Labour’s Employment Rights Bill was published on 10^th October, the first stage of their Plan to Make Work Pay, in what’s been hailed by CEO of the CIPD as ”the greatest shift in employment legislation in decades”.

The Bill is the headline plan, there is still lots of detail missing, and some changes that were predicted, have not been included in this stage. The government plans to consult on the reforms next year, and any new legislation will not be implemented until 2026, at the earliest.

Here are the key things you need to be aware of:

Right to claim unfair dismissal will be a day one right, but with a caveat

Currently those dismissed with less than 2 years continuous service can’t claim unfair dismissal at an employment tribunal.  This requirement for 2 years service will disappear, and any employee would in theory have the right to make a claim.

However, there will be consultation on the use of a statutory probation period to allow for an initial judgement about a new joiner’s suitability for the role. Indications are this will either be a 6 or 9 month statutory probation period. The suggestion is that there will be a simplified process for dismissal during the statutory probation period, but there is still much detail to be provided prior to 2026 about how it will work in practice.

Employers will be thinking about how they can make their recruitment processes more stringent, so the right hiring decisions are made at the start, with some employers saying that they are less likely to take risks at the appointment stage, for example offering a role to a candidate who lacks experience but shows enthusiasm.

Flexible working will be the default, but with a caveat

Flexibility will be the default, unless the employer can prove it’s unreasonable, for a potentially valid reason, including the burden of additional costs, a detrimental effect on ability to meet customer demand, an inability to re-organise work among existing staff or recruit additional staff, and a detrimental effect on quality or performance; all of which are currently justifiable reasons for rejecting a flexible working request.

Currently employees with any length of service can request to work flexibly, and this request can only be refused on specific grounds – which are similar if not the same as those included as a valid reason for disallowing default flexibility. There is a change of emphasis and there will be a greater requirement for the employer to demonstrate why the role can’t be done flexibly as requested.

Employers will be thinking about how they manage the selection and onboarding processes so there is transparency about the employee’s requirement or desire for flexibility and what is reasonable, from the start.

Zero-hours contracts will stop, but with a caveat

Workers will have the right to be offered a contract with guaranteed hours, based on their regular hours worked over a defined period, expected to be the previous 12 weeks.  However, workers can opt to remain on a zero hours contract if they prefer.

This replaces previous legislation due to be implemented where workers could request a predictable working pattern if they had 26 weeks’ service.

Employers will be considering how they currently use zero hours contracts, if there’s an alternative contract (for example a fixed term contract), and review the hours their zero hours workers currently work to see how they may be impacted.

Parental rights will be strengthened with expanded leave entitlements

Employees will have a day one right to paternity, parental, and bereavement leave. Currently employees need 26 weeks of continuous service to qualify for statutory paternity and ordinary parental leave.

Bereavement leave will extend beyond the existing entitlement for parents who lose a child. Broader compassionate leave rights are expected but the details of how long and whether it will be paid remain uncertain.

Employers will be considering what the financial and practical impact of this change might be, looking at the demographics of their workforce, allowing for planning and mitigating risk.

Employees will get sick pay from their first day of illness

There will no longer be any ‘waiting days’ before an employee who is off work due to sickness will be eligible for SSP.  This pay will now be available from the first day of their absence, provided the employee meets the eligibility criteria. The criteria are also likely to be changed to make it more accessible for all employees, regardless of their earnings level.

Employers will be looking at their current sickness absence figures, and planning for the increase in costs of the additional 3 days SSP applicable.

There will be a ban on ‘fire and rehire’ practices, but with a caveat

The government will shut down the ‘loopholes’ that allow ‘fire and rehire’ and ‘fire and replace’ to continue. The practice of terminating an employee’s contract and rehiring them on different terms will be restricted, and these dismissals will be treated as ‘automatically unfair’, unless employers can evidence financial hardship as the reason for the change to terms and it was unavoidable. Employers will need to show such a change was a ‘last resort’ after thorough consultation and consideration of alternatives.

Employers will be considering what other changes they could make should there be a need to reduce costs across the business, before looking at forcing through changes to worker terms and conditions, so they can demonstrate it is a last resort.

Collective redundancy consultation and notification requirements will change

When an employer proposes making 20 or more redundancies at one establishment, there is a requirement to notify the DBIS and collectively consult.  The changes proposed mean there will be a requirement to collectively consult if the Company intends to make more than 20 redundancies, regardless of which establishment in the UK the losses will apply.

Employers will need to review their policies and internal procedures for establishing the need for collective consultation processes and plan accordingly should redundancies be necessary.

Requirement to prevent sexual harassment of workers will be extended

On 26 October, the Worker Protection Act 2023 came into force, introducing a new duty for employers to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment of their employees.  The Labour government has set out its intention to require employers to take ‘all reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment, rather than just ‘reasonable steps’. It will also make employers vicariously responsible for protecting workers against harassment by third parties, a measure which was removed from the Worker Protection Act during the parliamentary process.

Employers will need to go ‘belt and braces’ with the preventative steps they can take in their business to prevent sexual harassment and tighten up how they can reasonably prevent harassment by a third party, as well as how they should respond to a complaint in light of this new liability.

Firms will be required to publish their intentions around improving equality

Large organisations (250+ employees) will have to develop and publish an equality action plan to show the steps they are taking in relation to gender equality.

 A new Fair Work Agency will crack down on unscrupulous employers

The government has announced it will establish the Fair Work Agency, combining existing enforcement functions around minimum wage, statutory sick pay, the employment tribunal penalty scheme, labour exploitation and modern slavery, to create a “strong, recognisable single brand” that will make it easier for individuals to know where to go for help. The Fair Work Agency will also cover a new area of enforcement – the holiday pay policy.

The Strikes Act and Trade Union Act 2016 will be repealed

The Bill will repeal the minimum service levels legislation introduced in 2023, and will repeal all but two parts of the Trade Union Act 2016.

The new government has set out plans to introduce new rights of workplace access for trade union officials and employer obligation to inform employees of their right to join a union.  The bill also brought forward measures to modernise trade union laws, including a reduction in the threshold for a recognition application from 10 per cent of the workforce.

Employers may want to introduce a ‘staff forum’ as a preventative measure to minimise the likelihood of union presence or recognition, or how they could engage proactively with unions in a positive way to build good employee relations. Contracts will need to be revised to include employee’s rights to join a union, and a communications plan to ensure the need to remind them will need to be devised.

Other plans outside of the Employment Rights Bill

The government has stated some of its commitments will be delivered outside of legislation, and they believe they can deliver more reform and therefore do not need all the commitments to be included in the bill.

This includes:

• Introducing the ‘right to switch off’, to prevent employers from contacting staff outside of their working hours.
• expanding the Equality (Race and Disability) Bill making it mandatory for large employers to report their ethnicity and disability pay gap.
• consulting on single worker status, aiming to transition towards a simpler two-part framework for employment status
• reviewing parental leave and carers’ leave systems

As a reminder, Labour’s Employment Rights Bill is subject to consultation as well as the usual passage through the House of Commons and the House of Lords, before it will become law in 2026, so there is plenty of time to prepare. More information is available here.

If you need help preparing, please get in touch.

From 26^th October 2024, businesses will have to fulfil a new requirement to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. This is due to the introduction of the Worker Protection (Amendment of Equality Act 2010) Act 2023. The EHRC guidance suggests this preventative duty extends to harassment of this kind by a third-party. This includes customers, clients, suppliers, visitors, members of the public – anyone who interacts with your staff at work. Essentially, employers potentially have vicarious liability for the acts of colleagues and third-parties in the workplace. That said the situation with regard to third parties is still relatively unclear from a legal perspective. The new Labour government have indicated that they intend to strengthen this new protection, so employers would do well to be on the front foot now, as there may be more to come.

What are employers expected to do?

Employers are expected to take ‘reasonable steps’ to prevent sexual harassment at work, although there is no definition of what those reasonable steps might be. The expectation is that they include actions that are practical, proportionate and tailored to the specific workplace. If employers can demonstrate that they took these reasonable steps, they might be able to successfully defend a claim of sexual harassment at work at a tribunal. Failure to do so could not only result in an uncapped compensation payment to the claimant, but also up to 25% uplift on compensation if an employer has breached the specific duty to prevent sexual harassment.

10 Reasonable steps to consider

1. Ensure your anti-harassment policies are up to date and reflect the new requirements. Make it clear what the Company’s expectations about behaviour in the workplace are. Consider creating a specific anti-sexual harassment policy and ensure this is regularly communicated to all staff, and third-parties.
2. Ensure that the ‘workplace’ is correctly defined in line with the Equality Act.  This extends to workplace social and off-site events, and interactions (both in person, in writing and on social media) that are connected to work.
3. Conduct a risk assessment of your workplace to identify where there is a risk of harassment. Ensure you include third-party risk, review the number of complaints received and the outcomes of those investigations.
4. Conduct regular anonymous staff surveys to get feedback on workplace culture including this specific area.  Or create an anonymous reporting system through the use of QR codes, publicised in discrete areas.
5. Ensure the process for raising a complaint is straightforward, that it’s clearly explained and easy to access.
6. Put up notices in staff areas, and anywhere your staff come in to contact with third parties.
7. Invest in up-to-date regular mandatory anti-harassment training. Use this to educate employees about acceptable behaviour, and what to do if they witness sexual harassment.
8. Invest in up-to-date regular mandatory manager training. Use this to educate your people managers about how to address issues and spot the early signs of harassment.
9. Ensure those who are responsible for investigating any complaints are trained and capable of doing so.
10. Ensure the senior team are aligned in taking a zero-tolerance approach to harassment. Make sure they are committed to creating and maintaining a culture that values diversity, inclusion and respect.

Consequences

If your employees do experience sexual harassment in the workplace, there are a number of different negative consequences.

As well as putting the business at risk of an employment tribunal claim (which is both costly and time-consuming), the consequences of sexual harassment in the ‘post #metoo era’ extend wider than this:

• Your reputation as a business may come under scrutiny. This may lead to potential lost business opportunities if investors, stakeholders, or potential customers or clients decide they don’t want to be associated with a business that has a problem with sexual harassment. Publicly listed companies have lost share value when issues of sexual harassment have been present.
• Your reputation as an employer will be detrimentally affected – not many people would seek to be employed by a company that has issues with sexual harassment in the workplace, and those already working for you will undoubtedly look for other opportunities. You are likely to find it hard to find and hang on to talent.
• The mental health of your employees is likely to be detrimentally affected, affecting productivity, absence and performance.
• The EHRC also have the ability to investigate and enforce the new requirements if an employer fails to comply with the requirement to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace. This process would also be extremely involved and time-consuming and further damage your reputation.

This change takes effect on 26^th October 2024, which means you need to have the ‘reasonable steps’ in place by this date in order to avoid a breach of the new duty to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace.

If you are concerned about what these changes mean for your business, Helpful HR can help, so get in touch.

When you hire a new team member, there will usually be a probationary period. This is a time during which both parties can establish if hiring them was the right decision. It’s a fixed amount of time, so proactively managing probationary periods is important. If it applies, details of a probationary period must be included in employment contracts. Wording should include the duration, the right to extend, and areas of their performance and conduct which will be considered.

Many companies have rebranded the probationary period, using terms like ‘Introductory Period’ or ’90-day journey’. They mean the same thing; Was hiring the new joiner the right decision?

Probationary periods ensure that an employee’s expectations are managed. They understand that what they do during that time matters and can affect their ongoing employment.  If the end of a probationary period goes left unchecked, the default position is that they have successfully passed.  This may result in changes to their entitlements and notice period, and it’s more difficult to address those issues after that.

Areas to consider

When it comes to assessing whether the hiring decision, it shouldn’t just be about technical ability in their field of expertise. It’s about the behaviour they demonstrate, their understanding of the business or their desire and enthusiasm to learn and make a positive contribution. In an SME one person can make a big difference to the team dynamic and the success of the business. Therefore, it’s important that you use the probationary period to determine if you made the right decision. The probation period is also about the employee deciding if this is the right place for them. It’s important that you engage in two-way dialogue about how they’re getting on.  The probationary period provides an opportunity to ‘course correct’ if things doing seem to be going to plan, either for you, the team or the new hire.

Tips for managing a successful probation

Managers need to spend time proactively managing probationary periods. It should be expected that more management time will be spent on this person during that time. The time you spend is an investment which will hopefully lead to a direct return.

So what should managers be doing during their new hire’s probation?  Here are our top 10 tips:

1. Clear job information: Make sure all the relevant information is clearly communicated during the recruitment process. That way there is no ambiguity about the role and what it involves
2. Effective induction: Ensure you have an effective induction programme. This should include information about their job, the team, the business and the way it’s structured. It should also include where they fit in, the values of the company and how you expect employees to behave at work
3. Introductions to key people: Ensure the new hire is introduced to key people on day one or at least during their first week. That way they know where to go for support if they have questions. No-one can know everything from day one
4. Meet regularly: Meet with the new hire 1-1 regularly and frequently, and make sure it’s diarised and a written note is taken and shared with them in a timely way. In these meetings you can ensure they know what they should be doing. You can provide regular feedback about how it’s going, both from the perspective of their work, as well as their behaviour. For example if their work has been accurate, or you have noticed they have been late multiple times during their first week / month. Flag what you have noticed, ask how they feel it’s going and if there is anything they’re not sure about
5. Set SMART objectives: Set some agreed objectives for the first month, and / or overall for their first 3 or 6 months. Progression towards meeting the objectives should also become an area of feedback in your weekly meetings, and follow up on email with the key points
6. Be accessible and approachable: Have ad hoc informal catch-ups with the new hire on the ‘shop floor’. Ensure your new hire has the opportunity to ask any questions they may have
7. Flag issues and concerns: If there are issues, flag them sensitively, but honestly. Explain why it’s a problem, and what you expected instead, or better still, ask them how they could have avoided the issue
8. Timely feedback: Ensure your feedback is given in a timely way. If something serious is wrong, don’t wait for the next 1-1 meeting
9. Preparation for meetings: Provide feedback in a confidential setting away from colleagues to protect their dignity. Prepare feedback properly to ensure it’s objective and delivered thoughtfully
10. Act prior to the end of probation: Make sure you meet with the new joiner before the end of the official probationary period to confirm formally if they have passed their probation. Alternatively, probation can be extended if there are ongoing issues which need to be addressed. Equally if there are too many issues you may have to deliver the news that the probation has not been successful. (i.e. you give notice to terminate their employment)

As people managers it’s in your interests to do all you can to set this person up to succeed. This avoids unnecessary additional time and resource in sourcing a new hire twice in a short period of time. That said, sometimes things don’t work out. If that’s the case, dealing with it promptly and decisively will save time and money.

Recruitment can be expensive and time-consuming, so making sure your initial recruitment process was appropriate will help.  Read our previous blog here about recruitment if you want more tips for successful recruitment.

If you would like support managing probationary periods, or you have an issue with a new hire, get in touch.

Obviously, employers are always keen to make successful hiring decisions. However it is common for a new hire to be unsuccessful in probation. This is often because it transpires that they don’t actually have the skills and experience needed for the job.

Why does this happen?

There are two potential answers to this question:

• The criteria for the job was not correctly defined at the start, and / or
• The questions during the selection process did not successfully establish the skills and experience of the candidate.

A great deal of management time and effort (and often direct cost) goes in to recruiting and onboarding a new employee, so when it doesn’t work out, more management time goes in to dealing with the problem. There are often direct costs in paying notice in lieu and untaken holiday when the leaver is processed.  You then end up doubling the recruitment costs and time for filling that role, when you repeat the process to recruit a better replacement.  So, getting the selection process right, makes business sense.

Tips for making successful hiring decisions:

• REALLY think about the job you need to fill. Consider the skills and experience that person needs to have.
• Create a job ad and job description which clearly articulates the qualifications, skills and experience you’re looking for. This will enable potential applicants without the skills you need to self-select out of the process.
• Involve more than one person in the shortlisting and interviewing process and spend time preparing together.
• Devise interview questions which are open and based on the candidates’ experiences. Plan to have a two-way conversation with them about it, so you can assess them against what’s required.
• Probe the candidate on their experience to ‘drill down’ in to the detail.  This will eliminate any potential embellishments, assumptions or misunderstandings about the experiences they have actually had.
• Ensure all candidates are interviewed in the same robust way, regardless of whether they are recommended by a contact, or you have worked with them before.
• Ensure one of the interviewers is taking notes of the candidate’s responses (the content, not their opinion about it). This will serve as an accurate reminder about the candidates, so you can discuss your thoughts about them effectively afterwards.
• If you’re in doubt about a candidate, ask them back, or meet them for coffee so you can ask them more about the areas where you feel less convinced. Or involve a third interviewer to do this – prepping with them about the areas of focus/concern.
• Do not appoint someone just because they are the best in an unsatisfactory group of candidates. If they do not have the essential skills and experience, and these areas cannot easily be developed or trained upon joining, do not appoint them.

Not everyone has a natural ability to interview well, but training or coaching can help your managers run an effective selection process, so they can find the right person for the job.

If you or your team need support in making more successful hiring decisions, get in touch.

As an employer it’s important to know of any forthcoming employment law changes. Being aware of the changes ensures you can prepare for them and protect your business from any legal claims. Here’s a rundown of the changes taking effect from April 2020.

Introducing parental bereavement leave

An Act passed in 2018 has resulted in the introduction of parental bereavement leave to provide support for bereaved parents. The leave will be available to parents who lose a child under 18, or suffer a still-birth in the later stages of pregnancy.

What is it?

Employees will be entitled to 2 weeks leave, and employees with 26-weeks continuous service will also be entitled to pay at the statutory rate. This leave is separate from the statutory right to unpaid time-off in an emergency, and compassionate leave which is discretionary.

Action to take

Employers should take the following steps, prior to April 2020:

• review your current leave policies and decide if you will follow or exceed the minimum requirements of this legislation;
• review and update policies and handbook to include this entitlement, as well as any other policies which may benefit from this information (for example, any family friendly policies);
• consider if you need to review and update other content in your handbook, and
• review and update your contracts of employment, so they are fit for purpose.

More information

Changes to written statements of particulars of employment

The current law states that written statements must be issued by employers to their employees within 2 months of their start date.  The new law will require employers to give all workers (not just employees) a written statement on or before their start date. In addition the written statements must include:

• the hours and days of the week the worker /employee is required to work, if they are varied and how;
• any details of a probationary period;
• their entitlements to paid leave;
• any details of training provided by the employer and
• other benefits not covered elsewhere in the written statement.

Action to take

Employers should take the following steps, prior to April 2020:

• be aware of exactly what needs to be included in the written statement;
• know about any other information which needs to be provided to employees in writing;
• ensure you have a template statement / contract of employment which is ready to use, should you need to make a new hire and
• review your current written statement / contract of employment to ensure it complies with the new requirements.

More information

Increase in the holiday pay reference period from 12 weeks to 52 weeks

The reference period for calculating holiday pay for workers with irregular hours will change. Employers will need to look back over the past 52 weeks for the purposes of calculating holiday pay.

IR35 changes for the private and public sector

The public sector IR35 reforms will be extended to cover medium and large private-sector employers. This means that responsibility for determining if IR35 applies to independent contractors will shift to the organisation, not the individual. Employers should review whether they fall in to the category ‘medium’ or ‘large’ employer and then review their contractors and pay arrangements to determine how the new rules will affect them.

More information

If you’re concerned about what these employment law changes mean for your business and need help in preparing for them, please get in touch with Helpful HR.

In a tough economic environment employers may conclude they need to reduce headcount and make some redundancies.

If that’s the case, there’s a statutory process to follow before making people redundant. It’s important to get the process right to avoid unnecessary disputes or Employment Tribunal claims for unfair dismissal.

Here are some key points to remember if you think you need to make redundancies.

Make sure it’s a genuine redundancy

Redundancy is about the role, not the person. The redundancy process should never be used to dismiss a specific employee in place of performance management and a disciplinary process. A redundancy is only genuine if it fits within one of the following descriptions:

• • the employer ceases to carry on the business in which the employee was employed,
  • the employer ceases to carry on that business in the place where the employee was employed,
  • the needs of the business for employees to carry out work of a particular kind cease or diminish, or
  • the needs of the business for employees to carry out work of a particular kind in the place where the employee was employed cease or diminish.

Preparation is key

Once you have established the reason for the redundancy of a role, prepare some notes for the consultation process. These notes should include key information you need to communicate:

• • why you need to make redundancies,
  • which jobs are at risk,
  • how employees will be selected for redundancy,
  • the number of people who could be involved,
  • how you plan to carry out redundancies,
  • how redundancy pay will be calculated and
  • details of any agency workers at the company

Fulfil your obligations

Establish the timeframes within which you need to consult and whether you need to consult a trade union, or elected representatives. If you plan to make more than 20 people redundant within 90 days you will need to do collective consultation, so it’s important to know your obligations.

Plan for the process

Prepare your notes and make sure you know the timeframes and consultation requirements. It can then be helpful to create a communication plan for the consultation process. The plan should include details of the consultation with potentially redundant employees as well as other team members who may be affected by the changes.

Make proposals

When the consultation is complete, a redundancy can be confirmed. True consultation involves listening to alternative ideas to avoid redundancies, considering any contractor or agency worker roles instead and redeployment opportunities within the company. It’s also important to ensure the affected employees fully understand the reasons for the consultation and what it means for them specifically. Prior to consultation being completed any redundancy plans should be presented as proposals, subject to consultation.

If you’re making large-scale redundancies, it can result in a long and complex process, but whether it affects one employee or 50, it’s still important to get it right and consider their rights and how the news will affect them. Good planning and communication is key.

We work with businesses during difficult times and help to take away the worries about getting it wrong, so if you’re business needs to make these difficult decisions, get in touch with Helpful HR.

Anyone who has ever line managed will undoubtedly have had that sinking feeling at some point, knowing that they need to address some kind of problem with the performance or conduct of one of their team. All line managers should feel reassured that they are not alone in feeling this way.

The good times

When everything is going well, and your team are performing and behaving as you want them to, being a people manager is fantastic. You see great results through your people, and that reflects positively on you. Your bosses think you’re doing a great job and all is right with the world.

The harder times

Unfortunately this perfect world is very unusual, certainly in the long term, and there will be times when you have to address a problem directly with one of your team members. Whether it’s an issue with their performance or their behaviour, no-one looks forward to having a conversation about these issues and addressing it head-on. But it really is the best way to make a change for the better.

Top tips

Here are some top tips for preparing for, and having those dreaded conversations:

• Don’t wait.  If something has gone wrong, address it privately at the first opportunity you have. Don’t wait for the next 1-1 in a month’s time and don’t address it publicly in the open office.
• Prepare.  Make notes and identify the problem. Be specific and note exactly what went wrong and what you expected. Be prepared to share this information with the individual.
• Have a conversation.  Everyone has a different perspective on any situation, so allow the individual the opportunity to give their view of the situation.
• Keep it objective.  Keep it factual, balanced, constructive and objective and try to make sure that it doesn’t get personal, or heated.
• Check for understanding.  Seek confirmation that they understand why it was a problem, by asking questions such as ‘Can you understand why this wasn’t appropriate?’ and ‘What do you think you could have done differently?’ Probe them if you feel they don’t fully accept that there was an issue, or take responsibility.
• Follow-up.  Tell the individual that you will forward them a summary of what you’ve discussed, so that they can have a record of your expectations. It’s not a formal warning, just provided to support their learning and development.

The benefits

As managers and business leaders, if you address problems in your teams directly, you can ensure that all your team are contributing to the success of your business. One underperforming team member can do damage to your business success and potentially your brand. By ‘nipping it in the bud’ in a constructive way, you will avoid situations developing and taking a downward spiral. The longer performance or conduct issues go unchecked, the harder it is to address successfully. There’s also more chance of the wider team becoming unhappy.

If you or your management team need support in addressing difficult situations, HelpfulHR can definitely help – whatever the issue. Get in touch, and let’s get them back on track.

I’ve come across several situations where a team, or individual members of a team, are suffering with low morale and poor performance. They’re on a downward spiral as not enough care and attention has been paid to the management of that team and the individuals within it.

Some managers genuinely think their Human Resources department are there to line manage each employee in the business. They don’t feel HR is part of their role and concentrate on providing functional business leadership.

Managing people as well as a function is not easy. As a manager you have several things to think about and probably several people, all with different needs and abilities. The role of HR is to help and guide managers through this aspect of their role and it’s a constant learning curve.

Top tips for successful management

I’ve come up with some ‘top tips’ for managers to help them flourish as a truly good manager:

GET TO KNOW YOUR TEAM.   You may think you know them, but have you spent any quality 1-1 time with them?Do you really know who they are, what they do, what they want to do and what they think of what they do? Regular 1-1s are invaluable and should be in the diary at least monthly.

ADAPT YOUR STYLE.   Remember that as the manager it’s your responsibility to adapt your management style to get the best out of your team. It’s not their job to adapt to you.

MANAGE PERFORMANCE.   Make sure you ask people in your team what they think of their performance. Ensure  you discuss and agree with them what their specific objectives are, and when they are expected to achieve them.

COMMUNICATE.   Ensure you communicate any non-confidential management and financial information to your team. This can include any information you think is relevant, useful and of interest. No-one really complains about being given too much information.

CELEBRATE DIVERSITY.   Accept and ENJOY the fact that you have people in your team with different goals, skills, experience and beliefs. Provided you’re all working to the same departmental goals, it’s a benefit to have such diversity within the team, so draw on it.

PROVIDE CLARITY.   Ensure that everyone in your team knows what their role is, what the boundaries are, where they have authority and what you expect of them.

This isn’t a definitive list, but it should set you up for success as a manager. If this doesn’t work, or you have a more specific need then that’s what your manager is for, to provide you with guidance.

If you advice and support to grow and develop to become the best manager you can be, get in touch. We can’t do the job for you, but we can definitely help!