Partner Article

A change is as good as a rest

As a growing SME we are having to deal with constant change. And what better way to deal with it than to embrace it? Personally, I feel that it’s important to embrace changes that happen – it encourages a positive outlook, moves the business forward and helps it to grow.The biggest change we have faced as a business over the last 12 months has been in our team – we have grown from 3 to 9 in our Newcastle office and opened a new office in India with 3 members of staff. To enable us to accommodate this change we have had to review and adjust many of our procedures and practices, from HR to management. This hasn’t been without it’s problems, as we pride ourselves on running an agency that is different, with a relaxed working environment, without piles of policies and rules.Some of the procedures we introduced are mentioned below, but it is not an exhaustive list. Not to mention that we are still learning from these.Interview questions tailored to the specific job roleRegular feedback questionnaires for existing staffAn improved induction process for new staffIntroduced an exit questionnaire for staff who were leaving the businessLooked at our current procedures for Training and revampedAdvertised job roles via social mediaBy implementing these procedures and more we have been able to make sure that the process of employing new staff – from the job ad to the interviews to the induction, has been a much smoother one.One of the most important parts of the whole process has been involving existing staff in the changes – keeping them informed about interviews and new staff, asking for their extremely valuable feedback and keeping morale high by organising social events.There are many more changes due at the lab over the next few months, with a relocation to a new office and more staff changes. But instead of looking at it all with a resounding feeling of dread we are going to embrace it! And with the right procedures in place, flexibility and great communication, we should do a pretty good job.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Emma Bevis .