With over 25 years as the co-owner of a successful engineering business employing 30 staff, combined with a background in leadership development and education, Dianne has a wealth of experience to draw upon. Dianne’s practical experience is supported by qualifications in coaching, training, human resource management and business.
As a business management and leadership coach, consultant, speaker and trainer, Dianne is passionate about helping people and organisations discover and realise their potential. She believes that life is too short not to enjoy what you do and she helps her clients to discover their unique purpose, strengths and passion and build a successful and satisfying life around them.
a. Have a look at Anderson Gray Worldwide - http://www.anderson-gray.com
A recent poll by SmartCompany indicated that more than 40% of small and medium size businesses in Australia have plans to cut staff in the next 12 months. If you're one of these businesses, here's some advice on how to go about making this difficult decision.
First, explore alternative options
Before you consider making staff redundancies, look at other ways you might be able to lower your wage costs.
You could reduce overtime, offer employees shorter hours or reduce casual or contract staff. Offer unpaid study or travel leave. Encourage people to use their annual leave or give them the option of taking twice the time on half the pay.
Parents with children or people close to retirement may welcome working a shorter day or moving to 3 or 4 days per week. There are a number of options to consider before making redundancies.
The key thing to remember is to not get caught up in the current climate of fear and make drastic changes. It's important to stay calm. Companies who stay calm and look for opportunities, grow during recessions.
Get advice
If you decide you need to make staff redundant after exploring your options, make sure that any redundancy decisions are genuine. If they're not you could be sued for unfair dismissal.
For instance, after making someone redundant, it's illegal to immediately advertise the position or fill it with another employee.
Make sure you comply with the redundancy provisions of the relevant award or workplace agreement, such as those relating to redundancy payouts, consultation procedures or selection criteria. You’ll also need to abide by anti-discrimination laws.
Seek advice from your employer group, employment lawyer or Wageline before carrying out redundancies.
Be decisive
Once you've assessed your options and know what your needs are, don’t delay carrying through on making hard decisions.
Your business needs to be in a strong position to survive and thrive in what could be a sustained period of recession. Acting early ensures you can protect your other staff, your customers, your suppliers and, of course, you.
Make sure you don’t lose good people
Before cutting staff look at the needs of your business. What skills and knowledge are vital to your business's future success? Which people will be the most difficult to replace when you start to grow again? Who has the greatest potential?
Use this information to decide which positions and people must go. ‘Last in first out’ is not the best method and may be illegal.
Use objective criteria such as productivity, attendance, disciplinary records, skill-level and work experience to decide who will be made redundant. Score each possible candidate according to these criteria and make sure you keep a record in case you need to justify your decision at a later stage.
Communicate often and well
Throughout this time you need to build trust and maintain high morale amongst your staff. Engaging in clear and open communication is key to achieving this.
Keep everyone informed throughout the process and give a full explanation of how decisions will be made. Insensitive redundancies can do long-term damage to your business.
Make sure you communicate the correct information and the reasons behind any redundancies. Provide opportunities for people to ask questions – open communication will help put a stop to any speculation or gossip amongst your staff about the changes.
Remember to take care of those who you want to keep in your business. Make sure you help people stay motivated and help them deal with any emotions they might experience with the loss of their colleagues.
Part on good terms
Ensure employees are told their roles are being considered for redundancy as sensitively and respectfully as possible. Tell them the truth about why you have to let them go and how you'd prefer not to lose them.
Provide people with support. Let them know where to go for advice or assistance. Offer to help them update their resume or improve their interview skills. Recommend any good local employment agencies you might be aware of.
Many employers pay for counseling or coaching to help people deal with redundancies. Keep in touch with them - this person knows your business and you may want to re-hire them in the future. They may even become your customer or supplier in the future.
In closing
Redundancy is a complex issue and every business will face different challenges. This article provides just a brief overview of what to do.
For more information and a free consultation about your redundancy issues, please contact Dianne Taylor.
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