How In Control Of Your Career Are You?

With the daily assault of data, emails and information delivered at a rapid rate and requiring an equally rapid response, plus social trivia from Facebook, Snapchat and Instagram, how many of us are remembering to focus on the longer term important issues concerning our career? It is frequently reported that most people will spend more time considering their next holiday or purchase of new electronic devices than they will planning their career. It is also worth considering that ‘good luck’ is often about where preparation meets opportunity so some career planning and preparation is needed if you want to be lucky!

Here are some tips to ensure you remain in control:

1. Know Yourself

Do you know what is most important to you at work?
What do you want to achieve over the next five years?
Which are you key skills and which do you need to develop?
What type of environment do you want to work in?
Where do you want to be located in 3 -5 years time?

2. Know Your Options

How aware are you of the various options which maybe open to you?
Which skills and at which level are required for the next steps in your career?
Have you researched the reward and benefits in the role which interested you?
Are you clear about the type of team culture you want to work in?
Have you made a plan for achieving your goals?
What hurdles might you face?

3. Know Your Brand

Are you clear what your personal brand/reputation is?
Have you reviewed how you present your brand in the last year?

4. Know Your Network

Are you an active member of face to face networks?
Have you got an up to date profile on Linkedin /Twitter etc.?
Do you contribute to online discussions?
Have you got career supporters? e.g coach, buddy or mentor

5. Knowing About Making Decisions

Are you able to make your own decisions, or do you prefer them to be made for you by others or circumstance?
Have you got a systematic process for making decisions?

Running through these points you may find that you do very few or very many of these things. Most people may be in between. Leaving things to chance may be some people’s preferred way of dealing with things and others may be very structured in their approach, so which is the best way forward? The reality of a 21^st century career which is likely to be long with disruptions on the way means that we will need to ensure that we can weather the ups and downs and deal with disruption. The way to do this is to consider and develop the key skills for managing your career proactively by adopting some of the steps above.

This is a guest blog by Gill Amos of Active Development.

Contact details:

mailto:gill@active-development.co.uk

http://www.active-development.co.uk/

Telephone: +44 (0)1604 708064

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Maria Miller’s Demise – A Blow for Equality?

It could be argued that Maria Miller’s demise does not bode well for equality. There are now only three women in the cabinet and her role was filled by a man, Sajid Javid who is to become the new Minister for Equalities.

Women have long been under-represented in the government and particularly at senior level. It was a miracle that Margaret Thatcher rose to the heady heights of Prime Minister and shattered the glass ceiling. As she rose through the ranks she dyed her hair blonde in an effort to appear more feminine in response to criticism, however, once she got into power she chose to act like a man and had voice coaching to tone down her shrilly voice. She was only interested in self-advancement however as there were few other women in her government and none in her cabinet. She did little to advance equal pay or childcare.

Tony Blair’s Labour government encouraged more women into the profession but it is still a male dominated environment.

Today in all professions there are very few women at the top and it is a struggle to get there. Ruthlessness seems to be the key. Some women emulate men discarding their high heels and wearing trouser suits in an attempt to bury their femininity.

Women do have an important and equal contribution to make to the workplace. So what can they do to improve their chances of making it big?

Well they should take on diverse and challenging assignments, taking every opportunity to develop new skills. Having completed an accomplishment they should shout about it to the rooftops. Women need to be visible and promoting their talents. Hiding their light under a bushel will get them nowhere and they will be trodden on by the stampede of men eager to get to the top. Men are naturally competitive and women should show more willingness to compete in a man’s world.

Women should take more risks, after all nothing ventured nothing gained. The “fake it till you make it” attitude should prevail. Women should be open to any opportunity – who knows where it might lead.

Women should learn to be direct and succinct. They should attempt to leave the soft and fluffy image to one side if they want to get ahead and get to the point without trying to wrap ideas and statements up in soft language and waffle.

But what can employers do to ensure that women have a helping hand to rise through the ranks? Positive action in terms of recruitment and promotion are essential. “Women are actively encouraged to apply as they are currently under-represented” should be included in job or promotion adverts. Women should be given every opportunity to progress in the workplace and be included in succession plans being identified for roles at the top.

Flexible working for all employees comes into force in June 2014 and flexible working requests should seriously be considered by employers so that they can hold onto valuable women’s skills rather than let them be a statistic in annual turnover or being a casualty of a poor work life balance attempting to have it all. Women should be assigned a mentor to help them develop and employee reward should be structured so that equal pay rules and the current gender pay gap is closed.

Managing That Friday Feeling At Work

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In general the UK workforce long for the weekends and often start thinking about what they are going to do with their time on a Friday. There is evidence to show that many workers reduce their productivity in the afternoon which can impact on the bottom line for businesses. Certainly the ##FF tweet regularly appears on Twitter at the end of the week showing it is on people’s minds. In this blog we look at the “Friday feeling” phenomenon and how employers should be managing that Friday feeling at work as some employees may appear to wind down ready for the weekend, long before necessary.

British Airways’ research done last year seems to indicate that many UK workers start clocking off for the weekend mid afternoon on a Friday and often once 1.30pm has passed.

Strange things happen on a Friday, it seems, that are not conducive to a productive working day. Many employees admit to taking it easier on a Friday compared to the rest of the week. Some workers deliberately put things off till Monday. Phone calls and emails may be ignored and important meetings are never convened for the end of the week. That “Friday feeling” provides for a better atmosphere it seems and workers say their boss is more lenient on that day.

Apparently the working day on a Friday consists of using Facebook, organising weekend plans, emailing friends, booking holidays and doing online banking. That’s all well and good, however, if HR policies allow for these activities. The use of Facebook and other social media should be governed by a social media policy and very few allow for the use of social media within working hours and should stipulate procedure in non-working hours if permitted. So for employees who potentially do not comply with a robust social media policy, they may face a disciplinary process. An IT use policy likewise should give guidance on personal use of IT equipment in working hours. It depends how tough an employer wants to be on its employees who want to wind down at the end of week and may not give their employer their all. An employer needs to think about morale and staff motivation, but within reason..

The official clocking off time is usually from 5pm onwards, but the lucky few are allowed to get away earlier. I know of one company that lets some workers work longer hours Monday to Thursday to fulfil their working week so that the whole of Friday can be taken off, which is fine if the nature of the workload allows for this. Complete Fridays or Friday afternoons off are indeed a wonderful benefit.

The roads do seem much quieter on a Friday so perhaps many employees benefit from this perk.

Claiming sickness absence could be another ruse for extending the weekend off. Employers should be aware of patterns developing with employees who regularly take off Fridays (and sometimes Mondays as well) and tackling any problem that emerges with an employee as quickly as possible.

If an employer is unwilling to give Friday afternoons off or allow an earlier get away another perk to offer could be a dress down Friday if appropriate. However, that practice should be accompanied by a robust dress code to avoid any faux pas.

Figures provided by the CIPD a few years ago were used to assess the cost to UK industry for the lack of productiveness on a Friday and this was estimated as being £50m per year, which is a hefty sum.

An employer must trade off possible lack of productivity with the generous ability to allow staff some time off.

#FF

Dressing For Business In The Workplace

As soon as this topic is mentioned many people think, ‘formal dress,` certainly a jacket at the very least! This was certainly the case 10-15 years ago, happily dress codes have changed and relaxed, however this leaves many in a clothing dilemma surrounding ‘smart/casual’ business wear! Many, though not all, do not understand what this entails and often ask ‘does it really matter?’

My answer to this is, how eager are you to earn more money? Get promoted faster? Find a new job, or simply just get noticed in the office rather than fade into the background. Many hours are spent honing their CV hoping to impress the reader and yet when it comes to the interview, few spend more than a couple of minutes considering what their visual impact should be!

James Caan of Dragon`s Den fame, was taught as a young recruiter that you look from the feet up to decide whether the person he was interviewing was a suitable candidate. Why should your shoes be so important? Well, you can tell a lot by how they are cared for! Dirty, worn, scruffy shoes may indicate a person who is not interested in detail and has no pride in themselves. This may seem harsh but contrast this to a pair of clean, shiny shoes, this is clearly someone has taken the trouble to make sure every last detail is covered off and could indicate at work you are happy to go the extra mile!

Some might dismiss this out of hand as being unimportant; however in this very competitive market place can you afford to leave any small detail to chance? Considering your personal brand is vital to make sure your image is congruent with the company you represent. You would not trust a solicitor wearing jeans and a t-shirt, equally would you wouldn’t want a receptionist greeting your clients chewing gum, wearing bright garish nails and spending all the time on her mobile phone!

If you would like to be ahead of the competition and be remembered for the right reasons, an hour`s image audit could make the difference between success and failure! At the very least, you will become more confident in your outward appearance which will pay dividends, not only in the work place but socially too!

This is a guest blog by Jane Sumner of Image Matters.

For further information visit:

www.image.mattersuk.com

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Image-Matters-Jane-Sumner/146671162084342

https://www.linkedin.com/pub/jane-sumner/13/4a0/8a5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f3DhWQ_OAKw

Email:image.matters@btinternet.com

Phone: 07779585323

E cigarettes in the Workplace – Smoke and Mirrors?

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E-cigarettes are causing a storm. They have been introduced to help people give up smoking and sales have soared over the last ten years. Currently there are 1.3 million people in the UK that use the devices according to Action on Smoking and Health, therefore, employers need to understand how to manage e-cigarettes in the workplace.

From 2016 electronic cigarettes will be licensed as a medicine. Currently they are marketed as a safe way to help stop smoking. Many are designed to look like cigarettes, although some look like a pen. They vaporise a nicotine solution that replicates smoking tobacco but are not licenced by the Health Act 2006 which governs that. They do not give off smoke, do not contain tobacco but do contain chemicals. The British Medical Association states that more research needs to be done to establish the safety of the nicotine replacement devices as some experts have questioned this. In some countries they are very heavily regulated.

E-cigarettes are not a quit tool, they provide the individual with an alternative to smoking tobacco with the ability to inhale the vapour. Even if they are safe and whilst it is not illegal to use an electronic cigarette in the workplace, simulating smoking can cause employee disharmony therefore there are important considerations for employers.

Pregnant workers or those who are trying to give up may be particularly concerned about colleagues who use e-cigarettes in the workplace and mimic real smoking. In this day and age when well being is actively promoted and cigarette smoking in indoor public areas is banned, damage to the professional image of an organisation may be done if employees using e-cigarettes are viewed by customers who come on site. If e-cigarettes are permitted, therefore, they may give off the wrong message.

As a minimum employers should have guidelines that prevent the use of cigarettes in customer facing areas, in the presence of visitors and in catering or food preparation areas. Whilst many e-cigarettes are odourless, some do have an odour eg cinnamon that may be irritating to colleagues so additional guidelines on odour-free e-cigarettes should be included.

The potential benefits to employers for allowing the use of e-cigarettes are fewer smoke breaks and fewer health problems related to smoking and time of work. However, many employers are now starting to ban e-cigarettes totally in the workplace.

If employers are to ban the use of e-cigarettes they must amend an existing no smoking policy and or drugs/alcohol policy to include that fact as well as detail their approach to managing the situation. If no policy exists, one should be created. E-cigarettes should be expressly banned in company vehicles, in the workplace and on customer premises. Any changes to the policy, or development of a new one, needs to be well communicated to the workforce to avoid any misunderstandings.

Employers should consider providing a separate outdoor shelter for e-cigarette smokers, who are effectively non-smokers, if they provide the same facilities for smokers. After all it would not be fair to let these workers to share the same facilities as those who are smoking cigarettes. The number of smoking breaks allowed should be documented in a policy linked to the disciplinary policy for abuse of this privilege.

It is a business decision of whether an employer decides to allow the use of e-cigarettes or ban them.

Removing the Mask Of False Self Employment

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The Government is consulting on strengthening the existing legislation to ensure that the correct amount of income tax and NIC are paid where the worker is, in effect, employed. This legislation is expected to take effect from April 2014. The legislation is designed for removing the mask of false self employment.

The largest business sector which is likely to be affected is the construction industry but there is apparently widespread evidence that other sectors including the driving, catering and security industries are using these arrangements.

So what are the proposed changes?

The central proposal is to make a change to the agency legislation. At present if this legislation applies then the intermediary must deduct PAYE and NIC. However, this legislation only applies where workers provide their services under the terms of an agency contract in which the worker is obliged to personally provide services to the client.

Some intermediaries have set up contracts which allow the worker to send a substitute to do their job (even though this often does not occur) and on this basis it is argued that the agency legislation does not apply.

The Government propose to amend the legislation and remove the obligation for the worker to personally provide their services. Instead, where there is a supply of personal services and the end user exercises control over the worker the agency legislation will apply. This means that the payments from the intermediary to the worker will be deemed employment and, as a result, the intermediary must operate PAYE and NIC.

In order to assist HMRC in identifying possible cases of non-compliance with the new legislation, it is proposed that there will be a new statutory returns requirement. The intermediary will need to submit a quarterly electronic return containing details of any workers it has placed for whom it is not operating PAYE and NIC.

We will update you with any developments once the new legislation is finalised. In the meantime if you would like any further information please contact CED Accountancy Services Ltd.

1 Lucas Bridge Business Park, 1 Old Greens Norton Road, Towcester, Northants NN12 8AX TELEPHONE: 01327 358866 FAX: 01327 358355 E-MAIL: info@cedas.co.uk

This guest blog is provided by CED Accountancy Services Ltd.

How To Deal With Cancer In The Workplace

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The incidence of cancer is on the rise. The cost to the UK economy for employees dropping out of of work due to the illness is £5.3bn. Most of us know someone that has been affected by it and it is important to know how to deal with cancer in the workplace. At a recent seminar organised by MacMillan Cancer Support I learnt some useful information which I shall share with you in this blog.

Many employers do not know how to support staff with cancer. 82% of employees with cancer want to work, however, they are 1.4 times more likely to be unemployed. 47% of those with cancer have to give up work or change their roles because of the diagnosis. 47% say that employers don’t discuss sick pay entitlement, flexible working or workplace adjustments which is quite shocking. Cancer is a disability and covered by the Equality Act, yet only 49% of managers know this fact. Only 28% of managers have received training on the legislation. MacMillan Cancer Support provides support online for SMEs to help manage situations.

Employees who are faced with cancer can also face financial difficulties. They risk losing their homes if their income drops. MacMillan provide hardship grants which can help pay utility, heating and phone bills. Last year £90,000 was paid out in grants which can be accessed through the NHS.

The key issues for employers are managing confidentiality, sickness absence, discrimination, capability and ultimately termination.

An employee does not have to share 100% of the information about their condition. If a medical report is produced under the Access to Medical Records Act the employee has the right to change the report and to have it with held from their employer.

Employers must have express consent to disclose any information to colleagues. Where an employee is refusing to allow an employer to divulge any information to anyone, it might be a good idea to try and persuade the employee that a brief explanation might be needed in order to reduce curiosity about the employee’s behaviour or absence.

Employees who go on long term sick due to their condition should be contacted on an agreed basis either by letter or phone. It is important for the employer to keep in touch and not ignore the employee otherwise they could resign and claim for constructive dismissal.

Cancer is a distressing condition and it is important the employers help manage the work related situation as best they can. Training and education for managers and key members of staff is really important.

Performance Related Pay Back In Favour?

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Michael Gove recently announced the introduction of performance related pay in the teaching industry from September 2014 http://www.theguardian.com/education/2013/jan/15/teachers-pay-performance-michael-gove Instead of automatic annual increments progressing through the grade, teachers will be expected to demonstrate good performance before receiving a pay increase. Schools should be working on how they will put a procedure into place. This is not a new phenomenon. When I was working for the Probation Service over fifteen years ago, it was introduced for the senior management team. So is performance related pay back in favour?

The idea is that performance related pay (or merit pay) will reward excellent teachers more money and hopefully incentivise poor performers to increase the quality of their teaching. Teachers’ performance will have to be closely appraised so that the link between performance and pay is very clear. Whilst there are good and bad teachers in the education system, there are advantages and disadvantages with this idea.

The plan is for performance related pay to increase flexibility in schools, to attract and retain quality teachers, to attract more graduates into the profession and create a culture of professional development.

A report produced by the Policy Exchange about performance related pay and teachers stated that a well designed system should include:

An evaluation based on several measures, not just test or exam scores.
A prolonged evaluation over more than one year to reduce volatility in results and to allow staff to adjust to the new assessments.
Financial rewards based on increases in base salary, rather than through bonuses.
The use of performance pay to recruit and retain effective teachers, including the use of Pupil Premium funds to pay for this.
The use of performance pay not as a way of holding down pay, but as a reward for real excellence. This may require the redesign of teacher pay bands within a school.

Teachers’ performance may be assessed on a range of areas according to government guidelines:

impact on pupil progress
impact on wider outcomes for pupils
contribution to improvements in other areas (eg pupils’ behaviour or lesson planning)
professional and career development
wider contribution to the work of the school, for instance their involvement in school business outside the classroom

In the past it has been difficult to introduce performance related pay into the public sector due to the difficulty of measuring performance in certain roles.

The rationale of linking high performance to pay attempts to develop a high performance culture and should provide equity and fairness. It is widely used in the private sector with many managers receiving it rather than low grade workers.

For performance related pay to be valued by employees there needs to be a clear link between good performance and pay. One barrier to its effective use is subjectivity of the line manager. They should receive thorough training in the operation of the appraisal system with lots of openness and transparency. The variances between hard and soft managers needs to be managed and favouritism dispensed with. The issue of possible discrimination needs to be addressed when training and educating the managerial workforce.

The element of performance related pay needs to be worthwhile, as with any employee reward. Too little and it will not be sufficiently motivating. The pay budget will have its limits and must be distributed appropriately across those who are performing well.

How To Implement The NEST Pension

Employers who are looking for a simple cost effective pension scheme in order to comply with pension auto enrolment may like to consider implementing the NEST pension which has been developed by the government. NEST is ideal for small and medium sized businesses and helps employers comply with pension auto enrolment statutory legislation.

Employers may plan to implement NEST in accordance with their staging date or may bring their staging date forward as a volunteer employer. It is important to first know when the staging date is before making a decision.

The first stage of implementing a NEST pension is to contact NEST (http://www.nestpensions.org.uk) and register to obtain an account. It is important to finalise set up within 90 days of the first contact otherwise the whole process must begin again.

NEST should be provided with information about organisation – PAYE reference and contact information. There should be a main contact in the organisation but additional delegates can be given access. Worker groups and payment sources must then be added.

The workforce must be assessed according to age, salary and status. They should fall into three separate categories – eligible job holders, non-eligible job holders and entitled workers. An employer must make pension contributions for eligible and non-eligible job holders but does not have to for entitled workers.

If implementing NEST and bringing the pension auto enrolment staging date forward employees should be written to at least one month before the proposed staging date. Details on the NEST pension should be provided and as part of the pension auto enrolment process eligible workers should be offered the ability to opt out. They have one month in which to opt out. Any pension contributions that have been taken must then be refunded. A consultation meeting should be offered so employees can discuss any concerns and queries about the process.

If an employer is voluntarily entering NEST they must get signed agreement from the employees to make deductions.

It is important to get NEST permission to auto enrol early. This can be done by contacting NEST and completing a form over the phone which goes to the compliance department. It is important to do this in good time in order to prevent any delays in meeting the planned earlier staging date.

If bringing the staging date forward the Pension Regulator must be informed in writing. This can be done online using a 10 digit reference code that the employer will need to obtain or may done by letter or email. This should be done in good time and at least a month before the earlier staging date.

The information to be provided is:

Employer name.
Employer PAYE scheme reference(s) eg 123/4AB (you can find this on your P35 employer annual return). Please include all PAYE scheme references that you operate.
The new (earlier) staging date chosen and your original staging date.
Employer’s address (including postcode) and email address.
The name of the owner or most senior accountable person at the employer (optional).
Companies House registration number or equivalent, eg registered charity number, VAT registration number or industrial provident society number.
A declaration from the employer that they have contacted a pension scheme and have obtained the agreement of the trustees or managers, provider, or administrator, that the scheme can be used to comply with the employer duties from the new (earlier) staging date.
Your name.
Your job title within your organisation.
Your contact telephone number, email address and business address.
Your own declaration that you are authorised to apply for a change of staging date.

Employee information should be provided to NEST. This can be done manually or via a CSV file upload. Employees will then be sent a welcome pack from NEST which will contain their ID number.

Payroll should be set up for employer and employee contributions and NEST should then be provided with an employer/employee contribution schedule.

Employers should make contributions to NEST no later than the 22^nd of the month after contributions have been taken.

It’s important to allow plenty of time in planning and implementing the process. From experience this is a very heavily admin based procedure and there may be hiccups along the way.

Call 0845 241 1868 if you need assistance with implementing the NEST pension.

Introducing a Simple Flexible Benefits Scheme

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Introducing a simple flexible benefits scheme can be a great way to improve employee retention and movation.

One of my clients allows their employees with five years service to purchase a week’s additional holiday. This can be the starting point for employers in introducing flexible benefits. The ability to buy and sell holiday can be a stand alone flexible benefits item or be part of a wider offering.

Many employees relish the ability to buy extra holiday with few taking up the opportunity to sell it. However the latter can come in handy when times are tough and extra funds are required.

Initially the employer should decide what they want to achieve from introducing a simple flexible benefits scheme – how it will help the company as well as employees.

Other simple benefits that can be introduced are the ability to buy health and/or dental insurance and childcare vouchers (perhaps through salary sacrifice). Surveying employees with regards to their requirements can throw up some possible good suggestions. The cost of each benefit needs to be considered along with affordability. Sourcing cost effective employee benefit providers is also important. Making only a few additions adds to simplicity.

Communication to employees is essential and can be done on a 1:1 or group basis via presentation backed up with documentation.

The employer should ensure that the employment contract clearly reflects the arrangement and when the variation occurs either a new contract is drawn up or a variation letter provided to the employee. The change should be deemed to be permanent to avoid the employee changing their mind half way through a year.