Change, regardless of its size, can be a stressful time as it puts the business and its employees under pressure.
Change can be brought by external pressure, like new legislation, customer reviews, changes in the market, or internal pressure, such as new policies or employee feedback.
Sometimes the change can affect a small team, for example if a staff member is leaving, or it can affect the whole business in cases of restructure or re-branding. Identifying what is the cause and who is affected will help you with the approach you need to take.
The period before the anticipated change you should put together a plan outlining steps you will take to deal with the change. As an employer, firstly you should:
Before you begin the process, ensure that you are familiar with any laws which apply to the route of action you plan to take. For example, it is important to note that consultation is a legal requirement during TUPE and redundancy situations and there are surrounding rules set out in the relevant statutes which must be followed.
Always allow meaningful consultation to take place where you listen and consider employees' views and suggestions.
Communication during this process is key, thus employers should aim to explain everything clearly and answer any questions which the staff might have. If the situation is not communicated sufficiently, the transfer may not deliver the planned results. Informing your employees of the situation will ensure that they are kept on board and workforce morale is kept on a high, resulting in a smoother transfer. Often TUPE transfers stemming from merging two companies involve a re-branding.
In situations like this communication is vital once again, as you should put across the new company's vision and promote enthusiasm among your employees that this is the way forward.
Make sure that you talk to your employees and support them through the redundancy process.
Don't forget that after those who were made redundant leave, those who are left may not feel as motivated and as enthusiastic about their work. During a time like that you should ensure that you encourage staff morale and reassure them that the change is positive.
Similarly, when an important person leaves the team, whether they are retiring or moving onto different employment, this is also a period of change and may leave the team deflated. Those who are covering the workload may struggle under the additional pressure. Aim to guide your staff towards acceptance and moving forward with new views and goals.
Change can be brought by external pressure, like new legislation, customer reviews, changes in the market, or internal pressure, such as new policies or employee feedback.
Sometimes the change can affect a small team, for example if a staff member is leaving, or it can affect the whole business in cases of restructure or re-branding. Identifying what is the cause and who is affected will help you with the approach you need to take.
The period before the anticipated change you should put together a plan outlining steps you will take to deal with the change. As an employer, firstly you should:
- Create a vision
- Communicate it across to your employees
- Carry out a consultation especially if a statutory requirement
- Engage staff
- Reflect on the process and use feedback to improve it
- The vision for change
Before you begin the process, ensure that you are familiar with any laws which apply to the route of action you plan to take. For example, it is important to note that consultation is a legal requirement during TUPE and redundancy situations and there are surrounding rules set out in the relevant statutes which must be followed.
Always allow meaningful consultation to take place where you listen and consider employees' views and suggestions.
When change affects the whole company
Change which affects the company as a whole often presents itself during transfer of undertaking situations. The process of preparing your staff should start in advance before the transfer itself as it is a statutory requirement to hold a consultation period during which your staff can discuss and propose ideas in relation to the anticipated change. Consultation should involve all the affected staff and any elected trade union representatives.Communication during this process is key, thus employers should aim to explain everything clearly and answer any questions which the staff might have. If the situation is not communicated sufficiently, the transfer may not deliver the planned results. Informing your employees of the situation will ensure that they are kept on board and workforce morale is kept on a high, resulting in a smoother transfer. Often TUPE transfers stemming from merging two companies involve a re-branding.
In situations like this communication is vital once again, as you should put across the new company's vision and promote enthusiasm among your employees that this is the way forward.
Change due to redundancy
Redundancy situations also lead to change whether jobs are actually lost or because a restructure is being instigated even though no jobs are lost. Within a micro business (those with less than 10 employees), even the loss of one job role can have a large impact. Making a large number of staff redundant will impact your workforce even more.Make sure that you talk to your employees and support them through the redundancy process.
Don't forget that after those who were made redundant leave, those who are left may not feel as motivated and as enthusiastic about their work. During a time like that you should ensure that you encourage staff morale and reassure them that the change is positive.
Similarly, when an important person leaves the team, whether they are retiring or moving onto different employment, this is also a period of change and may leave the team deflated. Those who are covering the workload may struggle under the additional pressure. Aim to guide your staff towards acceptance and moving forward with new views and goals.
