Business Information for Entrepreneurs by an Entrepreneur

How to Use Temporary Workers to Grow Your Business

Many small business owners have found that there are benefits to using temporary workers (temps) as opposed to hiring someone full-time.

While temps are a perfect choice for some businesses, others find that it is not a good match.

The Pros

Some of the pros of choosing a temp are that, while the hourly rate is higher than you may pay someone you hire, there are additional costs such as benefits or taxes that you will not have to pay.

Also, you can hire someone only for the days when you need them. When you don't need anyone for a few days or a few months, you don't have to go through the process of layoffs or terminations.

If the person isn't working out, you need only call the temp agency and they will probably send someone else the very next day. You don't even need to explain your reasons.

Finally, the temp agency does the screening of candidates which will save you a lot of time.

Working with an Agency

Some agencies have a more thorough application process than others, so you'll want to be sure and ask how much information is gathered before they hire an employee.

On the flip side, temps are not a good choice if a lot of training is needed.

Just as you can decide that you don't want a certain worker anymore, the temp can decide that he doesn't want to work at your business anymore. You may have to train 2 or 3 temps a month.

Using a temp is probably not a good idea if the worker will be dealing with sensitive information.

Also, as mentioned above, you will likely pay a higher hourly wage for the temp, but that will likely be balanced out by the savings from not having to pay benefits and taxes.

Find a good temp agency and you'll probably be sent dependable and competent temps.

It's a great option for some situations, and can save you the time, trouble and money of hiring another employee.

Personal Business in the Workplace: Where to Draw the Line

Most employees spend some time at work doing personal business such as paying bills or shopping online. But how much is too much, and how do you know when to draw the line?

The Internet has made handling personal tasks at work much easier than it was before.

Some studies have shown that up to 75% of employees admit to using the Internet during work for researching a hobby, shopping, booking personal travel arrangements or looking up sports scores.

Keeping Tabs

Some large companies have added filters to the Internet that limit web access to only the sites that are required for employees to do their jobs. In small businesses such drastic measures are probably not necessary.

You need to decide how much YOU think is too much when it comes to handling personal matters on company time. You may think its fine for an employee to make the occasional personal call, or you may even have a more liberal view.

Once you have determined in your mind what your view is on the matter, you should have a meeting with your employees.

Be Clear on Policy

In the meeting spell out the policy, and have each employee sign a copy to be kept in their files. The reason for this is so that in the event that an employee is taking advantage of far too much time at work to do personal things, you will be able to show him the signed policy to prove that he has been told what the company guidelines are regarding the matter.

There is no need to try and monitor every moment of your employees time. In general, as long as they are getting their work done and don't seem to be wasting a lot of time, you should not be concerned.

If, however, the employees seem to be wasting their work hours on personal business, you will need to step in.

Employees are going to, occasionally, handle personal matters at work. You just need to be sure that your business is not being neglected - and that you are getting what you pay for in each of your employees' salaries.

Hiring Older Workers

Many small business owners have found that hiring older workers is a decision that is good for their business.

Experience Counts

Retired workers are often more reliable and competent workers and they bring to your business years of experience. Even if they never worked in your exact field, they have real world experience that can be invaluable to many businesses.

If you do find an older worker who does have experience in your field, you will probably be able to glean valuable knowledge and get some sound advice that you can then apply to your business.

Typically, older workers are much more aware of the value of good customer service. They remember the days when customers were treated with respect.

Also, they are from a generation that did not think it was acceptable to show up to work late, or not show up at all.

Cost Savings

Older workers are less likely to spend work hours surfing the internet, sending text messages and downloading tunes to their MP3 players.

This is not to say that all younger workers are slackers, but older workers tend to be more conscious of how they spend their time at work.

Most of the time older workers will not require health insurance, which will save you the cost of insurance for that worker.

Also, because many are retired, they are a good choice for part-time positions as they are less likely to ask you for more hours every month.

Older workers make great employees. Take a chance on hiring one, and you will most likely find it to be wise decision.