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 the bit of the job you hate 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 the best people practices, procedures, and policies in place that ensure you’re hitting the mark and developing the right kind of team and culture to guarantee your business its future success.

If you take your finger off the pulse or let the grass grow under your feet, you could find yourself with problems that have been deeply embedded into your company’s culture, and these can be extremely difficult to fix or unravel.

Wondering whether this might apply to you? Recognising that you might not be firing on all cylinders is the first step towards fixing any issues and turning things round.

Here, we ask some searching questions about where you currently are in your business people wise, so you can start to establish where you might need to make some changes.

Are you suffering from high turnover rates?

Recruiting good staff can be expensive. Giving them the skills and developmental support that they need to excel in their roles can prove to be costly, too. In an ideal world, this is an investment rather than a cost. But if your staff are deciding to up sticks and move on to pastures new, this can be a huge problem.

You’re likely to notice the impact on the bottom line, and it may well be the case that you’re also damaging your employer brand and reputation as an employer. If too many people are leaving, the word will get around, and people will start to ask why so many people are leaving you. Don’t forget Glassdoor, have you checked out your employer reviews on there lately? This could lead to you struggling to attract top talent in the future.

Are you unsure about whether you’re really meeting your legal obligations?

All business owners know that they need to be compliant with relevant employment legislation. When push comes to shove though, are you confident that you’re meeting your obligations? If you’re not, the niggling concern that something could go wrong is likely to be that nagging worry at the back of your mind.

If you found yourself in a situation in which you weren’t fulfilling your requirements, it could prove to be devastating. Often, all it takes to ensure that you’re where you need to be is some advice from an HR professional. The peace of mind that this can bring can be worth its weight in gold.

Are you struggling to meet your overarching business goals?

HR is no longer about handing out cups of tea and sympathy. Robust HR and people practices will always be in line with wider business objectives, and a great HR professional will actively help your business to get to where you want it to be. Take a second to think about what HR looks like in your business, and whether it’s really fulfilling its potential.

Do your people practices improve productivity? Do they encourage your staff to be the best that they can be, and reward them accordingly? Do they play a significant role in facilitating business growth? If not, you’re missing out.

Take Action!

Keeping on top of people management issues in your workplace can be tricky. You want to be a good employer, you want to get the most out of your staff, and you want to make sure that your business is a great place to work. But between client meetings and marketing and everything else that needs your attention, it’s easy to take your eye off the ball.

Having an HR Health Check carried out by an experienced HR consultant could help you to nip any potential problems in the bud, identify opportunities for increasing productivity and boosting employee engagement, as well as making sure that you are legally compliant, so bringing you that all important peace of mind. From your HR Health Check, we then help you to create your people strategy to ensure that any actions you take as a result of the HR Health Check are aligned with your business objectives.

If you recognise that you could do with a little help to make sure that your business is fighting fit for 2021, get in touch today to arrange your HR Health check in January, February or March 2021 to receive 15% off your HR Health Check! You can either contact me directly emma@www.merakihr.com or book a call with me so that we can discuss a date for your HR Health Check; https://bit.ly/CallMerakiHR