Preparing your business for growth

4 August 2009

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Although the recession is still high in the headlines, many employers - having gone through redundancies and restructures - are starting to see improvements in their business. So, is now the time to consider preparing your business for the inevitable economic upturns?

While it may be positive, growth can also be stressful and bring a whole host of new challenges. You may need to consider recruiting additional part-time or temporary resource in order to prevent over burdening and protect the health of existing employees. Or you may need to acknowledge the need of outside help.

Recruitment tips

If you are recruiting, make sure it is effective and do not waste money on unnecessary advertising costs. You can use your company website to place most positions and also use the local network of Job Centres. Only use costly recruitment processes when the essential needs of the business warrant it.
Recruit to retain. Recruitment is expensive so make sure that the chosen candidate is the right one. Take time and care to recruit and then make sure you retain that person. Click here to read our tips on employing during the recession.
Improve your induction procedures. Make sure that each new employee is given a solid grounding in your organisation.

With business growth comes the obvious human resource requirements, such as resource planning, training and development, contractual changes and performance management. All of which host their potential pitfalls.

Managing employees

Your company's greatest but most expensive asset are your staff, so it is essential that they are working to optimum efficiency by monitoring and appraising their performance. Make sure that appraisal systems are being used effectively to maximise the performance of staff, that they have a positive approach and maintain staff morale.
Review your businesses' training needs and ensure that your training programme properly serves them. You may need to replace some skills lost due to redundancy and restructure. When looking for training, ask do the training providers offer good value for money? Is a particular course of true value? Review all costs and use the most effective.
Prepare for the worst. Because the economic future is hard to predict, it pays to have strategies available for helping your organisation through any further difficult periods. Revise and review your redundancy knowledge, ensure that you have a good strategy to support staff in a redundancy situation. Alternatively, you could consider a strategy that favours short time working or a ban on overtime. If contracts of employment have been constructed correctly this action should not represent a change in term and conditions, the downside however is a potential drop in morale.
And finally, always take advice. Use access to cost-effective outsourced advice to help work through difficult and changing situations in the workplace and reduce the risks to the organisation. To avoid the pitfalls, it is important to remember to use all of the resources available to you.

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