When it comes to HR, the Scout and Girl Guiding moto always comes to mind, “Be Prepared”. Although, it’s worth noting that in order to be prepared, you have to know where you are in the first place. With recent employment legislation changes, a pandemic, and staff movement, businesses of all sizes should be taking time to review and assess their HR activities and documents. Whether a business is growing, downsizing, or just maintaining the status quo, a yearly HR Assessment is like an MOT of your business, letting you know what’s working and what might need fixing. It provides the opportunity to sit down and consider what your strategies are for the coming 12 months, something that fits perfectly with target setting.
What does an HR assessment entail?
As an HR Consultancy, Dakota Blue performs regular HR Assessments for all kinds of businesses but, no matter their size or set up, our assessments all follow a similar roadmap. After completing each step of the process, we can then compile a detailed report which explains how well people within the company are being managed and the next steps that are required to move the business forward.
In-depth interviews with the leadership team
Sitting down and talking to your leadership team is the first step in assessing how well your HR practices are working. These are the people who manage the rest of your staff, so they should know whether they are performing at their best, are in the right roles for their skillsets, and whether any additional training or support is required.
Additionally, having a conversation with other members of leadership provides the opportunity to pinpoint whether they also need leadership and management development training and if there are any changes to HR processes and policy that they would like to see. These changes can then be included within company targets for the year or can be trialled to see if they make a difference.
Review existing HR documentation, policies and procedures
HR policies and procedures should always be considered as working documents and should be regularly reviewed. Within the last twelve months there have been a number of employment law changes and these should be reflected in company HR documents. It’s also worth mentioning that with UK’s departure from the EU, GDPR requirements may also have changed, so it is vital that all companies check to ensure that the way they store employee information also complies with the new regulations.
Additionally, employee files should be up to date and there is a statutory requirement that they should include NI and tax information, pay details and payslips, details of work-related injuries, and immigration checks. These should be kept in a well organised system, which makes them easily retrievable should the need arise.
Review your business’ vision, mission, and strategy
Once you know where your business is now, you can then start to plan for the future and can begin target setting. Think of it in the same way as typing a postcode into your satnav. If you know where you are already, it’s much easier to find an efficient route to the next stage. It also provides the opportunity to be reflective and gives a good point of comparison for the future.
This all may sound like a massive task to undertake, which is why it’s a good idea to invite a team of HR Consultants to come in and support you. Our team can provide expert advice and guidance, ensuring that your business is fully up to date with the latest legislation, that your processes and procedures are legal, and that your team have the advice and training that they need to move your company forwards. For more information, and to see what some of our clients have said about our service, take a look at our HR Assessment page.