People are one of the greatest assets of any business.
They can also be one of the greatest challenges.
For a small business owner, managing employees can involve recruitment, onboarding, performance management, workplace issues, policies, difficult conversations, investigations, documentation and countless decisions that need to be made correctly and consistently.
The problem is that most small business owners did not start their business because they wanted to become HR specialists.
They started because they had a business idea, a skill, a service or a product they wanted to provide.
As the business grows, however, managing people becomes an increasingly important part of running the organisation.
This is where the SGH People’s Toolkit can help.
Why Managing People Can Be Difficult
In a small business, people management is often informal.
The owner may employ their first staff member, show them what to do and gradually develop procedures as the business grows.
Initially, this can work well.
But as more employees join the business, informal management practices can create problems.
Different employees may receive different instructions. Performance issues may not be addressed early. Managers may avoid difficult conversations. Important decisions may not be documented.
Eventually, the business can find itself dealing with employee problems without having the systems, processes or documentation needed to manage them effectively.
The answer isn’t necessarily to create a large corporate HR department.
For many small businesses, the answer is to develop simple, practical and consistent people-management processes.
Good People Management Starts Before There Is a Problem
One of the biggest mistakes businesses can make is waiting until something goes wrong before developing their processes.
For example, a business may not think about performance management until an employee’s performance has deteriorated.
It may not consider workplace investigations until a serious complaint is made.
It may not review its recruitment process until it hires the wrong person.
It may not develop an induction process until a new employee arrives and nobody knows who is responsible for training them.
Good people management is proactive.
It means establishing reasonable processes before they are needed.
This gives managers a framework they can follow when dealing with situations that may otherwise become stressful or inconsistent.
Recruitment Is the Beginning of the Employee Journey
Recruitment is one of the first major people-management decisions a business makes.
Getting recruitment wrong can be expensive.
There can be advertising costs, time spent interviewing, training costs, lost productivity and the potential impact on other employees and customers.
A structured recruitment process can help businesses make better decisions.
This might include identifying what the business actually needs, developing an appropriate position description, preparing interview questions, assessing candidates consistently, conducting reference checks and properly recording the recruitment decision.
The objective isn’t to make recruitment complicated.
It is to make it deliberate and consistent.
Onboarding Sets the Tone
Once someone is employed, the next stage is just as important.
A good induction process helps a new employee understand the organisation, their role, workplace expectations, policies, procedures and responsibilities.
It also gives the business an opportunity to communicate its expectations from the beginning.
Employees should not have to guess what is expected of them.
A structured induction process can help reduce confusion and give new employees a clearer understanding of how they fit into the business.
Managing Performance Early
Performance management is another area where small businesses can struggle.
Sometimes owners tolerate poor performance for too long because they are uncomfortable having difficult conversations.
Unfortunately, avoiding the issue rarely makes it disappear.
A structured performance management process can help managers identify concerns, communicate expectations, provide employees with an opportunity to improve and document discussions appropriately.
Performance management should not simply be about disciplinary action.
It should be about helping employees understand what is expected and giving them a reasonable opportunity to meet those expectations.
Difficult Employees and Difficult Conversations
Managing difficult behaviour is one of the realities of employing people.
There may be conflict between employees, repeated performance concerns, inappropriate workplace behaviour, attendance issues or disagreements between managers and staff.
These situations can be uncomfortable.
However, having a structured approach can help managers respond rather than react.
Good documentation, clear communication and consistent processes can provide managers with greater confidence when dealing with difficult situations.
Workplace Investigations Need Structure
When a complaint or serious workplace issue arises, businesses need to approach the matter carefully.
A workplace investigation should not simply become one person’s version of events against another’s.
Businesses need to consider the information available, speak with relevant people, document the process and make decisions based on the information gathered.
Having an investigation framework can help managers understand the steps involved and avoid overlooking important aspects of the process.
For small businesses without dedicated HR departments, having practical resources available can be particularly valuable.
Policies Provide Consistency
Policies are another important part of people management.
Policies help communicate how the business operates and what is expected of employees.
However, policies should not simply exist because someone says the business “needs HR policies”.
They need to be relevant to the organisation, communicated to employees and reviewed as the business changes.
A practical policy framework can help businesses establish greater consistency across their workforce.
Introducing the SGH People’s Toolkit
The SGH People’s Toolkit was developed with these challenges in mind.
It is designed to provide small and growing businesses with practical resources to help manage the employee lifecycle and address common people-management situations.
Rather than expecting a business owner to start from a blank page, the toolkit provides a structured starting point.
The resources cover important areas of people management, including recruitment, interviewing, onboarding, performance management, difficult employees, workplace investigations and workplace policies.
The toolkit can be used by business owners, managers and supervisors who need practical guidance and documentation to support their people-management responsibilities.
Why Use a Toolkit?
A toolkit can save time.
Instead of searching the internet every time a people-management issue arises, a business can have a structured collection of resources available in one place.
It can also encourage consistency.
When managers follow an established process, there is less reliance on memory or individual management styles.
Most importantly, it encourages business owners to think about people management before problems occur.
The toolkit isn’t intended to replace professional HR, legal or employment advice where that advice is required.
Instead, it provides a practical foundation that businesses can use to improve their internal processes and identify areas where further advice may be appropriate.
Your People Are Too Important to Manage by Guesswork
As a business grows, people management becomes increasingly important.
Recruiting the right people is important.
Training them properly is important.
Setting expectations is important.
Managing performance is important.
Addressing problems early is important.
Documenting decisions is important.
Creating a workplace where employees understand what is expected of them is important.
These things don’t have to be complicated.
They do, however, need to be considered.
The SGH People’s Toolkit has been created to help small business owners move from informal people management towards a more structured, practical and consistent approach.
Because managing people shouldn’t be something you only think about when there is a problem.
Build the systems before you need them. Give your managers the tools to use them. And give your business a stronger foundation for managing its most important asset — its people.
The SGH People’s Toolkit is a practical business resource and does not replace professional employment, HR or legal advice where such advice is required.
