Identifying when your business is facing challenges is crucial for owners because ignoring them can affect employee performance and the bottom line, hurting business profitability in the long run. This is especially true for small to medium-sized businesses, where one issue not attended to can end up draining a manager’s time and effort, while on the other hand, one high-performing employee can invigorate a business owner with newfound energy and excitement about the business’s direction. In these situations, there’s value in investing in external HR consulting which can proactively identify any ‘signs’ your business may need help regarding its HR, and amend them through their advice and strategies.
Additionally, consultants can align their recommendations for these common challenges with broader business goals such as profitable growth or if an owner wants to step away from operations & transition their responsibilities. At Inject, we specialise in pinpointing and addressing these common signs, ensuring your business is set up not just to survive but to thrive with a high-performing team.
Sign 1 – Too much time spent dealing with staff Issues
When business leaders find themselves bogged down by employee disputes filled with gossip and negativity, performance concerns and other staffing issues, it signals a significant drain on their productivity and focus. The reaction might be to delegate these responsibilities to another manager or let the little things slide. While this can temporarily lighten the load, it doesn’t address the root of the problem and can lead to a cycle of inefficiency where recurring problems such as toxic behaviours can prevent the team from working together as one unit and demand even more time and resources.
At Inject, we focus on reducing the time and energy you spend on staff issues by preemptively managing and resolving minor issues before they escalate into major problems. Additionally, we recommend setting clear, comprehensive expectations right from the start. This approach not only minimises the chance that these issues occur in the first place but also that when they do arise, they are dealt with swiftly and effectively.
Sign 2 – A team not focused on the right behaviours, activities and outcomes
Focusing your team on the right behaviours, activities, and outcomes is crucial for driving business growth and profitability. If a small-medium business leader hasn’t clarified these expectations or ensured their team is focused on them, then the ever-important productivity and SMB opportunities for growth, and therefore profitability, are limited.
HR consulting companies like Inject can help clearly define the roles and responsibilities within the business, setting priorities that align with the owner’s goals for growth and increased profitability, and establishing expected behaviours and outcomes for each position.
1 – Define Your Expectations around Positions, Priorities, Behaviours, Outcomes
The first step is to define each position within your company. What are its key responsibilities? What outcomes are expected and most important for each role? Alongside these, it’s important to outline the behaviours that are expected of your employees for these positions—behaviours that not only align with company culture in terms of values and attitude, such as being customer-focused, but behaviours that also drive the outcomes relevant to increasing the growth of the business. HR consulting can help SMBs who lack focus on the core priorities, behaviours and outcomes for their roles by defining and communicating these expectations, allowing owners to clarify expectations across the board. This makes it easier for individual team members to align their day-to-day activities with the goals of the team, such as meeting a client project’s deadline.
2 – Implement Expectations with Managers and Staff
Once the roles and expectations are set, it’s time to implement them in your workplace. HR consulting works closely with managers and staff to ensure that everyone understands their specific roles and what is expected of them. Training sessions, workshops, and regular feedback are all ways to reinforce these expectations and check an employee’s understanding so that you know they’re being met. Regularly revisiting these expectations around positions and their outcomes and adjusting them as necessary is also crucial when it comes to keeping up with any changes in the SMB’s industry, such as new technology replacing (or substituting) position responsibilities.
Sign 3 – Unnecessary staff churn
Many business owners face challenges with staff turnover, which can disrupt operations. This turnover often stems from unclear career progression paths, ineffective management, and inadequate remuneration structures. Without clearly defined career pathways and a fair remuneration review process, employees may feel undervalued and uncertain about their future, which leads to disengagement and eventually, their departure. Additionally, if this leads to any internal HR staff leaving, a gap in managing these HR functions effectively is automatically created which only worsens the situation.
HR consulting firms like Inject encourage SMBs to seek consistent and honest feedback from staff on their employment experience, so owners can understand and address their concerns. Not only does listening lead to a more motivated team, but it boosts the company’s reputation as an employer, making it a desirable place to work for potential future candidates. We also provide clarity on career development and remuneration opportunities, where employees understand their growth trajectory and potential within the company, including their future individual value in working towards small-medium business objectives such as increased profitability and growth. Being proactive in listening to your staff and being clear on their positions not only helps to minimise unnecessary staff churn, but protects employee motivation and job satisfaction through a clear understanding and incentives to stay.
Sign 4 – Need for management to free up time
We understand that small to medium business owners often find themselves stretched thin, struggling to balance day-to-day demands with the strategic needs of their growing business. This often leads to critical HR tasks being neglected or improperly handled, such as rushed recruitment decisions and inadequate employee training. By delegating these responsibilities, business owners can free up their time to focus more on strategic initiatives, ensuring that their business not only survives but thrives.
At Inject, we help identify which roles and tasks can be delegated and to whom, making sure that each function is managed by the right person. This not only improves workflow but also empowers your staff by placing your trust in their capabilities. Additionally, HR consulting can help support your business in hiring or transitioning new responsibilities to suitable team members, carefully aligning these changes with your company’s goals. To guarantee that these shifts are successful, HR consulting firms like Inject can provide ongoing support, checking regularly that all team members are performing their duties efficiently and effectively. This comprehensive approach allows you to focus on strategic growth while we take care of cultivating a high-performing team that drives your business forward.
Sign 5 – Management time is spent onboarding and training when new starters join
Bringing new starters on board without taking attention away from ongoing operations is crucial for SMB managers to keep on top of their responsibilities while growing their business. There’s always a learning curve new employees face when joining a business, which is often a greater curve to overcome when it comes to small-medium businesses. Leaders and owners need to be prepared and acknowledge this. HR consulting addresses this by setting up onboarding systems right from the start that not only saves time in bringing new employees into the fold, but also train them to understand and excel in their expected responsibilities. With these clear guidelines and support from advisers like Inject, managers can avoid spending time that could be spent on working on new project ideas. Also, small-medium business leaders can feel comfortable that new hires are being swiftly brought up to speed and are ready to contribute effectively to the team’s success.
Sign 6 – Need to hire people into the business who align with your culture and capabilities
Aligning new hires with your business’s specific culture is important for owners to succeed in growing their business as employees become an extension of them and their voice, particularly in close-quarters SMB environments. When this alignment is missing, it can lead to a disjointed team as employees may feel disconnected from the company’s core values and less engaged in their work. Not only does this impact daily operations, but it can also impact long-term sustainability with an increase in turnover rate.
HR consultants specialise in recruitment and selection strategies that attract candidates who will not only best fulfil the roles’ core responsibilities but will align with the company’s way of working, key soft skills and behaviours, such as creativity for creative fields or analytical thinking for financial fields as two examples. This comprehensive approach involves not just attracting a qualified pool of candidates but also selecting those who are most likely to thrive and positively impact your business. Through these strategic efforts, HR consulting can build a cohesive, like-minded and motivated team aligned with your business’s specific culture and talent needs.
Sign 7 – Expertise shortfall
Many SMBs lack in-house knowledge in critical HR areas such as legal compliance and employee training. Not being aware of and understanding these can lead to costly legal issues, Fair Work cases, penalties, and a bad reputation for the business as a whole which could set back any plans for increased profitability and business expansion. Additionally, small-medium business owners may find that more of their time and resources than they’d hoped are diverted to address these compliance and risk management issues instead of focusing on achieving these two core goals & plans.
With their knowledge and skills, HR consultants safeguard businesses, making sure that small-medium business owners are compliant with the latest laws and regulations and protect against potential legal challenges and fines, which may arise if they’re unaware.
Sign 8 – There’s a need to train people in your way of working for a high-performing team
SMBs that lack a high-performing team may find it hard to grow and increase their profitability. As noted before, a common challenge for small business owners includes having hired the wrong people or insufficient training. Saving the owner’s time while helping keep the business running (and growing) depends on equipping your team with core soft skills of leadership, time management, and effective communication.
HR consulting can help create a high-performing team that is your business’s competitive advantage. Consultants from Inject can design and implement tailored training programs by capturing the knowledge and best practices of high-performing employees, and then integrating these insights into such programs.
The Need for HR Consulting – Conclusion
The signs that your business might benefit from HR consulting are clear. From resolving employee conflicts to freeing up the time of SMB managers and creating high-performing teams through tailored training programs, HR consultants provide their knowledge and recommend strategies needed to address these challenges effectively.
Is your business experiencing any of these common people management challenges? Contact Inject today for a consultation to discover how our HR consulting services can transform your human resource management and help you achieve your business goals.
