A lot of people in previous episodes have talked about how bringing talent into their businesses has been a game-changer, not only for revenue but for morale as well. 

In this mini-series I wanted to cover more practical advice, the ‘I don’t know what I don’t know’.  In this episode, we hear from Will Davies, co-founder of HBD Partners as he not only works in recruitment but has also brought people into his business on PAYE.  Will offers practical advice on how to tackle this very important area of starting a company. 

Advice:  

• Before employing anyone make sure you have budgeted for at least six months of their salary 
• The advantage of employing a contractor is more flexibility - but the downside is they may have other jobs at the same time, so will be less focused on your business
• Full-time employees involve more paperwork for the employer however are more cost-efficient 
• Take time to find the right person.  A good first step is to write your company’s handbook, write a contract, identify exactly your company’s ethos and what sort of person will be a good fit.  
• An employee handbook, together with a contract and an offer letter, will help the employee with their expectations so they can start work with confidence and clarity
• When interviewing, do not to be swayed by personality; if you need experience, then that is what to look for
• An employer must be sure the candidate has eligibility to work in the UK; they must either have a British passport, or a working visa, or settled status.  Go to the government website for advice on this
• Check their notice period in their current job and consider whether you can wait
• Check whether or not they currently have a hands-off clause which could hamper them when working for you
• Check their references.  You are entitled to ask the previous employer a few character questions, although they are not obliged to answer them
• You will need to build a HR file, containing their signed contract, GDPR statement and bank details Make sure before the candidate starts that you have the necessary equipment so they can start right away
• You will need to budget for National Insurance and pension contributions (as well as a possible one-off recruitment fee)
• You may want to consider Employment Liability Insurance, and Professional Indemnity Insurance
• If your employee is going to work from home make their targets clear
• Endeavour to have a good relationship with your employees, take time to get to know them

You can reach Will via [email protected] 

Head over to Speakpipe to leave your voice note for future guests too.
LastPass the password-keeping site that syncs between devices.
Google Workspace is brilliant for small businesses
Buzzsprout podcast 'how to' & hosting directory
Canva has proved invaluable for creating all the social media assets and audio bites.
For contracts check out Law Depot.

Edited by Renale Mathurin. Recorded, edited & published by Juliet Fallowfield, 2021 founder of PR for startups advisory Fallow, Field & Mason. MUSIC

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