Can You Really Afford to Hire New Staff?

There’s no doubt that output growth across UK businesses is in decline against the backdrop of continued supply chain issues, with this falling for the fifth month running in September.

Business confidence has also declined during the same period, creating a challenge for entrepreneurs who are inclined to invest in the further growth and expansion of their venture.

Hiring new employees is central to most growth and development plans, but can you really afford to do this in the current climate? Here are some steps to help you achieve such an objective.

Set a Budget to Account for the Cost of New Hires

Let’s start with the basics; as you’ll have to initially create a realistic and manageable budget, which must be established in line with the forecasted revenue and profitability of your business in the months and years to come.

Make no mistake; the ultimate goal of hiring staff members is to grow your company and increase its bottom line, so it’s crucial that you manage the costs of the process and create a fixed budget that guarantees a return on your investment in people.

Understanding and outlining costs is central to this process, as you’ll need to consider factors such as salary, bonuses and the cost of recruitment (particularly when engaging the services of recruitment agencies) when creating your staffing budget.

This process will also help you to determine the viability of hiring new staff, both from a financial and profit perspective.

Dealing With a Budgetary Shortfall

OK, we hear you ask, but what happens in instances where you desperately want to grow and hire new staff but are facing a cash-flow issue or budgetary shortfall?

Well, the good news is that there are steps you can take to cope with such issues, starting with seeking out accessible, short-term lending solutions.

Certainly, there are peer-to-peer lenders that can help to cover your recruitment expenses, so long as you calculate the full cost of an unsecured loan and measure this against any future growth or profit hikes.

If you do pursue a business loan, you’ll also have to ensure that you provide a detailed business  

plan and any required tax forms, while you may be prompted to share recent bank statements and any relevant commercial licenses.

If you don’t want to seek out financing or fail to qualify for a loan, another creative solution may be to outsource work in the form of temporary contracts. This way, you can hire employees on the basis of each individual project, reducing long-term staffing costs and optimising any subsequent returns and increases in productivity.

For longer-term employees, you could also consider reducing the wages on offer to staff members in exchange for creative and competitive non-salary benefits.

For example, providing discounted gym memberships to employees is highly appealing in the modern age, as are cycle-to-work initiatives and similar measures that translate into a superior work-life balance.