A step-by-step guide to managing repeated employee absence

Repeated sickness absence is a problem in any business, but small businesses are particularly affected. The annual cost of sickness absence has climbed to almost £29 billion for UK organisations, according to a study published recently by the Chartered Institute of Personnel & Development (CIPD).

One of the key issues of repeated patterns of absence due to ill health is the impact on productivity across the whole workforce. By its very nature, the size of a small business does not allow the work to be easily taken on by other members of staff. Morale may also suffer when co-workers are forced to pick up the slack for an absent employee. 

It is therefore crucial that once a protracted pattern of repeated ‘sickness’, small business owners must take steps to tackle it. Here are some pointers you can adopt in your organisation when sickness levels are a cause for concern. 

Step 1
Chart the pattern of an employee’s sick leave. Does it tend to occur at the start of a week/ end of a week? Does it coincide with significant events, such as a payday/ birthday/ sporting event? Does the employee tend to go on sick leave on the same day(s) during the week? 

Step 2
Hold a Return to Work meeting after each absence to establish the reason for their absence and if there is anything in their work or private life that may be a contributing factor. A Return to Work meeting allows you to talk privately about the pattern, reasons and impact on the business. Ask whether they see a pattern; ask if there is anything you can help with/ offer support on. There is a possibility that there may be an underlying medical condition, and the employer may wish to obtain the employee's permission to access a medical report which should provide further information.

Ask if there is a reason for the pattern, and explain the impact of the absences, such as co-workers being forced to take on additional duties to cover their work. The employee may not be aware that their sickness absence is causing so many problems for the business. You should discuss the reasons for their absences and listen to what they have to say. You could ask them to submit to an occupational health assessment for you to gain qualified medical advice on the situation.

Ask about their work-life balance. There may be a real and legitimate reason why the employee is taking the time off, such as a spouse being unwell. This may well be the opportunity they need to open up and tell you what it is they are hiding.  

Step 3
Employers should ensure that they have in place a clearly-worded sickness absence policy, including rules on notification, required evidence, payment of sick pay and return-to-work interviews.

If an employee’s contract does not provide for them to be paid whilst off sick then they are entitled to statutory sick pay from the fourth day of sickness absence for a period of up to 28 weeks (after which they need to claim incapacity benefit).

An employer is entitled to seek information from an employee about their sickness and require them to attend meetings (if they are well enough to do so.)

Step 4
Discuss possible accommodations. If an employee has a disability, the employer should consider whether there are any 'reasonable adjustments' that can be made which would enable the employee to return to work, in accordance with the Equality Act. In appropriate cases these might include allowing the employee to work from home or temporarily altering the working hours or allowing a 'phased return' to work. For further information, see details on the Equality Act).

Step 5
If there is no requirement to make reasonable adjustments because of a disability, inform the employee that the consequences of failing to improve their absence levels could be disciplinary action. Document the conversation, and have the employee sign it as a record he was put on notice.

Step 6
Some employers have a sickness absence management procedure which states the level of sickness absences that will be tolerated and provides a series of warnings to operate if the rate of sickness absence does not improve. The final stage is dismissal, after appropriate disciplinary action and warnings have been issued. This has the advantage to both parties of making it clear the levels of sickness absence which can be tolerated and the consequences of sickness exceeding those levels.

Click here to read the original article: "A step-by-step guide to managing repeated employee absence"

Welcome to our new Area Manager David Russell

Dotty Directory is delighted to welcome David Russell as our new Area Manager for Sunderland responsible for sales and marketing of Sunderland Connection.

David has vast amounts of experience working in different areas of sales. He also has experience in business development and we are sure he will prove to be a very significant addition to the Dotty Directory team.

Businesses advertising on Sunderland Connection will be linked to over 150 other websites and dozens of Facebook pages throughout the UK, giving both local and national exposure for one small annual cost. It costs just £25 plus vat A YEAR to advertise on Sunderland Connection.

David will be introducing Sunderland businesses to the unique marketing opportunity offered by Dotty Directory. If you would like more information please call David on 07904 812866 or our head office on 01824 719005 or email us at support@dottydirectory.com.

450,000 self-employed would rather work for someone else

Just over a quarter of people who have become self-employed in the last five years would prefer to be an employee, new research has found.

Despite the fact that the number of self-employed people has grown steadily over the last five years – nearly 1.7 million people have become self-employed since 2009 - 450,000 would rather have a salaried job, the report by independent think tank the Resolution Foundation revealed.

These findings will add to the debate over whether the recent rise in self-employment is down to an entrepreneurial boom or due to people being forced into more insecure roles because they can’t find a suitable alternative.

Indeed, the report suggested that more people are becoming self-employed due to a lack of alternative work, with one in four citing this as the main reason behind their decision.

Although 72% of the newly self-employed are happy working for themselves, the survey also found that 28% of those who have become self-employed in the last five years are more likely to want an employed position, compared to just 11% who have been self-employed for five years or more.

This survey comes as the Office for National Statistics revealed today that the number of self-employed people increased by 146,000 to reach a record 4.5 million in the three months to February. 

The surge in the number of self-employed has come under scrutiny this week by the general secretary of the Trades Union Congress Frances O'Grady, who stated that the upward trend was not due to an increase in the number of entrepreneurs, but was in fact down to people being forced into insecure roles, because there is no alternative work.

These comments caused the PCG, the membership body for freelancers and contractors, to hit back at the TUC, with its CEO Chris Bryce stating:

"Not only do self-employed people actively stimulate economic growth, research shows their work also creates the permanent jobs which the TUC purports to be fighting for.

"The boom in self-employment is at the heart of the UK’s economic recovery and for the TUC to blame it for the problems experienced by vulnerable workers is misguided and unhelpful."

Conor D’Arcy, researcher at the Resolution Foundation, said it is vital we know more about these newly self-employed workers.

"Some will see themselves as entrepreneurs and revel in setting up their own business – the clear majority still prefer to be their own boss - but a considerable minority appear to be there unwillingly or at least would prefer the security of being an employee given the choice.

"The new face of self-employment is more likely to be female and looking for an alternative compared with their more established counterparts."

Click here to read the original article: "450,000 self-employed would rather work for someone else"

Family firms outperform rest of economy

The number of first generation small and mid-sized enterprises (SMEs) run by families has hit 2.42m, its highest since the onset of the recession, according to a new Barclays Business report.

The value of family SMEs across all industries to the British economy is forecast to be £180bn this year, greater than that of the overall manufacturing, wholesale or retail sectors. Rachel McNeil, director at Barclays, said: “We believe the end of the recession is paving the way for dynamic family firms who want to run businesses they are passionate about.”

These companies create 5.5m jobs in the UK, which will rise to 6m by 2018 - larger in terms of employment opportunity than the public sector.

But a study by accountants PwC found the survival of these family businesses comes under threat when passed from first to second generation.

“The transition from one generation to another has always been a potential fault line in the family firm, but never more so than now,” said Sian Steele, partner at PwC. “The world has changed since the current generation took over, and the pace of change can only accelerate in response to global megatrends like demographic shifts, urbanisation, climate change and new technology.”

The study of 200 next-generation family members, entitled Bridging the gap: Handing over the family business to the next generation, found 86pc wanted to do something “significant and special”, and 80pc have big ideas for change and growth. Unlike public companies which change leader frequently, family businesses can have the same chairman for decades, which can be a barrier to change for the younger generations arriving on the scene, according to Ms Steele.

The prospect of entering the family firm can be daunting too: 88pc say they have to work harder than other employees to prove themselves, and 59pc believe gaining the respect of their co-workers is the biggest challenge.

“Members of the current generation often comment that their children aren’t sufficiently entrepreneurial and aren’t prepared to put in the long hours they did to build the business; while down the hall their children are wishing their parents would embrace the possibilities of new technology, and be more receptive to new ideas,” said Ms Steele. This can slow down decision-making, and lead to the phenomenon of the “sticky baton”, where the older generation hands over management of the firm in theory, but in practice retains complete control over everything that really matters, she said.

Click here to read the original article: "Family firms outperform rest of economy"

Welcome to our new Area Manager Elaine Horsley

Dotty Directory is delighted to welcome Elaine Horsley as our new Area Manager for Coventry responsible for sales and marketing of Coventry Connection.

Elaine has experience in sales and presenting which we are sure will help here become a very significant addition to the Dotty Directory team.

Businesses advertising on Coventry Connection will be linked to over 150 other websites and dozens of Facebook pages throughout the UK, giving both local and national exposure for one small annual cost. It costs just £25 plus vat A YEAR to advertise on Coventry Connection.

Elaine will be introducing Coventry businesses to the unique marketing opportunity offered by Dotty Directory. If you would like more information please call Elaine on 07821 685099 or our head office on 01824 719005 or email us at support@dottydirectory.com.

More than 1.5 million SMEs don't have a business plan

More than 1.5 million UK SMEs don't have a business plan, and they could be missing out on an extra 20% of profit as a result, according to business software provider Exact.

Their research shows that over a third of the UK's 4.8 million SMEs are failing to reach their full profit potential because they don't have a business plan. The survey has found that SMEs that had a business plan in place last year were consistently more profitable than those that did not.

Even so, 34% of small firms did not have a business plan and the majority of respondents without a plan (68%) said they didn't see the need for one.

The research was undertaken to better understand the challenges SMEs face in achieving their business goals. The top three business objectives for the SMEs surveyed were increasing profits, increasing revenue growth and attracting new customers.

The results also showed that those who had a business plan in place were more than twice as successful in achieving these goals than those who did not (achieving a 69% success rate versus 31%).

Lucy Fox, general manager, UK Cloud Solutions for Exact, said: "The findings clearly show there are many SMEs who are missing out on the added value a business plan can offer, the consequence being that many may be failing to reach their full growth and business potential as a result."

She added: "While the results should serve as a bit of a wake-up call, they also highlight that more needs to be done to address some of the misconceptions over what is involved in the planning process. Many don't seem to realise that with the help of a trusted financial advisor, like an accountant, creating a plan can be done easily and the benefits can be enormous."

The research revealed that 23% of those without a plan said they were "too busy" to prepare one, while 8% said they didn't have anyone to help them and 5% said they weren't comfortable with numbers.

Howard Jackson, managing director of FD Solutions, said: "The fact that so many SMEs do not appear to have a plan is worrying, not least in light of the fact that much of the UK economy depends on their success. A business plan helps identify long-term objectives, provides a blueprint of how you go about achieving those goals and provides metrics to help with checking your progress on that journey."

Click here to read the original article: "More than 1.5 million SMEs don't have a business plan"

Welcome to our new Area Manager Sara-Anne Murphy

Dotty Directory is delighted to welcome Sara-Anne Murphy as our new Area Manager for Heywood responsible for sales and marketing of Heywood Connection.

We are sure that Sara will prove to be a very significant addition to the Dotty Directory team and businesses in the Heywood area. She has many years experience in face to face business sales which we know will be a great asset to Dotty Directory. 

Businesses advertising on Heywood Connection will be linked to over 150 other websites and dozens of Facebook pages throughout the UK, giving both local and national exposure for one small annual cost. It costs just £25 plus vat A YEAR to advertise on Heywood Connection.

Sara will be introducing Heywood businesses to the unique marketing opportunity offered by Dotty Directory. If you would like more information please call Sara on 07762 909685 or our head office on 01824 719005 or email us at support@dottydirectory.com.

We’re looking for Area Sales Managers throughout the UK

Dotty Directory is looking for self-employed highly motivated individuals with a flair for business. You will need to be ambitious and results driven. You will need access to your own transport, phone and either a tablet computer or laptop with internet connection.

You must be able to demonstrate previous success in direct face to face sales

You will be responsible for selling adverts on a new and exciting local and national online business directory covering all business categories, but especially to small and medium sized businesses. Each advert costs just £25 plus vat a year, there are no other charges or fees. If you can show that you have a successful track record in selling to small and medium sized businesses we would be like to hear from you.

You will be presenting and selling face to face with business owners and managers.

Please do not apply if you cannot prove you have the ability to do this.

This is an exceptional opportunity to join an established national company at the start of a major expansion. 

Please note that self-employed people are responsible for their own Tax and National Insurance Contributions.

If you are interested in learning more about this exciting opportunity please send your CV to Sara Bowler at sarabowler@dottydirectory.com

Two thirds of mums consider starting a business from home

Nearly two thirds of mothers with children under the age of ten are thinking about starting a business from home in the next three years, research finds.

According to a study by Direct Line for Business, 65 per cent of respondents are tempted to launch a company, with one in five (20 per cent) citing spending more time with their children as the main reason.

A sixth (16 per cent) of mothers consider the idea because of the prohibitive childcare costs associated with working a traditional nine-to-five job.

With recent figures putting full-time annual childcare costs at £11,7002 for two children, almost half of the mothers (49 per cent) surveyed believe that they would be better off financially if they started a business from home.

One in seven mums (14 per cent) are motivated by the flexibility of being their own boss, while one in eight (12 per cent) say they have always had the ambition to start their own business. Only one per cent is motivated by the fact that they do not like their current job.

Head of Direct Line for Business Jazz Gakhal says, 'The costs of sending a child to day care or hiring a nanny continue to spiral. It’s great to see that mums are tackling this problem with such an entrepreneurial spirit, as they understand considerable child care cost savings can be made by running a business from home.

Gakhal adds that while launching a business from home has many benefits, it also brings its own set of challenges.

'These ventures often require substantial financial investment, alongside the time and effort required to build a business from scratch.'

Click here to read the original article: "Two thirds of mums consider starting a business from home"

Welcome to our new Area Manager Philip Adey

Dotty Directory is delighted to welcome Philip Adey as our new Area Manager for Dudley responsible for sales and marketing of Dudley Connection.

Philip has vast amounts of experience in Sales & Customer Service and we are sure he will prove to be a very significant addition to the Dotty Directory team.

Businesses advertising on Dudley Connection will be linked to over 150 other websites and dozens of Facebook pages throughout the UK, giving both local and national exposure for one small annual cost. It costs just £25 plus vat A YEAR to advertise on Dudley Connection.

Philip will be introducing Dudley businesses to the unique marketing opportunity offered by Dotty Directory. If you would like more information please call Philip on 07445 332999 or our head office on 01824 719005 or email us at support@dottydirectory.com.

Closing the Window on XP – Urgent Steps Small Businesses Must Take

The end is nigh for Windows XP. Small businesses need to act now to ensure they aren't caught out by the software issues and security risks that will ensue from 8 April when Microsoft ends its support for the legacy operating system.

Launched in 2001, XP has proved incredibly popular with consumers and business users alike. However, it was built for the pre-mobile age and Microsoft is now encouraging users to migrate to modern operating systems like Windows 8.1.

According to the software giant itself, XP is more than five times as vulnerable to viruses and other attacks than modern operating systems. It's believed that around a third of malware infections can be attributed to missing software patches, so small businesses need to consider updating their systems before the deadline.

Putting your business at risk

According to internet technology statistics specialist NetMarketShare, almost a third of desktop computers are still using Windows XP, and as such many small businesses will be probably be wondering what the end of XP support means for them.

Unfortunately, it's something of a hard truth: If you're running Windows XP after 8 April, 2014, you are putting your business at risk – and please don't believe anyone who claims that quick fixes can replace a critical operating system update.

It's not just PCs or laptops that will be affected either. Support for XP on third party products is also ending. This means the applications and devices you depend on, even your printer, may soon be incompatible with your computer.

Designed for a different era

XP is a product designed for a different era of technology. Businesses that fail to upgrade from legacy systems not only put their company and customer data in jeopardy – they're also likely to fall behind their competition. The opportunities that technology offers businesses have now rather drastically advanced, designed to take advantage of the massive growth of the internet and mobility to offer great new ways to work, reach more customers, and grow faster.

There are numerous ways for smaller businesses to address the situation, and they are not necessarily costly or disruptive to day-to-day operations. As ever, the best thing to do is to speak to an expert.

Businesses should seek out expert advice to discern the system migration plan that will best suit their company. This doesn't have to be expensive, and you can often find free independent advice as nearby as your local high street. Microsoft is also offering a free data migration tool to help copy files from XP to new PC operating systems.

Very few older computers will be able to run Windows 8.1, the latest version of Windows. A great way for smaller businesses to identify which is the best operating system for them is to download and run the Windows Upgrade Assistant to check if the equipment meets the system requirements for Windows 8.1 and then follow the steps in the tutorial to upgrade if the equipment is able to run it.

However, if current IT equipment can't run Windows 8.1, it's probably time to consider shopping for a new one.

New laptops and PCs are more powerful, lightweight, and stylish than ever before – and with an average price that's considerably less expensive than the average PC was 10 years ago. Newer operating systems have been designed to capitalise on the latest trends, including mobile working, and upgrading may provide the perfect opportunity to build mobility into your business.

For example, compatibility with the latest cloud apps, such as Microsoft Office 365, provides users with the ability to remote work, as well as collaborate with colleagues while on the move.

Goodbyes are never easy, but there is support out there for any business that needs help migrating or upgrading their systems.

Click here to read the original article: "Closing the Window on XP – Urgent Steps Small Businesses Must Take"

Why email marketing is still the must-have tool for businesses

Not only were emails easy to write and send, but they were also delivered exceptionally fast to offer almost instantaneous communication to people anywhere in the world. This promoted them to many purposes and it wasn’t long before marketers began to utilise the format.

Even today, email marketing solutions are a must-have tool for any company looking to assert themselves in a competitive market – and here’s why.

It has great reach

One of the biggest attractions for email marketing is its potential reach. According to statistics, there were as many as 3.6 billion email accounts in 2013 with this number growing all the time. Almost three-quarters (74%) of consumers claim they actually prefer to receive commercial messages via email and 91% of them check their emails daily so these 3.6 billion accounts see plenty of activity.

Although you may think sending an email from your company will deter consumers from opening them, as much as 82% of consumers open such messages.

The trick is making sure your email is constructed properly; 64% of people open emails based purely on the subject line with a personalised subject 22% more likely to be opened and an open rate of 58% achieved by emails with subject lines less than 10 characters long.

It is successful

When used correctly, email marketing has proven to be incredibly successful for businesses. Almost two-thirds (66%) of consumers made an online purchase because of a marketing email and three-fifths (60%) of marketers say email marketing creates positive ROI, with email marketing having an estimated ROI of 4,300%.

Consumers receiving offers via email spend 138% more than those who do not and email marketing accounts for approximately 10% of total sales for half of businesses.

It is popular

It is common for businesses to look for ways to break free from the mould and carve their own path. Blindly following the herd is generally a big turn-off in the corporate world but email marketing is one exception to this rule.

Ignoring the potential which email marketing could hold for your business venture puts you at an immediate disadvantage – after all, if everyone else is already firmly on the email marketing bandwagon then your refusal to step aboard will cause you to miss out on a vital slice of the marketing pie.

In 2013, more than half (54%) of all emails sent by businesses were for marketing purposes. In total, this equated to more than 838 billion emails so you can see just how much you’d be limiting yourself by ignoring this vital form of communication.

As always, you need to make sure your emails are constructed professionally and in a way that will attract interest if they’re to stand any chance of being successful. There are numerous firms who can help you with this.

Click here to read the original article: "Why email marketing is still the must-have tool for businesses"

Five top tips for managing cashflow

A healthy cashflow is the lifeblood of any SME. Your business might have an excellent profit margin and revenue but if you don’t have cash in your account when the rent is due, you’ll be in trouble.

Most small business owners have cashflow on the brain a large percentage of the time. The conditions at the moment are akin to a perfect storm- on the one hand, everyone knows that banks are reluctant to lend to SMEs, and on the other hand, large corporate clients are extending payment terms to hoard cash, thereby choking their suppliers.

Here are our top tips for managing your cashflow:

1. Fail to plan, plan to fail

Remember what your scout leader used to say? Planning is crucial to any undertaking, and running a business certainly requires a bit of forethought.

You should be mapping out what your income and outgoings look like over the short, medium and long term, and sticking to a strict plan. You need to know exactly when to realistically expect payment for each and every invoice, so that you can plan how and when you’ll be paying for staff, rent, bills and other costs.

You can use a simple Microsoft Excel spreadsheet to track your bank balance, or a more specialist software package such as Ooble. Either way, make sure you know when to expect cashflow issues so that you can plan to avoid them.

2. Do your research

When you’re selling to other businesses, don’t just offer standard payment terms of 30 days across the board. You need to do some due diligence on the company who’ll be buying your goods or services to make sure that they have the means and willingness to pay.

Use an online credit checking service such as Duedil or Experian and make some judgment calls based on the company’s age and the history of the directors. If they’re a new business or if they have had issues in the past, such as CCJs, why would you give them the same payment terms as a healthy, stable corporate?

It’s OK to negotiate based on these factors, so don’t blindly give all your clients the same terms.

3. No more mistakes

If you want to get your invoices paid on time, you’d better make sure that there are no mistakes on any of the documentation. Nail down your invoicing process and make sure that a senior member of staff has to sign off each invoice before sending. The checklist should be:

a) The current contact details of your customer including their address
b) The right invoice number and date
c) The right payment terms
d) The correct amount and the correct amount of VAT
e) Prominently displayed payment details (make sure you’ve listed the right bank account number and sort code)

Without these checks you’ll inevitably encounter resistance from time to time when there is a small mistake on your invoice, so make sure there are no excuses for your customers not to pay.

4. Keep on top of credit control

Credit control is nobody’s favourite thing to do. But if want to maintain a healthy cashflow you’ll need to get used to asking the people who owe you money to pay up.

Become front-of-mind with whoever is in charge of the accounts payable at your customer’s site. Try and befriend them, and chat to them on the phone regularly. It’ll mean that when they have a choice between paying your invoice or another invoice, hopefully you’ll be front of the queue.

If, for any reason, your invoice becomes overdue, you need to have a plan. Try and tease an exact payment date out of your customer and hold them accountable to it. If they don’t pay on that date, get serious. Escalate the issue if necessary to your manager or MD.

You should also be flexible, to a degree, with any non-payers. Tell them you’ll accept a part payment if they say they don’t have the cash. Be strict- but bear in mind that if this is a key client, you won’t want to chase too hard, and create enemies.

5. Look for finance to bridge gaps

Having planned your cashflow and cemented your credit control, if there are still foreseeable periods of time where you’ll be short of funds, look at the finance options available.

At MarketInvoice we offer clients the choice to sell an invoice as and when they want to, without contracts, debentures or personal guarantees. Selective invoice finance is a great way to ensure that your cashflow keeps flowing at those points where you’re waiting for your customer to pay.

Getting this type of finance in place will help you take advantage of more opportunities, so that when you need to buy in more stock or hire a new employee, you can have the funds in place quickly.

Click here to read the original article: "Five top tips for managing cashflow"