Insights

Hand Placing Payroll Lettering on Wooden Background
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13 of our most commonly asked payroll questions: answered

13 of our most commonly asked payroll questions: answered 1413 886 Growth Partners

The world of HR and payroll continually changes, leaving many business owners with a multitude of questions.

Luckily, as experts in all things payroll, we’ve answered some of our most commonly asked questions, hopefully shining a light on any issues you may be facing yourself with your own managed payroll.

  1. What form do I need to complete if we stop SSP, but the employee is still off sick?

If you stop SSP when an employee is still off sick, you should complete an SSP1 form and send it to the employee. This will help them claim employment and support allowance.

  1. What is classed as a linked period of sickness?

A linked period of sickness is when an employee has regular periods of sickness that last four or more days each, separated by less than eight weeks, which have lasted for longer than three years. In this case, SSP will stop.

  1. When can I stop paying SSP? 

The maximum amount of SSP is 28 weeks. Additionally, If an employee has had continuous series of linked sickness that has gone on for more than three years, you no longer have to pay them SSP.

  1. What should I do when an employee’s tax code is wrong?

Usually, for new employees, if they haven’t completed a new starter checklist, their tax code will be wrong.  The new starter checklist is a HMRC form which all employees should complete on their first day of employment.

  1. My employee insists they have paid too much in deductions – what do I do?

Many employees don’t fully understand the payroll legislation for both Tax and NI and when this becomes payable. It is your responsibility to explain the process to them and clearly show them that they have in fact paid the correct amount in deductions.

We provide our clients’ employees with a dedicated customer service team to help explain all pay documents and any deductions over live chat, email or phone.

  1. Why has an employee not been enrolled into the pension automatically? 

Auto-enrolment is based on age and earnings. All employees are automatically enrolled after the 3-month postponement period if they meet the qualifying criteria (age 22 and earn over £10000).

  1. How do I opt an employee out of the pension scheme?  

Under The Pensions Regulator rules, it is up to the employee to complete an opt-out form which they must get directly from the pension provider. You cannot opt an employee out on their behalf.

Please note, rules around SSP and payroll are different for some workers, so you should always refer to the latest advice on GOV.UK.

Transferring your payroll 

  1. Does a transfer of payroll providers need to take place at the start of a tax year?

No, you can transfer payroll providers at any time without any disruption to payroll.  However, depending on who you choose to outsource payroll to, it may cost you more if you choose not to transfer at the start of the tax year. This is because some payroll providers will be required to recreate your whole payroll since the start of the tax year. This will take time and therefore increase your costs.

You can outsource your payroll to Growth Partners at any time of year without disruption to payroll and without any set up costs.

  1. What is a Real Time Information Pay ID?

The RTI Pay ID captures your company’s employee reference. You enter this when you set up a new employee on your payroll. The Full Payment Submission (FPS) must be sent on or before payday and an Employers Payment Summary (EPS) must be submitted by the 19th of the following month to avoid fines from HMRC.

  1. What’s involved in transferring payroll providers?

If you transfer payroll providers at the start of the tax year, employers need to send the new payroll provider a list of all current employee data along with salary details. If you transfer providers at any other time, your payroll provider will require a lot more data from you regarding previous salary payments.

However, you can transfer payroll to Growth Partners as part of SMART Employment model at any time with minimal data.

  1. What’s involved in transferring payroll providers to a PEO model? 

When you are transferring payroll providers and the HMRC liabilities as part of the PEO model, you need to send the new payroll provider a complete list of all current employee data, along with salary details. You also need to ensure employees are set to ‘leavers’ in the old payroll and produce a P45 for each of them. The P45s are not sent out to employees – they are sent to the new payroll provider only.

  1. How long does it take to transfer payroll providers?  

Depending on the size of the business and the complexity of the payroll, it can take between one to two weeks for small to medium businesses, and up to four to six weeks for larger businesses.  Some payroll providers may require longer than this – particularly if you wish to transfer your payroll midway through a tax year.

  1. Do I need to contact HMRC if I change payroll providers?

You do not usually need to contact HMRC if you change payroll providers. However, if you wish to outsource your payroll to specialists like Growth Partners who take on the HMRC responsibilities for you, then you will need to complete a year-end submission.

The year-end submission will confirm to HMRC that you have closed your old PAYE. This is usually done via an EPS submission once you have processed your final payroll. You will also need to confirm the cessation date on the submission.

Payroll business solutions

When you’re investing time into running your successful business, it can become difficult to keep on top of everything. By outsourcing your payroll, you can reduce your costs and save essential business time, allowing you to focus on areas that are important to contributing towards your continued growth.

Contact the team at Growth Partners today to find out more about our all-in-one solution for payroll, pensions, and employee engagement services.

Employee engagement key to retaining staff
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Employee engagement – the key to retaining staff

Employee engagement – the key to retaining staff 1920 1280 Growth Partners

I was recently asked by one of our clients, where does the link between employee engagement and retention begin? And what role will employee engagement play in retaining staff in the future? My answer really was simple, the key to retaining good staff is having a solid employee engagement strategy and this is why…

Employee engagement factors

Where is the Link Between Retaining Staff and Employee Engagement? It is easy to understand that happy, engaged staff are inclined to be loyal to their employer and be less inclined to leave but Gallup takes this a step further defining actively engaged employees as “loyal and productive.” By investing in employee engagement, not only can a company experience low employee turnover rates but they can reap the benefits of increased productivity too.

It is a common myth that employee engagement is about retaining staff once they’ve proved their worth and so often we see business leaders choosing to invest in their employees once the company is established and only once they need to enter the growth stage. I disagree with this approach entirely.

The key to staff retention starts with the very first interaction. It is a crucial stage for both the employee to share their excitement for the role and the company to gain commitment and buy-in before they even join. This stage in the recruitment process is the bedrock of long-term working relationships.

How engaged are employees in the UK?

According to a study by Qualtrics, approximately half of the workers in the UK are engaged. That puts us in sixth place on the list of countries with the highest engagement rates. The European country with the highest engagement rate is France at 55%.  Companies that effectively turn feedback into action have an 80% employee engagement rate and highly engaged teams sell 20% more than teams with low engagement.

The UK’s average employee turnover rate is approximately 15% a year. Burned-out workers are 2.6 times more likely to look for another job and burned-out employees are 63% more likely to take a sick day.

High staff turnover, burn-out and sick days all significantly affect a companies’ bottom line and growth potential.

What role will employee engagement play in retaining staff in the future?

Employers need to take action now if they want to attract talent and retain staff going forward. The COVID-19 pandemic changed the working environment forever – it not only brought uncertainty for many businesses but also a huge burden of responsibility for their employees. From implementing remote working, to finding new ways to communicate on-top of the decision of when and how to utilise the Job Retention Scheme.

Now is the perfect time for business leaders to step back and look at their approach to employee engagement. It’s time to update their employee engagement strategy or start to create one. By investing in employee engagement, it is clear that companies can reduce turnover rates and reduce costs while also increasing productivity and therefore business growth and be in a better position to weather any future storms.

What next?

If you need help creating an employee engagement strategy, speak to our business growth experts. You can also read more about our SMART Employment model or book a demo of our all-in-one solution here

Scott Read Growth Partners discusses the link between employee engagement and retention

Scott Read Growth Partners discusses the link between employee engagement and retention

Scott Read is a results-driven business leader with a proven track record in helping employers strategise key business growth through employee engagement.

6 Ways to Grow Your Business
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6 Ways to Grow Your SME | Business Growth | Growth Partners

6 Ways to Grow Your SME | Business Growth | Growth Partners 1800 1200 Growth Partners

As the East Midlands’ employee engagement specialists, we’ll be running an employee engagement seminar at the next region’s largest B2B expo. The exhibition, which is being held in Solihull in November, is designed to support companies to grow and prosper.

More than 500 business owners are expected to attend the Midlands Business Expo on Friday 26 November to meet organisations providing services to help them grow.  As part of the free event, we’ll be holding a seminar to help business leaders grow their business and increase employee engagement.

The 6 Ways to Grow Your SME Through Employee Engagement seminar will be led by our CEO of Employer Services, Scott Read, who is a results-driven business leader with a track record in helping employers strategise key business growth through enhancing employee engagement and communication. The seminar will explore the link between employee engagement and business growth, giving you six takeaways to implement within your organisation immediately.

Scott Read Growth Partners speaks at Midlands Business Expo

Scott Read Growth Partners speaks at Midlands Business Expo

Scott Read said:

“We’re looking forward to meeting business leaders from across the region to talk about their plans for business growth. We know so many SMEs have exciting plans to grow, after what’s been a tough 18 months and we welcome the opportunity to be able to help with their journeys. With the right direction, focus and commitment, employee engagement can genuinely drive positive returns in staff retention, productivity and profitability.”

There will also be an opportunity to chat to a business growth consultant at our exhibition stand and arrange a free employee engagement consultation.

The 30-minute seminar will take place at 10am on Friday 26 November at the National Motorcycle Museum in Solihull.  You can register for your free ticket through the Midlands Business Expo website

Midlands Business Network November 2021

As an employee engagement company, we’re on a mission to help make employers’ and employees’ lives easier. You can book a free demo of our all-in-one solution for payroll, pensions, benefits, wellbeing and employee engagement services here.

Outsourcing payroll
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6 things to consider when researching outsourced payroll providers

6 things to consider when researching outsourced payroll providers 1280 729 Growth Partners

Whether you’re considering outsourcing your company’s payroll for the first time or looking to switch outsourced payroll providers, it’s important to do your research regarding how to outsource payroll.

A recent YouGov study reported a quarter of businesses believe managing payroll requires too much of their time and affects their overall business performance.

If you’re looking to grow your business, outsourcing your payroll is a great step towards unburdening yourself from the administrative headache of keeping up with legislative changes and the expectation that you have all the answers to your employees’ payroll and pension queries.

Should I outsource payroll?

Outsourced payroll providers can also save you money and minimise the risk to your business if you choose the right provider.

In this post, we’ll discuss six important things to consider when finding out how to outsource payroll:

1. Choose a specialist outsourced payroll provider

There are so many payroll providers to choose from – from specialist outsourced payroll providers and payroll companies to HR companies and accountants.

The accountancy firm that you use for your accounts may be great at accounts, but are they specialists in payroll? If you’re using your accountant for payroll administration or are considering doing so, ask them about their expertise in payroll. Chances are, they might not actually enjoy payroll processing and may prefer to focus on your accounts, which is where their specialism lies. Some accountancy firms will actually outsource your payroll to a payroll specialist, so this is also something to consider.

2. Check the outsourced payroll provider is fully compliant with HMRC and The Pensions Regulator

Payroll compliance can be a headache if you’re not a specialist in this area. To comply with Government regulations, you must make accurate payments and deductions, provide employees with detailed payslips, file and pay all taxes on time, pay deductions such as pension payments to the right places and keep hold of records for a minimum of three years.

Pension compliance can also be difficult to keep on top of. Under the Pensions Act 2008, you must put staff into a workplace pension scheme and contribute towards it. Pension auto-enrolment is an important thing to get right, as is pension re-enrolment. Check with the UK outsourced payroll provider whether they will handle all the administration of this for you.

How do you know how your chosen pension fund is performing; when was the last time you reviewed the performance of your pension auto-enrolment fund?

3. Ensure transparency

Outsourcing your payroll is not a decision to take lightly – after all, you’re talking about the hard-earned wages of your employees. A seamless transition is best for both you and your employees, so look for a specialist provider who can handle the transition expertly and efficiently.

Ask to see the full process from end-to-end, ask to see their security credentials and how they keep your data safe and check how they’re set up to handle any significant changes to payroll, such as the job retention scheme. These are all things which YOU will be liable for if THEY get wrong, so it’s best to check these from the outset.

4. How much input will be required from your finance team?

Unburdening your finance team is a great reason to outsource your payroll. Finance managers are a fantastic asset, and freeing up their time is a win for small businesses. Payroll and pension administration is process heavy and takes a lot of time and accuracy – take the headache away from them, and they will be available to help you grow your business.

Using specialist outsourced payroll providers may also reduce the number of staff you need to recruit to your finance team to administer payroll and pension payments, therefore helping to reduce your fixed costs. A fully outsourced specialist payroll provider will also take care of the administration of new starters and leavers.

The main thing to make sure of here is that you outsource to a specialist who requires minimal interventions from your finance team – otherwise, you could end up giving your finance team an even bigger headache.

5. What do you get for your money?

You will find most payroll providers charge a set amount per employee to administer payroll, but check what added value you get.

  • Do they provide any other services for your employees?
  • Do they provide online 24/7 access to pay documents via an app?
  • Do they provide UK-based customer service support to answer your employees’ payroll issues?
  • Are they GDPR compliant?

These are important questions to ask to help you choose the best value payroll provider for you.

6. Will outsourced payroll providers give you peace of mind?

Check if compliance with HMRC and The Pensions Regulator still sits with you. If it does, you may be reducing your fixed costs and saving some money, but you may not feel you have complete peace of mind.

If the compliance still sits with you, this means the payroll providers will administer a company’s payroll and pensions, but ultimately the company directors are still responsible for the payroll providers’ actions and any compliance issues.

Our payroll and pension services

We’re proud to offer a fully outsourced specialist payroll and pension service with the following benefits:

As payroll specialists, we deliver our payroll and pension solutions as part of the SMART Employment model, which costs as little as 30p per day. SMART Employers have more time to focus on business growth, experience increased profitability through reduced costs, increased performance, and have complete peace of mind for themselves and their employees.

If you’d like to know more about outsourced payroll through our SMART Employment model, contact us for a free, no-obligation demonstration of the process and our added value services with one of our payroll and pension consultants.

What are the ir35 tax changes
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What are the IR35 tax changes and how do they apply to you?

What are the IR35 tax changes and how do they apply to you? 1340 1006 Growth Partners

The rules around IR35 and off-payroll working are changing, and from 6 April 2021, the new tax changes will come into force for the private sector. In this post, we discuss what’s changing, for who, and what the options are if you think you could be affected.

What are the IR35 tax changes?

From 6 April 2021, all private sector companies employing off-payroll staff – usually referred to as contractors – may have to take them on as an employee. If the employer dictates their terms, they can no longer be treated as contractors – they must, by law, be treated as employees.

Private sector companies receiving the services of a contractor will be responsible for deciding on the workers’ employment status.

The new rules make sure that all workers, who would have been an employee if they were providing their services directly to the client, pay broadly the same tax and National Insurance contributions as employees. These rules are sometimes known as ‘IR35’. The changes are all about making sure you have consistency in how you treat employees.

Who is affected by the IR35 tax changes?

The IR35 tax changes – also known as changes to off-payroll working rules – may affect any company receiving services from a worker who isn’t on their payroll. In most cases, these are companies that work with contractors. It could also be any worker who provides their service to a company through their own limited company or another type of intermediary such as:

  • a partnership
  • a personal service company
  • an individual

The company receiving the service is responsible for determining if the changes apply to them, rather than the worker providing the service.

You can use the gov.uk employment status for tax tool to help you determine any workers’ employment status.

What are your options?

  1. Do nothing

HMRC published a statement about supporting companies through this change and explained a ‘light touch’ approach to penalties will be taken in the first 12 months, unless there is evidence of deliberate non-compliance.

  1. Take the workers on as staff

Onboard these employees the way you would any new starter and include them in everything you do for your existing staff. This means a contract of employment agreeing pay, auto-enrolment pension, sick leave entitlement and the ability to accrue holiday leave and pay.

  1. Get business support from payroll and pension experts

You can outsource these responsibilities and the compliance that comes with it to a specialist payroll and pensions expert. You can do this just for the contractors or for all your staff.

How we can help

The change is coming, and we can help.

As payroll and pensions experts, we can advise you on your situation and the options available to you. Through our services, we can help process the increase in employees you are likely to have on your payroll and look after all of their needs. This means taking on the HMRC responsibilities – leaving you to focus on growing your business.

Through our SMART Employment model, we can also provide your new employees with the same range of benefits as other employees – making it clear your company is treating the new workers the same.

If your business is affected, contact us for a chat about your options or arrange a free, no-obligation consultation.

5 Point Plan to Drive Employee Engagement
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5 Point Plan to Drive Employee Engagement

5 Point Plan to Drive Employee Engagement 2664 1772 Growth Partners

Employee engagement is an ever-expanding marketplace and discussion topic within businesses across the world, but what does it really mean, and do we actually make it a priority?

I’ve worked in this industry now for the last eight years and the way in which so many businesses understand employee engagement is so inconsistent and means something different depending on your viewpoint. It’s not surprising, given that there are more than 50 definitions*

The evolution of engagement itself has been a fascinating journey. Early adopters started to add a number of employee benefits to their offerings, trying to differentiate their packages from the crowd, but is this really engagement, or simply business self-preservation?

We’ve all seen the introduction of staff discounts, employee assistance programmes and access to childcare vouchers being applied to thousands of businesses with a view that those employees who benefit from them will be thankful, and it will enhance their job satisfaction.

We now find ourselves in a situation where employee benefits are, or should be, the norm for every employee with 91% of employees believing employers should offer tailored benefits packages** They are accessible, affordable, easily integrated and they do offer value to those employees who have the desire and energy to use them.

I would argue that employee benefits are an essential component to a business operation, as they demonstrate that you care for your employees and that you want to make their lives better, even in just a small way. It may also be a factor that helps you retain an employee, rather than seeing them leave you to join an organisation for the sake of a few pence per hour, or a discounts scheme, or some wellbeing advice.

Employee benefits Vs employee engagement

As employee engagement becomes an even more popular topic, you may want to ask yourself the following questions:

  1. Have you made some employee benefits available to your employees, in the belief that this will drive loyalty, appreciation and productivity?
  2. Do you spend thousands of pounds each month/year trying to implement a range of technology, products and services, only to see usage at a really low level?
  3. Are you frustrated that your efforts in encouraging usage are wasted?

If the answer to these questions is ‘yes’, then you are probably more focussed on employee benefits and not employee engagement.

It’s really important that you recognise this distinction, especially if you really want to engage with your colleagues.

So, what is employee engagement?

Employee engagement is a much more difficult and complex project entirely. Genuine employee engagement is a culture, a belief system, a management ethos and it needs to be adopted by every team leader, manager, director, owner and executive within an organisation for it to truly work.

Can you look across your organisation and say that you have nailed employee engagement? I know that I look around our business every day and find a list of things we could do better, should have done better, or differently, and I constantly strive for the perfection I’m looking for.

In reality, I’ll never reach perfection, nor do I want to, because that perfection may also bring complacency. Employees change, their circumstances change, the working environment changes (we should all have seen that since COVID-19 arrived), so we need to be constantly evolving to meet the needs that these changes bring.

Ask yourself when was the last time you really reviewed your engagement strategy; do you even have one?

The creation or review of your own bespoke engagement strategy is essential in helping you stay relevant to your employees, ensuring that they stay loyal and engaged with YOU.

Your 5-point plan to drive employee engagement 

If any of this is striking a chord with you, then hopefully my 5 Point Plan can help you genuinely drive an uplift in employee engagement within your business.

Five Point Plan to Drive Employee Engagement

DOWNLOAD: Your 5 Point Plan to drive employee engagement

Employee engagement is about honesty. Rose-tinted spectacles won’t help you, but an honest assessment and strategy will. With clear objectives and the right management approach, you can transform your business from a benefits culture to an engagement one.

I believe that every business should make employee engagement a priority, not a chore, and not a box-ticking exercise. With a little focus, direction and strategy, the gains on retention, loyalty, profits and productivity that are often banded about can become a reality, but one thing is for certain… they won’t without a plan!

So, don’t play at engagement, devise a strategy and implement it with the same purpose, drive and energy that you would every other project within your business; the rewards will be more lucrative and long-standing than most short-term new-business campaigns that you run.

Scott is a results-driven business leader with an impressive track record of helping employers strategise key business growth.

Scott Read Growth Partners

 

To speak to Scott about your employee engagement strategy, call 07368 474 319 or email scott.read@growthpartnersplc.co.uk

Sources

Engaging for success: enhancing performance through employee engagement – IOE

What’s Next for Digital Benefits Administration in 2019 – HR Technologist

Working from home
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7 Tips for Managing Working from Home

7 Tips for Managing Working from Home 1155 770 Growth Partners

There are more people than ever working from home at the moment, with millions of us doing our bit to help beat the spread of Coronavirus (COVID-19). Swapping the office for remote working might be something you only dreamed of a few months ago, but the reality can be very different, with a some finding it difficult to manage and to adjust to lone working.

Even at the best of times, we can struggle to separate work and home life, so when they both happen in the same place, it throws up even more challenges than usual. Whether it’s not logging off until later than normal, working through your lunch break or on the contrary, not working a great deal at all, it’s easy to see why remote working can start to impact business and our health.

To combat these challenging times, here are a few things you can do to try and effectively work from home, while being productive and continuing to maintain a happy, healthy household…

1. Get changed out of your PJs

It’s too easy to slide out of bed, head downstairs and start work all within 2 minutes, but it won’t set you up the same way it would If you were to shower, get dressed and get ‘ready’ for work. Having the same routine as if you were going into the office not only gets you in the right frame of mind, it also avoids any embarrassing situations when your boss video calls you!

2. Create a desk or dedicated workspace

Sitting on the sofa with your laptop on your knee and Friends on in the background might be how you imagined working from home to be, but in reality you’ll soon be feeling lethargic, distracted and aching from poor posture. Instead, set up a dedicated place of work, whether that’s a desk in the spare room, a space on the dining room table or an area of the kitchen. Having a zone that is dedicated to work, with a firm upright chair, will help get you in the right mindset and be more productive while supporting your back and shoulders too.

3. Keep a structure to your day

The beauty of working from home is the flexibility. Whether you’re an early bird or a night owl – if you can, adjust your hours accordingly to when you’re most productive. Once you are ready to work however, try to keep a similar structure to the one you would normally have in the office. If you usually have a break at 10am and lunch at 1pm, do this even though you’re at home. It’s easy to lose track of time and work longer than normal, or oppositely, get distracted by home jobs and end up working less. Keeping a structure to your day will ensure you’re putting in the right number of hours while still being productive.

4. Keep in touch

One of the hardest things that home workers face is being alone for a long period of time. As humans, if we don’t communicate with others, we feel lethargic, negative, less able to manage stress, have higher blood pressure and much more. It’s therefore essential during this time where we’re not able to socialise in person, to connect through technology. We’re lucky to live in an era where FaceTime, Skype, social media and WhatsApp are all part of our lives, so it’s easier than ever to keep in touch with friends, family and colleagues. Try having a team call once a day to check in with one another, see how everyone is feeling, and what everyone’s working on, with a family video call later on as well. It’ll help in more ways than you think, both in your personal and work life.

5. Keep active

We clock up more steps than we think in a day at the office – our commute, the walk to the toilet, going to make a cup of tea and so on. Which is why when we work from home, and everything is a lot closer and on hand, we drastically reduce the amount of movement we do in a day. Aim to move every 90 minutes, even if it’s just to walk around the house or to make a cup of tea – getting up and stretching your legs and back will help you focus when you return to work.

6. Get some fresh air

We might be restricted to our homes at the minute, but it doesn’t mean we can’t get outside. If you have a garden and are able to, try and spend 10 minutes in it, pull up some weeds, hang out the washing or even just sit with a cup of tea and take some deep breaths. The fresh air will improve your mood, wellbeing, energy and clear your head ready for you to get back to work. If you don’t have a garden or are not able to go into it, opening the windows in your house or apartment has a similar effect and will improve the air quality throughout your home.

7. Keep a structure to your diet

According to the National Diet and Nutrition Survey, Britons eat on average 800 – 1,000 additional calories per day without even knowing it! If this takes them over their required intake, it could lead to an increase in weight and blood pressure over a year. Mindless eating is one of the biggest culprits of weight gain, so it’s even more important while you’re at home (and close to the biscuit tin!) to be careful how much you put in your mouth. Keep a structure to your diet, eating at regular mealtimes with a few healthy snacks throughout the day. Not only will it help with the scales, it’ll also help improve your mood, productivity and energy.

We’re all in a very surreal and scary situation at the moment, which none of us are familiar with. Working together, working remotely and working on steps to avoid the spread, while keeping ourselves and families safe, are the top priorities for all of us. Helping to make life run as smoothly as possible is essential, so we hope these tips enable you to get the work-life balance you and your family need during this difficult time.

SMART Employment
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How SMART Employment is Changing the Game for UK Businesses

How SMART Employment is Changing the Game for UK Businesses 1182 770 Growth Partners

Some companies have it so easy. Engaged employees, high retention rates, increased productivity and most importantly, increased profitability.

You may look at them enviously, wondering how exactly is it that they achieve this outstanding balance without breaking their bank accounts? But what if we told you it was one of the easiest solutions you could make in your business. By becoming a SMART employer, you yourself could become the company you aspire to be.

Having everything in one place, easily accessible and efficient for all those employed.

But what is this SMART employment model that is benefitting so many? And how can you become a part of it? What is it?

What is the SMART Employment model?

SMART Employment has been around for a while, you just haven’t noticed it. Unlike traditional HR outsourcing companies, SMART Employment takes an aggregated approach to business support, handling all HR and employee-focused functions such as Payroll, Benefits, Recruitment and more.

Essentially it takes away all the laborious admin tasks that are related to the basic HR functions, combines it with some amazing employee benefit tools, to make a one-source function that employers can use to improve their overall company strategy. Employers will have more time, money and energy to focus on their employees, making sure they are getting the best out of them whilst ensuring a good work-life balance.

Why it works

Would you rather pay a bunch of separate costs for different services, that may or may not work together, or where one is more engaging than the other – and you still do admin work just to get them all organised for your employees to use? Or would you rather pay one cost, for one platform where all the services are already integrated and work in harmony?

The latter is why the SMART Employment model works so effectively. We aggregate all services so it’s one easy fee for multiple services.

It’s been found that employees who are more engaged are 27% more likely to demonstrate ‘excellent’ performance. This work ethic will then directly affect your profitability in a positive way.

So why wouldn’t you get involved in SMART Employment? It’s the obvious answer to many decision makers’ problems and will improve overall productivity and performance in the business in the long run.

Why our portal is the best

Being one of the leading providers of SMART Employment, we can confidently say that we have everything running on a tight ship and know what we’re talking about. We provide our clients with a single sign-on app where the employees can access everything wherever and whenever they want to.

On the app, you can get access to;

As well as this, employers will also be provided with HR Support including occupational health, legal advice and support on recruitment.

Like to know more about how SMART Employment can grow your business? Contact Growth Partners today on 0116 340 3116 or book a free consultation here. Additionally, you may have some questions regarding payroll… If this is you, our payroll specialists at Growth Partners have provided an FAQ post which answers 14 most asked questions when it comes to understanding payroll.

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Social Media: It’s time to get connected

Social Media: It’s time to get connected 150 150 Growth Partners

The easiest way to connect to your network?

One of the most disruptive resources created?

Whatever your opinion is on social media, you cannot deny that its popularity has grown and, whether you like it or not, it’s the way forward for today’s businesses.

Over the years, there has been a big discussion on the benefits of using social media within a business context. It is associated with millennials, with the stereotype that those generations who came before them find it harder to utilise to the best of its ability.

People are constantly on their phones. Be it tweeting, posting photos on Instagram or letting their Facebook friends know that in two hours they are about to board their flight to Greece for a two-week holiday (and they are super excited!).

But how can this be useful to employers?

Surely, it’s just teenagers looking to see who can get the most likes on a photo rather than a corporate resource?

If you think like this, you need to look at your business strategy – and fast. Without utilising social media, you will be massively behind your competition and therefore will not reach your goals as quickly as you would like. It’s been found that 80% of users follow at least one business profile and considering that there are 3.484 million people on social media, this is a potential reach of 2.787 million people that could be seeing your posts!

Still not convinced?

Below are some key reasons why we believe you should embrace social media in your company, to be the top in your sector:

1) Brand awareness is increased

As said before, people are constantly on their phones. If you are posting content regularly, this then means they have a chance of seeing your stuff constantly. This is awesome for brand awareness, as even though they may not actively engage in what you are putting out there, their subconscious will remember seeing your name from somewhere. In conversation, people may mention your brand and with it comes the ‘oh yeah I’ve heard of them, I’ve seen their logo somewhere’ and boom. There you have it. Those audiences who you unintended to reach are now aware of your brand and as we all know – word of mouth is the best kind of marketing.

This doesn’t even consider those people who are already actively engaging. Liking your posts, commenting and sharing will not only increase their engagement and loyalty with the brand, but also give you a team of brand ambassadors. And the best part? They’re free!

2) There’s a human behind the product

The most frustrating thing must be when something doesn’t work, and you can’t speak to someone. The amount of times I have spent scrolling through a website getting more and more frustrated because there just isn’t a phone number, and then when you find one you are on the phone for 30 minutes going through all the automated menus! So, customers have turned to social media. Tweeting companies to sort their problems out – they normally get a reply straight away. By allowing yourself to be involved in this process, your company becomes more humanized and customers can relate to you better. You’re there on the frontline with them and more importantly, you understand their struggles.

3) Generate leads… and therefore increase profits

If the previous two points still haven’t swayed your mind – this one should. If you are a good business manager, you will try anything to increase your lead generation and if this means jumping on the social media band wagon so be it! The best thing about your business getting on social media – is that other businesses are also on there. It’s the best-known secret, connecting and sharing ideas with those who you potentially want to do business with will build your relationship. This will then make it easier for your sales guys and gals to do their job and secure you more leads!

4) Reputation management

Nowadays, if something is a hot topic people will go to social media to discuss it. This includes when things go wrong. Imagine, your company is involved in something that isn’t what you want to be involved in. Twitter blows up, comments/mentions/opinions all over the place and if you’re not on social media? You can’t manage what is said about you. However, if you are online, you could reply to customers queries and put forward your voice on the subject. This means you can ‘firefight’ effectively and avoid your company being in disrepute. Alternatively – if you have some great news you can also join in with your audience by sharing and celebrating it with them!

5) Engagement levels increased

All the above leads into one thing – engagement. With engagement, comes increased sales and improved brand awareness. So effectively it’s a continuous cycle. You post frequently on your socials, you get people to become aware of your brand, your audience engages in your posts through liking/commenting/sharing and you therefore get more people enquiring about your product. It’s as simple as that.

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Is your business working too hard?

Is your business working too hard? 1500 770 Growth Partners

Good is fine, sure. It’s safe and nice. Static, unexciting. Great though, ‘great’ is all about mounting potential. Moving on up. In today’s current climate, where reports of the economy going down the pan are as rampant as they are conflicting, it can be difficult for small businesses to find adequate support to reach this higher tier of potential.

“Don’t be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.”

Or so the old saying goes by the epitome of success, John D. Rockefeller himself

Last year, the number of businesses that survived dropped by 27,000, making it the first year-on-year fall since the year 2000 (BEIS). It’s the prevailing worry of any responsible entrepreneur looking to kickstart a business venture: timing. When’s the best time to capitalise on a good idea, to take the plunge, and with the political climate being in its current shape, it seems the worry is as prevalent as ever.

But taking the plunge doesn’t have to be a gamble. The SMART Employment model, new to the UK, is changing the game for business owners looking to grow. If you’re a small business trying to get ahead, it might sound strange, but now is the time to pause. To take stock and review. Running headfirst into the storm you plan to create is never smart strategy. Especially if you’re carrying last year’s baggage.

As with Rockefeller’s opening line, the leap from ‘good’ to ‘great’ demands that you first work out what’s holding you back. What is your business baggage? What functions take up more time than they’re worth, cost more than they should?

A recent report by Sage revealed that the average small business spends 120 hours a year on admin and 5.6% of staff time wrapped up in back-office tasks. If this rings true for a business like yours, the question to ask is how to cut back on wasted energy and productivity lulls? If you’d be in better shape without the burden of the paperwork-heavy must-dos like Payroll, Pensions, the HR remit tasks, then why hold onto them?

Like to know more about how SMART Employment can grow your business, contact Growth Partners today on 0116 340 3116.

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