HR Consultancy
Ask any employer and they will tell you; employing people can be both a blessing and a curse. Nine out of ten people you employ will be little to no trouble - most people want to do a good job, help the business succeed and be fairly paid for their efforts.
But when you have problems with your people it can be tricky. Aside from the emotional factor which can be a strain, you still have a business to run and wrestling with employee issues can sap both your time and energy.
We will take the weight off your shoulders by providing pragmatic advice and support that gets you to the desired outcome as quickly and safely as possible, in consideration of current employment law.
Conduct and performance management
If you have an employee whose behaviour or performance is not to the required standard, you need to act promptly to address the issue and give them a chance to turn things around. We will design a tailored performance improvement plan for you to manage underperformance and encourage the changes needed for your employee to be successful in their role. If the required improvement is not forthcoming then we will support you step by step through a disciplinary or capability process to exit that employee from your business and allow you to move on with making your business a success.
Grievance and dispute resolution
Despite your best efforts and intentions as an employer, occasionally you will have an employee who feels aggrieved about some aspect of their employment. It could be that they have a poor relationship with their line manager, they might feel undermined or bullied by a colleague, or they might feel that they are not paid fairly compared to their peers. Whatever the issue, we will provide an independent and neutral look at the facts and manage the grievance process from start to finish. We will investigate professionally and provide an outcome with recommendations for the business, as well as a route for any appeal through a trusted HR partner.
Dismissals
Sometimes things just don’t work out when employing people. It might be the case that the business climate has changed and you no longer need the role for which you employed someone. Or you have realised that the individual you hired is not a good match for your business and it’s best to part ways now to avoid further wasted time. Whether you need to make redundancies, terminate employment due to a relationship breakdown, or part ways via a Settlement Agreement, we can advise and manage every step of the process to get the best possible outcome for your business.
If you have an issue you’d like to discuss then book a consultation with andrew now…
Document drafting
Whether you are taking on your first employee and need a contract of employment with basic policies, or developing your HR offering for a larger team, we can review or draft any documentation you need in an easy to read format that is tailored to your business and compliant with current legislation and best practice principles.
There are many different options for employing people in your business; full time, part time, zero hours, as well as a number of different outsourcing arrangements. Whatever the needs of your business we can draft bespoke documentation that meets your needs. Our approach is to talk to you first, understand what you do and how you operate, before drafting bespoke contracts and policies that suit you and your business.
We will work with you to understand the practical and operational conditions which you need to make your business run effectively and draft contracts and policies that support these requirements.
We can create stand alone policies through to an entire Employee Handbook – whatever you need to help you employ people more effectively and safe in the knowledge that everything is covered from a contractual and procedural perspective.
Contracts
If you’re looking for contracts of employment, contracts for services, freelancer agreements, or any other terms and conditions, we will create the right document for your business.
Policies
If you need a policy for expenses, remote working, car allowance, or any other employee facing initiative, we will draft them for you to meet the needs of your business.
Contact Andrew to get a quote for your HR documentation…
Systems, Tools & Training
Taking on employees is often an essential step to increase capacity in your business and to lighten the load so you can focus more on strategy and business development. But employing people does not come without the unavoidable effort and admin associated with managing the individual people you employ.
Thankfully in this age of digital advance there are plenty of accessible and affordable systems and tools to help you run your business and streamline your processes and operations. Move away from manual processes, spreadsheet overkill and winging it with your people management practices.
With many years experience in configuring and launching systems, platforms, processes and training initiatives to modernise business operations and upskill the workforce, we can take the pain and time investment out of this process for you with our bespoke project management services.
HR Systems
Are you still using spreadsheets to manually track and manage your team’s holidays, sickness absence and personal information? If so it is probably time you invested in an HR system to do all of this for you. There are many options out there and these days you can get excellent multi functional HR software for your business for as little as £20 per month. We will consult with you to understand your needs, identify the best option for your business on the market and handle the set up and configuration process for you. We will produce the comms for your team, launch the system, and troubleshoot any roll out issues so you can sit back and enjoy the efficiency gains with minimal effort.
Hr Tools and processes
There isn’t one correct way in which to manage your people - but there are certainly poor approaches and better approaches. The better approaches are usually considered and tailored to your business needs, and they almost always have a documented process with supporting tools to make it easier for managers to apply consistently and easier for employees to understand and engage with. You may need a robust recruitment process to ensure better quality of new recruits into your business, you may want a structured annual performance and appraisal process to drive the progress and development of your team members, or you may want a bespoke bonus and reward scheme in place to incentivise your team to deliver results. Whatever the process or tool you need we will work with you to identify what you want to achieve before designing and producing a tailored solution for your business, complete with assets and guidance notes.
Training
A significant percentage of managers in business today have been given the responsibility of managing a team primarily due to their knowledge and expertise in the technical remit of the team, and without any training or experience in managing people. Whilst some managers may have the natural skills and behaviours to successfully lead and manage a team, for others it is not such an easy transition. Providing your line managers with training on how to manage people can be a game changer for the health and harmony of those workplace realationships, improving the effectiveness of your teams and getting the best out of your people. We can design and deliver bespoke training sessions for your managers and employees covering areas such as; setting objectives and performance management; motivating individuals; effective communication; delivering difficult feedback; handling disputes and disciplinaries; and a range of other topics.