5 Ways To Avoid Your Business Blindspots

I’ve met small business owners and listened to how they turned their dream into reality. I’ve been inspired by their resilience and captivated by their kind personalities. I’ve celebrated their success and stayed by their side through difficult times.

But more than anything else, I’ve tied up loose ends. I’ve taken care of the big and small issues, the tedious and mundane tasks, so business owners can continue building their vision.

Having worked with a host of different businesses – a quaint little chocolate shop, an old family construction business, and even a non-profit for rescued animals – I’ve noticed certain recurring issues.

Despite the different industries, and some to a larger extent than others, many of these business owners either didn’t pay any (or paid minimal) attention to certain simple yet crucial areas in building a business.

Where I’ve seen small businesses stumble

1. Contracts are severely underestimated

There are two major things that business owners need to remember about contracts:

• They are your safety net. In the event of a dispute, the contract is the point of reference – the evidence, if you will. It’s the first document that is referred to for clarification.
• They need to be regularly reviewed. Contracts are not written in stone. They evolve with the business, employees roles, and legislation. So it is just as important to review them regularly as it is to have them.

2. Records are not documented and maintained

Regardless of industry, business owners have to keep accurate records for a period of 7 years. This is a requirement of the Fair Work Ombudsman.

The best way to go about this is by keeping a checklist of the records that need to noted. And just as importantly, employers should have a sound understanding of who has the authority to access their records and under what circumstances.

3. Policies and procedures are not in place until it’s too late

A business, no matter how big or small, needs to have the right framework to succeed. Although policies and procedures form a large part of business’ future success, many employers tend to overlook this step.

This is because their absence tends to go unnoticed until the business tackles new frontiers. Having the right policies and procedures in place provides guidance during these times.

4. Employee potential is often ignored

Good talent doesn’t always come around easy, especially so for small businesses who don’t have the same recruiting capacities of bigger organisations. So when good employees do come around, it is important to express an interest in their potential and growth.

But often enough business owners get so caught up with running their business as an entirety that they overlook the individual components that piece the business together – their staff.

Turning a blind eye to your employees’ potential is the same as turning a blind eye to your business’ potential.

5. Outsourcing is seen as an extravagance

As much as we would love to, we can’t do everything ourselves. This is a particular issue with small business owners who either take on everything themselves or delegate it to employees who are not trained in that particular task

Outsourcing is seldom seen as an option and it’s usually ruled out often because it’s deemed as expensive. Outsourcing, on the contrary, actually saves on excessive overheads. It also levels the playing field for small businesses.

How to apply this to your business

There is no set formula that can be applied to make a business successful. Each and every business will be confronted with its unique set of challenges – in various forms and permutations. There are, however, measures that can be put in place to make it harder for certain challenges or obstacles to emerge.

Should you require any assistance in understanding your obligations as an employer in relation to avoiding business blindspots, please contact Employsure on 1300 651 415 for further advice or email [email protected].