Learn from the experts; you will not live long enough to figure it out all by yourself
HR has come a long way since the days of Personnel but, despite the wealth of information on best practice that’s available online, there really is no ‘one size fits all’ approach – and finding a style that fits the culture and values of your small business whilst also meeting legal obligations can seem as daunting as keeping ‘Slimer’ away from a hot dog cart. In a small company, people issues have a big impact. So, before reaching for the proton packs whilst dodging the ectoplasm, here are 5 situations when an HR consultant can help:
As Ray, Egon, Peter, Janine and Winston would no doubt agree, having the right skills, experience and cultural fit within a small team is critical. It’s equally important to make sure you have all the basics in place, with a well-written contract that suits your company being top of the list. Working with an HR consultant means you’ll have tailored documentation (rather than generic freebies) and don’t need to worry that anything has been missed. You and your new employee can get on with growing your business.
Let’s be honest – if Peter Venkman was working for you in 2020 Britain, you’d likely have multiple complaints about his behaviour heading your way. In a small business, maintaining objectivity when disciplinary matters or grievances come up can be challenging – not to mention the simple logistics of finding the right people to hear appeals if needed. An HR Consultant can help you prepare for and navigate through people issues calmly and efficiently, using processes bespoke to you.
Dare I mention the spectre that was GDPR?! Taking time away from actually running your business to ensure that you’ll be compliant with legal developments is not how you want to spend your time. An HR Consultant can take (at least some) of this stress away by identifying what you need to do and working with you to implement any changes required. Whether that happens well in advance of the deadline or not is up to you…
While you might not be replacing your whole team with the opposite gender as per the 2016 Ghostbusters reboot, undertaking a restructure has the potential to generate the same strength of response and opinion in a small business. An HR Consultant can help you design your new structure, identify where consultation may be needed and work with those affected in a commercial yet compassionate manner – all the while keeping you on the right side of the law.
The New York Police and Fire Departments knew they couldn’t deal with the supernatural epidemic alone, so they called in the specialists. If you have in-house HR, they will know the detail of your business inside out – but when a chunky people project (or the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man) comes along, they might need some extra bandwidth to deliver it whilst keeping the day-to-day running for your team. An HR Consultant can work with them for the duration of the project and be gone before the ticker-tape has settled.
So, if HR has got you spooked, please get in touch to arrange a free, no obligation chat about how I can help.
Large companies are generally amazing at social monitoring. Have you ever tagged a company in a post on social media, either positive or negative, and received a response within minutes? Well, that’s due to their stellar social monitoring….
The initial shock of lockdown HAS receded. We’re not seeing social media posts about wildlife wandering into city centres, schools have reopened, and the roads are fairly busy again. At the same time, we’re wearing masks, social distancing and maintaining our bubbles.
So, what does this underlying uncertainty mean for small businesses and their teams?
If we didn’t already know, then today’s BBC article has confirmed it – we’re in a recession. What does that usually mean? We look to save money. What’s typically the biggest cost for an employer? Their staff, and the costs associated with employing them. Salaries and on-costs are the obvious ones, but then there’s training and benefits – and HR support.
That got me thinking… how do small business owners know when it’s time to add someone to their team? Read on to learn how to determine if you need to bring an extra person on board.
