Vital details every employer must consider
When it comes to running a business there are lots of things to consider, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed. With so many elements all going on during a single day to day period, from employee health and happiness to recruitment best practices, and even deciding on office premises, it’s important to prioritise the key details that are crucial for business success.
Here, we’ve rounded up some of the key details you should be aware of as an employer - considering everything from HR to health and safety.
Health and safety is key
It’s crucial for businesses of all shapes and sizes to get their health and safety policies ironed out fast, and to ensure that they’re compliant with regulations. According to the Health and Safety Executive: “If you run a low-risk business, health and safety is something you can manage without needing to buy in expert help. Here you could appoint yourself as a competent person or one or more of your workers.
“However, if you are not confident of your ability to manage all health and safety in-house, or if you are a higher-risk business, you may need some external help or advice.”
Once you’ve decided how you’re going to manage your health and safety, think about the risks. Use online risk assessment tools, or alternatively hire a professional company to conduct a risk assessment at your premises to determine the potential issues. This will help you to create a comprehensive plan.
Recruitment is an opportunity
Making the decision to invite someone new to your team can be tough. Think about your needs, and make the job spec as specific as possible. Do you need a full time team member, or would part time hours work? What will be their core tasks? All of these details help you build an accurate job description. However, also think about a person specification - what type of person do you want to find? What are their skills? What behavioural traits are important to you, or the role?
Once you get to the interview stage, have a set amount of topics and questions you want to cover. This approach, rather than an informal chat, will mean that you’re sure to get all of the details you need to make an informed decision. You could even consider psychometric testing, which gives you a deeper insight into the type of person a potential recruit is - and how their skills and traits would apply to the role you’re looking to fill.
Focus on people
Happy staff are the key to a successful business. Satisfied employees are more productive and engaged, work harder and help to reduce staff turnover - which can be both costly and disruptive.
One way to make people feel appreciated is to get their opinion on elements of how the business is run. Keeping your employees informed of how the business is doing, or letting them know the reasoning behind updates or changes and getting their thoughts are simple ways to help people feel appreciated and respected. Uniforms are one area where this approach works well; research shows that staff who wear uniforms are seen to be over 50% more credible, but forcing staff to wear a uniform they hate doesn’t benefit anyone. It's important for employees to feel emotionally comfortable with the uniform they wear, and they’re the best people to tell you how they feel.
If you’re looking for new uniforms that are sure to please your team, The Embroidered & Printed Clothing Company can help. Take a look at their extensive range of customised, printed apparel, which can suit many professional settings.
