comments: “Ensure that new hires are not paid
more than the people you hired a few months ago. If you really want to
make people angry, get this one wrong.” The quotes from entrepreneurs
provide another perspective that adds to the richness of the material.

Entrepreneurs in small and mid-sized Canadian companies are the primary
audience for this valuable resource.