Salary Negotiation Guide

Organisation is a very important part of most jobs. You need to have a certain amount of organisation skills in pretty much every role but in some more than others. If for example you are responsible for managing other people’s work load then you need a huge amount of organisation. You will need to ensure that you manage the work load effectivelt and relay to the oher memebers of staff what they need to do and by when. Planning your day, week or month out will allow you to ensure that you have adequate time to complete all tasks on time and will give you the opportunity to change things if you realise that you are not going to be able to get it all done within the time limit you have.
Putting aside a few minutes each day to plan in your work load can really improve productivity and will also lower stress levels. Your manager may need to know where you are with a certain project and when it is likely to be finished. If you have all of this information to hand it will give them confidence that you have the task in hand and that it will be completed when it needs to be. Weekly planners are a great organisation tool. You can put down tasks for each day, if you do not get something finished then you can move it on to another day.

With the self-assessment deadline looming, you only have a few weeks left to file your tax return. If you are self-employed and turnover more than £1000 a year then you will need to do a return online by the 31st January to avoid getting hit with a hefty penalty.
Tax returns can often be a nightmare for many people. They may be brilliant at the job they do but struggle when it comes to finances and taxes. You may decide to use an accountant or book keeper who will manage all of your day to day accounts and tax returns or you may decide to go it alone. If you use an accountant or book keeper, there are varying levels of services they offer and costs associated with these.
If you are happy to keep track of your day to day spending then you may just want to use an accountant to finalise your annual incomings and expenditure and file your tax return. If you would rather not get involved in any of it then you may use someone that you can just send a box of receipts to and invoices who will sort it all out for you.
If you chose to do your own accounts then you need to make sure that you stay on top of it and have systems in place to ensure that you record all sales and expenses and keep copies of receipts should you be audited.

If you are self-employed and have to find your own work, you always need to have a plan as to where you would like to take the business over the next few years. It may be that you want to see a steady growth in sales from the products or services you already offer or that you would like to expand into other areas. If you are looking at offering other products and services at a later date then it is important to start doing your research early. Find out what additional costs may be involved, if you will need any additional training and any extra insurances / legal requirements you may need to get in place. Once you have this you can make a plan deciding on a date you want to have it all up and running. You can then work backwards and give yourself deadlines as to when you need to have certain things in place or completed.

If you are looking to expand geographically, then again you will need to carefully consider how you are going to do this. It may be that you use social media or paid for ads to boost your geographical reach or possibly that you do leaflet dropping and door to door sales.

Starting a new job can often be very exciting. It may be that you have waited a long time or had to undertake a lot of training /further education to get in to the role and therefore you will often have high expectations.

For some people, the initial excitement of starting a new job lasts for a good few months up to a year or so, and this is often normal as your new job becomes more familiar. If however you are finding that you are disappointed with your new position within only a week or so of working there, it may be that it’s not the right job for you.

It is important to give the job time, as initially you may have to undergo a lot of training or have someone work closely with you. After the initial period is over you may start to enjoy your job more and actually find that it is what you had hoped for. If after some time you are still not happy you need to establish why. It may be that you do not like the way management treat you or that you do not get along with your work colleagues. This may not be anything that you have control over so you will need to make the decision as to if you can put up with it or want to leave.

If you have been invited to attend an interview for a job that you have recently applied for them you may be unsure of what you should and shouldn’t be saying. An interview is a very important process of recruitment as it is when the potential employer gets a first impression of the candidate and has the opportunity to speak to them more to find out what they are like.

It is also an opportunity for the candidate to find out more about the job, the company and the people they may end up working for.

Below is a list of a few do’s and Don’ts:

• DO prepare for your interview. Do plenty of research in to the company, the products or services they sell and the history of the business. Often much of this can be found on their website or in brochures. You may even want to search the local news sites to see if they have been in the media recently.
• DO sell yourself – be prepared to bring up examples of things you have done for previous employers that has had a positive impact such as cutting costs or increasing sales through Social Media.
• DON’T be too negative – If asked why you are looking or have left your current job, be careful not to be negative about other co-workers or employees as this can raise questions about your ability to work well with others or to accept accountability.
• DON’T lie – it is ok to sell yourself, but don’t tell an outright lie. Saying that you have experience in something or knowledge of a system for example is just a way of setting yourself up for a fall. The truth will always come out and it will make you look bad and untrustworthy.

First of all, what is a Co-ownership Model? In essence, it means rather than conventionally employing staff, your workers are co-owners.

This can have a number of advantages – your workers are directly invested in the business, and accordingly share in the profits; there’s a lot of evidence that this drives motivation, as staff see a direct financial benefit from the success of the company. Put simply, firms with co-ownership models grow faster and tend to be more productive.

There can also be some strong tax advantages, depending how you build your model. As equity-stake co-owners, your staff can receive dividends, proceeds of MBO sales or profit-share instead of conventional salary. As these forms of income are taxed differently, this can allow them to use tax efficiencies to maximise their income whilst also helping you to reduce your national insurance costs.

That’s not to say the model isn’t without some controversies – you’ll have seen press articles covering the debate over whether firms like Uber are actually employing their individuals or not, but that largely stems from the manner in which their schemes are constructed. If you offer your co-owners the same benefits as an employed person, the controversy disappears.

However, you must consider how much democracy this will bring; as shareholders, your staff have much more of a say in the running of the business and that can prove challenging where decisive actions are concerned.

Finding employment when you have young children to care for can often be quite challenging. Often people struggle to find a job that fits in with the school or nursery hours. If your child is at school then you will probably need to have them there for about 8.50 and pick them up again at 3.-3.15 pm. If you have to travel to work you may find that you only have a very short day in which to get your hours in. School holidays can be another headache as you may have to pya to put the children in nursery or ask a friend or family member to look after them. Often having to pay for more than one child to go to nursery can cost more than the amount you will earn for that day.

If you decided that you either want or need to work outside the home, a support network of family and friends will help tremendously. You may be able to ask at work if you are able to work on a flexitime approach where you can start work at 9.30 and/or finish at 3.00 perhaps working longer hours on certain days when you have arranged after school care. Employers are now more likely to commit to flexible working hours and often understand he struggles of being a parent and managing work at the same time. If you feel that you are being treated unfairly then you could contact ACAS who offer free employment law advice.

When it comes to recruiting many employers get nervous about finding the right person. If you employ someone and are not happy with their performance then it can be quite hard to be able to dismiss them. Ideally when looking for a candidate you want to give yourself time to process applications and carry out in depth interviews. This will allow you to get a bit of an insight in to the person and how they conduct themselves. You should always ask for references and make sure you follow them up. Many companies ask for references but then do not get in touch with previous employers. Always be sure to ring at least two and ideally through company numbers not mobiles so you can ensure you are speaking to the right person. If you have been asked not to contact references prior to offering the job to the applicant as they are their current employer, then ask for a prior employer or offer them a job on a conditional basis that will be confirmed once all references have been completed.

Do not just look at a person’s skill set on paper, take a bit of time to try and work out their personality and ask questions that may give you a bit of an insight in to how they work.