Author: Emma Browning

Policies and procedures
Emma Browning

Are Your HR Practices In Need of a Spring Clean?  

You probably started your own business because you’re passionate about bringing your product or service into the world, and providing a much-needed solution for your customers and clients. This people management malarkey though – it’s not necessarily what you signed up for, is it?! Call it a necessary evil if you like, but the fact remains that if you want to grow a thriving business, you can’t get away from it. You need practices, procedures, and policies in place that ensure you’re hitting the mark and developing the right kind…
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Employment law
Emma Browning

The People Doctor will see you now……

I know that dealing with HR and people matters within your business can be challenging. It might be that you need reassurance that you are acting in the right way, or it could be that an employment issue is more complex than you originally thought. Perhaps you are embarking on something new or unfamiliar such as succession planning or restructuring, or maybe you are concerned about the risks associated with dismissing someone; or, as is so often the case, your management time is at a premium and you need to…
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Strategy
Emma Browning

Do all your employees really need a University education?

The 11th National Apprenticeship Week is coming up from 5 to 9 March, and it’s got me thinking. Despite some recent negative press commentary to the contrary, Apprenticeships continue to be a valuable recruitment and investment tool, especially so for savvy small businesses* who are set to benefit the most from new funding rules introduced last year. More than just cheap labour, apprentices can help your business prosper. Not only will the Government pay 100% of the cost of training under 19 year olds for you, if you have less…
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Policies and procedures
Emma Browning

Do you need an HR Secret Weapon?

Growing a business without HR expertise is challenging at best, and a constant uphill struggle at worst. If you’ve ever had to tackle a people issue on your own, you’ll know just how stressful it can be. Between trying to manage your legal obligations, and meeting your operational requirements, firefighting can become part of your everyday routine if you aren’t careful. Of course, there’s the option to call upon help on a project-by-project basis, and there can be real value in that approach. But if you’re ready to raise the…
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Culture and change
Emma Browning

Are you showing some self-restraint this Lent?

The year is charging ahead and already Lent is fast approaching us; a time traditionally for taking stock and giving up a luxury or two. Granted those luxuries are often alcohol or chocolate based – although the really savvy amongst us will give up things they never really liked anyway (so that’s no celery for me for a month!). We all know that bad habits in our personal lives can lead to serious problems. From trying to adopt a healthier diet through to kicking caffeine or nicotine, most of us…
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Culture and change
Emma Browning

Show your employees some love this Valentines

While Valentine’s Day is traditionally the time to show your sweetheart how much you care, it has always seemed like an ideal opportunity to me, to take a moment to reflect on my employee relationships and ask myself whether I show their employees just how much I value them. How about you? We all want our employees to reach their full potential and go above and beyond every day don’t we? So consider the findings of the latest research conducted by employee services provider Personal Group, which has revealed that…
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Employment law
Emma Browning

How to get yourself out of an HR pickle  

In an ideal world, we’d never have to worry about firefighting people issues within our businesses. We’d have perfectly crafted policies, highly skilled line managers, and an engaged workforce with individuals who are passionate about helping our operations to reach their full potential. Of course – things don’t always work out quite this way! Pretty much every business owner has experienced some tricky HR issues during their career, and most would agree – they sometimes come out of nowhere! Now’s not the time to point the finger though. If you’ve…
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Culture and change
Emma Browning

Lend a hand – why workplace volunteering is a win-win

If I told you that approximately 70% of FTSE 100 companies have a volunteering programme, would you be surprised? Corporate volunteer activity days, giving employees time off to volunteer in their local communities, and sponsorship matching are just three examples of popular schemes adopted by the FTSEs. Waitrose, for example, donate some 75,000 paid employee hours a year to volunteering. So there must be a really compelling reason why our biggest and most successful corporates do this. After all, they have budgets and performance targets like the rest of us.…
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Policies and procedures
Emma Browning

Snow day

How did you handle the recent snow day? Normally, a bit of snow is great fun. Who doesn’t love a spot of snowman building, after all?! But adverse weather is likely at some point to give employers concerns about employee absence levels. So what do you need to know about the impact of bad weather conditions? 1. Minimum working temperature As the winter weather bites, do you know what protection you have to provide for your employees from the chill? The answer to whether you need to provide a min…
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Culture and change
Emma Browning

Six Ways To Raise Your Leadership Game This Year

1.Think that becoming a better leader involves attending intensive courses, gaining years and years of experience, or getting your head stuck into a textbook? Well, not necessarily. These things can all have their place, but it’s very possible to raise your game in this first week of 2018, by making just a few manageable changes. If you’re ready to step up to the challenge, then read on. We’re going to look at six practical game-changers that you can get to work with right away. 1. Leave some unplanned time in…
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