Business Education

Business Pros and Cons of Furloughing Employees

Thinking about furloughing rather than laying off your employees? It’s an all-too-common conundrum right now, amidst the coronavirus pandemic shutdown. But, it’s something that a large majority of businesses must consider, given the present and quite uncertain circumstances. Read on to learn more about the upsides and downsides of furloughing your employees.

Employee Furlough Disadvantages

We’ll begin with the most problematic cons of furloughing team members. Doing so puts your company at-risk for permanently losing your top talent. Furloughs also undermine employee morale and may even damage it further, and if you have applied for the SBA Paycheck Protection Program, one of the conditions for the loan to be forgiven, is that you keep your employees on your payroll.

An employee furlough is a mandatory suspension from work without pay. It can be as brief or as long as the employer wants. Furloughs can take place in both public and private institutions. An organization will furlough employees as a cost-saving measure when it doesn’t want to lay off staff but lacks the resources to continue paying them. —The Street.com

Then, there’s the trouble of re-opening your business. Even after a short-term period, it takes a substantial amount of time to get things back up and running. Additionally, the cost savings might not be as significant as you might believe because it’s for a short time frame and not necessarily long enough to be worthwhile (though it can certainly prove helpful).

Employee Furlough Advantages

Since furloughs are happening in many industries right now, the temporary change can’t be all bad. There are advantages to furloughing employees, like the following:

Avoids layoffs. The most obvious upside to going with furloughs instead of laying people off is that you avoid the latter. In other words, you aren’t terminating team members. Instead, you’re temporarily removing them from the business without pay.
Reduces rehiring. Another benefit of furloughs is the fact that you won’t have to go through the trouble of rebuilding your workforce from scratch. Rather, you can just reassemble your team, either one-by-one or in small groups.
Saves compensation costs. Of course, when you furlough employees, you don’t pay their wages or salaries. Since labor is most typically the largest business expense, this can really help your company financially. (Though, you may still opt to furnish them with benefits during their furlough period.)
It allows you to better plan. Yet another benefit of furloughing instead of firing employees is that you can formulate a more workable plan during that time. The longer it goes on, the better grasp you’ll have of what to keep and what to jettison. To put it another way, you can use the opportunity to streamline things in order to make your business more productive and more profitable.

What other business pros and cons of furloughs would include? Please comment and share your thoughts and experiences!

Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

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Most Effective Daily Habits Successful People Practice

May 23, 2018 No Comments

Effective daily habits can work wonders in many areas of life. These are particularly useful for entrepreneurs, but others will certainly benefit by incorporating such practices. In surveying a number of successful people, it’s easy to see they all have certain daily habits. Which of course, means, that these practices do a lot to help them get things done and done right. Why Daily Habits are So Important We all have our daily routines. But, the trouble with many routines is that we don’t question how they impact our day-to-day lives. In other words, there is little to no introspection or objective look at what does and doesn’t work. Think about your own daily routine for a moment. If you’re honest, you’ll discover at least one (maybe more) that’s not up to par, is outright ineffective, or just superfluous. Just ask any CEO, politician, professional athlete or inventor out there – they all start their day at the crack of dawn, gaining a leg up on the competition. Create a routine and stick with it. Studies prove that willpower is the strongest in the morning before exhaustion and other priorities get in your way. Adopt a morning ritual and you will start to see big results. —Forbes.com When you take time to identify what does and doesn’t work, you’ll probably discover other ways to improve your daily routine. At the very least, you’ll be able to eliminate things which aren’t necessary. So, it’s definitely a worthwhile exercise. And, it’s one that can easily be repeated periodically to alter or change-up from time to time as you go through life. Most Effective Daily Habits Successful People Practice If you want to really be successful, you simply need to practice the same effective daily habits of successful people. Here are some of the biggest habits you can adopt to help you achieve more: Not getting involved in personal problems of others. This isn’t to say they are uncaring or apathetic. But it does mean they don’t get involved in the drama of others. They know it’s an invitation to trouble. Working in an environment that’s conducive to productivity. Successful people identify what surroundings and tools they need to get things done. They use these to their advantage and you can do the same. Not harboring a fear of missing out. Successful people just don’t worry about FOMO or the fear of missing out. It’s not something they let get to them because they recognize there’s just no way to be involved or in-the-know about everything. The ability to say “No” more than “Yes.” There’s a reason you see this advice time and time again — it works. And, it works well. When you say “Yes” you are making a commitment that can quickly balloon out of control. You need to learn how to spot bad ideas and those which won’t deliver results. “No” gives you the power to be selective. A strong commitment to maintaining good character. Perhaps the most effective daily habit successful people practice is to maintain a strict adherence to good character. What other effective daily habits would you add to this list? Which ones do you practice and recommend? Please share your thoughts and experiences by commenting! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

7 Steps to Start a Business from Zero

May 5, 2017 No Comments

Companies, no matter their size, don’t start on their own. Someone, somewhere, someway, started something that eventually became a profitable entity. We’ve heard all the terms, like crowd funding, venture capital, angel investment, and the list goes on and on. While all these do exist, the majority of businesses are started with very little to no money. The reason people succeed isn’t because of their cash position but because those entrepreneurs had zeal, a vision, and a passion. In fact, no amount of money guarantees success, even if a business is well-funded from its inception and follows a smart plan in a strategic way, it can still fail. The Edsel is a perfect example. Produced by one of the most successful corporations in the world, the Ford Motor Company, the Edsel rolled off the assembly line from 1958 to 1960. It was, in its day, by far, one of the most advanced private passenger vehicles. It featured such technology as the Teletouch system and had many other creature comforts, as well as plenty of functionality. However, the line failed to the tune of $350 million, an astounding $2.8 billion in today’s dollars. Follow these 7 Steps to Start a Business with Little to No Money Failure is a terrific teacher, if you are willing to learn from it. A good lesson to learn and accept early on in starting a business is that money, as the Edsel clearly demonstrates, doesn’t equal success. Incremental growth, accompanied by patience, tempered with realism, does wonders because such a combination requires focus. When you set aside the distant future, you necessarily put the present at the forefront. …now is the time to have a heart-to-heart with reality. Reality of what? Well, start with yourself. Your experiences, gifts, passion, life goals and areas of weakness. Seriously. Knowing thyself is the first place to start on your trek toward your vision. —Forbes In other words, you’ve got to use what you have now, and turn your natural talents into marketable products and services, which is the very essence of business. Richard Branson, who has dyslexia, started his entrepreneurial career breeding budgerigars at age 11 and it didn’t work. Neither did his plan to sell Christmas trees. Next, with practically no money, the future billionaire started Student Magazine, which morphed into Virgin Records. He, like many mega-successful entrepreneurs, started with little to no money, and you can do this too, by doing a few simple things: Do your homework about the market and competition. The reason so many businesses fail is due to misunderstanding the market and not having a clear conception about the competition. Don’t worry if it seems as though the market is flooded, because you can carve-out a niche. Take small, incremental steps and don’t dive-in. A card table, a favorite spot on the couch, a workbench, or a kitchen are all acceptable places to start a business. When you first begin, do it part time and don’t rack-up expenses. If you commit too much time and/or too much money, you’ll put a lot of undue pressure on yourself and make bad decisions. Try to build out a niche. This bit of advice really bears repeating. If you find a smart way to separate yourself from the competition, you can build a stronger, more attractive business. Set small, tangible money and benchmark goals. When you set high goals, you need to do a lot more to reach them and that often leads to failure. When you set small goals, you’re more likely to accomplish them and that makes for a ton of motivation and satisfaction. Build a responsive, easy to navigate website. You need a presence on the internet, which you probably know. There are very inexpensive and easy to use platforms that will be more than sufficient to get you started. Get out and network but don’t sell. Your website, though a necessary tool, isn’t going to be a salesperson; but you can be, if you network to become a known quantity and not to sell. Finally, give yourself permission to make mistakes and don’t make the huge mistake of waiting for perfection to launch your business. [shareaholic app=”follow_buttons” id=”26833294″]

How to Deal with an Employee with Limited Work Capacity

January 6, 2021 No Comments

Having a good employee who is restricted in their capabilities can be a very challenging situation. This is especially true if he or she is a valued team member, but can’t put in the hours due to certain limitations. Whether it’s a preexisting condition, and injury suffered on or off the job, you obviously have moral, ethical, and legal responsibilities to him or her. However, this doesn’t mean that they are completely protected from being terminated or having their role and/or responsibilities changed. Although this article isn’t specifically about legal ramifications, it will give you some effective tools on how to deal with this particular set of circumstances. Read on to learn more about how to deal with an employee who has limited capacity. Every Situation is Different Limited capacity can mean the number of things, including an inability to perform certain physical tasks, and other situations. But, most often it is due to a physical limitation which prevents him or her from fulfilling one or more of their responsibilities. These can range widely, from an inability to lift certain amounts, to not being able to sit for a protracted period of time. An ever persistent problem facing employers is what to do with the employee who is chronically sick or has a serious health problem. Besides the obvious issues it presents to the employer- additional strain on other employees to pick up the slack; inability to properly staff and manage work loads; basic coverage concerns- there are also potential state and federal legal ramifications if the absences are not handled and documented correctly. —HNI Risk Services Whatever the case may be, It is up to you to be as accommodating as possible, without fully compromising your company’s position. In other words, it’s best to strike a balance and find a happy medium where you can accommodate their needs while also allowing them to fulfill most or all of their work responsibilities. 3 Key Ways to Deal with an Employee with a Limited Work Capacity There’s no hard-and-fast set of rules for coping with an employee who can only work in a limited capacity. After all, no two sets of circumstances are exactly the same. But, there are some general parameters you should observe. Here are three good ways to deal with a team member who is limited in their work capacity: Gain a real understanding of the circumstances. Whether it’s a back problem, issues with a disease, or anything else, you need to have a very clear idea of what’s going on with your employee. Understand precisely what his or her limitations are and aren’t. This way, you’ll have enough information to make good decisions when it comes to his or her role and responsibilities. Make strategic concessions where necessary. Even your best employee can suffer from very unfortunate sets of circumstances and still be able to contribute to your company in a number of ways. Though it’s difficult to comprehend or even accept, it could be a detriment to your business (that is, if you insist on keeping everything the same). So, think outside the box and make strategic changes so he or she can continue to be a productive asset for your company. Realistically reassess the situation periodically. Sometimes, this can be a long-lasting situation that can go on for years. Or, it could only last for several months. Regardless, you need to take the time to reassess the situation every now and again. What other suggestions do you have? Please take a moment to share your thoughts and experiences so others can benefit from your unique perspective; it’s greatly appreciated! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.