Avoid These 4 Common HR Pitfalls That Prevent Growth

May 19 2022

Growing a business isn’t easy. Just as you find your footing and start building out your team, you will face a new set of challenges around Human Resources.

Although recruiting and retaining top talent is critical to your success, it’s all too easy to fall into common pitfalls around people management, HR compliance, and business strategy. These challenges can slow down or even stop your company’s growth.

Here are the most common HR issues for growing companies and tips for avoiding them.

  1. Unclear Policies & Procedures

The root of many HR mistakes is a lack of formal policies and procedures. Companies often start out with informal, unwritten rules that do not adequately set expectations and guidance for the organization and its employees. This could lead to workplace confusion, disciplinary issues, and even potential lawsuits.

It is important to create and implement company-wide policies that address workplace rules and expected conduct so you are able to demonstrate consistent and fair treatment of employees. One of the best ways to record and share this information is through an employee handbook. The handbook should be updated frequently as laws and rules evolve, and employees should sign an acknowledgement that they have received it and agree to abide by the policies.

  1. Bad Hiring Practices

Hiring the right people is the foundation of your success as an organization, but many business leaders struggle to find great talent. Nearly three in four employers say they’ve made the mistake of hiring the wrong person – a mistake that can cost businesses around $15,000. Bad hires can reduce productivity, waste recruiting resources, and increase the time needed to find and train the right worker.

Common hiring pitfalls include hasty hiring processes, a lack of cohesiveness with management, unclear expectations, and poorly worded job descriptions.  When you are looking to attract and hire strong candidates, don’t rush headfirst into the interview process. First consider the skills, qualities, and experience that your ideal candidate will have. Next, create a clear job description that reflects the duties of the position and relevant skills and experience. Work with other company leaders to ensure you’re all on the same page about what matters most. Spending a few hours crafting a good job description could save months of time for your organization.

Check out our recruiting guide for tips on promoting your job and finding the right talent.

  1. Insufficient Retention Planning

Hiring is top of mind for most business owners, but don’t make the mistake of ignoring the flipside of that: retaining the great talent you already have. The average cost of losing a good hire is around $30,000, so it pays to keep them around.

Having a retention strategy in place shows you are investing in your team, their professional growth, and their priorities. You should establish training and development opportunities for employees at all stages of their career so they can continue to advance their skill sets.

It’s also a great idea to consistently communicate with your employees to find out what they like about their job, where things could be improved, and what really motivates them. Listening to your employees can help you uncover and potentially resolve issues that might cause them to leave the company.

  1. Compliance Lapses

As your company grows, one area of HR you don’t want to fall behind on is compliance with laws and regulations. You must stay up-to-date (or have an expert guide you through) ongoing changes in employment law to ensure your compliance, as well as keep updated with changing local, state, and federal regulations. Failure to stay on top of employment law changes can lead to litigation, and there can be a lot of added expense associated with that.

When it comes to HR compliance, prevention is essential. Take the time to identify what regulatory agencies govern your industry and what laws you must follow. Many business owners choose to hire or outsource their Human Resources function to help with regulatory compliance. HR experts can handle issues like policy creation, compliance, and people management while business owners focus on taking their company’s growth to the next stage.

Ask us your Human Resources and talent management questions via the online chat tool in the lower left corner of your screen. We love helping companies align their people with their business needs, and we love to share what we know.

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