Most work places are beginning to think about the office Christmas party that’s coming up rather than thinking of recruiting this side of Christmas. However, December is actually a prime time for snapping up talented staff. Despite the general perception that January is when everyone starts looking for new jobs, December is far more ideal. Planning Ahead If you’re planning to recruit more staff, it would be logical to think that January is the time to start looking. It’s true that many people will return to work after a Christmas break and make a New Year’s resolution to find a new challenge. There will always be plenty of candidates available in January. Equally, there’s likely to be plenty of jobs on offer too. Companies also see the New Year as a fresh start and the right time to recruit too. Therefore, competition will be high in the New Year. If you get ahead of the opposition, you have the advantage of offering an individual a job instead of having to negotiate. Especially if they have been offered alternative employment elsewhere. You may end up having to offer a higher salary than you’d planned in order to secure the person you […]
Toxic Workers Every organisation has at least one Toxic Worker, those people who exude negativity. They don’t like their jobs or they don’t like the company. They dislike their bosses and they feel they are always being treated unfairly. You can’t control how people act all of the time, but you do have control over how you react with them. Calling them to a meeting for an informal chat to discuss their behaviour may be your first port of call in nipping their toxicity in the bud. Be clear about which workplace rules they are breaking and how it affects the workplace as a whole. However, if the toxic worker is more than just irritating and annoying – they may be abusive, behave inappropriately and unprofessionally. If you think they are bringing the company into disrepute or another employee complains, this is the time to take more formal action. Some toxic workers operate under the radar of their employers. They may come across positive and outgoing openly with their managers, whilst talking negatively to belittle, criticize and slander those workers they feel they can control and manipulate. They could possibly persuade other co-workers to do their dirty work for them, whilst outwardly they maintain their angelic façade! What to do? Don’t allow the […]
It’s a goal that many organisations have, how to make new employees more productive more quickly. You’ve spent a lot of time, money and energy on recruiting them in the first place. It’s not unreasonable that you now want a quick return on your investment is it? In theory, no, but in practice, probably, yes. There are a number of answers to how to make new employees more productive more quickly. The simple and most straightforward is to design a really thorough induction programme. Just because the new recruit has the skills you were looking for, doesn’t mean they will telepathically know what you want from them as an employee. They need to know “how things work round here”. You have to ensure that they get that information early on, and are monitored to assure them (and you) that they are picking it up correctly. The new recruit, hopefully, will be enthusiastic, keen to learn and keen to make an impression. Your induction programme needs to capitalise on this. How enthusiastic would you be if you spent your first week just following people around, listening to what goes on, reading brochures and watching company videos? Not as enthusiastic at the end […]
Employees are most worried about their financial position. The Money Advice Service identified that 28.7 million working adults in the UK weren’t satisfied with their finances. The Financial Conduct Authority reported that 25.6 million people were financially vulnerable. There’s a shocking stat out there. Faced with an unexpected £300 bill, 11.8 million adults will borrow money or can’t pay. Only 50% of employees, thinks that their employer cares about their financial well-being. That’s less than those who think that their employer cares about their mental (62%) and physical health (60%). When asked what their top three worries are, employees said Financial worries (30%) Health (25%) Retirement provision (24%) Employees are most worried about their financial position What do employers think their employees are most worried about? When asked what they thought their employees worried about the most, employers gave very different answers. Their top two worries were work life balance (44%) and workload (33%). There’s clearly a difference between what actually worries employees and what employers think their employees worry about. Work life balance worries only 22% or employees surveyed. Employees are most worried about their financial position. The effects of financial worries show themselves in many ways. Physical factors such as loss of sleep and […]
If you’re looking for 5 simple steps to improve employee engagement you’ve come to the right place. Some of the things might not be considered trendy nowadays, but they have always worked as engagement strategies. They rely on some simple foundations, communicate well, praise sincerely and do what you say you’ll do! Get out from behind your desk Talk to your employees, listen to them, their problems and suggestions. Be ready to roll up your sleeves to help out when things are pressured, do whatever needs to be done. Show some sincerity Look for the good in people. When you see something you like, tell that person right away. Tell your people what you appreciate, and why. It’ll bring the best out in them. Role model Make it a priority to demonstrate your company’s values. If you really want to affect your culture, work hard to show your remployees your values and priorities. It makes natural that they will follow your lead. Get over yourself. This doesn’t mean that you lack self-confidence or that you don’t stand up for yourself. It means that you recognise that you don’t know everything and that you’re ready to learn from others. Demonstrate a […]
Moving businesses from inadequate to outstanding is a new CIPD report claiming that UK employers are “sleepwalking into a low-value, low-skills economy”. The report attributes this to two main factors: an inadequate education system low employer spend on training As employers we can do little about the first, but we can do something about the second. We can affect how much we spend on training our workforce. Employer spending on training has been reducing year on year since 2005. The UK spends an average of just £ 202.30 per employee on training compared to an average spend of £457.42 per employee across the rest of Europe. The UK is now fourth from bottom place in an EU league table of job-related adult learning. The CIPD is making a valid point. The effectiveness of training isn’t determined by how much is spent on it. It states that UK employers may have found ways to minimise their training spend, without reducing the quality of the training. Using digital training or negotiating better deals with training providers is one way they are doing this. But the situation is very different in America, where the average spend on training per employee is £787.35. However, there is a potential disincentive for employers to […]
When is a warning not a warning? The simple answer is when it’s not carried out correctly. We get a surprising number of calls from employers who have reached the end of their tether. They’ve given an employee lots of verbal and written warnings with no improvement. Now they feel the need to remove the employee. It comes as a shock to them when we say, “that’s risky”. Let me give you an example of what I mean A business provides a facilities service to clients. They send teams of employees into a client premises, often out of hours. The intention is that the client will come into work the morning after and be delighted by the results. Over a 10 year period this had not always been the case when the business sent in one particular employee. His work was not always of a high standard. Over the ten year period the employer had given the employee a number of verbal and written warnings relating to his poor standard of work. One morning the Facilities business owner received an irate phone call from a client about the less than sparkling state of his premises after having paid for an overnight service. The […]
The 6 essential aspects of workplace culture are : Purpose Connecting employees to your organisation Opportunity Providing employees with the opportunity to learn Success Giving employees the opportunity to do meaningful work and be in winning teams Appreciation Acknowledging and recognising employees contributions Wellbeing Paying attention to employees’ health and physical and social wellbeing Leadership Connecting employees to purpose and empowering them to do great work Research by OC Tanner* shows us organisations that marginally improve in each of the 6 essential aspects of workplace culture see dramatic improvements. Those improvements show in recruitment, retention, satisfaction and other business metrics. Not convinced? 1 in 5 employees think that there is no reason for their organisation to even exist 38% of employees think that their organisation negatively affects the lives of others More than 1 in 3 employees are often bored with their work responsibilities Nearly half of employees feel that their skills are under utilised in their current role 1 in 5 employees say they do not do their best work because no one else does Almost 50% of employees feel that their employer takes them for granted 49% of employees say that the recognition they receive is not authentic or […]
Mediation in the workplace is a completely voluntary and confidential form of alternative dispute resolution. It involves an independent, impartial person helping two or more individuals or groups reach a solution that’s acceptable to everyone. The mediator can talk to both sides separately or together. Mediators do not make judgments or determine outcomes – they ask questions that help to uncover underlying problems, assist the parties to understand the issues and help them to clarify the options for resolving their difference or dispute. The overriding aim of workplace mediation is to restore and maintain the employment relationship wherever possible. This means the focus is on working together to go forward, not determining who was right or wrong in the past. Many kinds of dispute can be mediated if those involved want to find a way forward. It can be used at any stage in a dispute but is most effective before positions become entrenched. You might want to think about writing a mediation stage into your individual grievance procedure. In facilitative mediation – the style that dominates workplace mediation – the mediator is said to be neutral with respect to both the parties and any solutions found. Mediators manage a structured […]
