Recruitment and HR- PART TWO.

The very first ‘Goho From Home’ virtual event was about ‘Recruitment and HR’. The team moved quickly to deliver the webinar, answering questions like ‘what the hell is Furlough?!’ and ‘how on earth do I keep my teams motivated when they’re not in the office?!’.

A month on and most have come to realise that, yes a team can be just as effective working from home and, no you can’t work while being furloughed. But there were still many questions around Recruitment and HR that needed answering, so after several requests to put on a second installment, we did just that and brought you PART TWO!

Resident panelist Simon Robinson, employment law specialist from Robinson Ralph joined us yet again & a fresh face, Charlotte Johns, HR & Recruitment specialist at The Wellcome Trust made up this week's panel of experts.

Charlotte has worked for 25 years in the industry with large organisations such as Transport for London & British Airways. Simon has been a solicitor for over 20 years and has spent the last month or so giving guidance and information out left, right and centre regarding the COVID retention scheme. So we knew we were in safe hands.

Following a (he won’t mind me saying) slightly boring yet totally essential update all things Furlough from Simon - Stacey began a candid chat with the two.

So what happens if you need to do a disciplinary hearing?

Charlotte: It’s quite straight forward really. Just follow the process that you have in place at your organisation. Make sure that you do all the usual paperwork, ensure the process is followed in a timely manner and make sure everyone involved is aware of the proceedings.

Simon then stressed the importance of note taking during these processes. Well, he actually said ‘polish a poo’ - but we don’t need to repeat that.

“Note taking really is so important and can cause damage further down the line if there’s not sufficient notes”

How do we continue to ensure we’re supporting our employees mental health and wellbeing?

Charlotte: There’s lots you can do. The important thing is to make sure you’re doing lots. While apps are great - it shouldn’t just be apps. Encourage people to talk to one another. Have regular check ins. At The Wellcome Trust, we have morning coffee sessions where work talk is completely banned and we simply catch up with each other on a personal level.

Simon: There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach to this and we (as leaders) have an obligation to make sure we’re not projecting any negativity on the team and employees. Make sure that senior people are projecting positive vibes and encouraging positivity among the team.

What changes are there to recruitment?

Charlotte: One thing I think will be really key for employers to be aware of, is potential recruits finding out what you did as an employer during the lockdown. How were you there for your employees? What feedback did you get? This will be really important in future recruitment campaigns as what you did/ or didn’t do reflects your company culture and employee commitment.

Simon: Completely agree. And those organisations that haven’t been good to their staff during this time will have trouble navigating out of that. House of Fraser and Sports Direct have already been accused of getting their staff to work while on furlough. And there’s even a hotline for employees to report companies that are doing the same. So watch out.

That’s a little snapshot of the key topics touched on by the awesome panel during Goho’s 30 minutes session - but to get the full Recruitment & HR briefing - keep an eye on thisisgoho.com for the recording.

Next week we’ll be delving into Marketing which you can register for here.