Monday
The start of a new week and it’s shaping up to be a busy one with meetings with retained clients, and two new client meetings, contract drafting, recruitment and various ad-hoc enquiries.
The day starts with a visit to a prospective new retained client. I met with them earlier in the year and the time wasn’t quite right for them to proceed, however they’ve been in touch to discuss potential changes to the terms of work for their part time staff and I’m pleased to say they’ve opted for a retained contract. It’s always lovely to welcome new retained clients, it gives us an opportunity to really get under the skin of the business.
The afternoon delivered some ad-hoc enquiries on recruiting apprentices, maternity enquiries, taking potential disciplinary action and action on a long term absence management case. A busy start to the week!
Tuesday
Today I have visited one of my very first clients. Sadly, we were carrying out some final administration related to the closure of their business. Over the last 6 months we have been working together on the redundancy, from the initial concerns about possible action through to notification and consultation with staff and these last parts of calculating leave entitlements for the staff before the final payroll is run. I’m really sad to lose these guys, not just as a client but their business has been incredibly successful for many years, tracing its roots back for over 100 years. It’s a very big loss for everyone involved and the staff need to be commended for their professionalism throughout a difficult time.
I’ve also visited one of my retained clients to have a protected conversation with one of their team members to explore a possible settlement agreement. It was a difficult conversation in parts but with a little sensitivity, an ability to win his trust and some honesty and straight talking we had a good conversation and the employee concerned is considering their options. I was very pleased with how the conversation went.
Ad-hoc enquiries today included advice on carrying our probationary reviews and drafting some forms, providing advice on 2 separate redundancies and advice on a potential relocation.
Wednesday
A client today requested an absence review for a member of staff who has had 30 days off sick in the last 11 months! I’ve recommended an initial conversation with the staff member concerned but I have also recommended they review and amend their current absence monitoring processes as this should have been dealt with a lot sooner to prevent such excessive absences occurring.
A client I recently drafted a new contact and handbook for enquired to ask if we can create the personalised contracts for their staff. Of course the answer was yes. It’s a small additional fee for them but gives them peace of mind that their contracts are drafted accurately and the various options that affect different grades of staff are selected.
Ad-hoc enquiries today centred around employment status and the validity of freelancers/contractors, advice on supporting an employee with a disability in work and a resulting occupational health referral.
Thursday
Today I’ve been to see a new client. They got in touch to have their contract and handbook reviewed after it hadn’t been looked at for 11 years! Needless to say I recommended a few changes to ensure their business is adequately protected. We’ll be making those amendments in the next 7 days for their initial review.
This afternoon I liaised further with the client who I met with on Tuesday regarding a potential settlement agreement. The employee agreed the package so today was about clarifying the nitty gritty to include in the agreement.
I also gave some advice to one of our retained clients regarding a potential disciplinary matter, I needed to ensure a suitable investigation had been carried out before proceeding to a disciplinary. I’ve offered to assist them manage both processes to take some of the workload away from them.
Friday
This morning I had my weekly catch up with Nikki, our HR Administrator. Nikki and I both work from home as, to be honest, I’m out on the road visiting clients so much that having a full time office is a bit of a waste of money. So Nikki and I have a regular appointment to make sure we each have the comfort of a bit of ‘chat’ but also, and more importantly that we catch-up on everything that has been going on and will be coming up in the next week or two.
I spent this afternoon catching up on some admin for the week, making sure all file notes are filed on clients files, doing some accounts work so it doesn’t build up and making sure the week ahead is planned. I love this time of the week as it mostly means my head is clear going into the weekend and I know that everything is covered.
It’s been a busy week with lots going on but it’s so rewarding to get to the end of a week and know that we’ve supported our clients, solved some problems and taken away some headaches.
Do you want to be one of the dozens of clients that we support each week? If so, get in touch with us for a no obligation conversation.