Brexit preparation Plans
Preparing for a no-deal Brexit, Part three
1.) Attracting the right people
Attracting the right people and retaining that talent is vital. After the EU-referendum, it is an even bigger challenge now. Your business isn’t just about what you sell, showing your business strategy and investment plans will bring you the right people your business needs.
Having suitable employment packages to attract people is also essential and employment isn’t exclusively about the salary. If your company’s reputation is well known, people will travel and will work for you regardless of your location. They will provide the necessary paperwork, references to be employed. A no-deal Brexit will make the employment of EU citizens more difficult, and will require additional documents.
2.) Retain the employees you already have.
Retaining the current staff your company has should also be a top priority. A small business must think beyond salaries. Know what is important to key employees. With Brexit, many businesses are facing the possibility of losing members of their team. Think outside the box and look for ways to make the people you want to stay. An example of an out-of-the-box solution is having the same people work on your team but teleconferencing. There may be a possibility that you’d be working with people via a screen more instead of face-to-face.
The advances of technology in the field of communication from sending a short text message to video conferencing and managing online workflow systems makes working across borders so much easier.
The full effect of Brexit on small businesses may be still unknown at this point but it does not mean that as a small business owner you cannot start preparing for it. Despite the urging of many economists, business owners, and analysts it has been found that only one third of business owners are preparing for a no deal Brexit. 66% of business owners are not ready for Brexit. Many think it is next to impossible as there could be five or six possible outcomes.
3.) Have a “Brexit Audit”
Risk assessment of the impact of Brexit.
Look at your company’s workforce and determine how much of your personnel are from the EU. Look at contracts with EU companies, determine how they would work post-Brexit, analyse the supply chain of your business and figure out what will change once the United Kingdom totally leaves the European Union. Another area that needs looking into are the effects of VAT. Contact your bank, make sure that plans are in place. Doing this, you should have a much clearer idea what you are up against, what possible losses you might incur, what moves you can make to prevent such losses, and be generally ready for it all.
Planning forward with the right financial knowledge are vital to any business. As a business owner, have a nimble mindset and discipline to stick with your plans. Prepare for at least a year, know your finances by heart. Track your accounts weekly, look at your sales, understand how all this is affecting your bottom line.
Check out existing customers financial state, if any of these fail due to Brexit, could you still survive?
Return to Part 2 or visit Part four