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How not taking annual leave can negatively affect employers and employees

We read with interest a report (Full annual leave unclaimed by 65% of employees) in HR Magazine of research conducted by Breathe, an HR platform for SMEs regarding workers who do not use their full allocation of annual leave. Surveying 1,000 UK employees, the findings showed that as many as 65% did not use their full annual leave allowance with 17% of respondents recording an average of 5 or more days of unused holiday. Unsurprisingly, not taking annual leave can have a number of negat...

The pros and cons of outsourcing your HR

According to an article in HR magazine, 'Almost half (48%) of UK businesses are currently outsourcing work'. Payroll services are the most common element of human resources which are outsourced. That’s not an insignificant figure. The benefits are obvious - reduced overheads, increased efficiency, access to expertise and knowledge, immediate guidance for changes in legislation and employment law to name a few. On the downside, companies may feel they lose local knowledge, that their ...

Can you think yourself happy at work?

In a nutshell we all seek to be happy. Considering how many hours we devote to our working life, then it's no wonder that being unhappy at work will have a lasting impression on how we view other aspects of our lives. A 40-hour working week equates to around 50% of our waking hours (Monday to Friday) so we need to grasp the concept that being happy at work is pretty much fundamental to our state of wellbeing. It's no surprise that happy employees are more likely to show initiative, work col...

What does it take to be an entrepreneur?

A recent report, highlighted in Business Matters magazine, 'Access all Areas: Older Workers' is a joint study by Enterprise Nation and The Entrepreneurs Network. The report suggests that the UK economy can be stimulated by encouraging the over 50s to become entrepreneurial. So if, indeed, the current market conditions are ripe then we ask ‘What does it take to be an entrepreneur?’ If you dream about starting your own business what do you need to know to make you a successful entreprene...

Director or leader - what are the differences between the two roles?

Business success derives from how roles, responsibilities and leadership styles play out in an organisation. In this blog, we look at the differences between directing and leading. Understanding the differences between the two will enable everyone to deliver according to their remit and ensure all actions have an owner.Fundamentally, a Director offers strategic input; a Leader will ensure operationally, the business can function and each department within the organisation works in tandem....

What does an effective Succession Plan look like?

Having made ourselves familiar with our initial blog 'Why is Succession Planning important?',  this second blog delves deeper. What are the potential hurdles to implementation? Why can organisations be reticent to put a plan in place?  Then, once those hurdles have been overcome, we’ll discuss which characteristics are shared by the more effective Succession Plans? Contrary to common belief, Succession Plans are (if not more) important for smaller organisations. Arguably, with skill...

Why is Succession Planning important?

In these challenging times it’s absolutely key that businesses hold onto their top talent and retain knowledge and expertise. One strategy which can be put in place is Succession Planning. Having recognised that the delegation of tasks, transfer of knowledge and responsibilities and understanding of business systems and processes, is critical to sustainability, a clear Succession Plan will contribute to the ongoing success of your organisation. Not only that, but succession planning is a relat...

Make exit interviews work for your business

In our previous blog on exit interviews we asked 'Why are exit interviews an important aspect of talent management?' Some companies avoid them altogether; some companies do them but don't drill down into the detail; some drill down but don't share the analysis with senior management.  We know that exit interviews provide businesses with important information, identify trends and give managers the opportunity to make changes. In response to employee feedback, action can be taken which u...

Why are exit interviews important?

Why are exit interviews an important aspect of talent management? Exit interviews can be insightful and identify issues within an organisation which might otherwise have gone unnoticed. Concerns around leadership and management, low morale and even observations about business processes and systems can all be gleaned from a constructive exit interview. Putting actions in place in response, will help businesses fine-tune their onboarding processes, improve performance management and demonstrate to...

How to delegate effectively

Delegation means not only an investment in your people but a commitment to spending time in making sure it's done correctly. Delegation isn't easy but it is one of those skills that can be learned - you don't need to be an instinctive delegator.  The business benefits of delegating well include: Increased productivityEffective workload managementDeveloping a breadth of skills within your teamIdentifying top performers and developing potential If you find this blog of interest and you and yo...

Starting up? Adding to your team

It's calculated that in the UK there's 5.82 million small businesses, with 0 to 49 employees. Reported on Fundsquire, a survey by CB Insights reported that 23% of startups failed because they didn’t have the right team running the business. Getting a business off the ground is daunting enough - but who should be part of your initial startup team?  In this blog, we offer advice on what should be your first considerations....

A good fit? Attracting and retaining talent

What’s the vibe like in your workplace? Is it attractive to new and existing team members? Does your work culture nuture talent, encourage continuous learning and promote personal development?Focusing on flexibility, inclusivity, wellbeing, and technology can help you attract and retain talent in a hiring market which is currently competitive and demanding....

Get your recruitment ad to yield results

The job market is running hot and candidates have plenty of opportunities to choose from. Don't just take our word for it - figures from the Office for National Statistics, reported in the Financial Times indicate the UK's employment rate rose 75.6% between February and April - up 0.2% on the previous quarter. According to the Guardian, job vacancies rose to 1.3 million in May. Economists believe the job market could start cooling off in the coming months but in the meantime, businesse...

Returning to the workplace, vaccination policies and the Delta variant

How are businesses continuing to react to pandemic pressure?We wrote a post back in May this year providing guidance for employers about company Covid-19 vaccination policies - Covid Vaccinations - how do employers tread the path?...

The furlough scheme winds down - is redundancy planning on the horizon?

An article published on the Employee Benefits website, discusses the issues facing many businesses now that the furlough scheme is winding down.  The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) ends on 30 September, with the government hoping that most workers will be able to return to work. Speaking back in June, the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson said that he didn’t anticipate extending the furlough scheme into the autumn. Economists are expecting to see an increase in unemployment following...

Is there a link between flexible working and burnout?

As we've discussed in previous blogs, our health and our workplace are intrinsically linked. We've looked at 'Protecting your employees' mental health and wellbeing' and how businesses can establish a wellbeing culture. We've covered 'Hybrid working: It's here to stay but will it work for your business?' where we give guidance on how to set up a Hybrid Working policy and offer suggestions about what companies can offer employees in the absence of such a policy - if the hybrid model isn...

Flexible working is key to your business' success

Here at Q&A People Matter, we're firmly of the belief that flexible working pays dividends for your company and your employees. By offering flexible working, your business is setting itself apart from those that don't. Research suggests that flexible working is a top priority for people looking at a potential new employer - more so than the financial package on offer.  In our first blog in a series of 3 about flexible working we asked 'Why is burnout on the increase when flex...

Why is burnout on the increase when flexible working has become more relevant?

In a series of 3 blogs, we look specifically at flexible working, its pros and cons and whether (with so many companies looking to adopt a flexible working policy) it will ultimately resolve or contribute to the phenomenon of job burnout. In this, our first blog, we're going to discuss what role the pandemic has had in increasing work related stress and potential burnout. In a previous blog, we reported on the Health and Safety Executive's (HSE) annual report citing that in 2019/2020 it was esti...

Protecting your employees' mental health and wellbeing

Mental Health Awareness Week ran from 10th-16th May this year. There's a strong argument for making mental awareness every employer's priority, every week.  At Q&A People Matter, we encourage all our clients to keep mental health at the top of their agenda. Last month we posted on Q&A's social media business pages, reporting on the World Health Organization's (WHO) study: 'Long working hours increasing deaths from heart disease and stroke' and the worrying correlation between working l...

COVID vaccinations - how do employers tread the path?

In this blog we acknowledge the issue around enforcing a COVID vaccination for your employees as restrictions begin to lift. How can employers create a workplace environment which is supportive and constructive in its approach to the vaccination programme? In earlier blogs, we've looked at how the pandemic has impacted upon the way we work and the way we manage our teams in terms of mental health, wellness, flexible working and productivity. In our previous blog 'Hybrid working: It's here t...

Hybrid working: It's here to stay but will it work for your business?

In a previous blog, 'Ditching the daily commute - is it really a boost for mental health?' we looked at how the pandemic has caused a cultural shift to home working. We asked the question: How can employers support their workers, not only to maintain productivity but to maintain mental wellbeing? In a survey of 50 large companies, representing 1.1 million workers, the BBC Business article 'No full-time return to the office for over a million' reports that 86% of the companies questioned said the...

The furlough scheme changes (from 1 May 2021)

From 1 May, the furlough scheme (also referred to as the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme) will change. We've done a brief synopsis here but we recommend you visit GOV.UK's page 'Check if you can claim for your employees' wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme' for more detail....

Ditching the daily commute - is it really a boost for mental health?

Earlier this month we shared an article on social media reporting on an internal survey conducted by Nationwide Building Society. In the survey, 36% of office staff expressed their wish to have a 'blended work experience'. Just 6% of respondents said they wanted to return to their office environment once lockdown restrictions began easing. As a result, Nationwide has announced that all 13,000 office based staff will be offered the option to work remotely on a permanent basis. Quoted in...

Are you ready for IR35 changes?

IR35 tax legislation has been in place since 2000 - reforms were made with respect to the public sector from April 2017 and as of this month are now in place for private organisations (delayed by one year due to COVID-19). Essentially, the legislation was brought in to ensure contractors (off payroll) and employees (on payroll) are subject to comparable tax deductions when they are undertaking the same role. Historically, an employee could resign from a role within a company with the sole intent...