People

Important employment law changes coming in April 2020

January 5, 2020 By Stephen Cowburn

As the New Year dawns, some changes to the detail of your employment contracts, leave arrangements and holiday pay will need to be made in April. Furthermore you will need to start to think about how you are going to resource your business with changes in how ‘temps’ are paid and, further down the line, how your company is going to employ contractors.

Employment contracts

Two changes may be necessary depending on your current contracts and your process for issuing them to new starters after April 6^th 2020.

Firstly, all new starters (including employees, zero hours’ workers, casual and seasonal workers) after this date need to be issued with a written statement on or before the first day of employment (rather than within the first 8 weeks of employment as is currently the case)

Secondly, for new employment contracts issued after 6^th April 2020, the mandatory information that needs to be included has been extended to include the following:

normal hours of work, days of the week the worker will be required to work and whether these days/hours may vary
forms of paid leave such as family-friendly leave
details of other employee benefits, not just those relating to pay, such as benefits in kind or financial benefits
terms relating to probationary periods including those in relation to the length of probation and conditions pertaining during the probationary period and what happens on successful and unsuccessful completion of the probationary period
details of training provision and requirements.

ACTION: Ensure your processes ensure new starters have their written statement on or before their first day of employment and that the statement includes the additional mandatory information.

Holiday pay

From 6^th April the reference period will be extended from the current 12 weeks to 52 weeks to allow a fairer approach to holiday pay when workers carry out flexible working hours. This means that a day’s holiday pay will need to reflect an average day’s ordinary pay over the average of the previous year’s earnings to ensure that the individual is not penalised for going on holiday.

Although not a change (though bear in mind that case law is continually clarifying the position), where there are additional payments such as overtime or profit related pay or regular commissions or other such payments and these are ‘sufficiently regular and settled’ and so effectively amount to ‘wages or salary’ then these will count as normal remuneration and should be taken into account for holiday pay calculations if needs be going back 52 weeks.

ACTION: Determine whether various types of remuneration form part of a worker’s ordinary pay by considering whether it is sufficiently regular and settled or whether it is exceptional or not usually paid.

Bereavement leave

After 6^th April 2020, a bereaved parent will be able to take statutory bereavement leave of at least two weeks if the employee suffers a stillbirth after 24 weeks of pregnancy or loses a child below the age of 18.

ACTION: Update the leave section of your Employee Handbook to include this provision.

Resourcing your business

Two changes are in the air – one effective in April regarding ‘temps’, the other down the line, regarding use of contingent workers, which will affect larger private sector businesses from April and likely the SME sector in coming years.

Temps

From April 6^th 2020, all agency workers (those provided by an employment business) will become entitled to equal pay when compared to comparable full-time employees, once they have reached 12 weeks’ service within one assignment. Whereas the employment business (‘agency’) will have to notify the worker of this, you the SME end-user need to be aware of this potential increase in cost as you plan the relevant assignments.

Contingent workers

From April 2020 large (more than 250 employees) private sector employers are being told to ask themselves whether their contingent worker is really an employee and so assess if the worker is covered by IR35 rules and, if so, to make the appropriate tax and NIC deductions at source.

It is important to note that this only affects large organisations this year. It is likely to impact smaller businesses in the future.

ACTION: Be careful on how you use temps to avoid a sudden, unexpected increase in cost. Where you rely on using specialists on a regular basis consider what changes you may have to make to fall within the rules as they are rolled out in the coming years.

Changes to statutory rates

On different dates in April, as in previous years, the following statutory rates will change due either to government policy or inflationary revisions.

Statutory rates for Sick Pay, Maternity, Paternity, Adoption and Shared Parental Leave Pay are all likely to increase. New rates relating to the national living/minimum wage have also just been announced. From April 2020, the new rates are: The National Living Wage for ages 25 and above – up 6.2% to £8.72. The National Minimum Wage for 21 to 24-year-olds – up 6.5% to £8.20. For 18 to 20-year-olds – up 4.9% to £6.45.

Some of these changes will affect all businesses across the board and are part of the on-going changes to statutory terms and conditions. Other changes are more nuanced, and the impact on your business will need to be based around the facts relating to your specific circumstances.

For a confidential telephone discussion on how these changes may affect your business please contact our specialist business adviser Stephen Cowburn either via email stephen.cowburn@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk or on 07974 425 361

Disclaimer:

This blog provides a wide range of advice across topics of interest to business owners. We hope you find it interesting and relevant. However, please note that the blog postings are not legal advice, nor should they be taken or relied upon as such. Individual circumstances will vary and we would advise that a discussion takes place with a professional advisor to ensure they understand the facts of your situation, and can then provide you with appropriate advice specific to your business situation.

Important employment law changes coming in April 2020

January 5, 2020 By Stephen Cowburn

Employment contracts

Two changes may be necessary depending on your current contracts and your process for issuing them to new starters after April 6^th 2020.

Secondly, for new employment contracts issued after 6^th April 2020, the mandatory information that needs to be included has been extended to include the following:

normal hours of work, days of the week the worker will be required to work and whether these days/hours may vary
forms of paid leave such as family-friendly leave
details of other employee benefits, not just those relating to pay, such as benefits in kind or financial benefits
terms relating to probationary periods including those in relation to the length of probation and conditions pertaining during the probationary period and what happens on successful and unsuccessful completion of the probationary period
details of training provision and requirements.

ACTION: Ensure your processes ensure new starters have their written statement on or before their first day of employment and that the statement includes the additional mandatory information.

Holiday pay

Bereavement leave

ACTION: Update the leave section of your Employee Handbook to include this provision.

Resourcing your business

Temps

Contingent workers

It is important to note that this only affects large organisations this year. It is likely to impact smaller businesses in the future.

Changes to statutory rates

On different dates in April, as in previous years, the following statutory rates will change due either to government policy or inflationary revisions.

Disclaimer:

Are you ready to put your STAMP on 2020?

January 5, 2020 By Gavin McWhirter

Strategy Targets Accounts Marketing People

However you voted in December, and whatever your preferred outcome, we know the UK will be leaving the EU on 31st January. The clock starts on the transition period… but don’t worry, this is not a Brexit rant! The start of every New Year is the perfect time to restock your thought-bank, recharge your batteries and do some planning.

Here’s how you can put your STAMP on your business in 2020 by focusing on these 5 important areas:

Strategy

Most small businesses do not have an up-to-date business plan, which means they tend to focus only on shorter-term outcomes. And as the Cheshire Cat in Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland once said, “If you don’t know where you are going, any road can take you there.” The classic result is an initial feeling that you are responding to the market and widening the range of services you provide, but this soon develops into a business spread so wide that it’s impossible for potential customers to define what you are really good at. Sound familiar? Then it’s time to update your 5 year business plan, and ideally get some external input to the process.

Targets

A strategy without a plan is just a pipe dream. Once you know what you want the business to look like in a few years from now, you need to break this down so the different functions in the business are all working to achieve that same goal. That includes being realistic about the costs that will be incurred in order to achieve growth, and the timetable.

And this means targets. Every business is different and it may mean daily or weekly targets, but as an absolute minimum the business must have monthly targets, whether this is for sales, profitability, gross margin achieved or numbers of new key accounts opened.

Accounts

If you do not fully understand the financial accounts of your business, this section is here to scream at you to do something about it. A study in the US in 2018 suggested that 82% of small businesses that fail do so because of cash-flow problems, which means that many of those failures could have been prevented had the owner managed their cash position better.

This is not just a gentle prod to start the year with a clear understanding of your financial accounts, it is a proper kick. Talk to your bookkeeper or accountant about how you might work together to improve the reporting so it is clearer. Maybe take an online course on business financial management. Do you know which customers are the most profitable? How much does it cost you to acquire a new customer? What is the average spend of your customers? Who are you highest value customers? Do you understand the costs in your business, and the profit margin for every product?

And, as it’s up-and-coming, make sure to submit your own tax return before the 31st January 2020 deadline.

Marketing

Marketing is a core area of the business and one where many people struggle. Although it sounds gobsmackingly obvious, it is shocking how often companies are not able to succinctly describe what they do. Add in ‘who’ they do it for, and ‘why’ customers buy from them, and it starts to expose more than just cracks.

I am a big fan of the value proposition, and have been working with companies for over a decade to help them develop a clear set of messages that describe what it is they do, who they do it for and why they should buy from them rather than someone else. It is rarely straightforward and it is exceptionally hard to do on your own.

The process of developing a value proposition also forces you to clarify who you are targeting. Don’t be tempted to go broad and try to have an all encompassing value proposition. Much better to be focused and niche. It is perfectly acceptable to have several variations of your value proposition, for different segments of customer.

Once you have clarity on your value proposition, and the target audience for that message, developing a marketing campaign to reach that specific segment becomes much more straightforward.

Now while a business must have a clear strategy, without great people it’s meaningless. Peter Drucker famously said: “Culture eats strategy for breakfast” and it is absolutely true for companies both large and small. The people in your business make it work, or break it. It is never easy, and it never stops evolving. Structure can help, but the single most important factor is a set of values that genuinely governs how you work. It must emanate from the leadership team, and it should define who you employ. Sure you need skills, but do not hire on skills alone. Probe and test people about the cultural fit, and if they are wide of the mark do not hire them, however smart they are on paper.

Putting a STAMP on your business on your own is hard, which is where UKBA can help through the use of independent business advisors.

If you’d like support planning your business in 2020, we offer our TwentyTwenty Insight Review, which provides a snapshot of the health of your business with recommendations for a programme of improvement. Contact Gavin McWhirter on 077 3606 0230 or gavin.mcwhirter@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk to find out more.

Gavin McWhirter has over a decade of experience working with SME’s to develop sales, marketing and market research strategies, and supporting the execution of those plans.

Are you ready to put your STAMP on 2020?

January 5, 2020 By Gavin McWhirter

Strategy Targets Accounts Marketing People

Here’s how you can put your STAMP on your business in 2020 by focusing on these 5 important areas:

Strategy

Targets

Accounts

And, as it’s up-and-coming, make sure to submit your own tax return before the 31st January 2020 deadline.

Marketing

Once you have clarity on your value proposition, and the target audience for that message, developing a marketing campaign to reach that specific segment becomes much more straightforward.

People

Putting a STAMP on your business on your own is hard, which is where UKBA can help through the use of independent business advisors.

Gavin McWhirter has over a decade of experience working with SME’s to develop sales, marketing and market research strategies, and supporting the execution of those plans.

Why you need to focus on values and behaviours for business growth

September 8, 2019 By Stephen Cowburn

In my experience of working with MDs of their own companies over the last 14 years it doesn’t take very long before they start talking about why they set up their business, what is important to them in running the business and keeping it solvent/profitable, the differences that exist between them and other Directors and shareholders or conversations that start about a manager who just doesn’t get it.

There are many insightful stories and anecdotes. Passions and frustrations run high in equal measure.

So in a very conversational way, the values of the MD become very clear i.e. what really matters to them. With a bit of gentle probing, it doesn’t take a lot to get an MD to define the behaviours that enable success in their business. ‘If only people did this, we would be even more productive.’

When the MD set up the business, working with a small team, direction, focus, consistent behaviour was all a lot easier because everyone could see what was happening, everyone was involved in decisions and incompatibility was pretty self-evident to the MD such that things could be sorted out quickly following the unwritten rules of the game.

As a company grows, perhaps there are more Directors/shareholders, or managers hired to do more specific roles and lead teams. Different pressures, perspectives and personalities can play havoc with individuals pulling together. ‘So long as l do my job and make money my boss/the boss should be happy.’

It is particularly at this stage that clear values and behaviours can help the MD align people around what the key success factors are for the business, and how people need to behave in order to deliver success.

Cynics say that values are typically motherhood and apple pie statements. Out of context they might be. They can however be grounded by clarifying the behaviours required to deliver success.

Clarification is only the start point. Behaviours then need to be operationalised into recruitment, performance management, promotion and reward processes and training decisions. 1-1 conversations and meetings need to reflect these behaviours. People need to be able to call out breaches in desired behaviours without fear of recrimination.

So to values-led MD owners, if you want a conversation on how to align people around the company’s values and how clearly defined behaviours can boost growth in your business, then contact stephen.cowburn@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk

This is one of the areas we cover in our TwentyTwenty Insight business review process, where we provide a snapshot of the health of your business with suggestions on what you might do next in terms of growing your business. If this is of interest then again please contact stephen.cowburn@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk

Why you need to improve your listening skills!

July 25, 2019 By Lesley Anne Rubenstein-Pessok

It’s not often that I write an article for business people telling them to do something. Typically, if someone tells me to do something, my urge is to do the opposite! Due to that fact, I avoid telling others to do something unless I feel very strongly about it. I feel very strongly about the importance of possessing excellent listening skills and have yet to meet someone who couldn’t improve theirs, however good they are (or think they are).

Why?

Because they are essential! Listening is the key to understanding, whether in conversation with a business partner, an opponent, a sales call, trying to close a deal, figure out why a staff person is unhappy or demotivated, or what’s really going on at your child’s school. It is all through your listening skills.

What isn’t being said?

It’s not just about what the person says, but what the person isn’t saying. There are clues in their word choices. Are they being evasive or direct? Are they hesitant? Having you used language that allows them to speak freely? What about the atmosphere?

Body language

If they are in front of you, what is their body language giving away? Is their verbal language saying one thing and their facial expression and/or stance saying another? Are their hands clenched or relaxed? Even over the phone we can detect a change in tone or energy – what does that say to you?

How does one improve listening skills?

Tip 1 – Awareness

Being aware that you want to improve your skills is the first step, because as you enter a conversation you will ‘switch on’ your powers of listening. As your mind wanders, you will need to bring your attention back to the speaker. The more you do this, the less your mind will wander during conversations, when the ‘switch’ is on.

Tip 2 – Practise

Like everything in life, practise makes perfect (or close to). I’m currently learning how to play the djembe (African drum) and am very aware of how I’m improving in sound and speed by practising most days (my husband might not agree with this statement!). It’s the same with listening skills! You will have plenty of opportunities to improve your skills in the various spheres of your life. The more you practise, the better you will become at listening.

Practise everywhere and with everyone – it will soon become a habit.

Tip 3 – External noise

Noise distracts from your powers of listening – it will either make you focus more intensely to hear your conversational partner, or it will overwhelm you and make you focus on the external noise. If you cannot hear your partner due to external noise, move to a better environment. Your partner will be flattered that you want to hear what s/he has to say. If this is an important meeting, choose the venue carefully to avoid this mishap.

Tip 4 – Internal noise

But what about internal ‘noise’? What happens when you daydream, possibly because the conversation isn’t attention grabbing or because you suddenly recalled something you forgot to do. Bring your focus back if you missed an important sentence and apologise, if necessary. The more you practise listening to your conversational partner, the more often the internal noise will disappear.

You’ll know you’re listening when you mind is empty of internal ‘noise’ and your total focus is on the person with whom you are conversing

Tip 5 – Leadership skills

Going back to the ‘Why’ improving your listening skills are important – can you think of a single, democratic leader whom you admire who didn’t have excellent listening skills? How did you feel when you are conversing with someone important to you who was fully focused on what you were saying? You felt respected? Appreciated? Interesting? What if you made others feel that way? I would argue that keen listening skills are essential if you want to become a leader in any area of your life.

Tip 6 – Emotional Intelligence (EI) or Emotional Quotient (EQ)

Improve your EI/EQ by following tips and exercises. See this article, for example, for more information on How to Increase Your Emotional Intelligence.

In summary

By raising your self-awareness of how you are being in your life and in every facet of it, improving your EQ/EI and empathy, and above all, your listening skills, you will become more effective and powerful in making a difference in every aspect of your life and the lives of those dear to you.

If you would like a mentoring session on this topic or others, contact lesley.rubenstein@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk or call her directly on 020 8868 3163.

Is your business stuck at a crossroads? Time for a strategic review.

June 30, 2019 By Gordon Carmichael

Many businesses reach a stage when they are at a crossroads about the direction to take next or are “stuck” without a clear strategy. It may be a crisis point or it could be an opportunity to take a different path. Directors may no longer be aligned with the planned company direction, and this can cause friction.

Rather than putting off hard decisions, it makes sense to face up to the challenges and opportunities, have a strategy review and then put an implementation plan in place.

Reasons for a strategic crossroads could include:

Change in market dynamics that impact growth or profit potential.
Increased competition forcing new approaches.
Loss of important customers or contracts.
New product or service opportunities possibly requiring research and development.
Recognition that the business is too reliant on a small number of key customers.
Macroeconomic/political changes such as Brexit.
Divergence of what Directors want from the business.
Planning for exit / opportunities to acquire.
Changes in key staff or skills that no longer reflect the needs of the business.
Falling behind in taking advantage of the operational efficiencies of new technology.
Lacking the funds to develop the business.
Measurement and reporting that does not give the right management information.

If there is a need for change or at least a need to review your current strategy, how should you go about it? A few businesses make reviewing strategy almost a continuous process. Others wait until there is a “big bump” to traverse or an unforeseen opportunity.

Smart organisations often involve outside help in the strategic review and implementation planning process. This helps keep focus on what is needed and ensures that an independent non-biased view is taken to maximise the opportunities. Our group of advisors have helped many companies achieve strategic success.

The following four step process works for most companies:

1. Big Picture – Step back and look at the big picture. Don’t get stuck in the day to day operational challenges. Take high level views about the elements of your business and the markets that you service or would like to serve. This phase is the time to re-examine your mission, vision and values – are they still right for your business. Try to define the big picture direction the business could or should take. Depending on the size of the organisation, there may be delegation of some tasks. There may also be research to validate potential options.

2. Implementation Plan – Once the direction of travel has been determined or options identified that need to be refined further, then it is time to get into more detail.

The company objectives need to be set or reset in order to reflect the chosen strategic direction. Real data and knowledgeable input should be used to define appropriate options.

Objectives should have supporting targets and measures defined. The chosen targets should be realistic and ideally include some quick wins. Measures should support what you are trying to achieve and become the Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) that are used to track and reward progress. A small number of well chosen KPIs makes sense as too many KPIs dilutes focus. Often it is beneficial to involve key staff that will be responsible for implementation in this phase. This phase should also make sure that the right reporting information is or will be available and that it is clear how progress will be monitored and reviewed. It is critical to have a clear picture of who is responsible for what and the timelines are understood and agreed.

Review and select long term initiatives that will support the objectives. Initiatives will need staff buy in and may have resource and budgetary requirements. Any resources and funding should be agreed along with the selected initiatives. A small number of big impact initiatives is usually best. Often it works well to have champions for specific initiatives as they can make sure focus is not lost. Initiatives should have well defined progress reporting.

3. Communication – This step is critical particularly for more complex organisations. Every member of staff should understand the big picture and more specifically be clear what their contribution will be to the objectives and initiatives. It may be appropriate to have a launch event(s). If incentives are linked to achievements, then the collective/individual measures should be very clear.

Regular ongoing communications regarding progress and any corrective actions is also very important.

4. Review and Adjust – What happens after the launch of a new strategy is where it can go off the rails. The planned review process should be rigorously carried out and actions implemented on time. Any corrective actions should be clearly communicated. Few strategic plans remain static and it is good practice to monitor what is working and what is not. Too many changes can cause confusion and loss of effectiveness. On the other hand, stubbornly sticking to a path that is not working does not make sense.

It is also important to recognised when most of the gains have been realised. It might be time to start the complete process again.

Unfortunately, strategic reviews and the resulting implementation plans do not always deliver the anticipated outcomes. Reasons for failure can include:

Unresolved internal differences of opinion or conflict.
Not truly stepping back and looking beyond the day to day business as usual issues.
Not setting aside quality time to focus on the process.
Poor communication to staff and lack of buy in to business transformation.
Initiatives that are not supported by appropriate funding.
Initiative fatigue.
Incentive schemes that are not aligned with the defined objectives.

We have the experience required to transform the performance of your business by helping you find successful paths to take while avoiding the pitfalls.

Contact Gordon Carmichael on 01276 818125 or gordon.carmichael@hcbusinessadvisors.co.uk to discuss how a strategic review can benefit your business.

Gordon Carmichael is an experienced business advisor and strategy consultant who works with business owners and directors that are serious about achieving more with their business. He has managed successful businesses from small to £250m in a number of different industries and brings independent thinking with no baggage or vested interests. He is financially literate and understands modern marketing, people dynamics, the benefits of technology, effective business planning and business operations.

How to pick the best candidate for your Technology business C-Suite

June 30, 2019 By Mike Pill

With the current skills shortage in the technology sector and ever-increasing demand it is simply not enough to broadcast a role when you are recruiting for your leadership team. Placing an advertisement or hoping a quality candidate will alight upon your website will rarely succeed. You deserve and require the very best of candidates. Invariably, finding great people requires a more proactive approach.

The best candidates are not looking for your role

The best of candidates, or targets, are probably fully committed to working for a competitor, supplier, customer or possibly currently working overseas and not actively looking for another role. Alternatively, they may be restricted via a compromise agreement, garden leave or clause in their current contract – all of which can be the subject of further negotiation and equitable determination.

A discreet approach

A thorough, comprehensive, discreet and confidential first approach to the targets is required for a number of reasons.

You may not wish to disclose your plans to competitors, customers, suppliers or other key employees in the first instance only to suffer rejection.

Without disclosing your identity and plans, the target is open to considering an alternative offer and challenge. An opportunity can be taken to discuss what they are looking for. The target can assess the outline description of your opportunity and challenge. They can consider its appeal and see if it builds on relevant past achievements.

The missing link – Executive Search

In order to achieve this, the assistance of an Executive Search consultant (AKA head-hunter) is recommended. In the UK we have probably the best professional football league in the world which has been enabled to a large extent by professional search consultants. The profession has also assisted many of the most successful large companies and is available to the SME market. The cost is not prohibitive and can be negotiated to an acceptable level. It is worth developing relationships with these individuals so that they can become more familiar with your business and be available to contribute when required. The dividend from this investment can be considerable.

For a confidential chat on finding a new member for your C-Suite IT team contact our recruitment specialist advisor Mike Pill by email at mike.pill@hcbusinessadvisors.co.uk or call him on 01276 684007

Top tips to reduce business legal fees and prevent expensive disputes

March 3, 2019 By Tom Elek

Litigation should never be embarked on lightly. There is no such thing as a “clear-cut case”. Most lawyers will rarely give even the strongest case more than a 70% chance of success. There are a number of questions which you need to ask yourself before seeking to resolve a dispute by embarking on litigation:

Is the dispute one which you need to address? It is important to look at any dispute dispassionately and without emotion.
Have you looked at every possible way of resolving the dispute?
Can you afford to lose the case, which could involve you having to pay not only your own costs, but also a large portion of the other side’s costs?
Is there a significant disparity between the respective financial strengths of the 2 parties?
Will you be able to withstand the attacks you and your business will face from lawyers experienced in our adversarial legal system?
Can you afford the distraction that a lengthy court hearing could cause?

I will address each question:

Disputes can often be triggered by hostile personal relations. It is important to try and be objective and to avoid allowing feelings of personal animosity to influence the interaction between the parties.
Until fairly recently, commencing proceedings at the early stages of a dispute was considered a sensible strategic approach. However, the cost of issuing a Claim Form has increased significantly in Court fees alone with a claim in the High Court costing 5% of the amount claimed above £10,000(or 4.5% if issued online) up to a maximum of £10,000 for claims of £200,000 or over. Every possible way of resolving a dispute must therefore be considered before embarking on litigation.
The changes introduced by Lord Woolf in 1998 in the Civil Procedure Rules have also acted as a disincentive to anyone contemplating embarking on litigation. One of the cornerstones of these changes has been to encourage parties to a dispute to seek mediation at an early stage. Failure to do so can be penalised by adverse costs awards against any party refusing to consider mediation for no good reason, even in cases where such party has won his case.
Those with deeper pockets will not only be able to afford higher quality lawyers, although more expensive does not necessarily mean better, but more importantly have greater staying power. It is often difficult to predict how proceedings will progress and one has to expect the unexpected. Running out of funds in the middle of a case can be catastrophic, as one would probably have to pay the other side’s costs, in addition to one’s own, in order to pull out. It is also important to bear in mind that even if you are successful, it is unlikely that you will be able to recover more than 70% of your costs from the other side.
One should not underestimate the hostility that our legal system allows and to a certain extent encourages in our adversarial system. Being cross-examined by an experienced barrister is not something that should ever be taken lightly.
Being involved in litigation is time-consuming and distracting and can cause serious damage to small businesses where senior executives find themselves unable to give their companies all the attention that is needed.

Conclusion

Every dispute requires very careful consideration before embarking on litigation, whether you are the plaintiff or the defendant.
Every effort should be made to resolve a dispute at an early stage without resorting to the courts. This can often mean having “to swallow one’s pride”.
A carefully prepared letter can often nip a potential dispute in the bud. If this fails, try not to lose direct contact between the parties.
Sometimes bringing in a third party to act as a mediator on an informal basis can help avoid litigation.
Once solicitors become involved you must ensure that you receive a very clear indication of costs throughout the process and ensure that you receive regular progress reports. If possible give one person within your organisation the responsibility for acting as the point of contact with the solicitors on your behalf and ensure that such person has a clear understanding of how solicitors charge fees.
Always try to find a way to maintain contact the other side, either directly or through your solicitors.

The time when everyone was entitled to their day in court is long gone and the consequences of doing so now can have unexpected and damaging consequences. If you want to talk this through, why not contact Tom Elek by e-mailing tom.elek@hcbusinessadvisors.co.uk calling on 07768 772148.

Are successful business leaders born or made?

February 3, 2019 By Lesley Anne Rubenstein-Pessok

The answer to this poser invokes the old, ‘nature’ versus ‘nurture’ argument. Maybe we need to study twins who were separated at birth, where one became a business leader, and determine what happened to the other? In the real world, business leaders, like any other leaders, come in all shapes and sizes. If you studied a group of successful business leaders from various industrial sectors, I would hazard a guess that they would have different personality traits and backgrounds.

The variants are likely to be greater still according to discipline. Successful business leader in the financial sector are unlikely to have the same personality characteristics as one in the high technology sector or in the hospitality arena. An accomplished executive in the insurance sector, however, may very well have more in common with a leader of a banking institute. I’m making some assumptions here, but I wouldn’t be surprised if you are in agreement.

Are business leaders born or made?

Before we answer that question, let’s list some of the traits we would expect to find in a great business leader:

Visionary
Decisive
Motivational
Confident / Assertive (but not a bully!)
Likeable
Mindful
Collaborative
Inspirational
Great listener
Integrity
Intelligent
Respectful
Empathetic
Ability to prioritize
Create emerging leaders
Flexibility
Non-judgemental
Empowering
Optimistic

Can we learn to become a better business leader?

There is nothing in this list that cannot be learned or improved upon by a determined individual. One can read books, study, attend workshops, take drama classes, do mental exercises, etc. to gain many of the qualities listed. One can even be trained into ‘thinking big’. Mentors will often determine a CEO’s mental obstacles to growth and ask pointed questions to help him/her see what is holding them back. For example, now in its tenth year, the annual Women into Leadership conferences is a key event for all those interested in seeing leadership opportunities for women enhanced. Women into Leadership 2019 will examine how female leaders, at any grade, can enhance their skills to become the leader they aspire to be.

Acquiring listening skills

In my own ‘Effective Leadership’ business workshop, we spend time in an interactive exercise to experience both good and bad listening skills, and what it takes to become a good listener. Listening and empathy are crucial leadership qualities to my mind. The core skill is not just to listen but also to learn to interpret what is said, both verbally and non-verbally.

How important is it to have empathy as part of your leadership skill-set?

A simple way of describing empathy is when we can visualise, identify being in the other person’s situation, and being able to communicate our feelings to the other person. Sometimes, to show understanding, we need to show vulnerability and describe something we have experienced which may not be showing us at our self-assured best. Think back to the last time you were upset about something you felt was important, and you expressed your feelings and the person you were confiding in understood and empathized. How did that make you feel?

What about confidence?

Listening and empathy are important, but confidence is also an essential leadership trait. As mentioned above, there are mental exercises to acquire several of the traits listed and practise does make perfect. ‘Fake it till you make it’ is another way of saying this, although I’m not sure I particularly advocate that saying as I don’t like anything fake. But if we take ‘confidence’, for example, and practise acting confidently in a drama class, it would be something we could pretend even if we aren’t feeling particularly self-assured. No-one will take direction from a dithering leader in a crisis, and the ability to hide one’s emotions where necessary and appear confident, is a crucial quality in a great leader.

Born leaders

Some people, however, will be perceived as ‘born leaders’, either because they make it look easy, and/or because from an early age they presented leadership qualities. I’m sure we can all summon up a picture of a child in the playground telling the other youngsters what to do and how to do it, and envisage those children following the instructions. Does that mean the child is a born leader? I would argue that some traits may come naturally but many will be determined by life experiences and education in both home and school environments. If a child is bullied, for example, that same child will often become a bully; though this will not apply in all cases. Chains can be broken. Note: not even great business leaders are infallible, and no-one always gets it right and, on occasion, we may mistake luck for great leadership.

In conclusion

Whether or not you are fortunate to have been born with some, most, or all the leadership qualities mentioned in this article, you can work on, and exercise, your leadership skills your entire life.

So, are business leaders born or made? It is not possible to give a conclusive answer, but either way, you can strive to be a better leader and never stop improving. Being a great business leader will serve you well in all walks of life. It’s up to you!

About the author

LGBA Associate Lesley Anne Rubenstein-Pessok, has spent her whole career in executive roles, working with and training start-ups and SME businesses, helping them to become more efficient, increase turnover, improve profitability, cost effectiveness and create strategies that pay off. She is an approved mentor for the London and Partners’ Business Growth Programme, as well as for other public funded programmes. To find out more about Lesley’s mentoring and business advisory services contact her by email at Lesley.rubenstein@lgbusinessadvisors.co.uk or call her on 020 8868 3163.

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Employment contracts

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Resourcing your business

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Strategy

Targets

Accounts

Marketing

People

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