Time, money, resources – they’re all limited when you work in a small business. Between juggling your need to keep up performance alongside staff job satisfaction, training and professional development has a habit of falling into the background, especially as your small company grows.

But training is a vital component for any business. It’s what keeps staff feeling refreshed, operations ‘on point’, and reputation high on the agenda. Fail to invest in professional and personal development, and you will quickly find both your employees and customers looking elsewhere.

Irish unemployment is at a crucial low of 4.5% - can your company compete for talent? Getting the most out of staff training and investment could be your key.
 
Top HR Department Tips for Staff Training

1. Research, Research, Research

There is nothing worse for a time-strapped employee than being asked to attend a workshop or conference that bears no relevance or key training that will help them with their jobs.

Between the earlier alarm call to catch a train or flight, the stress of finding the location and the boring, overestimated speaker, your employee can be left frustrated with the loss of time and lack of learning. Meanwhile, you have failed to improve employee skills and lost out financially.

Doing your research on the best courses or host associations is key. Implementing a mentoring scheme in work can help senior staff identify what skills their junior colleagues could benefit from, while e-learning courses give employees the option to develop more flexibly, avoiding the dreaded stress of commuting to courses, or juggling family commitments.

By taking the time to understand which skills you need to improve in your employees and the best training options available, you can get the most out of the resources, money and time that you use as a business to develop your workforce.

1. If In Doubt, Ask!

Even in a small business, it can be a struggle to understand what your staff desire; what training they want and what skills or equipment they feel they need to do their jobs better.

While you might have an idea of the needs of the overall organisation, some employees may be more experienced than others in different aspects of their jobs. Some may have received training in previous employment, while others may want to develop some skills associated more closely to their particular job title and role within the company.

As an employer, you can maximise training opportunities by evaluating what the business needs as a whole, as well as ask staff to request training that they are interested in and feel would improve their jobs. Whether it is a certain course or provider they have heard of or taking part in Personal Development Plans during their appraisals to voice their own training goals, your staff can help you to invest efficiently in development, so you can get more bang for your buck.

1. After-Training Feedback

If a training course or conference doesn’t deliver, staff may feel unable to share that with you, conscious of the money & resources you may have used up to send them.

Implementing a process through your HR team, whereby staff can share feedback on the courses they have attended and their recommendations for future training, will give you an insight into the quality of courses or conferences you are investing in, and help you evaluate your choices for future professional development.
 
Train Your Way to the Top
All companies, especially small businesses, struggle to give up the time, money and resources to provide employee development and training. Weeding out the useful from the irrelevant courses, as well as recognising staff training goals will help you to invest in the right training for the right person, at the right time.

​Make sure your resources aren’t wasted – research and use your HR team to ask staff the right questions, before and after you embark on your training journey. 

Internships have experienced a popular rise in recent years, particularly amongst those career fields such as the arts that lack the funds for full-time, permanent roles.

But it isn’t just the interns that need the experience; businesses are increasing strapped to find the right talent & skills needed. While Ireland remains on the cusp of full employment, this multiple industry skills shortfall isn’t set to disappear any time soon.

Summer is upon us, schools and universities have finished up, and so too are its students & alumni. Why not fill those skills, give young talent an opportunity to develop their experience, and attract your future employees by offering robust and valuable internships? Check out why internships are important for your business, and the pitfalls to avoid.
 
Why An Intern?

• Performance Upkeep

As Summer holidays begin, many of your permanent staff may be looking forward to switching off and catching some rays somewhere for a week. But what about your performance?

While it may only be temporary, if a business is without several team members, productivity can slip and lead to customers or clients becoming unhappy.

Having a trained intern or two already available can help to level off some of this loss, and ensure your business keeps up its performance throughout the Summer period.

• Talent Gaps

On the other hand, Ireland has never been as close to full employment. Compared to 16% when the recession hit hard, unemployment now stands at an all-time-low of 4.4%, according to the Central Statistics Office.

Businesses across the island are finding it increasingly hard to attract talent, with competition driving up wage bills as a result.

Implementing internships can grab great talent early and give your business the opportunity to ‘sell’ and prove itself with these candidates. This will only make it easier to retain this talent permanently in the future.

• Fresh Perspective

Giving a candidate an internship will help them to learn new skills and develop a greater experience in your sector. However, an intern can also provide a fresh perspective and valuable feedback on your organisation from the ground up.

Whether it’s their views on the management model, to the training that they have received, this retrospect will only help improve your business and operations.
 
Pitfalls To Avoid
While internships are great for your business, it is important to tread carefully.

• No Pay, No Way!

Young candidates are growing increasingly weary of poorly paid or unpaid internships as a sign that your business will not offer practical experience, and that you do not care for your interns and the skills that they can bring.

Put simply, people are fed up working for free. In our low-level unemployment environment, young candidates will go elsewhere in their hunt for new skills and fair pay. Offering a reasonably paid internship will reap the best talent and the maximum benefits for your business.

• Poor Preparation

Whether you forget they are coming, fail to have a designated staff member to mentor them, or you haven’t enough tasks for them to work on, an internship can quickly become a boring exercise of administration.

While it might be great to get some tedious databases cleaned up, an intern won’t see it that way. Instead, they will view your business as disorganised and a negative place to work, leading to a poor word-of-mouth reputation when that intern returns to University during the next term.

Poor preparation for an internship will leave you without your skills gaps filled, while the Intern will fail to learn anything new or valuable, resulting in a waste of both time and opportunity.
 
Time for Skills, Time for Interns
The talent crunch is on. It’s time that you use your HR department to address this, seek out the skills that you need and implement robust, valuable internships that will reap these skills and introduce new talent to your business.

​Ensuring internships offer fair pay, a great experience and a valuable opportunity for professional skills development will attract the best candidates that could form part of your future workforce. 

Within the majority of my articles, I discuss how important the relationship is between employer and employee, and nothing is further from the truth. Sometimes, however, it can be easy for managers to be slightly alienated from their teams, due to not wanting to seem too familiar or to ensure the managerial role is respected. In larger companies, the divide between the roles can be even bigger and can often lead to problems in an organisation and its ability to execute strategies productively.

Gone are the days when a company could simply have one or two staff events a year for employees at every level to mingle. Instead, for businesses to benefit from effective leadership, they need to work towards a more inclusive approach, valuing all levels of contributions from staff members, irrespective of their role in the company.

Ultimately, ensuring the divide is being lessened comes down to the manager and how they work with their team to engage them in business strategies that affect customers and client interaction. The majority of manager training focuses on compliance and safety, as well as HR policies and procedures, however it is important for companies to ensure managers have training in leadership skills to ensure all teams are managed correctly.

No matter which industry one is in, a concept known as the “Service-Profit Chain” proves that managers who drive employee engagement make a positive impact on company growth and profitability.

So how does a manager break down the “them and us” attitude?

There are a number of factors involved in narrowing the gap; however managers need to understand the following three things before approaching the other factors:

1. Managers have to understand their role in the company, which more often than not is about ensuring their team meet their targets and deliver results.
   
2. Managers must inspire their team to work to their full potential whilst ensuring the employees understand the corporate vision and their role in the company.
   
3. Managers have to communicate with their team members, ensuring that team spirit and joint accountability is at the forefront of any task presented to them.

Communication is Key

There are two types of leadership when addressing communication: visible and communicative.

Visible leadership occurs when employees have the opportunity to speak to managers face to face, allowing both parties to form an attachment whilst reassuring team members that senior management are interested in their opinions.

Communicative leadership allows for employees to be a part of company strategies and be aware of high level decisions that may affect them in their job. Two way communication can be achieved through one to one meetings, team meetings, focus groups and employee forums where staff members can engage with each other, as well as senior management on innovative ideas, thoughts and concerns they may have.

Get Involved

Managers should attempt to spend time in different parts of the business throughout the year to gain an understanding of potential business issues from the perspective of their team. Employees are much more willing to work harder if management get involved in completing projects or hitting targets for the good of the team. Leading by example ensures that employees know the manager isn’t asking them to do something they wouldn’t be willing to do themselves.

Reward and Recognise Success

A lot of research has been done into positive reinforcement and the benefit it has for motivating and improving skills. Managers need to be aware of recognising and acknowledging individual team members success when it is deserved and offering constructive criticism instead of negative reinforcement which could lead to resentment.

Do Not Micromanage

Putting team members in a position where they have to make their own decisions and deal with the consequences leads to a stronger and more versatile work environment. Through management allowing their team to solve problems, staff members will gain confidence and be more likely to work independently in future tasks. If management don’t allow this to happen and constantly micromanage, employees will feel they are unable to do the job thy have been hired for and will constantly seek reassurance.

Encourage Offsite Activities

There are numerous team building days across Ireland that specialise in allowing all employees at every level in the company to share one space without potentially feeling intimidated by someone’s job title. Managers should engage in such activities once or twice a year to ensure all employees realise that the company has their best interests at heart whilst motivating and inspiring them outside the work place.

Be on First Name Terms

This may seem either obvious or rather old fashioned but there are still some companies who insist upper management are addressed by their surname. Unfortunately this leads to a level of intimidation from junior staff members. Addressing everyone by their first name removes any sense of hierarchy and brings openness and approachability between every employee in the company.

Trust is a Two Way Street

Last but definitely not least, trust and respect is the foundation of building a successful employee-manager relationship. Whilst managers find it important to trust their team members to do their job, employees also have to trust that their manager has their best interests at heart. Trust can come in the form of managers being open and honest about future plans or concerns, representing their team to employees high up the chain as well as protecting them from potential negative influences.

Managers hold the key to unlocking employee talent, keeping clients happy and ultimately driving growth within the company. Therefore it’s of utmost importance that companies give managers the tools and vision to help their teams succeed!



The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.

People change jobs for a wide variety of reasons, and in the majority of cases, leave a role with a very positive outlook of their previous employer. In recent years, it has become more popular for employees to return to a workplace they may have left to seek employment elsewhere, in turn, being labelled as ‘boomerang employees’.

Hiring a boomerang employee generally has a high returns on recruiting investment, as the cost to re-hire a boomerang employee can be a third to two thirds of the cost of hiring a new employee.  However, whilst there are benefits to re-hiring a previous employee, there are also some drawbacks.  Companies should always have a rehire policy set in place for potential reappointment of past employees.

Boomerang employees generally fall into the below categories:

• Top performers who voluntarily left
  
• Employees who were in key positions
  
• Valuable workers with key skills, contacts, or experience
  
• Promising interns who failed to return
  
• Retirees who may have realised they weren't ready to retire
  
• Top finalists who accepted another job
  
• Long-term consultants or contractors
  

So what are the benefits and drawbacks of employing past members of your staff? The drawbacks are simple:

1. Employees can potentially return with baggage they left with, including any bad habits they may have formed on the job.
   
2. Returning employees may not get along well with employees that have been hired in their absence.
   
3. Employers have to fully consider the position that the rehired employee will assume. The workforce dynamic may have changed, such as a former junior employee being higher up the ladder than the boomerang employee.
   

The benefits of rehiring past employees far outweigh the drawbacks for most businesses:

1. Often when an employee re-joins a company, there is no need to train them like one would with a brand new employee. It may be necessary to give some training on new policies or projects, however in general re-hiring turns out to be less expensive and time consuming than hiring a new individual.
   
2. During a boomerang’s absence, there is also a good chance that they may have learnt new skills and strategies, achieving success in a different situation. They will have likely made new connections and expanded their network which in turn is a bonus to your company.
   
3. There are no recruiting costs with a boomerang employee which means employers know their skill set and have no need to hire an agency to recruit on their behalf. This also saves on time, as it is often the case that companies hire new employees only to find out they are just not what they seemed.
   
4. Boomerang employees can be valuable to an organization because they already understand procedures and the culture within the business. They also know the habits of other employees and structures which have been put in place. The procedures are familiar and so it becomes a benefit to the business, whilst also potentially bringing a fresh perspective from the outside.
   
5. Generally when a company rehires a previous employee, loyalty from that employee increases. This may be because they have seen other business practices and realised they weren't all they seemed. The boomerang employee finds that they want to come back where they prefer it, and in turn becomes more loyal to the company and the employers that they work for.
   

Hiring boomerang employees shouldn't be the chosen strategy due to it being cheap and easy - the decision to re-hire an employee should be based on a good role fit and that the employee has the right skills for the right job. Not every employee who voluntarily left is a positive candidate for bringing back into the company.

Consider the below if deciding to hire boomerang employees:


Stay in Touch

It can sometimes be tough to accept that a top employee has decided to move on, and often personal feelings can get in the way of professional decisions. If the employee has a good track record then an employer should offer to be a reference for any future opportunities they may have. Employers should keep in touch with past employees and make sure to catch up a couple of times a year. It is important to keep their contact details on file and keep them in the loop with company announcements via email. Even if the employee isn't re-hired, they could potentially be a new client or refer someone to the business due to positive relationships with the company.


Be Thorough when Rehiring

Boomerang employees that only left the company a few months prior don’t necessarily have to be re-interviewed and quite often, simply having a conversation with the leadership team will suffice. However, for those that have been gone for more than a year, a formal interview process is beneficial, as company factors may have changed after a year — staff, culture, processes, etc.

Within any company, employers aim to ensure they are hiring the most qualified people and so it is important to approach potential rehires in the same way as unknown candidates. Focusing on positive performance records, in any company they have been hired with, as well as professional references, along with skills tests if needed, ensures their knowledge and abilities are up to standard.

The formal interview also enables a company to revisit the employee’s exit interview and look at their reasons for leaving in the first place. Any previous issues mustn't be overlooked, because chances are if they felt it once, they can feel it again. Asking questions such as "What do you think you can offer our company now that some of our priorities and service goals have changed?" confirms that the employer is not taking the re-hiring process lightly.


Debrief Returning Staff

As touched on in the previous point, if a boomerang employee has been out of the returning work place for a considerable amount of time, they may need to be brought up to speed on new structures within the company. The person who they report to may have changed, or if they are being hired for the position they held before, certain responsibilities may have changed. Employers must encourage a returning employee to ask questions and provide them with a go to person in their department who can offer assistance if need be.

Boomerang employees may need to be retrained. At this stage of re-employment, managers should be over communicating with the employee as well as ensuring that they know there won’t be any special treatment.


Prepare Current Staff

As soon as the decision is made to rehire an employee, team members must be told immediately to avoid upsetting existing, loyal staff as well as allowing an employer to be notified of any potential hesitations or concerns. Managers should work especially closely with the group of employees to which the boomerang employee is returning and ensure that there is open and honest communication within the workplace.


Monitor Progress

Often, boomerang employees are reluctant to ask for assistance when they need it, for fear their employer will question the decision to bring them back. To ensure the employee is happy, managers must check in regularly to show interest in their progress and ask of any concerns they may have.

Transitioning back into an organisation may be slightly uncomfortable at first for boomerang employees, especially if there's been a lot of restructuring or staff changes since they left. Being considerate to returning employees’ needs can lead to them adapting more quickly and feeling positive about starting with the company again.

In an age where specific skills are increasingly limited, it is irrational to believe that departure from a company has anything to do with lack of loyalty. Individuals with the most valuable skills are always offered new opportunities, and if a valued employee accepts another position, due to flexible work arrangements, higher pay or growth opportunities, it could be seen as the employer’s fault for failing to retain the employee, and not the employee’s fault for taking advantage of market conditions. Rehiring former employees who have the skills a company needs is not only the right thing to do, it’s good for business.



The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.

It’s that time of year again, the day that people either love or hate: St Valentine’s Day. You may think that your employees should be kept busy with work, but apparently nothing stands in the way of potential love.  While they can't be prevented, office liaisons are not always a joy for business owners, so keep an eye out for these tell-tale signs that an office love affair is brewing and manage it before it gets out of hand.

Six Signs that John and Mary have become star crossed lovers:

They Avoid Eye Contact
When John was first hired and met Mary from the office, there was a bit of competition between them, which at times led to team tension. It was only natural as an employer to be relieved when they became cordial with each other and finally clicked as colleagues.

Everything seemed to be going smoothly, until suddenly they became extremely formal with each other. Now they barely make eye contact in public any more. In fact, when found in a room together, Mary blushes, John looks pale, and they both suddenly leave.

They Never Leave the Office Together 
“OK, I'm out of here,” Mary announces loudly, making sure everyone in the office can hear.

“Lucky you! It will be a late one for me.” John answers just as loudly. “See you tomorrow”.

Regardless of office size, most employees tend to leave work around the same time. However lately, for some odd reason, John and Mary make a point of letting everyone know they are leaving individually.

They're Both Putting in an Awful Lot of Overtime 
John and Mary have always been good employees, but they used to have lives outside of work. Now (when they aren't making sure everyone knows they are leaving separately) they are both the first into work in the morning and the last to leave, and when someone is needed to put in some overtime, John and Mary will be the first to volunteer.

Their Annual Leave and Sick Days Keep Matching Up 
The first time John and Mary took time off at the same time it seemed to just be a coincidence, however when they also began calling in sick on the same days, office gossip started. In fact, it has become more surprising to see one of them in the office on a day when the other is out, even more intriguing, if either one of them is asked what they did on their time off, they reply with a vague answer. 

They Start Fiercely Defending Each Other
Your business may be known for imaginative, brainstorming sessions, with no hard feelings and employees being able to enjoy the freedom of engaging in lively debate and witty banter. They are confident and skilled, and everyone knows it's nothing personal if an idea doesn't get backed.

At the last development meeting, Mary offered an idea that was immediately shot down by other team members, however when John adamantly defended her position beyond any logic, it created a strange tension amongst the group.

They Both Look Great 
Mary was always pretty, but there were days when it looked like she had just rolled out of bed and wasn't too put together. Now her make-up is always perfect, she's sporting a new hairstyle and she wears stylish new outfits. 

John was a good-looking guy, but a bit of a couch-potato outside of work. Then he started jogging at lunch time, and instead of eating his usual crisp sandwich he was suddenly discussing benefits of protein and eating lean chicken and salad. Soon Mary started going for a lunch time run too and they both joined the same local gym which they now attend regularly after work.


FACTORS TO CONSIDER

Before potentially facing sticky situations like above, it’s important to consider factors that come into play when co-workers begin to mix their personal lives with professional responsibilities on the job.

In addition to the legal consequences that could arise, more often than not, office relationships have an overall negative impact on the workplace, as workplace relationships may spur gossip, rumours and innuendo, which can be disruptive to the office and can negatively impact the reputation of the company if customers or clients are exposed to it. The same activity can make the affected couple feel bullied, which can lead to harassment charges from them.

Whilst office romances are not ideal, the most potential to cause problems are those that involve a supervisor and one of their subordinates. Often, fellow team members believe favouritism is occurring between the two, and that the supervisor is not being fair and objective when delegating responsibilities in the work place. It could be questioned that the lower level employee is being given special consideration by their partner when it comes to handling tasks or completing job requirements.

Another matter to take into consideration would be that other employees may believe they can’t discuss or complain about their team member to the supervisor involved in the relationship. If this is the case, issues that would generally be discussed will remain unspoken and un-addressed, which could lead to a decline in moral, and quite possibly filing of a discrimination suit.

Issues can become even more complex when you consider the likelihood of the supervisee having a certain influence over the supervisor that other employees wouldn't have. In addition to this, potentially due to the relationship, employees could accidentally disclose information to their partner, which could easily happen when sharing events of the day with one another.

Perhaps two of the most important factors to consider are when the couple has an argument or splits up. It would take a very professional employee to be able to keep their personal life separate from business matters and it could be possible that the couple may act out their feud on an employer’s time. Potentially, co-workers may be pulled into the argument and feel they need to take sides. This in turn may detract from the team’s productivity as a whole.

As office romances that end badly can roll into the daily work environment, employers may find themselves dealing with concerns such as diminished productivity or mediating between employees who are no longer co-operating with each other. This may also affect other employees, who could potentially feel hostility towards one of the team members in the former relationship, creating a negative tension in the workplace environment.

Additionally, there is the potential for employees to seek out employment elsewhere when relationships come to an end, which means employers risk losing strong employees who feel that they can no longer work at the company because of the breakup.

Finally, the most harming factor to consider as a result of an office romance breakup, especially if there is a difference in rank between the two individuals involved, is a sexual harassment claim. There could come a point where one person wants the relationship to continue and the other person doesn't, which in turn may lead to an employee seriously considering filing a sexual harassment lawsuit.


TAKING THE RIGHT STEPS

Simply speaking, the best way to avoid negative repercussions on office romances is to forbid employees from dating and never hire married couples, however in today’s world, the is unrealistic and would prove very difficult to sustain.

It is critical to work closely with an HR professional to anticipate problems and set solutions. All employers, regardless of company size, should have formal policies on office relationships in place, which should include what is allowed and what the consequences are if rules are broken. In every policy, it should be stated that any office relationship, regardless of rank, should be disclosed to the employer.

The employer should also reserve the right to decide on which type of employment action, if any, needs to be taken due the relationship, whether it is transferring an employee to another department or termination of employment.

However, just having a company policy in place isn't enough; companies need to ensure there is regular training available, particularly on the topic of sexual harassment. Often employees don’t know the extent of liability that could potentially arise from office romances, and how disruptive they could be in the workplace.

It is also imperative that the policy needs to be consistently enforced at every level of the organisation. Whether it is a CEO or an Assistant Executive that violates the policy, the same rules should apply. If not, team morale will be dampened and no one will follow the policy. Employers may even open themselves up to potential lawsuits from employees who believe they have been discriminated against.

At the end of the day, the goal of an employer is to provide a professional atmosphere where company targets can be achieved. Ideally, the working environment should be pleasant enough that your staff can enjoy themselves while being as productive as possible.

Interpersonal relationships between employees are unavoidable, so being aware of the potential downsides and types of relationships that are developing will go a long way to sustaining as much of a "hazard free" environment as possible.



The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.

If Government reports are anything to go by, it appears that the worst is behind us; unemployment levels are dropping, businesses are growing and people are looking for new job opportunities. As any good business owner will know, quality employees will always be in demand and retaining quality retaining them is essential to the development of their business. But what if you find yourself losing your top talent? What has motivated them to search for pastures greener and how can you stop the outflow? Funnily enough, it usually has very little to do with money. Here are five of the top reasons quality employees quit.

1.       They Don’t Feel There Are Growth Opportunities

Whether it is in terms of promotion or learning new skills, employees may feel that they are not advancing in their career. Personal growth can be a strong driver, especially for younger employees who are looking for training opportunities and ways to differentiate themselves from the larger pool of fresh executives.

Other times, employees may feel frustrated in their current role and feel that they have reached a ceiling on how far they can advance within a company. In such situations they will seek out opportunities at other companies where a more senior role is available.

The Fix: Establish a clear learning and development programme for your staff that provides opportunities to enhance and expand their skillset. A more qualified, satisfied employee can only be considered a more valuable asset to your company.

Equally, detailing a career path for your employees by identifying the skills and qualities necessary to advance to a higher level will motivate to work towards a promotion. Regular appraisals paired with effective communication will help them identify the areas that need to be improved if they are to achieve their goals.

2.       They’re Not Feeding Their Passion

Employee satisfaction is about much more than their salary. They need to be passionate, or at least actively interested, about the job they do. Nobody wants to be bored at work. Too often employees are assigned to tasks and positions that they have no interest in. Your employee applied for a job because what was outlined in the job spec appealed to them. If it turns out that the job they’re doing doesn’t relate to what they thought it would be, you wind up with a frustrated employee that eventually burns out or leaves.

The Fix: Set clearly defined roles for your staff and ensure that the role is suited to their individual strengths, where they will be challenged, engaged and excited about what they do. If a situation does arise where they must take on some extra responsibilities that are completely different to their area of expertise – be it due to understaffing or a lack of budget to invest in more people – be sure to communicate the issue to them, expressing your appreciation for their flexibility and providing an end date that they can work towards.

3.       They Fee Unappreciated

Unlike you, your employees do not come into work with the company’s balance sheets in mind. Most of them do not see themselves as being there to increase revenues and profits. They are there to work for you, their employer, and to carry out their role in making the business work. If they feel that they are not being recognised for the hard work they do for you then they will eventually stop doing it or move onto another company where such effort is acknowledged and rewarded

The Fix: Develop effective employee relationship strategies. Communicate with your staff regularly and find out how they are doing both in- and outside their job. Most importantly, don’t be afraid to praise good work and acknowledge when someone exceeds expectations.

4.       Lack of Autonomy

Trust is a huge factor for any employee. They want to know that they can trust you to manage the business that pays them but the best employees also want to know that you trust them to carry out their job professionally and autonomously.  You’re worst people are probably happy to have you standing over their shoulder, checking everything is done correctly. However, this will drive you’re most talented employees to madness. If your employees feel that you don’t trust their work, it will not be long before your proofing their letter of notice.

The Fix Autonomy and independence are traits and characteristics that you must encourage in the work place. As an employer you can only provide an environment that encourages such things but it is up to each member of staff to embrace it. One way to help create such an environment is to develop a culture of accountability, where employees own and execute their duties and thus are more empowered within their roles.

5.       They Feel Redundant

As I mentioned before, employees need to be passionate about the work they do. They also need to believe that there is a value in the work that they do and that their role is important to the functioning of the company. Failure to fulfil this need results in a sense of disillusionment that quickly turns into disengagement and poor performance.

The Fix: It is important to sit with each reporting employee and the value of their job and contribution to achieving the business’s overall strategy, showing them the relevance of what they do beyond their role and department.


The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.

In the coming years, as we continue to age as a nation, the subject of pensions is going to become more and more prevalent. We’re already beginning to see cracks emerging in the form of the Government’s pension deficit, the Irish Independent reporting only last month that ‘Ireland’s semi-state’s are staring into a €3.6BN pensions shortfall’.

But it’s not just those working in the public sector that is concerned for its future financial security. The Global Benefits Attitudes Survey showed that almost a quarter (23%) of respondents are delaying their retirement until at least age 70, while more than half (52%) are cutting spending, to save for their future.

But where does this fit in with employers? Is it up to us to look after the future financial needs of our staff or is it their responsibility to ensure they save enough to live the life they want when they retire? With these questions in mind, we caught up with Joanne Smith, Senior Financial Planning Consultant at MoneyCoach.ie, to discuss our legal obligations and what businesses can do to support their staff.

Q. So just what pension obligations to employers have to their employees?

Joanne: Even if a company only employs one member of staff, they still have certain pension obligations to their employee/s.  At a minimum employers must provide employees with access to a pension, this can be done by putting in place a company pension scheme, or facilitating access to a standard PRSA (personal retirement savings account).

Q. Does the employer have to contribute to employee’s pension scheme?

When setting up a company pension scheme, employers are obligated to make a ‘meaningful’ contribution to each member’s pension. A ‘meaningful contribution’ in widely deemed to be one of the following:

• Either the employer covering the costs of setting up the scheme and the ongoing operating costs of running the scheme, including covering the cost of death in service benefits 

OR

• Making a contribution into each members plan which is not less than 10% of the ordinary annual contributions, not including AVC’s, i.e. a minimum contribution of 10% of the value of the members ordinary contribution.
  

Q. What about a Standard PRSA?

Joanne: When giving employees access to Standard PRSA there is no obligation for the employer to contribute to the scheme, but they can if they want to. However, the following obligations on the employer do apply:

• The employer must appoint at least one standard PRSA provider
  
• They must notify employees that they have a right to contribute to a PRSA
  
• Allow the PRSA provider or Pension advisor reasonable access to employees at the place of work.
  
• Allow reasonable paid leave of absence to employees to set up a PRSA
  
• Make deductions from payroll when instructed by the employee and remit them to the PRSA provider.
  
• Advise employees in writing (normally on their payslip) at least once a month of their total contribution including the employer's contribution, if any. 
  

If an employer has a group pension scheme in place, but there are employees that are deemed ‘Excluded employees’ they will also need to fulfil the above PRSA requirements for their excluded employees.  Excluded employees are defined by the Pensions Board as any of the following:

• An employee who is included in the scheme for death-in-service benefits only.
  
• Employees who are not eligible to join the scheme or will not become eligible to join the scheme within six months from the date they began work for the company.
  
• Employees who are included in a scheme that does not permit the payment of additional voluntary contributions (AVCs) by members. 
  

Going Beyond Our Obligations

As Joanne so rightly points out above, employers have a duty – a legal obligation in fact - to provide their staff with access to pension schemes and to promote these to their employees. But what if we went beyond doing the bare minimum? What if we took this requirement and turned it into a perk for our employees, thus building a greater sense of loyalty and value between employee and employer. Believe it or not, but it can be done quite easily, at little or no cost to you as an employer.

The simplest way to do this is to communicate with your employees; to educate them on the importance of saving for the future and to help them realise just how much they will need to save to achieve the standard of living they desire once they retire. Some businesses do this through interactive games; others through online portals that help workers build their confidence around pensions by learning, step-by-step, how they work. If all of this sounds like too much work, then there’s a third option: Providing your employees with access to an independent financial advisor. Like MoneyCoach.ie, many insurance brokers are happy to work with you as an employer, providing free consultation services and workshops for your employees.

The economy is showing strong signs of recovery and with that employee migration is on the rise. As business owners our main concern is retaining the very best talent we have. For most of us profit margins are still tight and so we must look at different ways to add value to our employees experience if we don’t want them to move to the competition. Making financial planning and pension support a perk should be a no brainer for any business person keen to keep his or her staff and attract new talent.

The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.

As the Irish economy continues to recover, demand for skilled employees is growing amongst businesses, while the willingness of people to switch jobs is also on the rise. However, for business owners who have invested in training and up-skilling their staff, the fear of them leaving once they complete a course is a very real human resources issue. So what can you do as a business owner to protect against such an issue?

Firstly, let’s be clear that, in general, it is mutually beneficial to invest in the up-skilling of employees and it is considered a normal part of the employer-employee relationship that the employer will pay for or contribute to the costs of employee training.  The benefit to the employee being the opportunity to develop their skill-set by learning more about a particular profession or product, while for the employer should gain from a more qualified and enthusiastic workforce, which will hopefully translate into increased or more efficient business. Developing a training and development programme can be a very powerful Human Resources tool for employers that can work to retain loyal staff and attract new talent.

Most of the time the type of courses that the employer will pay for are typically one or two day courses run either by an association linked to the particular business or even by a manufacturer who wants to illustrate technical benefits of a particular product range.

However, there are some situations where a course is going to involve a greater investment of time by the employee and a larger financial investment by the employer.  In some industries, such as the legal and accountancy professions, there is strict formal training that will be spread over a number of years. Here it is common for the employer to cover the fees and often pay a salary to the employee whilst they are going through the particular course. The benefit to the firm is that the employee is available to assist the senior members of the profession and “learn on the job”. 

It is not uncommon for the employee to part company with the business at the end of the training and there is usually no question of the employee reimbursing the employer for the cost of the training. 

However, with profit margins still tight and the need to retain the most talented staff, it is becoming more and more common for businesses to have a clause in a contract of employment that where the employer pays for certain training, the employee is expected to stay in the business for a certain period of time after the training has been completed and, if they leave before that period of time, they must reimburse some or all of the fees that have been paid on their behalf.

Ultimately, investing in staff is a great way for an employer to demonstrate the value they see in them. It is a practice that has been used in human resource in Ireland for years and will no doubt continue to be used. It is up to you as the employer to establish the formal commitment that is to be associated with the training you provide to your employees and that it is agreed, in writing, prior to their commencement of the course, preferably in your staff handbook.

The contents of this article are necessarily expressed in broad terms and limited to general information rather than detailed analyses or legal advice. Specialist professional advice should always be obtained to address legal and other issues arising in specific contexts.