Management News SME - Workforce Management & SME Divide
New Report from Microsoft highlights worrying disconnect between SME leaders and employees
A new report from Microsoft surveyed 1,000 leaders and 1,000 employees within SMEs comparing attitudes to various workforce issues, and highlights a definite gulf between the two.
The first aspect discussed in the report is workplace communication. 85% of leaders surveyed said that performance of their staff improved when they were empowered with information, and 79% believe they share as much information as possible. However, when it comes to employees, just 36% think a culture of transparency exists within their organisation. This suggests that these attempts to provide staff with information are currently failing.
This disconnect is further highlighted by the top two causes of employee stress being named as poor communication with other teams (cited by 34%) and lack of transparency (29%). These sources even cause more stress than poor work-life balance (23%). This surprising ranking is perhaps explained by 45% expressing that they don’t feel they have the information required to make decisions in the workplace.
The findings also makes the point that in an atmosphere of uncertainty, small businesses need to be playing to their strengths such as flexibility and easier decision-making. The results suggest discrepancies in this area too; 31% of leaders joined SMEs to have the ‘opportunity to do things differently’, and 26% for the unique culture and atmosphere such companies offer. Employees are far less focused on these SME-specific elements though, with only 14% interested in doing things differently, and 17% joining to experience the unique culture.
Perhaps even more of an issue is that only 50% of employees could name a reason why they chose to join their current organisation. The report suggests that culture is critical when it comes to staff empowerment. With many staff being ambivalent towards their employer, this presents a potential opportunity for leaders to educate workers in the culture of their organisation, on-boarding them and preventing this issue from becoming a driver for disengagement and demotivation.
Bodet’s Time & Attendance Solutions are ideally positioned to assist with many of these SME workplace issues. When it comes to internal communication, our messaging application can be used both within our Kelio Software and on Kelio Visio X terminals without additional hardware or software. Company bulletins can also be created to display on terminal screens when staff clock in and out, acting as a daily communication touchpoint. To further assist with staff empowerment, our Self Service and Absence Management modules give them the ability to check their working hours and make holiday requests.
Ideally suited to start-ups, Bodet’s Time & Attendance Solutions are scalable both in terms of users and functionality, so they expand as your organisation does. You can start with just one terminal and core software, then add additional terminals, clocking in methods such as mobile clocking in, and additional software modules as your requirements increase. This ensures you only pay for what you require.
For more information on how our Time & Attendance Systems can benefit your organisation, or to book a free on-site demonstration, please contact us.