Creative Times

What’s your company’s biggest asset? Your People. In this an exploration of the issues surrounding staff in our industry, Gina Hewitt finds out how you can keep your people happy. After all happy people equals a productive business. Simple. Oh and sometimes it isn’t all about money, money, money…..

Over the last couple of years, councils, local development agencies and cultural ambassadors have finally recognised the importance of creative industries in Britain’s cities and regions.

Creative industries bring enrichment, character and cultural status to areas, but what does the sector give back to its workforce? Long hours, a stressful lifestyle, and a lack of job security - to name but a few. Staff are one of the premium assets of any organisation, and whether you’re a director, a manager, or an employee at a creative company you really must learn to look after each other.

At a high-level in many creative businesses, companies often rely on hefty salary packages to attract and retain the best employees. However, a positive attitude to human resources within your company, and a thought spared for the practical needs and emotional requirements of your staff, could save you a fortune in wages. At a less senior-level staff retention can be an expensive problem, so happy people that want to stay with a company can save a fortune in recruitment costs.

HR has long been seen as an administrative burden, filled with hoaxey jargon that leaves teams feeling they should be transplanted into an episode of The Office. Creative types don’t want management meddling in their affairs but their personal growth and job satisfaction should not be left unfettered, as the standard of their happiness determines the success of the company or organisation. The creative industries are a fast-moving market for employers and employees. Creative workers are keen to explore options available to them, and as such they tend to want to progress quickly through a company, or work for more than one organisation at once. This, however, can be used to a company’s advantage. An ever-changing roster of individuals brings vitality and new ideas to companies, and hopefully some of these ideas will focus on employee satisfaction.

A quality newspaper will be charging four figures for an advert alone. Why not use this money to keep the good staff?

A common problem facing smaller creative companies is working out how to manage their unique team. Working with freelance and part-time members of staff presents unique difficulties that more general HR advice ignores. Pearson & Associates is an accountancy firm based in Skipton, North Yorkshire. As well as providing book keeping and financial services they also offer professional skills and personal support for all business issues. Paul Mason, one of the four company Directors and Employment Law/HR Consultant, explains, “The creative industry sector does have it’s own nuances. This will link into the whole structure of a particular organisation. It is often the case in these types of organisation people work in isolation, that is the nature of the business. This therefore does not lend itself to team working ethics being developed.”

A positive approach to HR is a matter of common sense and following the law, plus using your own creative flair to think about what your staff really want. “The role of HR is two-fold,” Paul explains, “Employers provide good conditions of work, look after their employees in a way that makes them feel cared for and part of a working community. In return an employer gets a productive, happy employee. Not rocket science - a very simple trade-off.”

There are a number of flexible benefits and incentives that a creative organisation can offer it’s employees, it’s just a matter of experimenting with what works for the personality of your company and staff members.

Looking after your staff isn’t just about attending to their immediate needs – there are many things a boss can do to help his or her staff in their future. By law, all companies that employ five or more people should be offering their employees the opportunity to join a Stakeholder Pension Scheme (a pension supplied by a commercial financial services company, such as a bank, insurance company or building society that complies with government standards). Paul Mason suggests that a Contributory Pension Scheme (where the employer also pays into the pension scheme) is a very rewarding benefit. “There is a cost to the employer, but so is recruitment if you keep losing good staff to competitors. A quality newspaper will be charging four figures for an advert alone. Why not use this money to keep the good staff?”

Significant investment in training and education also falls under a ‘benefits package’ heading. Personal growth is identified as one of the key factors by which ‘The Sunday Times 100 Best Companies to Work For’ believes that the happiest, most productive workplaces exhibit strength in. “We created a learning culture,” explains Jayne Barratt, from Leeds-based agency Elmwood, “We are very keen on people being happy at work and fulfilled. I’m a great believer that being good at something in turn makes you even happier...and you carry on getting better at it!”

For bosses it's as much about recognising what you would want as an employee.

Trusting your people to do the right thing by your company is another skill you’ll need to hone if you’re going to develop the perfect creative team. Speaking at a recent ‘Loop’ event, Nick Johnson, from property developers Urban Splash, offered his take on staff development, “The best way of learning is through mistakes...I think that working alongside other people and being thrown in at the deep-end is quite important.”

Incentives are another way of retaining good people, keeping their ideas, knowledge and expertise in your company. “We’ve set-up The Elmwood Trust,” continues Jayne, “Everyone has shares in the company put aside, and it’s quite a substantial percentage of our earnings...that’s one way we reward people to stay with us.”

An easy way to find out what staff really want is to take them out of the working environment. Code Computer Love’s Tony Foggett explains, “We invest heavily on social outings involving the whole agency as a bonus to staff. It’s actually surprising how many interviewees comment on Code’s reputation as an excellent place to work because it offers a brilliant social life, and some even listing this as a reason to join us! For bosses it’s as much about recognising what you would want as an employee. It must involve all staff doing things together in a non-corporate way or environment. Don’t think of ticking staff benefit boxes. You can add extra value to day-to-day jobs by creating new experiences.”

Removing yourself from the daily grind can help you focus on what is important to your organisation, and the people within it. “We all jumped on a plane and did sessions in New York & Milan, to spend a bit of time together & understand each other and the way we like to work,” concurs MC2’s Mike Perls, “We then gave people training budgets to take that forward.”

On whatever level you choose to interpret good human resource practices it is paramount to take whatever you do seriously. As Paul Mason points out, “If only lip service is being paid to HR then inevitably it will fail in its quest to improve the employees within an organisation.”

The ultimate beneficiary of good HR is the employer. Happy staff equals happy customers and clients and hopefully a healthy bottom line too.

www.businesslink.co.uk
www.employeebenefits.co.uk www.dwp.gov.uk (Department of Work and Pensions) www.pearsonandassociates.co.uk
www.codecomputerlove.co.uk
www.elmwood.co.uk
www.urbansplash.co.uk
www.mcmc.co.uk