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Dakota Blue Consulting Blog

What does the triggering of article 50 mean for your business?

What does the triggering of article 50 mean for your business?

This week we will see the momentous triggering of article 50, it will be one of the most complicated negotiations of political history. But what exactly does it mean for your business? Read on for areas that could see change and could have an impact on your business.
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How to have a constructive conversation about pay

How to have a constructive conversation about pay

As a manager and leader, you will face having challenging conversations with your employees. One of the most emotive conversations is around pay and people are likely to become defensive. When having a conversation with a member of staff about their pay, you will need to be able to manage emotions and manage the exchange to make it a constructive conversation. If you get it wrong you may find the employee goes absent, becomes disengaged and their performance suffers, or they may even resign. This blog gives advice on how to have a constructive conversation about pay.
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Employment law - key dates

Employment law - key dates

Key employment law dates at a glance.
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Achieving work-life balance as a business leader

Achieving work-life balance as a business leader

Do you find yourself wondering where the day has gone? All the goals you’d set yourself at the beginning of the day have been pushed to one side dealing with unexpected issues. Maintaining peak performance at work is demanding and can be stressful. Business leaders can find themselves under enormous pressure with so many responsibilities and deadlines, which can easily seep into their personal life, with their work and personal life boundaries becoming blurred. This blog addresses the importance of achieving a good work-life balance.
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The feedback sandwich

The feedback sandwich

The feedback sandwich approach has often been used to give negative feedback to employees. You literally sandwich the criticism between two pieces of positive feedback. But is it the most effective method to deliver negative feedback? We take a look at how it could be undermining not only the feedback you are trying to deliver, but also damaging your relationship with your employees.
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Organisational design for SMEs

Organisational design for SMEs

Do you know what a well-designed organisation looks like? People often equate organisational design with organisational structure. However, it encompasses much more, it is about aligning all aspects of the organisation with the overall goals and objectives of the business. As an organisation evolves so must the organisational design, this will enable the business to work effectively, helping with communication, productivity and innovation. This blog examines organisation design and how it can work for small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs).
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Managing relationships in the workplace

Managing relationships in the workplace

It’s February and with Valentine’s Day upon us, we’re thinking about relationships in the workplace. Whatever size your business is, in all likelihood you employ people who also have personal relationships with each other outside of work. In fact many relationships begin with people meeting at work, these may form in to long term partnerships or friendships. You may also employ members of your own family or have employees that are related. Whilst these relationships should not be viewed as a problem, this blog looks at the complexities of relationships in the work place, with a particular focus on family businesses.
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Recruiting for less desirable roles

Recruiting for less desirable roles

Do you find certain roles in your company harder to recruit for than others? Perhaps you think the role is undesirable and rather boring. Just take a moment, remember that one size doesn’t fit all. Just because you don’t enjoy doing something doesn't mean someone else won't. Knowing who you need to attract and where to find them is essential. Here are some tips you should consider when you are recruiting for less desirable roles.
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Employee financial wellbeing

Employee financial wellbeing

How financially healthy do your employees feel today? Do they feel on top of their finances and positive about their financial future? Or are they struggling to make ends meet each month and worried about paying mounting debts? As an employer you may feel that it isn’t your place to get involved. But the impact that financial problems have on a person can be huge and can inevitably spill in to all aspects of their life including their performance at work. So how can you help?
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Working from home

Working from home

As a business owner and leader you have more than likely been approached by employees with requests to work from home. Does this fill you with concern or are you open to the opportunities it can bring? The increase of homeworking is opening up a new range of possibilities for the way that businesses can work and structure themselves. It also brings new responsibilities for an employer and employee. In this blog we discuss what an employer needs to consider when offering working from home opportunities.
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