HR support for small business is required now more than ever to keep up with changing work practices, regulations and an increasingly transient workforce. Running a small business is never easy.
According to the latest government figures, almost 98% of Australian businesses employ between 0-19 employees and account for 35% of Australia’s gross domestic profit and employ 44% of Australia’s workforce. So it is a very important and growing sector that requires a lot of assistance.
As a leader in your organisation you are expected to be an expert in almost every business function. One minute you’re the Head of Operations, next you’re the Head of Marketing, and before you know it, you’re the Chief Financial Officer. And there’s a good chance all this occurred before you even had a chance to get your mid-morning coffee.
But whilst that’s all happening, one of your employees has failed to show up for work, injured themselves or become engaged in a disagreement with a colleague. Now you’re standing there in your office, balancing all the hats of a larger organisation’s executive team, wondering how on earth you are going to become the Head of Human Resources too! And to put it blunt – unless you’re an experienced HR practitioner, this is probably going to be an insurmountable task.
That’s where a HR consulting firm for small business can step in – a team of experienced individuals whose sole purpose is to take away some of the responsibilities vying for your precious time. A seasoned HR professional will not only deal with your short term problems and priorities, but they will also help you plan and manage your growth strategy. This includes workforce planning, talent acquisition strategy, WHS framework, training and development and coaching your employees so that they will be ready to step up and take on more of your responsibilities as your small business continues to grow.
As outsourced HR providers, performHR has witnessed first-hand the difference handing the reins over can make for small businesses. A HR strategic plan for small business is the first step to create a road map for HR success.
The top five benefits of outsourcing HR for small business include:
1. Allowing you to do what you love
There’s a good chance that you didn’t start your small business to become a HR professional. As with most small business owners, you probably found yourself working elsewhere and excelling in your position before realising that you could go out on your own and reach new heights.
So why, when you are great at and love running the operations of a small business, fall in the trap of losing time to become a policy and procedure pro or performance management master?
By engaging outsourced HR this is exactly what you don’t need to worry about.
2. Watching your back
HR and the employment relationship are highly regulated aspects of any business. You’ve got so much to think about, and any mistake can result in a costly penalty from the Fair Work Commission.
Whether this be the correct classification of an employee, the procedure in making a major workplace change or even what needs to be included on pay slips, in a small business where every dollar counts, it is never worth taking the risk of non-compliance.
The employment relations experience of outsourced HR can help you digest the compliance mumbo-jumbo and prevent any unexpected claims coming up to surprise you right before that next big bill is due! Getting those stagnated projects off the ground
Projects are great. They’re the ambitions you have today which turn into the path to creating your ideal business tomorrow. But when you don’t know the means to the end or don’t have the resources to truly give projects the time and effort needed; it is easy for long-term strategy to be left collecting dusk whilst the day-to-day takes the limelight.
Outsourcing these projects to a HR provider can give them the life they need to flourish and take your business to the next level. Using the experience of a team who does HR projects on the daily a consultant will not only get it across the line, but also ensure a high level of quality in the usefulness of the end project. There’s no point having the resulting recruitment framework or remuneration guide left propping up the leg of that wobbly desk.
3. Getting things right with solid employment policies
An outsourced HR provider will help you ensure that you are covered before things go wrong. By designing and implementing workplace policies and procedures, and effectively communicating these to your employees and stakeholders, you will be in a position to respond with confidence if a staff member behaves unethically.
With the right employment policies we can protect you when there is a challenge on the horizon. Policies and procedures set the standard for ethical and positive behaviour at work. To minimise risk, current and robust employment policies will support you if there is a complaint about inappropriate behaviour or misconduct at your business.
Employment policies can be wide ranging and diverse but they should not be something off the shelf that you download from somewhere online so that you can tick the compliance box. Workplace policies and procedures should be fit for purpose and designed for your own unique business requirements. For instance, a discipline and termination policy for a café will not work for a small accounting firm. Or even the same policy for café X may not be appropriate for café Y.
A good rule of thumb is to invest a bit more up front so that you have the right framework, policies and structure to support your business now and into the future.
4. Helping your staff be work ready
Unless you’re operating as a sole trader, your people are always going to be one of your greatest assets. But how are you making sure they are the right fit for the job? Do they have the right skills? Does their personality align to their colleagues and your business’ brand? Are they happy and do you know their personal and professional goals? There are many things to consider when getting an employee work ready.
Outsourced HR providers have seen it all before. performHR knows that the quality of a job advertisement, the onboarding process or the remuneration package can make or break the quality of the employment relationship.
5. Having those difficult conversations you dread
Employment relationships don’t last forever, and the honeymoon stage always ends sooner or later. Whether the results are amicable or confrontational is near impossible to predict, so it is always best to err on the side of caution and be ready to have a difficult conversation. It would be naïve to assume every performance management or dismissal conversation is going to go over smoothly. Are you ready to have this conversation with your star performer though?
Having a HR provider step in can help in numerous ways. It can aid in diffusing the situation, taking the brunt of the confrontation and making sure nothing is ever simply said off the tongue only to come back to bite you later.
The team at performHR have seen it all before with our current small business clients. If you are interested in any assistance, whether ongoing or for a project, we encourage you to get in contact with us here or on 1300 406 005. There is no need to tackle everything alone. Get back to what you love and let us handle the rest.