Keeping your staff members happy

Staff morale is important when it comes to running a business. Research has shown that if you have happy workers then they are more productive and put more care and attention in to the task they undertake.

Often pay is one of the main things that can affect job satisfaction, so it is important to regularly have reviews with your employees and talk to them about wages. If you think they are doing a good job and you can afford to pay them a bit more then offer them a pay rise as it will often go a long what in building up a good working relationship.

Always try to have an open door policy that will allow your employees to come and talk to you should they have any issues. This means that problems can be sorted out quickly rather than leaving them to fester and becoming bigger issues.

Having days out of the work place is also often a big morale booster and can help team members bond together. Something as simple as going bowling or doing a team exercise such as raft building will allow staff some down time but also to be able to get to know their colleagues and management.

 

Looking for work in January

Come January, many people may find themselves out of a job if they have taken on a fixed term contract. Many businesses employ extra members of staff to help deal with the Christmas rush and often these employees only have contracts up until the end of December or possibly in to January.

This can be a massive financial worry for families who have just had to fork out hundreds on Christmas presents and food and drink to then worry about having no income during the toughest months of the year.

If you have taken on a fixed term contract then there is nothing stopping you looking for work that you can start immediately after the other one has finished. Not many businesses will start to advertise jobs in the run up to Christmas as they often have enough on their plates without having to deal with job applications, but come January some businesses decide that they want to hit the ground running and take on new employees who can assist them in their business.

Registering in advance with a recruitment agency, may mean that they can line work up for you to start in January although you may not know exactly where until close to the date.

 

How to find the right member of staff

As an employer, you may hate having to recruit new staff. It is always a bit of a worry having to take on a new person, trust them with your clients and / or equipment and hope that they are going to be hard working and reliable. There is no way to guarantee this but if you follow an in deep interview and references process you should be able to find the best candidate for the job. If you are not happy with any of the candidates, then don’t think you cannot advertise the job again and wait a little longer to employ someone.

References are really important when taking on a new member of staff and often something that many employers simply do not obtain. You may not be able to get references at the interview stage as many people will not want you to contact their current employer until they have been able to hand their notice in  (which is usually when you have offered them a job). What you can do though is either obtain one reference from a previous employer at interview stage and then from current employer after or make them a conditional job offer on the basis that their references check out.

 

How to improve production in the workplace

If you are a team manager or if you are a business owner, then you may wonder how you can improve productivity within the workplace. A more productive workplace will get work completed faster and often to a better standard. So how can you motivate your staff to be more productive? Well often this comes from job satisfaction. If employees are satisfied and happy in their job role then they will usually work better. Job satisfaction is made up of a number of elements. A recent survey showed that a large percentage of people are not satisfied in their job because of low pay. If your employees are doing a good job then reward them for it by giving them a pay rise. You could even introduce a bonus scheme whereby they can earn extra money if they get a task completed quicker or if they make a certain amount of sales. This sort of incentive can really improve job satisfaction and can introduce some healthy competition within the work place.

Set up regular meetings with employees on a one to one basis to allow them to discuss the job role and talk about anything which they fell could be improved upon or offered to increase their satisfaction at work.

Using freelancers for your business

If you have a business then there may come a time when you need to either turn down work or take on additional people to help you. Many self employed people or smaller businesses do not want to have to employ someone or it may be that they just need help over a busy period. This is when using a freelancer or sub contractor can come in handy.

If you are going to be using a freelancer then you need to be sure that they can be reliable upon. You may need to ask them to sign a contract in which it states that they will not do any work for your customers unless authorised by you and also to sign a confidentiality agreement to say that they will not divulge your business details to a third party. This will cover you against some of the risks involved. It is vital to be able to tell a freelancer exactly what you need them to do and agree not only the amount but the terms of payment. Always keep in contact with a freelancer and make sure you have a back up plan should they let you down at the last minute.