‘Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.’

The above is a quote that’s widely attributed to Richard Branson. It’s certainly true that cheerful and enthusiastic or surly and demotivated employees will affect how your customers perceive your business, for good or for bad!

The challenge with managing employees is that they’re all different, and yet you need to manage all of the challenges that brings, whilst juggling the business.

• Recruitment can be costly both in terms of fees but also training time and distraction.
• Retention is a much better option, but how can you keep everyone happy as a business grows and develops, and its needs and requirements change?

As we’ve mentioned in so many of our Information Sections, we’re not HR experts, but we have connections with advisors who can help guide you through the minefield of employment legislation. From the first recruit in a new business, it’s vital to be sure that you’re consistent and prepared for the challenges before they arise. Clear policies and robust contracts will be hugely beneficial, despite what may feel like an unnecessary outlay at first. As soon as you hit your first tricky hurdle though, you’ll be so glad that you have the right documents to fall back on, and a pragmatic advisor to call.

The articles here are designed to prompt conversations with your team, or with your HR Advisor. A good advisor will have beaten us to that conversation but, as with accountants, we know they’re not all the same!

There is a lot of cross over between this area and payroll of course. The two subjects are highly emotive, but paramount to the happiness of any team, so we hope you’ll find this section helpful. As ever, if you’d like to know more, or think an introduction to one of our HR Contacts would be helpful, please get in touch.

The first section below includes links to our ‘Rebound Resources’, designed during Lockdown to help businesses rebound after months of restrictions and, in many cases, prolonged periods of closure. Whilst we hope that there’s no return to those dark days, the value in these resources remains. The loss of a key customer or similar challenge can create comparable pressure in a business, and these resources would be just as useful.