People Smartz Blog

The Australian Industrial Relations Commission has been releasing over the last couple of months the new Modern Awards to cover employment within Australia from 1 January 2010 .

The process is continuing and by the time January 1 comes along, all employees under $108,000 per annum will be covered by one of the new modern awards.  This includes professional occupations who previously had not been covered by an award - some of them under a new "catch-all" award created for the purpose of ensuring they are covered.

While not all the awards have been released, a list of the one's released so far (with a copy available for download) is available from http://www.airc.gov.au/awardmod/fullbench/awards.htm

I would strongly recommend that you review this list and download the award applicable to your industry.  From 1 January 2010, when the awards become effective, you will be required to be complying with the award applicable to your business.  The time to start preparing is now not on 31 December!

The businesses I am working with on preparing for the new awards vary in the amount of work they need to do to prepare for the changes.  It really does depend on the individual business.....

If you want to know more, as well as a suggested list of activities you can undertake to help yourself prepare for the changes - visit out website by clicking below and downloading our information sheet.

Australia's New IR Laws - Information Sheet

If you have any questions about the changes, please feel free to contact us or post a question on our forum page!  Our forum is also hosting a discussion on what effects you believe the new laws are going to have on your business - why not give us your thoughts today!

Contact

The People Smartz Forum

It should come as no surprise that the latest research is indicating that Australian businesses are "under threat due to the increasing complex economic and labour market".

The latest white paper released by the HR Coach Research Institute talks to the maturation in professional services to Australian businesses in most professional areas (for example legal, accounting, sales and IT).  Titled "The Business of the HR Crisis", it discusses the effect a lack of effective people management practices is having over an estimated 651,000 businesses.

Some of the conclusions in the white paper include:

• The effects of uncertainty on the confidence of employers and strategic direction;
• The increasing management fatigue beginning to be seen due to down-sizing of workplaces
• The effect on small businesses of not being able to attract or retain employees
• The effect of struggling with paperwork and compliance
• The compounding effect of industrial relations and Health and Safety legislation changes.

The cost of labour is the biggest cost on most businesses.  This cost is exacerbated by the inability for business to have access to effect people management advice and solutions.  This white paper discusses this in detail and delivers a conclusion which is not only interesting but in line with our People Smartz philosophy that "People Drive Results".

I highly recommend downloading the full white paper and would be interested in hearing your comments through our forum. If you don't have a membership (it's free), please register.

> Download the White Paper

> The People Smartz Forum

Sometimes the fundamentals of business are the same whether you are looking internally or externally. Unfortunately sometimes we don't realise it!

We work hard on making sure our customers know what they can expect of us, when we will do things, when we will do it by, who will do it etc.  We put this information into writing and ensure that their expectations of us are clear.  If we have expectations of them, we make them clear as well - for example, when we expect them to pay the invoice by!  It makes sense and makes for good and happy customers!

The same can be said for our own team members.  Often when dealing with performance issues in business, what I see is a mis-understanding in regards to what is expected of the team member with a differing expectations on both sides of the equation.

So like with our customers we need to work on expectations with our team.  So how do we do this?

First, there is the basic aspects of establishing the expectations of their behaviours and performance.  These are the sort of things that are covered in employment agreements, position descriptions, policies and procedures. Not only do they cover the idea of what the job is, they also lay out the your expectations of what is acceptable in regards to dealing with other team members, management, customers and others.  To have these documents in place puts you one step ahead in the expectation management game.

The next step is ensuring you have good strong two-way communications structures in your business.  Regular meetings with your team and feedback sessions (formal or informal) are good ways to begin this process.  Having a regular, proactive and systematic performance management and development systems also aids your aims in this area by putting in place forward looking goals and targets for your team.

Ensure your team are aware of your goals for the business.  Unless it is commercially sensitive, don't leave them in the dark about where you are taking the business and make sure they know how they can help you achieve this. Think about how you can bring them into the game.

Finally - do you know their expectations of you??  What is it they want out of work?  What gets them to work every day?  By finding out about these expectations, you can find ways to encourage them to achieve their own goals - its not only about your success, its about their's as well....  

So think about how you can become an expectation manager with your team!

Contact us if you would like any information on how People Smartz can assist you and your team achieve your expectations!

Contact
 

Over the last couple of days I have been assisting a business owner with a problem that had happened with one of his team members.

Now I will not be going into detail about the situation, that would be breaking confidentiality - but I will share one thing that occurred to me while I was with them.

Many years ago, I read (and attended a course on)  Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.  One of the seven habits was "First seek to understand and then be understood". 

Well, this situation would probably have been helped if both sides had taken the time to follow this habit!  I am not saying that either side was at fault, the truth is that if they had taken the time to understand what the other was saying, they would have found they were saying basically the same thing!  In other words they were disagreeing over something they agreed on!

Some sort of conflict can arise in any relationship - we all know that.  In business, when they occur and the business owner is involved they can take a momentum of their own if not handled promptly.  This was an example of one such occasion.

The first rule I explain to business owners in these situations is to keep their mouth shut and "listen".  This is followed by asking questions to ensure they understand what is going on in the mind of the team member and then act to correct the misunderstanding or incorrect performance.

This approach has the advantage of defusing situations, opening dialogue and giving team members the opportunity to feel they have been listened to.  It also gives the business owner (or manager) the ability to get their side understood in a more effective manner by helping them clear away the "noise".

It is an approach which is, in essence - "Seek first to understand and then be understood".  From my experience, I can tell you - it works!

People Smartz can assist you with your team, helping productivity and efficiency and introducing good "habits" to your organisation.  Contact us today to find out how we can help you and your team.

You will have seen me write before that the two things business owners need more than any thing else is cash flow and time.

Today's blog is all about the later - time.  Now in researching today's blog, I found many documents, reviews, white papers about time management - making lists or setting goals.  While it was tempting, this is not what this blog is about!

From my experience, business owners are always on the move, busy working on this part of the business or that, making everything work on a day to day basis.  This is how it was when he or she first started the business on their own and what they have become used to.

But in order to grow a business, the owner needs to move out of the day to day - if they do not devote some time to the future, then they will be forever stuck in today. 

Time is often the first area a coach needs to begin with a business owner.  For it is the creation of time that creates opportunities for business growth and increasing cash flow...

So how does a busy person find more time?  Well simply it is not possible to find more time!  It is a scarce resource with only a certain amount of it available - and the time you do have has many conflicting priorities pulling on it!

If time is scarce, then it is time to start looking for ways to make your use of time more efficient.  For many business owners, identifying the work they do which could be done by others (or not done at all) is often the first step in this process.  It is all about looking for the way your business can run more effectively, whether by using others, automating a process or just changing the way you do things.

This is not a hard process to begin yourself - if you can find the time to do it!  Bit of a Catch 22 isn't?

So if you want to grow and develop your business, start thinking about time - not in terms of lists but in terms of outcomes, effectiveness and how you can devote some of it to the future.  People Smartz Coaches can assist you in the process by providing you with an experienced perspective of your and your peoples activities. Contact us

This will be a short blog entry but probably the most important you will read!

Australia's new IR Laws come with a kick.  If you are non compliant you can be fined and forced to pay back pay, credit accruals, pay additional superannuation guarantee payments and additional pay roll tax - and that is only the start of the list!

Here are some examples of the ramifications if your business is found to be non-compliant:

• Non Compliance with Modern Award Conditions - a fine of $33,000 for a company for each breach plus the cost of back wages etc to the employee.
• Non Compliance with National Employment Standards - a fine of $33,000 for a company for each breach plus the cost of making up the breach to the employee.
• Avoidance of Employment Obligations (Sham Contracting) a fine of $33,000 for a company for each breach plus back taxes plus superannuation guarantee payments plus possible implications for payroll tax.
• Unfair Dismissal - back wages if found to be an unfair dismissal plus possible superannuation to the employee.  in addition, legal costs and lost opportunity costs in regards to time and effort to defend the claim.  Cost = many 000's of $$$.

The cost of being compliant is minimal compared to the costs of being caught out! 

Contact us today to arrange for a Free Compliance Assessment for your business.

I am often conducting compliance reviews for small to medium sized businesses.  These reviews are designed to identify any issues that may be placing a business at risk in regards to the many legislative areas that govern employment in Australia.

This is a large area - we are dealing with laws in industrial relations, Health and Safety, Discrimination, Equal Employment Opportunity, Independent Contractors and the list could go on.

For a small to medium sized business remaining compliant in an ever changing legislative environment is almost a full time job! This is highlighted in the reviews I do, where I am yet to find one business that is fully compliant.

The most common area I need to address with business owners is the lack of employment agreements.  These agreements describe the employment relationship and are essential for establishing the expectations of both parties in their relationship.

In Australia, a common excuse for not having agreements is that the employee is employed under an award and that is sufficient.  Unfortunately, it is not!

An award covers the minimum standards for employment.  It does not contain any clauses for the protection of the business, nor does it assist in the maintenance of standards within the business.  It is designed to protect the employee not the employer.

To explain this I often say to my clients the following: "if you were establishing a relationship with a client, would you ensure that your expectations and their expectations were clearly defined and easily understood".  For the majority of my clients the answer to this is "Yes".  When I follow on with the question "well, why shouldn't it be the same with your employees?" - the penny finally drops!

Another major reason for having employment agreements is for the protection of your business. Clauses should be inserted regarding things like confidentiality, the protection of intellectual property, protection of client lists and employees responsibility to obey company policy.  These and other clauses are essential protections for your company and are definitely not contained in an award.  

At People Smartz, we are more than happy to assist you in putting employment agreements in place for your business.

Contact us to discuss your requirements.

If you already have agreements in place, we currently are offering free compliance reviews for small to medium sized business which include a review of one of your employment agreements.

Book your compliance review today.

I have met with a potential client in the last couple of weeks, who was not concerned over the level of turnover he was experiencing in his business.

His turnover levels were around 50% a year and he had managed his business on this sort of rate for many years - his comment to me was that it was just what happened in his industry.

Well a little bit of research did tell me that turnover was high in this particular industry, but 50% was almost double the industry average!

Unfortunately for this gentlemen I needed to point out to him the cost of this turnover to him in time, effort, experience and, of course, profit.  When they were calculated, to say he was shocked is an understatement! 

The actual cost of replacing an employee can be calculated at somewhere between 50% and 200% of an employees salary.  This amount is a result of the time and effort required for recruiting (advertising, shortlisting, interviewing, time for all of the above), the loss of productivity, the cost of training new employees and many other, incidental, factors.

But high turnover can also be an indicator of other problems with your business - and with the cost of replacing employees, these can not be ignored!

Some hints for improving your turnover rate are as follows:

1. Hire the right people - not just in terms of qualifications or experience but also in terms of motivations and values.  Attempt to ascertain the drivers of your potential employee prior to employment and make sure you can meet them before offering them a job.
2. Remember those motivators as you deal with them during their employment - these are the things that are going to keep them interested. For example - people who are goal/career motivated need to be treated differently to people seeking security.
3. Our workforces today are more mobile - acknowledge this and find ways of making it work for you.  If a person feels it is time to move on, then find ways to make it easy on you and them. 
4. Find ways to improve communication and continuously improve the workplace.  Keep your employees engaged by involving them in developing their own goals and targets.  Communicate your goals and targets for the business - don't keep them in the dark!

Reducing turnover is a long term goal but worth it in terms of your time, effort and profit.  If you require assistance, People Smartz can provide you with a number of services to improve your results.  Contact us today!

It suddenly occurred to me that the one blog I had not written so far was the one about our People Smartz tag line "People Drive Results".

The one thing every business has in common is that people are involved.  Whether we are talking one person hanging out their own shingle or a company with 100's of employees - people are always involved.

Regardless of the business, regardless of its purpose, it is people that make things happen and it is people that work to make that business a success.  It doesn't matter what tools you put in place, what processes they follow or  who they are, it all comes back to the people who work in and on the business.

On Monday, I attended a seminar and met a gentlemen who ran his own company in landscape design.  Now I will admit, I have two brown thumbs, but this man even had me excited about his company, his industry and him!  He was a perfect example of "people drive results". Regardless of the tools, regardless of the processes, regardless of the client, it was he who made the company what it was - a successful business.

I meet many businessman who spend money on new software programs, consultants, marketing programs etc.  These are all essential and important to the productivity of their company and should not be forgotten.  But when I start talking to them about the ways they can improve on the gains from this further by spending money on their people many look at me like I am delivering something astonishingly new! 

The most basic asset of any business is the people, the area where the most gain can be made is through people and the most cost effective way of having a successful business is through developing yourself and your people. 

Yes - regardless of the business, it is people who drive results.  Why not talk to us about how we can help you drive your business? Contact People Smartz today.

In a lot of businesses, appraisal time is one of tension and sometimes confusion. 

At times, employees are surprised to be told about "issues" which have been around for a long time, but have not been addressed.

Manager's are stressed because they have to sometimes handle unpleasant realities.  They are further annoyed by the amount of time the appraisals take them away from their "real job".

It is particularly stressful for everyone when a person's salary,commission or bonus has a dependance on the appraisal.

In such organisations, the appraisals are a time to look back on performance and as a result what develops is a reactive approach to business and individual development.  Appraisals are seen as a chore that "most be done".

It has been well know for many years that such an approach is basically bad for business for all these reasons and more.  Where this is occurring, or where there is no process at all, business owners and managers are missing a great opportunity for driving their business forward.

By initiating a proactive, goal orientated performance management system (rather than backward looking appraisals), business owners and managers can drive activities to achieve strategic aims.  Individual and business progress towards goals can be monitored and communicated ensuring everyone is aware of this progress.  Corrective action can be taken to address performance, knowledge or experience issues as they are identified.  In the end, everyone is what is expected of the business as a whole and themselves as individuals.

More importantly - once a year appraisal time becomes an all year round, "the way we do things" process which is forward looking and driving the business.

Doesn't that sound like the right way to do things?

Such systems are not the domain of big business or corporate.  In fact in small to medium size businesses the development of such programs can have impressive impact, encourages participation and spreads out accountability throughout the business.  This is particularly important in small business where the owners are always spread thin!

At People Smartz, we can help you develop a system suitable for you business, regardless of size or industry.  As an added extra, our coaches can further assist you in the implementation by coaching owners and managers in how to deal with performance and productivity issues as they appear. 

Learn more about our HR Coaching Programs and then contact us for assistance!