Most small businesses try their best to create a work environment that’s pleasant, friendly and fun. Of course, it’s important that your employees love to come to work, but HR is much more complex than making sure employees are happy and entertained. HR follows strict rules and requirements, so it’s best to hire professionals to handle your HR needs. To help you understand better what HR is all about, here’s a small guide for all small business owners:
Best uses of HR
If you own a small business, you know just how much time it takes to manage the organization every day, especially while it’s taking off and growing. Owners usually don’t have any time left to deal with employees and their issues. While neglecting employees can’t be avoided for some businesses, it can surely be costly because it can lead to faulty hiring and benefits management, bad payroll management higher turnover, no company loyalty, bad company image and a toxic work environment. By hiring an HR expert, you will receive a comprehensive management strategy of human resources.
Your HR team or individual can also create your employee handbook that will cover all areas of business, together with disciplinary actions and grievance procedures. It’s important to have a well-written employee handbook because it offers protection in front of the law. This booklet should contain everything from benefits, holidays, sick leave and absences to work hours, probation, dress code and company culture.
Why you need HR
Employee laws are complicated even for some experts. The most important part of HR for small businesses is exactly that—understanding these employee laws and making sure everything is legal. Employee regulations cover hiring, employee retention and termination, but also compensation, benefits and workplace safety. You can learn a bit about employment law by studying your federal employee handbook, but hiring an expert is a much safer alternative.
The most important factor for retention with employees is correct and well-managed payroll. In case you don’t manage your payroll well, it’s a guaranteed way to lose employees. Your HR expert will ensure every paycheck is correct and issued on time. When it comes to welcoming new people and retaining existing workers, these survey templates can help you and your HR team create a positive and supportive culture and leave channels of communication open. This will allow employees to grow and really connect to your small business.
How to hire the right HR expert
It’s best to get your HR employee as soon as possible, but when hiring, go through your standard procedure. If you want to get the best candidate (and you do), it’s crucial not to rush. Hiring someone who will need minimal time to get adjusted to your organization is the best choice, but you also need an employee who understands your desire to grow in the future. It all starts with a good job description with all the key skills and competencies, and during the interview, work with your colleagues and don’t hesitate to run a second or even third round of interviews.
What to pay attention to
Your HR expert should have all the aforementioned knowledge and skills, but they need to know some newly-emerging issues to pay attention to, such as data systems. Today, companies are closely monitored when it comes to personal data and failure to comply with regulations, as well as ethical issues. Covering all bases with regards to historical databases, videos, photographs, IP addresses and IMEIs is crucial—these are all personal data. Make sure your HR expert knows how to work with these new systems that help manage HR needs and data.
HR is often overlooked in small companies, but that’s a big mistake. If you look at the list of all the issues HR needs to address, you’ll notice that the human resources department is crucial for your company’s survival and growth.
