What makes a “good” employer? – Part 1

Virtually every business needs employees. We cannot do it all ourselves and if we tried, our workload would be horrendous and our level of success would be seriously limited. But employing people can present problems. Getting it wrong can be terribly expensive in more ways than one. However, good people management can be a positive driving factor in the success of a business.

The most obvious problem areas concern the law. Recent changes mean that Employment Law is even tighter these days. Employers will often be left with the impression that it is all too one-sided and that whenever anything goes wrong it is always the employer that gets it in the neck and ends up signing a big cheque.

That view is not strictly correct. It is true that there are precise procedures that need to be followed but if they are, and each case is approached in a considered and consistent way, employers should not find themselves on the wrong end of an Employment Tribunal award.

More importantly though, there is a great deal more to the employment of people than the essential matter of keeping out of Employment Tribunals. Happy, contented staff are more productive, more considerate towards both clients and colleagues and less prone to make costly mistakes which may result in lost business. In a happy office, sickness and absence levels will be low and a positive work environment is more likely to attract and retain good people – if you have ever worked in an organisation that suffered a high turnover of staff you will appreciate how negative this can be for the business.

In short, good, happy and contented staff can bring positive benefits to the business.

So what makes a good employer?

Over the coming weeks, we will be looking at a variety of areas which can have a positive or a negative impact on your business.

These will include looking at areas such as:
Systems, policies and procedures;

• Support and approachability;
• Appraisals and Career Development;
• Pay and rewards;
• Premises;
• The Social Side;
• Absenteeism;
• Records;
• Recruitment;
• Values;
• Leadership;
• Driving the company’s business forward.