Hiring and firing. Be careful about what you say and do. When preparing to fire someone, you should document in writing a pattern of poor behavior and opportunities that were given to the employee to improve. If you want employees to sign a contract agreeing not to start a competitive business within a given amount of time or in a given location when they leave, have people sign it when they are hired. Some states won't honor non-compete contracts unless they are signed when an employee is hired or given a substantial raise or promotion.
Prevention is the goal in developing personnel policies.
Modeling behavior is one of the cheapest and most effective ways to make sure that everyone in your organization gets the message about what is acceptable and what isn't. Also, provide behavior guidelines, paying particular attention to activities that involve touching, telling jokes, using e-mail inappropriately or browsing adult Web sites. Establish ways for employees to voice concerns and complaints. If they can't do it inside the office, they often turn to a lawyer. Take swift action when informed of an incident.