Having the right staff mix may determine whether or not you achieve your business goals and impacts the time it takes to reach them. Depending on the type of industry you’re in, as a business owner or department head, you’ll have to thoroughly plan for your human resource requirements. Whether your company provides a product or service, having the right team is key to your company’s success.
You shouldn’t hire staff only based on immediate needs but on how you want your company or department to be structure in the long term. For example, suppose you’re the owner of an IT company. In the beginning, you had to fill the roles of sales executives and technicians. You should aim to appoint a team comprised of various competency levels, from lower to senior management.
By hiring the proper personnel, you can appropriately allocate the task to the proper staff member depending on the job’s complexity. It also means that the income received corresponds with the cost to the company. Although your business will require expert advice from time to time, your energy can mostly be spent expanding your client database and reducing turnover.
Company Proficiency Levels
Before looking at the staff requirements of specific industries, a business needs a mix of the following proficiency levels:
- Lower or Junior
These individuals take care of basic but fundamental tasks. For example, in an employee training company, this will be your admin staff who work behind the scenes to schedule courses according to the availability of course material and facilitators. They also process documents needed to generate certificates. The work conducted by employees at this level is routine and maybe even mundane. Yet, without it, nothing else happens.
- Middle
At this level, the staff is responsible for coordinating a more comprehensive range of activities. They can manage different projects and, as such, usually have the authority to delegate tasks to support the staff. In our employee training company example, staff at this level would determine what types of training are necessary and who will provide the training.
- Senior
These are the professionals within the organization who are accountable for the performance of the rest of the team. In the examples given above, these would be your training manager or chief financial officer. They are responsible for implementing company strategy by setting departmental goals, allocating funds, and monitoring progress.
There will always be overlapping skills and resources within these employee categories, so the manager’s role will include allocating appropriately, recognizing rising talent, and making recommendations about employee advancement to decision-makers. When making any staff changes, it is essential to have a plan for maintaining your company’s or department’s functionality.
Now that we have an idea of the primary staff requirements for any organization let’s focus on the needs for specific industry and business types. This way, you’ll be better able to decide what resources you need or how to reshuffle your existing workforce to streamline your business efforts.
The Services Industry
In service industries, the majority of staff are frontline workers, where employees interact with the public. In the example that we looked at above, your company’s reputation relies heavily on its instructors; they are the face of the company. They represent the organization, and it’s essential that they speak with the same voice as the rest of the team for consistency and to convey trustworthiness.
Here are some of the key personnel needed to thrive if it is primarily a customer service-based company. These individuals need the necessary training to work together to form a winning and productive team.
- Client Liaison or Frontline Worker
Whether your company is a startup or is already established, this employee is anyone who interacts directly with customers. This could be anyone from a salesperson, customer service representative up to the managing director. They are responsible for ensuring that the company follows through on its commitments once a client is on board.
- Customer Satisfaction/Service Evaluation
This middle level provides an assessment of the person at the point of delivery. For example, the technician of an IT company who works to successfully resolve a client’s problem or the customer service representative who assists a customer with a shipment. This person makes the follow-up calls to ensure that the client is happy with the work provided. In addition to having an evaluation form, the administration team can also send out surveys to demonstrate their commitment to after-sales service.
- Complaint Management
This process may appear overkill, but it is vital to dedicate a resource to deal with unsatisfied clients. Businesses need to address any complaints on Google reviews, social media, and the feedback received vocally or on evaluation forms. A dedicated individual must take the time to go through this information and address any issues.
Product Manufacturing
This type of business is involved in manufacturing off-the-shelf products or items for purchasing online. Team success in these fields depends on having the following resources.
- Operations Manager
This employee is the driving force that consolidates team efforts; they can bring projects to completion by coordinating the ‘six-M’s’ in manufacturing – method, mother nature (environmental), manpower, measurement, machine, and materials.
- Technical Staff
Specialized staff whose skills vary depending on what processes they work on along the production line. Their experience is based on working on specific activities over a long period.
- Delivery Co-ordination
Once you have done quality checks, you need dedicated resources to receive and process orders and oversee the shipping process. They will need to be available to answer incoming queries as part of their service delivery commitments.
Businesses need a mix of employee capability levels to create a staff with the necessary resources. Employees who are dedicated to doing everyday tasks and others who are more focused on driving company strategies. A company’s human resource needs will vary by industry. Taking the time to consider your business’s needs and team dynamics will ensure the success of your business in the long run.
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