Essential human resources for small businesses in Singapore

Dr Biz • December 7, 2020

Human resources, or ‘HR’, is an essential department for any business, but for small businesses effective HR really can mean the difference between success and failure. While often overlooked and even sometimes the butt of jokes, a strong HR department will ensure that you make the right hires and then support your staff throughout their time with your company.

Not only will this lead to more productive employees that stay with your business for longer, but successful referrals of new employees. Supporting your staff will also lend your firm a reputation as a top employer and, in a city like Singapore where reputation is everything, a good name can not only boost your company’s standing, but even it’s profits.

Put employees first

At its core, human resources is about looking after the people that work for your company and employers that view HR this way, rather than simply a box ticking exercise, are most likely to succeed in building a strong and happy workforce.

According to one US study, 75% of employees would stay longer at an organization that listens to and addresses their concerns. How an organization treats it people also mattered two times more to employees than its mission and goals. As such, when thinking about your approach to HR, ensure you put employees at the very heart of every policy and practice you implement.

Effective compliance

Having said that HR shouldn’t be a box ticking exercise, as far as the authorities are concerned, you do need to make sure that your company is complying with all of Singapore’s labour rules and regulations. These include a maximum working week of 44 hours for those earning S$2,000 or less, as well as mandatory annual leave of between seven and 14 days, depending on length of service.

Employers must also provide sick leave and cover some or all costs as well as provide leave for parents. Your human resources department will be responsible for making sure all of these legal requirements are met, so be sure they familiarise themselves with every requirement of the Singapore Employment Act.

Make the right hiring choices

Crucially, a strong HR department will ensure that you bring the right people into your company. As any experienced business owner will tell you, hiring the right people that fit with your company’s culture and who are aligned with your long term goals really is worth its weight in gold. Making the wrong choice can also be an expensive mistake, with a survey from CareerBuilder finding that the average cost of a bad hire is around US $17,000 annually in lost productivity, time, and the cost of hiring and training a replacement.

Make sure this doesn’t happen by implementing a thorough hiring process in your human resources department that focuses on the personality fit of the employee, rather than simply qualifications or salary requirements.

Salaries and benefits

Payroll is, perhaps, the most important function of any HR department: after all, few employees are working purely for the fun of it! As another compliance function, this involves gathering accurate data and details on your employees to ensure both you and they are paying the right taxes and state contributions, as well as receiving the right benefits and payments.

Today, there are software programs available to help make the payroll process easier, including Talenox, an Asia based service that can be linked with online accounting software Xero. Dr Biz is a Xero bronze partner and certified advisor, which means we can link our services with these programs for a seamless accounting and payroll experience.

Onboarding and communication

Just as important, if not more so, than making the right hire is making sure that your human resources department properly supports employees that join you. A 2017 report suggests that disengaged employees are almost twice as likely as engaged employees to seek new jobs, so meeting employees needs and expectations is very important.

The foundation for this is a solid onboarding process in which your company’s HR procedures are clearly communicated to new employees, while social events can help to build a strong team. Effective online platforms that foster timely, clear and open communication between employees and managers are a great tool too, with options including Slack, Trello and Google Hangouts.

Performance reviews

Finally, make sure that you are regularly checking in with your staff through performance reviews. This might be every three months for the first year, and then perhaps annually. However, don’t wait to reward exceptional work. Hard working employees should be recognised and rewarded, particularly if they have helped your company to hit a key target.

We all like to be given a pat on the back for a job well done, and your employees are no different. Effective human resources will ensure that your staff are happy and secure, and this will ensure the success of your business and the strength of your company’s brand. People, after all, are the most important resource any company has.

At Dr Biz, we provide tailored and comprehensive solutions for our client's business needs. From incorporation to accountancy, tax and payroll, to professional advisory services, we help businesses in Singapore assess potential risks and become more cost effective and efficient.

To find out more, please feel free to contact us.

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