People Smartz Blog

It is interesting the way businesses handle performance issues with employees. 

Some handle them promptly, professionally and in a way that encourages improvement.  Others handle them poorly, carry a big stick and get what they want through an aggressive approach.  Finally you have a group that do nothing at all - at least until the problem becomes so bad that it can't be ignored!

Avoiding conflict is human nature, generally managers and business owners don't want conflict within their business.  However, poor performance has effects on business performance, team morale and may result in conflict anyway.

It is important for Business Owners or Managers to undertake regular two way communication with employees.  Performance issues should be addressed as a matter of course, not as an exceptional circumstance.  If it is done correctly, then it can be seen as a learning event rather than a disciplinary issue.

My children have been taught at school that if they have a problem to do something about it - maybe this is a lesson we should all take on when it comes to performance issues.

Some hints to you in regards to managing performance:

1. Ensure your employees are aware of your expectations.  This can be in the form of position descriptions, goals and targets, employment agreements or various other instruments.  Talking to them regularly is another way of letting them know your expectations.
2. Make sure your employees know the effects of failing to meet your expectations in regards to business performance.
3. Ensure your employees know what to expect if their performance fails to meet these expectations. Ensure you have aprocess of communication and counseling for such issues in place and that everyone is aware of it.
4. Make sure your process initially is designed to encourage improvement in performance in a educational manner (so that they learn from their mistakes)
5. If they continue to perform poorly, have a system in place to manage the issue through to a positive outcome but with the recognition that continued poor performance may result in termination of employment.
6. Finally - if it does come to the point where the situation is no longer tenable - have a strong process in place to terminate employment.

Systems to encourage positive outcomes are your best defence against poor performance.  It is much better to manage performance in a positive manner than manage poor performance in a negative one - for you and your employees.

People Smartz Coaches can assist you with performance issues or with putting in place the systems you need to encourage positive outcomes.

Contact People Smartz today.

A few blogs ago, I told you about the new unfair dismissal laws and how they affect small business.

The new legislation becomes law on Wednesday, 1 July.  With these laws comes a revamp of the Australian Industrial Relations Framework.  With Australia's political landscape this is not really new - it regularly changes with changes of government!

As already stated, the new laws change the unfair dismissal laws.  Other areas that are affected are:

• The expansion of Workchoice's 5 minimum standards of employment to a 10 minimum standards.  With the new modern awards, these will form the new Safety Net for employees from 1 January 2010
• A change to the definition of small business
• Increased Union Right of Entry into workplaces for investigation, discussions and OH&S matters
• Significant changes to the manner in which industrial relations is governed with the creation of Fair Work Australia - a one stop adviser, mediator and arbitrator of the new laws.
• The abolition of AWA's (no surprise there!)
• An "emphasis on enterprise level collective bargaining underpinned by simple good faith bargaining obligations"
• The introduction of an additional discrimination jurisdiction under the Fair Work Act.
• Redundancy and Termination changes including the setting of minimum redundancy payments and notice periods 
• Maternity and Paternity Leave

With these new laws it becomes more important than ever to ensure your workplace has procedures and policies in place to respond to employee complaints and lay down expectations in the event of a dispute or issue.  In addition, you employment agreements may now contain clauses that contradict the new laws.  I recommend strongly that you seek some assistance to ensure you are ready!

Should you need any further information on the new laws, contact People Smartz and we will be happy to assist.

One of the things I am often saying to my clients is that it is better to have no one in a role than the wrong person.

Selecting the wrong person for a role can have a big effect on your business overall.  If that person is managing others then the effect can be amplified!

Because of this, the recruitment and selection of the right people is a must for any business - regardless of the size.

Here are some things to think about when deciding who is right for your business:

1. You are running a business, not an employment service for your relatives, friends etc.  Unless they have the skills, attitude and competency for the role they should not be there!
2. Make sure you understand the position - Sit down and work out what it is you want this person to do, what sort of attitudes you want them to bring to the business (and how well they will tie in with yours), what experience they are going to need etc.
3. If you have good contacts in your industry, ask around - find out what the current package expectations are in the market, talk to them about people who may be available.  Do your research - you might just find the right person, but if you don't at least you will understand the expectations of the market.
4. Think carefully about where you advertise, consider where your talent pool is going to come from.  Consider areas such as Online (Seek, Career One), Local Job Network Centres and your own networks.  There are also newspapers, recruitment agencies etc but these are generally expensive.
5. Be realistic in your expectations - this is your business but remember that the applicants are not you - it is unlikely you will find someone that fits in the same mould as you.
6. When interviewing, have your questions prepared so to test the candidate against your requirements.
7. When interviewing ask yourself the following questions:
   1. Can I work with this person?
   2. Would I be happy with this person representing me and my business?
   3. Does this person have the demonstrated abilities that the business needs (note - what the business needs); and finally,
   4. How does he/she compare to the other candidates?

And finally, remember my first line - it is sometimes better to have no one in a position rather than the wrong person.  If you can - keep recruiting until you find the right person!  Otherwise, you may be doing it all again very soon anyway......

At People Smartz, we can assist you with the process of recruiting, either through our full recruitment service or by coaching you through the process - visit our recruitment page for more information.

It is now under two weeks until the new Industrial Relations Laws take effect.

Small Businesses are effected by these new laws - yet recent survey's have shown that only 5% of Australian businesses are prepared for the changes!

One significant change to the laws are those concerning unfair dismissal.

The dismissal of an employee, for whatever reason, is an unpleasant thing.  Regardless of the reason, the dismissed employee is likely to feel hard done by and aggrieved.  It would be a very unusual employee who accepts a dismissal without some sort of hard feeling!

Many small business owners I speak to believe that because they have less than 15 employees they are not effected by the unfair dismissal provisions of the new law.  While this is technically right - it does not mean that small business can not be subject to a claim for unfair dismissal.

Under the new laws, small business must follow the "Fair Dismissal Code for Small Business" when dismissing an employee to protect themselves against a claim for unfair dismissal.  This does not stop an ex-employee from making a claim, but if you have followed the code then you may be protected from the ramifications.

So, the fact is that, as a small business, you can still be the subject of a unfair dismissal claim.  With the associated pain of handling the claim and the unpleasantness it causes, you need to do what you can to protect yourself.

Amongst other things, It is important to ensure you have good performance management systems in place.  If you have dismissed an employee for performance reasons, you need to be able to prove that you have counseled the employee and given them an opportunity to improve.  If you have not done this - then an unfair dismissal claim could be proved and your hip pocket is likely to take a hit!

There are many other things you can do and many other affects that you may not be aware of.  At People Smartz, we offer small businesses in the Brisbane and Coffs Harbour areas the opportunity to have a free risk assessment of their business.  In that assessment, you will learn about some of the other affects the laws will have on your business - and what you can do about it!

If you live outside Brisbane or Coffs Harbour, contact us anyway.  We will pass on your contact details to other members of the HR Coach Network.

To book your assessment - click below:

Free Risk Assessment of Your Staff Systems