Kalderon HR

Last week I talked about ways in which small businesses can make incorrect employee management decisions that can cost them further down the line. It is not easy managing a business these days, not only have you got the overheads, the legislation for the business, the safety certificates, the latest budget to deal with – you also have to make sure you have everything in order for your staff.

For some of you this will be easy. You understand the importance of having a consistent and thorough HR approach in place. For others, it’s not a comfortable place to be in and that is why Kalderon HR is here. Our very ethos is to help your small business support their employees appropriately, professionally and with a budget that works for you – so you can get on with marketing your business and growing where it needs to.

The even better news? Kalderon HR can grow with you. We are not a one trick pony, we can respond to your growing needs if need be – or support you to simply stay where you are, if that is what works for you.

However, before I sign off with my “this is why you need HR” speech…let me ask you, “why do you think you don’t?” I have engaged with many small businesses and the responses are nearly always the same – the questions is, which one is you?

“I only have one employee, I don’t need HR.” So you are a small business with no intentions of getting any more staff or expanding. You and Alice are quite happy and Alice has been your best friend for 19 years – so formal processes aren’t really necessary for you.

Wrong. A business with one employee can still face:

• Unfair dismissal claims
• Discrimination claims
• Grievances
• Sick leave management issues
• Disputes over pay
• Holiday hours or contracts

Just because Alice is your best friend and godmother to your children, she still needs a written employment contract and needs to be treated respectfully like any other employee would be. HR isn’t about workforce size, it is about managing risk and people effectively. So having a relaxed attitude to Alice may mean that any mistakes that do happen may result in you giving a verbal warning with no written record, or not documenting any performance issues – and if Alice’s work does deteriorate you need to be doing the right thing in support, and HR can help ensure that you do.

“I can just google everything…” Yep, sure you can. Heck, even use AI to create a contract – that is entirely possible, and as an option in your early days as a business making sure you have a standard checklist from the internet about what you need for employee relation support can be massively beneficial. That is the brilliance of research and the web.

However…the difference is we can research standard information, but it cannot replace the experience of an HR advisor or consultant who can interpret the specifics of your situation, understand the history behind specific employee issues, adequately assess legal risks, help personally with difficult conversations or even, explain the practical implications of different options.

Inadvertently, your search on a website may provide you with:

• Outdated information
• Advice for another country (remember Scottish law can be different from English law)
• A disciplinary process that is applied incorrectly
• Simply copying a document without understanding it
• A reliance on an internet forum for legal guidance

It is true that information is everywhere – in varying formats, but taking time to read all of these does not give you the experience, judgement and practical advice you need. HR advice is a legitimate role – ignore it at your peril.

“I’ve got some policies from where I used to work – they will suffice.” Hmm, perhaps they will. Perhaps they have been a useful stop gap, and maybe you have been able to simply change your business name and add your logo. But do they actually suit your business? Your policy is part of your branding, your culture and your ethos – so does the policy in your hand truly reflect that?

Bespoke policies can cost more, but they are one of the best things you can invest in for your business, because they are an investment in you and your employees. Once you have your own policy template, it is yours – it will, and does, grow with you. If you are tempted to use old polices from years ago it is quite likely that the information is out of date and you need to go down a rabbit hole to understand what has changed. Possibly not too painful for a simple policy, but not much fun when you are looking at a Harassment or Mental Health Policy.

Common mistakes can be;

• Using Policies that were written years ago
• Copying policies that are designed for large organisations
• Having procedures that don’t exist in your business
• Having no review policy in place for them

Policies should be living documents, not just paperwork that is sitting in a drawer gathering dust – or on a digital file that no-one sees.

“Employment law doesn’t really change that much.” So, from your point of view you can’t see anything major that has changed in years, and anything that is major you hear about it on the news?

Sorry to be the bearer of bad news. But, no.

Employment law is constantly changing. Case law is tested and best practice is often reviewed. Even when legislation remains the same, tribunals can change how the law is interpreted.

You need to make sure that you have a process that does the following;

• Regularly reviews employment contracts
• Checking and clarifying policy updates
• Checking that previous advice is still the same
• Provides space to train managers on employment law developments
• Receives statutory requirements

The cost of keeping up with changes is usually far lower than the cost of getting them wrong.

Last on my list today is this, “I can’t afford HR.” Many of you think that HR is only for big organisations with even bigger budgets. However the reality is that many small business already spend money dealing with problems that good HR could have prevented.

I see the following happen so often and it is the reason why I wanted to provide a supportive HR space that genuinely wants to make HR available to small businesses:

• Waiting until a problem becomes a crisis
• Seeking advice only after receiving a grievance or tribunal claim
• Viewing HR as a cost rather than risk management
• Avoiding contract changes and policies to save money – or worse changing contracts without advice
• Trying to handle complex employee relations matters alone

It isn’t just about caring about where businesses can go wrong, but it is about having healthy, supportive and psychologically safe environments for employees.

The question isn’t, “Can I afford HR?” It’s “Can I afford the consequences of not having HR support?”

HR isn’t reserved for large organisations. It is about protecting your business, supporting your people and helping you make informed decisions before small issues become expensive problems. The earlier HR support is involved, the more options a business usually has.

Contact Kalderon HR today for a free 30 minute, no obligation consultation about your business needs – the support is closer and more affordable that you realise.