A Guide: How to be the best boss you can be.

So, you’re setting up a small business and you’re dreaming of a fruitful and thriving future for yourself and your company. No doubt you have considered how your role in the company will look, and you want nothing more than to be the best boss you can be. 

This guide will help you figure out how to be the kind of boss you always wanted to work for.

Your legal obligations. 

We know that you want to talk about the fun stuff, but your legal obligations are what will truly differentiate you from being a good boss or a bad one. Your attention to the things that matter is what will make your employees trust you and want to stay with you as long as time will allow them to.

Payslips.

Let’s face it, the people you interview are not coming to you for employment solely for their interest in your company. They’re coming to you because they want to get paid. Making sure that you pay your employees fairly and that they know what they’re paid for will help them to form true loyalty to you.

 Your employee's payslips should explicitly state their pay before and after deductions and why their pay is being deducted.

 Their pay could be deducted because of their national insurance code, the tax they’re required to pay, the student loan debts they have to pay off, or because of their pension contributions. 

You must make your employees completely aware of their deductions so that they’re not inclined to question your intentions as an employer and wonder whether you’re paying them wrong on purpose.

Written Contracts.

Written contracts will provide your employees with a sense of job security, and ensure that you and your employees are entirely on the same page. The last thing that you want is for your employees to think that you’re being disingenuous by not explaining the full terms of their employment to them because you could end up losing good people as a result.

Pay them at least the national minimum wage and give them holidays.

The national minimum wage exists for a reason, and if you refuse to pay your employees the national minimum wage for their age bracket, then they could take you to an employment tribunal or civil court and you could be fined up to £20,000 for each employee you underpay.

 As well as this, you should be giving your employees at least 5.6 weeks of paid holiday per year (including bank holidays), regardless of whether they’re part-time or full-time. It is best to reference the gov.uk website to figure out exactly how much holiday you should be giving your employees based on how much they work.

Maintain Health and Safety.

This is one of the utmost important legal obligations that you have to abide by. The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974) states that you must provide a bathroom complete with toilet and wash basins and clean drinking water for your staff. It’s also vital that you keep your space clean, well ventilated, lit, and make sure that the equipment you use is always well maintained and safety checked.

 Failure to provide your employees with these necessities could land you a very hefty fine.

 If you adhere to these legal obligations, then you’ve done the bare minimum as a business owner. What truly makes a difference is your day-to-day attitude to your employees.

Your attitude.

Running a business can be stressful sometimes, but making sure that you maintain a positive attitude and treat your employees how you want to be treated can make all the difference. These tips will hopefully enlighten you on the things that you can do to be the best boss you can be.

Treat everybody equally.

If you let one employee do something that you wouldn’t let another employee do, then you’re not treating everybody equally. If you allow one employee to come into work wearing a crop top and shorts, then you should be prepared for everybody to start coming into work in crop tops. Any rules that you apply need to apply to everyone, else you give the perception that you are an unfair boss, regardless of your intentions.

Consider your work culture when accepting applications.

This piece of advice should be carefully considered. By no means does this mean that you should discriminate against anybody. What this means is that you shouldn’t settle for the first person who applies for the position that you’re advertising. You should be looking for an employee who would be good for the job and get along well with your other employees. Workplace culture is vital to whether your employees feel comfortable and want to come to work every day.

Tell your employees exactly what you want and praise them for their achievements.

Nothing feels better than thinking you’ve done a good job and having that fact reaffirmed. This is something that you and your employees can experience every day so long as you ensure that your employees are entirely sure of the tasks you are giving them and that you guide them to complete those tasks to the best of their ability.

Let your employees socialise.

Of course, there are limits to this. If you give your staff too many opportunities to talk with each other, productivity will decrease. But if you don’t give them enough time to take just a few minutes to socialise, you’ll find that morale will plummet. Humans are social creatures, and if you deprive them of that fundamental part of themselves, it will affect your business.

Make your employees comfortable.

You will find that your employees will work better if you meet their basic needs and make them comfortable. For example, if you work in an office: you could choose to install a water cooler dispenser or air conditioning to ensure that your employees don’t become restless on hot days. Or you could provide them with cushioned desk chairs and put plants around the room, as plants encourage calm emotions and productivity.

Be firm but fair.

Finally, you need to give your employees enough freedom to do the job how they need to, if there is room for adaptation, so long as the job is done. And you can’t be afraid to confront them if they take advantage of your permissive business practices.

 Being a boss is not about being a dictator. Being a boss is about being better than every other boss and making your employees want to work for you for more than just the money.