HR Strategies for Scaling your Business

In this episode of the MyHRPartner podcast, Karen Hillen delves into the essential HR strategies needed for businesses experiencing rapid growth. Karen discusses the importance of planning and implementing robust HR processes to manage an expanding team effectively. She covers topics like onboarding, performance reviews, HR systems, and maintaining company culture during growth. Discover how structured HR practices can transform growth challenges into opportunities and ensure your business scales smoothly. 

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Talking all things HR to help you make sure you are dotting the "i"s and crossing the "t"s ensuring you have everything in place to have a thriving business with happy employees.

 Hi, I'm Karen Hillen. Welcome to the MyHRPartner podcast. We talk about all things HR from recruitment to ending employment. If you'd like support with your HR, check out our website, www. myhrp. com. au.

Welcome back to our HR podcast series, tailored for small to medium businesses, where we explore the HR world with our expert, Karen Hillen from MyHRPartner.

And today's a super important topic for any growing business. Now, this is HR strategies for scaling your business. Now it's preparing your. Your HR processes for growth because you need to have them. I mean, a growing business generally is going to need more employees and more HR practices. So with Karen's extensive experience, we're going to uncover these strategies and that will not only support your business's expansion, but also but also ensure that you got everything in place and robust and ready for the challenges that come.

So let's get into it. Let's learn how to scale smart with effective HR strategies. Karen, can you start by explaining why it's critical for businesses to rethink their HR strategies as they're preparing for that massive growth that, you know, a lot of businesses do get

I think planning is key and understanding that As your team grows, what you've been doing in relation to HR, which might be nothing, is not going to help you as you grow.

A lot of businesses, I find might start off with one or two employees and then they blink and all of a sudden they've got 15 employees or 20 employees. And some of those businesses might have some processes in place, some admit they've got none. So I think it really is looking at systems, processes, the documentation that you have to make it easier as you do grow.

So, you know, we've talked on other episodes about induction and, welcoming people into your business, having a process for that. So the next person and the next person, they're getting the same message and, you've already got everything sorted. So, depending on how big you are and how much you're planning to grow, you could even consider an HR system.

So there are a few different ones that, that I use for my clients and not all clients want another system to use, but I find it's really good as businesses grow. To have an online, cloud based HR system. You can do your onboarding. You can, prepare your contracts. You can prepare all of your other documentation.

You can do online performance reviews. You can manage hazards and incidents. So different businesses will, cope with a different level of technology, I think, but. The key is making sure that you've got those processes in place. So making sure that you have a process in relation to, onboarding people from the paperwork side of things.

So having employment contracts, having HR policies, having processes and educating people about what those are. So everyone gets the same message and as you grow, that's important. So, people know. What the process is to apply for leave. How many weeks notice do I have to give? What do I do if I'm going to be late for work?

So having those policies, processes and systems in place will make it easier for your next hire and the next and the next and the next,

you've

probably been winging it a little bit if you've only got a couple of employees, but having that structure, I love structure, having that structure and process, those processes in place will.

Just help make it easier. You won't be thinking, Oh, it's stressful putting on my next employee. It's going to be okay. These are our processes. We've got this down pat. We've got

a process to follow, checklists, everything we need in order to do that. It, I can, I can see exactly what you're saying. And it might be almost going, you know, we talk about scale here, but going from no employees to two or two to 15, like you said, or even when, you know, we're talking bigger businesses, 15 to 50.

Yep. I gather the systems all need to change and adapt with those because you're dealing with a different beast.

Yeah. Yeah. So, and, and it's going to be what you feel comfortable in your business too. So like I said, some businesses just say, I don't want another system like a technological solution. So it could just be making sure that you have checklists and you have your templates for, all of the things that you need to do when you're onboarding somebody or even right at the very beginning when you're starting your recruitment process.

Instead of thinking, Oh, where do I start? You've got a process. So, okay, this is what I do. I've got a folder here, or I'm going to open up, you know, my, my system. And this is what we do to, to advertise a position, or this is the process we go through. This is how we, select people, this, you know, whether you do interviews or you do other testing.

Having all of those things, in a process is just going to make it so much easier because you're going to be organized and you're going to know what comes next.

Now, this is where you and my HR partner really comes to the fore, isn't it? Because this is exactly what you do. And this is where anyone listening out there and you know, is on the precipice of growing.

Come and see you because you can tailor a solution to meet their, their needs, but you do have to have something in place here. This, you know, is very painful to grow very quickly. And, and HR is one very big facet of business that is going to give an owner pain very quickly if they don't do anything.

So I would imagine it, you know, come to you sooner rather than later.

Yeah. And look, I heard somebody say the other day, in a business, more people, more problems. I like to think it more of more people, more opportunities. I suppose it's really just looking at it and going, okay, if I've got all the systems in place and I'm organized and I love structure.

I love processes. I love the compliance side of HR. I know a lot of people hate that. That's, you know, what I'm here for. And I think if you've got more people in your business, you've got more people to manage. So you might have some performance management issues, but it's also a great opportunity to have more great people in your business.

And having those processes and, procedures in place to, to even tell people what their job is. These are the processes, the, this is how we do things. Having all of that really organized will just make it so much easier when you are, growing.

How can a business maintain their culture during a time of rapid growth?

I think making sure that you recruit well. It's creating a good culture does not happen overnight. It takes a long time and it comes from the top. So, the business owner has to really drive that. So, if you've got a great culture and you want to keep it, you want to make sure even at the very start of a recruitment process that you're attracting the right people and that through your process, you're looking at the right people to interview and ultimately, offering them a job.

So, Getting people that share your values and are going to fit in with your culture is so important.

Absolutely.

And if you get it wrong and you find that somebody gets into your business and they're not living the values and the culture, That's what the probation period's for. So I would think it's probably a good idea if you find that somebody is causing problems and they're affecting that good culture.

They're

rocking the boat.

They're rocking the boat. They're being nasty to people or they just don't fit in with the great culture you've created. You don't want them creating damage in your business. So, it would be good to either, be able to address those things. But if you can't, then, then look at how you might exit those people out of your business and until before they do a lot of damage.

Sure.

And again, we've done another episode on that a little while back now, but for anyone wanting to know a little bit more about employment contracts and probation periods, do have a look at, at Karen's website and it's on Spotify and everything there as well. What would be your top piece of advice?

For a business who is going through a rapid period of growth when it comes to. What's the one thing that a business owner should be thinking about, at that point in time?

Structure. So structure, making sure you've got all of the compliance in place. So you've got your employment contracts, you've got your policies, you've got good processes to get people onto your payroll, making sure you've got all the documentation you need, any training that you might need to put.

Someone through and you know, it might not be formal training. It might just be mentoring. It might be buddying up with somebody so they have somebody to teach them. what they need to do. They've probably come into your business with skills and that's why you've hired them, but making sure they understand how you do it in your business.

So just being really supportive, having that good structure in place and making sure that you have all of the documentation you need to guide those new employees, especially if you're onboarding a lot at the same time. Even if you're employing one new person at a time, that structure is going to work, for whatever.

Sort of stage you are at growing

structure and documentation.

Yep.

Excellent. I love

it. Yep. I know it's

boring , that that's what you do. I mean, people might say it's boring and, and you know, as a business is growing, it's exciting. They think, oh, we've got hr, but it is really important.

I mean, this could be the thing that, that toles you. We, , we said, but we were talking before the podcast started about just, you know, business owners worry about not having enough business and failing that way, but. Not a lot worry about failing because they grow too quickly and one very key component of that is HR as boring as you think it may be, or you think others think that it may be, I mean, it's so, so important.

I think the point to make here is. Karen, this is what you do and this is why people should come to you so that they don't have to worry about this and that you can tailor a solution for them, you can put the structure in, you can give them the documentation and you've got, and you've got so many options available, for, you know, any size business, wherever they're at.

And, you know, I think a key takeaway here is , get advice, and, and get an expert like yourself to be able to manage this, um, this for you, get, get in touch quickly and early because you need these structures in place to grow with the business as it does.

And I think that's really important because you Don't want to be stuck having to worry about HR or any of the other, you know, accounting or bookkeeping or all of those things, you know, you, you, you get the experts to do those things.

So you can get on with what you're good at and your new employees can get on with what they're good at and what you employed them for. So, leave all of the boring compliance stuff to someone like me. And then you can get on with doing, what makes you money.

Yeah. Growing that business, growing that the numbers while you put the, The structures in place to ensure that the business can cope with that and that you can reach those new levels that, you know, obviously your business is now looking to do.

Look, very, very clear. Come and see Karen and let her do the boring work, apparently. Thanks once again, Karen. I mean, it's vitally important, whether we call it boring or not, we joke about it, it is one of the most important, facets to a business is HR and business owners don't get into business to do HR, they get into business to do business, so come and see you, let you look after it.

Another very insightful episode. Thanks, thanks so much for coming in.

Thanks a lot. Have a great day.