Client Background: Meet Sarah [not her real name], the owner of a small, bustling café in one of NZ’s busiest hot spots. With a team of 11 staff, including casual and permanent members, Sarah’s café is a local favorite all year. During the festive season, when tourists flock to enjoy holiday treats and coffee, it’s particularly busy. Last Christmas, Sarah faced a series of HR challenges that nearly derailed her business. This year, we are helping her get it right at lots of levels. Let’s go through what happened, and what would have helped.
The Situation: As the Christmas period approached, Sarah was swamped with the usual summertime holiday rush. She was looking forward to keeping the café open all the way through Christmas and New Year’s, knowing those days would provide a significant boost in revenue after the ravages of Covid. However, her lack of attention to her HR led to a cascade of “bad luck”. Is that how you see your HR challenges? Sarah tells us she had never given HR much attention “until December 2023 when suddenly everything was on fire.” (not literally!)
The Challenges:
- Staff Shortages: Sarah didn’t anticipate the number of staff who would request time off during the holidays in 2023. Without a proper leave management system, some staff just told her they wouldn’t be available to work, and earlier in the year she had approved a number of leave requests. This all left her seriously short-staffed during the busiest time of the year.
- Compliance Issues: In her rush to keep the café running and her scramble to find extra hands to help, Sarah overlooked the statutory holiday pay requirements. Three permanent staff members were unhappy with their pay, leading to disputes and low morale.
- Health and Safety Concerns: With fewer staff on duty, those who were working were stretched thin, leading to mistakes and safety oversights. One employee injured themselves quite seriously in the kitchen, resulting in a WorkSafe investigation.
- Communication Breakdown: The lack of a clear communication plan meant that staff were confused about their shifts and responsibilities. This led to missed shifts, staff swapping with each other and forgetting their responsibilities which further exacerbated the staffing issues.
The Consequences: Due to these crunchy HR errors, Sarah ended up closing the café for several days between Christmas and New Year’s. This closure resulted in lost revenue, let down loyal local customers, and out-of-towners who had planned to visit during the holidays were disappointed. The financial and reputational damage was significant. It was the worst experience Sarah has had in her business to date. With the benefit of some hindsight, soon after Easter, Sarah realized she needed help to prevent anything like that happening again. YES!
The Solution: Determined to avoid a repeat of last year’s chaos, Sarah reached out to FixHR in May this year. Here’s how we have been helping her prepare for a smooth and successful Christmas 2024:
- Leave Management System: We implemented a robust leave management system that allowed Sarah to track and approve leave requests efficiently. We included a leave policy in her employee handbook so there are no excuses for “telling” Sarah they want leave – they must request it and it needs to be approved before travel plans are made. This will ensure she has enough staff to cover any busy holiday periods.
- Compliance Training: As part of our onboarding process, we provided training on statutory holiday pay requirements and other compliance issues. This will help Sarah avoid disputes because she actually knows what she needs to know! We will continue to ensure staff are paid correctly and on time.
- Health and Safety Partnerships: While we don’t provide health and safety solutions directly, we connected Sarah with one of our trusted partners who conducted a thorough health and safety audit. They provided recommendations to improve workplace safety, ensuring her team should be able to work safely during busy periods. This was enough to satisfy Worksafe as the improvement notice was attended to as part of this process.
- Improved Communication: We also helped Sarah set up a clear communication plan, including shift schedules and responsibilities, to ensure everyone was on the same page. This should reduce confusion and improved overall efficiency.
The Outcome: With FixHR’s support, Sarah will be able to keep her café open during the holiday season without any major issues this year. Her staff will be happier, customers should be satisfied, and the café is likely to enjoy the bumper Christmas revenue boost. Sarah should enjoy the festive season, knowing her HR needs remain in expert hands.
Confession: This case study is a composite of different experiences our clients have had over the holiday period. There is no “Sarah”, and this wasn’t just one cafe! But we wanted to highlight the importance of effective HR management, especially during peak periods. By partnering with FixHR, small business owners like you can avoid costly mistakes and focus on what you do best — running your business. If you’re facing similar challenges, or are concerned they are just a hair’s breadth away, let’s chat about how we can help you thrive when it matters most.
