Annie Button outlines the most common financial failures of SMEs and how they can be averted.

Running a business is tough, regardless of what sector you work in. But if you’re not careful where your finances are concerned, you could be making the situation harder than it needs to be. These are some of the common financial pitfalls that many businesses slip into and how to avoid them. 

Failing to have a budget in place

A business budget is vital for managing future expenses and controlling your finances. But so many businesses operate month to month without any plan for the business’s earnings. 

To ensure that you’re not spending where you can’t afford to, or paying too much in one category, you should have a budget in place that is conservative – in other words, keep your income estimates on the low end of the scale and your expenses on the higher side, so that you’re not caught out at the end of the month. 

Too many people on the payroll

As a business, you want to grow and scale up – it’s a sign that you’re doing well and, for most businesses, it’s the ultimate goal. But having too many people on the payroll too soon could mean you’re overspending where you can’t afford it. Many entrepreneurs find themselves in need of help and they hire too many people too fast, which causes problems where the budget is concerned. 

A compromise to ensure you’re not doing everything yourself is to look into hiring people on a part-time basis or contractors. Freelancers are also an alternative that can help you save money without compromising on your business, as you will only be paying for the work they carry out rather than a full-time salary.

A compromise to ensure you’re not doing everything yourself is to look into hiring people on a part-time basis or contractors.

Suffering from a cyber attack

A cyber attack can impact your business in multiple ways, from its finances and operations to the reputation of your brand. Cybercrime can be incredibly costly to resolve, not just because of the remediation work required to clean up the system but also because of the reputational damage it can cause. 

There’s also the issue of compliance and adhering to GDPR regulations that could mean your company is fined for failing to protect customer information. 

It’s vital that you secure your network and make sure that staff have cyber awareness training, and by investing in proactive rather than reactive cybersecurity technologies. You should also enforce secure password policies across the business and use firewalls to protect data. It’s also a wise decision to back up your data regularly and have protocols in place should an attack occur. 

Failing to separate personal and private finances

A common mistake that can be detrimental to businesses is merging personal and private finances. It’s important to consider your business a completely separate entity from yourself from the start, as it can cause complications in the future if you don’t. 

You should set up a separate bank account where all money earned from the business is paid into and any business expenses are paid out of. Likewise, if you require a credit card, ensure that your business has a separate one so that it’s easier to track payments. 

Not saving for a rainy day

Issues with cash flow can be a real problem, even for successful businesses, if payments aren’t managed properly. And while it’s nice to believe that everything will run smoothly from day one, chances are there will be unexpected events or emergencies in the future that require funds to keep the business afloat. 2020 has possibly reinforced this point even more for so many businesses.

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To ensure you’re never in a difficult situation, it’s important to have money tucked away for such situations that you can lean on when times are tough, without having to resort to credit cards and loans. A good rule to follow is to assess what your basic responsibilities are and average out the cost, then put three months’ worth aside in a contingency fund. 

Final thoughts

There are so many potential risks when running a business and it’s all too easy to assume that your business won’t suffer if you cut a few corners. But ultimately, in order for your business to thrive and stay in good financial shape, it’s critical that you consider all eventualities and prepare for them accordingly, whether that’s having savings in place, protecting data from threats or being savvy about how you hire staff. 

Lloyds Bank revealed on Friday that black employees are paid a fifth less than their white colleagues on average.

The median pay gap for black staff in 2020 was 19.7%, while the gap for all BAME employees was 14.8%.

The bank said in its ethnicity pay gap report that the discrepancy stemmed from black staff being “disproportionately under-represented at senior levels” rather than from unequal pay being issued to employees of different ethnicities within the same role.

In July, Lloyds set a target to increase the number of black employees in senior roles from 0.6% to 3% by 2025, coinciding with an existing target of 8% BAME senior staff by the end of 2020 as part of its company-wide “Race Action Plan”. The bank also said that it had launched a Black Business Advisory Committee, to be headed by former Cabinet Office adviser Claudine Reid, to investigate growth barriers faced by black-led businesses.

"We want to be clear that we are an anti-racist organisation,” said Lloyds CEO António Horta-Osório, “one where all colleagues speak up, challenge, and act to take an active stance against racism.

"In doing so, our colleagues will help break down the barriers preventing people from meeting their full potential."

Professor Binna Kandola, business psychologist and co-founder of Pearn Kandola, criticised the bank’s striking pay gap and its disparity in roles by ethnicity. "Considering that the majority of senior roles are filled by white people, this would suggest that white staff are given preferential treatment and are able to climb the ladder more quickly,” he said.

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"While the best organisations will try to be more systematic in assessing and evaluating performance, bias still penetrates these processes. Rarely are organisations willing to confront the fact that the problem is the people operating the processes. None of us are as objective as we believe we are, and none of us want to believe that we make judgements about people based on their ethnicity. As a consequence, minorities are more likely to be found in roles which have fewer opportunities for progression and which ultimately pay less.

"To solve the problem of the race pay gap, we must address the lack of opportunity for BAME people to advance to more senior positions. Performance evaluations, career development and line manager support are all crucial ingredients, and the people operating these systems must receive the training and support required to conduct these processes with career and accuracy."

However, with so many various policies out there promising different types of cover, protecting your businesses best interests can be quite an overwhelming challenge. While one of the most beneficial decisions you can make for your business and its employees is to opt for coverage that protects the financial elements, you should consider these types of cover as they are most suitable for business.

Cover for Your Employees

Caring for the health and wellbeing of your team can be implemented in various ways; from providing clean drinking water to encouraging healthy living habits. However, providing your employees with life insurance and disability insurance is a notably important decision.

You can compare deals with the help of an expert insurance broker or similar insurance comparison company near you. Protecting your employees with cover will automatically save your business in the unfortunate event that an employee is to become ill, temporarily disabled, permanently disabled, or worse.

Liability Protection Policies

Liability policies aim to protect businesses from the potential legal costs that can arise in the event of an injury within the workplace. The cover will apply to compensation payouts as well as any relevant legal fees.

As there are a few different types of liability policies out there, it is best to consider a policy that protects you from public liabilities as well as employee liabilities. Be sure to evaluate the terms and conditions of any policy before purchasing coverage as policy details usually vary substantially.

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Business Interruption Cover

If you can imagine the devastating possibility of your business being affected by unpredictable disasters such as a flood, a fire, and several others, the impacts can be daunting. However, you can consider business interruption cover that will protect your business from the loss of sales and profits that result from an unforeseen situation that is not within your realm of control.

Even though this type of cover is not legally essential, it can ultimately save your business from potential closure should a natural disaster or instance of theft take place.

Commercial Property Policies

Commercial property insurance is usually offered in two parts; one is covering the building itself and the other covering the contents within the building. This type of policy might be essential if you have a mortgage loan on the building. However, it is necessary for all business owners as it will be beneficial should damage or theft become a concerning reality. Commercial property policies will protect your business from accidental damage, theft, and other unfortunate instances.

While there are various other types of insurance policies out there that you may consider beneficial for your business, you should always evaluate the costs and the details of a policy before buying cover. Every business owner understands financial challenges and how unforeseen events can snowball quickly. Even if you are in the midst of getting your startup idea off the ground, insurance policies should be a priority right from the start.

eLearning has rapidly found its way towards becoming a significant part of many organisations. There are many individuals and organisations that are now delivering elearning content to their paying audience. This is where an authoring tool comes in the picture.

An authoring tool is a digital solution that helps you create digital content. The content here could be of any type, from text-based to graphics, from web content to videos. It is important for you to choose an authoring tool that aligns well with your organisational goals as it can dramatically impact the experience of the learners or your audience. 

The chances of an authoring tool being more problematic rather than being a solution are quite high. Thus, whether you are planning to replace your existing eLearning authoring tools or to invest in a new one for the first time ever, make sure you keep the following pointers in your mind. 

Usability

First and foremost comes the usability of the authoring tool. When your authoring tool is easy to use, it can turn out to be an extremely cost-effective investment. Not only in terms of money, but in terms of time as well. 

This is because with the help of an easy-to-use authoring tool, the dependency of your subject matter experts on your tech-savvy developers will dramatically decrease. They won’t have to wait for the availability of developers any longer. This will reduce the time of content creation and gradually increase the number of courses that are being published by the experts. 

Scalability

The scaling up of the workforce is one of the major advantages of an authoring tool and, thus, scalability features are one thing that you should always check for in your software. This tool is specifically beneficial for the companies that are scattered across various locations. 

With an authoring tool that is scalable, you can easily create content on an urgent basis. Since this software is cloud-based, you can utilise the knowledge, skills and expertise of your subject matter experts that are situated in various locations across the globe.

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Design Flexibility

If we could give one tip for creating any eLearning course, it would be to make sure you are doing your branding right. After all, it is all about that one brand. Thus, when you are creating your course, you would want to take care of certain brand elements such as your logo placement, the colours that you will be using, the fonts that work well for your subject, and more. 

To make sure that you can streamline your branding, there are now authoring tools that allow you to work on a particular theme or template. With these templates, you can fix logo position, background colors, text blocks, etc. and lock them in place. This way, even if you have multiple people working on developing the course for you, you will always have a fixed standard that they will automatically follow, at least in terms of design.

Device Capability

One feature that you should look for in your authoring tool is its capability of working on different devices. When you offer content that can be written once and then executed on a variety of other devices such as tablets, mobile phones, and laptops, that creates value. This is because this shows that you are keeping the convenience and ease of your audience in mind. This will help increase your audience exponentially.

When learners don’t have any restrictions on devices or location and can execute their sessions as and when they feel like, it can be a real game changer. 

Conclusion

eLearning authoring tools are now becoming a huge part of corporates. Gone are the days when people preferred using off-the-shelf content. They now want to execute and receive content that has been tailored as per the relevance. It is best to look for certain features in your authoring tool before you make the purchase to ensure it proves to be effective. 

The Financial Market Supervisory Authority (FINMA), Switzerland’s financial watchdog, announced on Wednesday that it had opened enforcement proceedings against Credit Suisse over a spying scandal that came to light in 2019.

In a statement, FINMA said that it would “pursue indications of violations of supervisory law in the context of the bank’s observation and security activities and in particular the question of how these activities were documented and controlled,” adding that such proceedings “can be expected to take several months.”

Credit Suisse announced that it would cooperate with the investigation “to ensure a complete and expeditious conclusion of the review of this episode and incorporate lessons learned.”

FINMA’s announcement follows the completion of a review of the bank’s corporate governance and its surveillance of former employees. The employees targeted were former head of wealth management Iqbal Khan, who was leaving for a post in Suisse Credit rival UBS, and former head of human resources Peter Goerke.

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Credit Suisse CEO Tidjane Thiam resigned in February amid the investigations, maintaining that he was not aware of the spying operation. An internal probe by the company concluded that COO Pierre-Olivier Bouee bore responsibility, leading to Bouee’s termination.

Thiam has since been replaced as CEO by banking veteran Thomas Gottstein.

Is it time to consider how recent changes to our working habits, previously thought of as radical, may have set the example for how we will work in future? As the supposed importance of 9-5 hours is eroded, and with World Productivity Day just around the corner on 20 June, it seems like now is the time to consider whether greater flexibility with our working hours will lead to a more productive workforce - even in the ‘round-the-clock’ world of financial services. Daniel Bailey, Vice President, EMEA at Zendesk describes how this can be made possible.

Embracing flexi-time all the time 

With teams logging on and off at times that better suit their lives, how can financial service providers - whose industry operates across time zones and is based around set working days - be expected to become more productive?

When Microsoft trialled the four-day work week (with no reduction in pay) in Japan last year, productivity increased 40%. The reduced number of working days led employees to find ways to make meetings shorter and more effective, and subsequently, they felt happier and more motivated in their roles. Simply put, the change drove efficiency. Four-day working weeks aren’t going to become commonplace for everyone. Instead, employers can focus on making flexible hours the norm. This could mean allocating certain ‘core’ hours of work for your team, and allowing them to flex either side of this to accomodate the needs and demands of their personal lives. Offering employees this kind of flexibility can actually enhance efficiency and ensure your employees feel motivated.

When Microsoft trialled the four-day work week (with no reduction in pay) in Japan last year, productivity increased 40%.

Supporting team efficiency

If your staff are working flexibly, internal collaboration tools are one piece of the puzzle for making sure your teams are delegating and sharing work, as well as getting timely updates on progress across their disparate work hours. Financial services teams should implement intelligent tools. By doing so, clients receive advice more quickly, and without the hassle of being passed around departments. Requests received out-of-hours can be escalated if they are urgent, routed to staff who have chosen to work later or can flex their time back later on. As a result, even with fewer staff simultaneously online, communication doesn’t fall through the cracks.

Furthermore, these tools can pull data from inbound enquiries that offer insights into the work your employees spend most of their time on. Not only does this help to plan your teams’ time, but repetitive enquiries can be automated to provide round the clock, easily accessible support. A robust help desk can be built that helps your clients to find answers for themselves, providing a simpler experience for them and freeing up your employees time.

The human touch

In the financial services industry, clients want to know that their money is in safe hands. That requires personal connection, trusted account leads and employees who can demonstrate that they care about their customers. But moving to a more fluid workday doesn’t mean that this element of the client relationship is in jeopardy - it means that it must be central to what gets done in working hours.

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Considering the efficiencies mentioned above, enquiries now reach the right teams faster, and the repetitive requests are handled automatically. What remains are the most pressing concerns and queries of your customers, one where there is no alternative to human interaction to offer expertise and maintain trust.

A significant part of that trust is built on feeling valued and understood as a customer. A business equipped with the right tools can immediately see a history of the customer who has made contact, their previous issues and account information, to facilitate a genuinely helpful and personalised interaction. If multiple teams are involved in the customer’s account, it is quicker and simpler to share data from their interactions and teams, leading to timely resolutions and greater satisfaction - even in the flexible working day.

Outside of customer contact, the work time given back to your employees can be used for the creative and strategic work that boosts productivity and helps to grow the business, offering new services to your clients.

The flexible working week may sound like a pipe dream. But so did remote working at one point - yet in these unusual times, we’ve seen how resilient and capable employees can be, adapting to keep businesses running. When offered more control of their time, to focus on themselves and their personal and social commitments, and the promise of greater productivity and more rewarding work when they are in the office, working 9-5 could be the next relic from our lives before - dare we say it - the new normal.

John Forword, Reed Finance expert, says finance companies need to match the career aspirations and values of a generation which knows what it wants from prospective employers.

For some firms, this already means investing in organisational change in order to compete for and secure the employees they will need for a stronger commercial future.

Generation Z – those born from 1995 onwards - offer a unique and prized set of skills and aspirations. The combination of being tech-savvy, entrepreneurial in outlook and collaborative by nature in order to co-create, are some of the key characteristics that separate Gen Z from previous generations.

And finance companies want what they offer.

But in the face of increasing competition to attract the very best talent from a pool that is in demand, the need for finance industry employers to take a holistic look at their cultures and structure to ensure they chime with what Generation Z is looking for becomes increasingly pressing.

In the face of increasing competition to attract the very best talent from a pool that is in demand, the need for finance industry employers to take a holistic look at their cultures and structure to ensure they chime with what Generation Z is looking for becomes increasingly pressing.

For many companies, these changes are well underway with some businesses already looking to leave others behind in the race for Generation Z. Reed Finance recently conducted an in-depth survey of 500 senior finance professionals to see what companies were doing to attract this generation to help companies not only keep up but get ahead in the race to capture Generation Z talent.

1. Initial changes being made by firms include the redefinition of existing training, development and succession models, which 36% of companies questioned said they were undertaking. 
2. A third of firms are already looking at broadening workplace technology and systems deployment, and a quarter admitted that they were striving to develop more collaborative working environments. 
3. In recognition of the need to reshape reward and remuneration models to more accurately match the demands of a new, aspirational workforce, 22% said this process was currently underway within their organisations.
4. Companies have also been working hard to develop more collaborative working environments, with 25% saying they had already put plans to achieve this into action.
5. The majority of employers (60%) said they believed that their company is not doing enough to adapt in many areas and entice talent from Generation Z.

In short, employers know that this generation is completely different from what came before and they are making changes but there are key opportunities for attracting the next generation.

1. Potential recruits will be judging organisations on a number of criteria to determine if the firm is the right one for them in terms of opportunity, development, job satisfaction and enjoyment. So companies must demonstrate these in clear, progression lines.
2. Aside from the actions already undertaken by companies, it is clear, from a number of studies that Generation Z seeks out greater flexibility in the workplace when compared to predecessors. If flexibility is on the table then it will make a major difference.
3. Technology and the opportunity to work with developing and innovative advances in tech is also near the top of the priority list, alongside the demand for a transparent and achievable career progression vision. 

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In order to succeed in attracting the next generation, companies must be clear about creating the right type of workplace scenarios and addressing the critical areas outlined above. They must also recognise the personality characteristics that drive the ambition and vision of Generation Z talent.

This next-generation has a fearlessness and confidence to articulate what they want and are happy to demand it from prospective employers. They want to work for a firm that matches their desire to progress and develop, as well as operate by shared values. If they do not find it, they are likely to vote with their feet and look elsewhere.

But making these changes isn’t easy. Nearly a quarter admitted that redefining training, development and succession models would be the most difficult to achieve, followed closely by the task of altering reward and remuneration practices and creating more collaborative working environments.

However, the message is clear. If you want to attract the best Generation Z talent, finance organisations need to be mindful of the need to provide flexible working conditions, more imaginative rewards and remuneration structures, cutting edge technology, proven career progression opportunity and invest in developing and sustaining collaborative and sociable workplace environments.

Companies that ignore the working demands of Generation Z will end up losing them to rivals.

With a lack of time putting pressure on workforce health and productivity, maintaining a healthy work/life balance can be tough. 

Jasper Martens, CMO of PensionBee shares with Finance Monthly three top tips on how SMB owners in the financial sector can support their workforce to ease time restraints and overcome a hustle and grind mentality.

1. Quit working the weekends

UK-wide, people are working longer hours and longer weeks, and while three out of five financial sector leaders started their small business for a better work life balance, little over half actually feel like they get it. Almost half of small business owners in the sector say that they work through holidays and their annual leave, more than any other sector.

Finding ways to free up weekends and holidays for the sake of health alone is an admirable goal, but it inevitably conflicts with other business goals that had put pressure on time and deliverables in the first place. Some of our fintech peers hold the belief that people should work seven days a week and increasingly long hours. We’re the opposite – when it comes to hustle and grind, our focus is on looking at the most time effective way to get the job done.

As a small customer-centric business, we do what is necessary to keep our customers happy and find that automating work flow saves a lot of time. By automating parts of the everyday, we’re able to spend on growing the business and improving our service. There’s something to be said about the industry on a whole that the financial sector on average feels more strongly than any other sector that digital transformation has a positive effect on their business.

2. Ditch the time-sinks

Admin is necessary, but often a huge time-sink. How can this be cut down? It’s a question you’ve most probably asked yourself to no avail - but there is a way.

Two thirds of financial sector leaders feel that Cloud based technologies are a necessity when it comes to time management. For us, it’s about automating reoccurring paths and connecting customer touch points. Putting time into understanding, tailoring and using a good CRM to get all the relevant information in the right place, in the right order and accessible to use, will ultimately return more time in the future

As companies grow, processes need to evolve and be flexible to meet new demands. Out-of-date processes only hinder growth and ultimately eat away at time that could be better spent elsewhere.

3. Listen to your team

As an SMB you’re in a great position to address issues of burnout or stress amongst your workforce, it’s a force for good that we can communicate with each employee on their individual needs.

We're tripling our size every year, faster than we anticipated, and with that success comes a need for a lot more thinking about the way we work as a company and especially on how we support our employees. As a small business it is tough because you just need to get the job done, but that mentality can also lead to higher stress levels and presenteeism. We have to pay attention to people, and talk openly about personal and mental health.

Time will always be a limited resource, and the pace of modern business is only likely to increase in the future. Yet, mental health now accounts for over half of all working days lost due to ill health in and is the most prevalent reason for sick days in the UK. Now, more than ever, we need to address the time pressures impacting on employees to provide support and mitigate more damage to employees and small businesses in the financial industry.

Here Leigh Moody, Managing Director at SOTI UK, explains the full extent of AI’s impact on the mobile workforce of businesses across the nation.

At one level, automation and AI offer helpful solutions when recruitment is challenging, or where staff can be better utilized in other parts of an organisation. More broadly, there is no doubt that AI can add value to an increasingly digital workplace, and adoption is rising while some barriers remain. Consequently, one in five businesses intend to implement AI across their organisation in 2019.

Some organisations are already experiencing the benefits of AI as it becomes mainstream, and there is a definite fear that those who are not already experimenting with AI will be left behind. When evaluating the impact that AI will have on the future workforce, it is essential to explore practical use cases in business.

AI’s return on investment

For many companies today, AI represents an exciting opportunity to improve efficiency and enhance business performance. At an individual level, AI automation gives workers more options and the chance to be freed from routine tasks so that they can focus on bigger, more rewarding challenges. For many, this means working in a mobile, flexible manner facilitated by Internet of Things (IoT) technologies and remote access to data and work-specific applications and programs, most of which are in the cloud.

AI benefits workers and organisations alike, because it can optimise personal autonomy and convenience while reducing capital costs, especially where there is a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy in place. In 2018, research for the UK government’s Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport found that 45% of businesses routinely allowed staff to use personal devices for work. But BYOD must be implemented with care, since it inevitably leads to a number of unknown and possibly unsecure devices being connected to an organisation’s network which can have dire consequences for security.

AI in the fight against cybercrime

At this point, however, key aspects of AI that make it attractive for business begin to interface with a much less ideal use of the technology. AI-powered cybercrime – which, ironically, often mimics enterprise-level AI applications – is a very serious and rapidly increasing threat to businesses and individuals alike. In 2017, just under half of all UK businesses identified at least one cybersecurity breach or attack, and this showed no signs of slowing down the following year. Hacking, phishing and malware are now key threats to businesses of all types and sizes in the UK.

Mobile workers are tempting targets for cybercriminals as mobile endpoints are often a weak point in an organisation’s cybersecurity system. Cyber criminals deal in data: on the dark web, the most mundane personal details can be bought and sold for cash. Greater volumes of data mean greater profit, so criminals have used AI to automate hacking to an industrial scale, harvesting massive volumes of corporate and personal data. Where those criminals deploy or threaten malware, ransomware and distributed denial of service attacks (DDoS), companies can lose vast amounts of their data at a keystroke, which is often permanent.

Even where corporate-owned mobile devices are mandatory, if they are not properly protected, criminals can use them as a vulnerable point of entry to the network, and BYOD environments carry an even greater risk. It is more difficult to control the exposure to dangerous websites or applications in non-work settings, which can put an unsecure network at risk.

Yet, while AI has fuelled this situation, it can also help solve the problems that are arising. This is because AI technology has been instrumental in the development of real-time security and device management solutions, which – like cybercriminals’ use of AI and enterprise automation – learns from past experiences, patterns of behaviour and incoming data, and responds intelligently and immediately to evolving threats.

If companies want to stay competitive, they have little choice but to expand their mobile deployment, while ensuring they are protected against evolving cybersecurity threats. By securing all endpoints under a single, integrated enterprise mobility management solution, companies can reap the full benefits of their mobility investments while enjoying the peace of mind that only real-time cybersecurity can bring.

When combined with the news from the ‘Time to Change’  campaign that people would rather talk to colleagues about relationship issues, money problems and even sex, than discuss mental health, it seems that there still could be a stigma attached to talking about mental health at work.

In this article, Pam Loch and Bruce Jenner look at why employers need to be more proactive in addressing mental health issues in the workplace and discuss some simple steps that financial institutions and financial services firms can take to show their commitment to employee wellbeing.

Why should employers care?

The UK Government’s ‘Thriving at Work’ review showed that currently, 300,000 individuals leave employment each year as a result of mental health issues. This, in turn, is costing employers between £33bn to £42bn a year – a figure which equates to between £1,205 - £1,560 per employee. These costs are made up of the cost of covering absenteeism, the impact on productivity from presenteeism and from staff turnover. These are costs which are avoidable if mental health is managed more effectively before it becomes an issue.

The employer’s obligations

Under the Equality Act 2010, a mental health condition is considered to be a disability if it has a long term and adverse effect on an individual’s normal day-to-day activity. The Act places certain obligations on an employer to consider and make reasonable adjustments to ensure the individual is not discriminated against in the workplace.

Not explicitly knowing about a disability is not a defence against Employment Tribunal (ET) claims. In Baldeh V Churches Housing Associate of Dudley and District Ltd 2019, the Employment Appeal Tribunal (EAT) found that even though the employer did not know about Baldeh’s disability (depression) at the time of dismissal, they found out about it during her internal appeal. This did not impact the appeal outcome but rather resulted in the appeal being regarded as part of the unfavourable treatment she based her discrimination claim on. The EAT subsequently referred the case back to a fresh ET hearing to consider whether the rejection of the appeal was an act of discrimination.

There is also a risk that the ‘always-on’ culture in some organisations contributes to the stress and anxiety felt by individuals.

Even though an employer may not have an explicit notification of a disability, there may be other clues or evidence which gives them ‘constructive knowledge’ of a disability. If on the basis of these clues the employer could be reasonably expected to know about a disability, this will trigger their obligation to consider and make reasonable adjustments under the Equality Act 2010.

This demonstrates the importance of embedding a culture in the workplace where mental health conditions can be talked about in the same way as physical illnesses. Remember, employers are liable for the acts of discrimination of their staff, so the language or ‘banter’ within a workplace around someone’s mental health also puts employers at risk of successful claims of bullying or harassment.

There is also a risk that the ‘always-on’ culture in some organisations contributes to the stress and anxiety felt by individuals. Emails sent after hours or work-related WhatsApp messages sent over the weekend or on holidays not only have the potential to impact an individual’s mental health, but they could also put employers at risk of disputes around breaches of the Working Time Regulations 1998.

The benefits of looking after mental health in the workplace

 The ‘Thriving at Work’ review cites research conducted by Deloitte which demonstrates the returns to employers who invest in mental health in the workplace. The average return for every pound spent was £4.20, with figures between 40p to £9. This demonstrates an overwhelmingly positive outcome for employers who invest in supporting the mental health of their workforce.

This return can be seen in the costs associated with absenteeism, presenteeism, and staff turnover. Supporting mental health in the workplace means fewer employees end up taking days off work, and a reduced absenteeism rate. The flip side is presenteeism – where employees turn up to work despite being unwell for fear of being labelled or judged by colleagues. These employees are not functioning at full capacity and the lost productivity costs businesses £4,048 annually.

There is also a well-documented connection between physical and mental health, so looking after the mental health of your staff will make them less likely to suffer physical ill health.

Supporting mental health in the workplace means fewer employees end up taking days off work, and a reduced absenteeism rate.

What options do employers have to support mental health

The first step employers need to take is to ensure there is a culture which enables staff to talk about and report mental health issues. Mental Health First Aid training is an accredited training course which gives employees the skills to identify the signs of mental health issues and help colleagues find the right support. This training has been shown to increase the overall understanding of mental health in workplaces that have had the training.

The training can be backed up with a review of policies and procedures aimed at reducing the risk of discrimination occurring in the first place. An Equality and Diversity policy is key to setting out how disability is managed in the workplace, and the steps the organisation will take to help protect employees with a disability. This can be combined with an anti-bullying and harassment policy, and a specific wellbeing policy.

Employers’ policies may also include examples of the types of reasonable adjustments that could be made, and the process for employees to request these. This can include flexible working or working from home, providing quiet spaces away from noise and activity, or altered start/finish times. Employers also need to ensure social media policies cover the use of informal messaging apps, and the language and behaviour expected when communicating via these channels.

Organisations that embed a culture of openness towards mental health will benefit from fewer disputes and claims against them as well as reduced instances of absence and ill-health.

Given the close connection between physical and mental health, employers should also consider a programme that promotes overall wellbeing. This can include benefits like Wellness Checks to allow individuals a check of their health across multiple risk factors, Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP) which offer 24hr phone line support, providing healthy food options in staff canteens, and offering access to sports clubs after work at discounted rates.

This can be combined with an internal communications programme which signposts employees to support services such as an EAP or external organisations such as the Samaritans, encouraging employees to take adequate breaks and to talk about mental health openly with their managers.

Employers can also use staff surveys to engage with their staff around wellbeing, gaining useful insight into the attitudes and levels of engagement from staff. These surveys can allow employers to spot trends which may be affecting the mental health of the workforce and take action before it leads to increased absences from work.

These simple and relatively inexpensive steps will not only prove to the staff that the organisation takes mental health seriously, but will also provide a financial benefit for those businesses that invest in.

Organisations that embed a culture of openness towards mental health will benefit from fewer disputes and claims against them as well as reduced instances of absence and ill-health. They will also see a more engaged workforce, and ultimately improved productivity from their staff. It will also make such companies more attractive to potential new recruits.

It is no longer a question of whether a business can afford to support mental health at work, they can’t afford not to.

There’s also worries about Brexit, and the impact that will have on the world of FS, leading to job insecurities and further stress. Below, Vicki Field, HR Director at London Doctors Clinic, discusses the options for available for your team and their own struggles with mental health.

A recent survey conducted by Mental Health England identified that financial services jobs are 44 percent more likely to cause a stress-related illness than the average role in the UK.

Mental health is one of the fastest growing reasons for absence in the UK, having increased by a whopping 71.9% since 2011, which has cost the UK economy £18bn in lost productivity, according to analysis from Centre of Economic and Business Research 2017. The financial services sector has the highest percentage of employee absences due to mental ill health, according to research from HR consultancy AdviserPlus, which analysed 250k employees to identify that 34% of all absence was related to mental health.

However, the negative impact on the sufferer is hard to quantify in terms of cost or pounds. Mental health problems can eat away at happiness and have life changing impacts on people. So, what can we do at work to help?

While many employers acknowledge that mental health is a key employee concern, few have a specific well-being strategy in place. Probably unsurprisingly, half of the employees in the banking and financial services industries believe that businesses are not doing enough to support the physical and mental wellbeing of their employees, according to a study by Westfield Health.

While many employers acknowledge that mental health is a key employee concern, few have a specific well-being strategy in place.

Mental wellbeing used to be a topic that was actively avoided at work, with employees being worried about admitting that they had mental health issues. Whilst this is still true today, there are some high-profile campaigns which have given more focus to the prevalence of mental health issues and encouraged people to discuss and share their experiences. For example, Prince Harry established ‘Talking Heads’ with the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge to highlight mental wellbeing and has in turn been very honest about his own struggles following the death of his mother.

While companies do not carry responsibility for the general health of their employees, they do have a “duty of care” for their employees. In simple terms, this means that a company should take steps to avoid putting their employees in a position where they could be made ill by their work.

So, as the subject of mental health becomes more prevalent in the workplace, what can employers do if they think a member of the team may be struggling with their mental health?

Here are some points for team managers to consider.

1. Long or short term issue. There are two main types of mental ill health: a long-term ongoing mental health issue such as being bipolar or having clinical depression; and a probable short-term or temporary issue which is caused by life events or work such as anxiety, stress, or depression. Most people with ongoing mental health problems will meet the definition of disability in the Equality Act (2010) in England, Scotland and Wales and Disability Discrimination Act (1995, as amended) in Northern Ireland. This means the person must meet the criteria of having an impairment that has substantial, adverse, and long-term impact on their ability to carry out everyday tasks.
2. Put reasonable adjustments in place. A company has a legal responsibility to put “reasonable adjustments” in place to help the employee at work, if their condition constitutes a disability. However, even if it’s a short-term issue, putting adjustments in place can stop it turning into a longer-term problem. Just like a physical disability would require changes such as special chairs or computer screens, people experiencing mental health problems may require reasonable adjustments. This could take the form of introducing some form of flexible working (i.e. working from home more frequently or avoiding rush hour travel), for example. Each person is unique, so talk to them about what they need. Obtaining a doctor’s report with proposals is the best place to start.
3. Read their stress levels. Work can be a major stressor, when people start to feel overwhelmed or stressed by their work or by being at work. Everyone is different, and enjoyable pressure for one person can be hugely stressful for another. Most people need an element of pressure to enjoy work, but it’s when it turns into ‘stress’ that the issues start. As a manager, therefore, it’s really important to understand if any of your team are feeling stressed or anxious, and ensuring that you act to remove the stress for your employees if it is caused by work. Regular 121s to discuss workload will help you understand if there are any issues developing.
4. Measure and monitor absence patterns. This is a key way to understanding if there are any underlying conditions so tracking absence and having regular back to work interviews is important. Long-term conditions may present with a range of short-term or intermittent absence and it can be hard to identify if someone really does have a lot of dodgy tummies, or if they actually suffer from severe anxiety. Therefore, if you feel like an employee does have a lot of intermittent absence, offering confidential support through a private GP practise or an occupational health provider can have a significant impact on someone’s health, and their productivity and motivation at work.
5. Manage physical burnout. Additionally, if people are working hard and become ill, physical burnout can be frequently accompanied by mental burnout; or the start of mental health problems. If someone is feeling ill, and is still working, because they either feel forced to for fear of losing their job, or fear of failing to achieve objectives, it will start to impact their mental health. These negative feelings of stress and anxiety drive more symptoms of physical ill health, and it can become a vicious circle where the person never fully recovers and feels well. Talking to your team member is the best way to get to the bottom of how they are feeling, through 121s, back to work interviews or even just casual ‘chats’ in a social space.
6. Send them to the doctor. Whilst one of your team might not feel comfortable discussing their mental health with you, no matter how sympathetic you are, they may with a GP or occupational health professional. Doctors can support physical and mental ill health, identify any connections, and support the employee’s recovery, as well as help identify if work is one of the main issues for the depression, stress or anxiety. A GP will also aid with suggesting ‘reasonable adjustments’ at work. The old adage ‘prevention is better than cure’ is often the case when managing mental illness at work, with employees more likely to remain in work if there are early interventions.
7. Know your employees. On a personal level, there are also short-term issues which may affect the mental wellbeing of your employees: life events such as bereavements, divorces and family problems can cause significant emotional distress for people. We are all only human which means that there is an impact at work - people may be less focused, or show visible emptions, or even dress differently. There may be a few weeks or months where behaviour changes, or work drops off, and offering support to your team member during this time can have significant benefits for all parties in the long run.

How can I identify if someone’s mental health is suffering?

• Has the person’s behaviour suddenly changed? Are they visibly upset at work (crying?) Are they suddenly angry, and shouting at colleagues? Are they withdrawn and quiet?
• Do they look different? Have they stopped washing / taking care of themselves?
• Has intermittent absence increased? Stress can have physical symptoms such as regular colds, or upset tummies.
• Has their conversation changed? Are they repeatedly self-critical, or talking about how stressed they feel?

What is the role of the employer or team manager?

Always ensure you measure absence and have back to work interviews after every period of absence so you can monitor any potential issues; measuring and monitoring absence is the only way to effectively manage it. Discuss their workload and stress levels as part of a normal 121, so it becomes part of ‘normal’ conversation and not an awkward or difficult topic.

Asking someone if they are ‘ok’ is an important part of any manager’s role, but you’re not a mental health expert, or a counsellor or a doctor. If you are able to talk to your team member, and they share that they are experiencing some issues, you can get support from your HR department, from a GP or OH practitioner, or a variety of charities such as MIND.

Sometimes just listening to them, possibly changing their workload, or giving them time off, will sort the problem. However, if it is a longer-term issue, it’s important to get professional help.

Look at what can be done in the workplace to support them, talk to them and if necessary get a medical report. There’s a lot of help out there, so do ask for it.

Below, Harpreet Singh, Executive Director at Brickendon, delves into some case studies and examples that point towards an evolving workplace, remarking on the financial services sectors and its need to conform or adapt.

In November 2018, tens of thousands of Google employees conducted a worldwide walkout targeting workplace culture less than a year after the internet giant topped Fortune magazine’s list of best companies to work for the sixth year running. The protestors’ main issue was how the company was treating women, but this wasn’t their only concern.

Following the protests, media reports cited Google saying it would increase transparency and improve its harassment policies, but it shouldn’t have taken a revolt of this scale for the issues to be acknowledged. Jose Mourinho, former manager of Manchester United, who was unceremoniously sacked in December, may have the answer to Google’s problems.

Speaking to the media in January, Mourinho, one of the most successful football managers of the last two decades, said: “Nowadays you have to be very smart in the way you read your players”. He then went on to compare current players with players from previous generations and spoke about the increased need to have the right structure in the club to support the players and the manager. Like football, employee demographics in the corporate world have changed significantly over the past decade. According to a recent study by Deloitte, 75% of the global workforce will be millennials by 2025. And therein lies the problem. In the same way as Mourinho believed Manchester United was not reading its players correctly, neither, if recent events are taken into account, are many businesses.

The expectation of flexibility is neither misplaced nor impossible

In addition to having been born and grown up in an online age, there are several characteristics that differentiate millennials from previous generations. Whilst they consider themselves equally as hardworking and as ambitious, if not more so, than generation x and baby boomers, they also require more flexibility, faster results and care more about their personal well-being. According to a report in US news magazine INC., more than half of all millennial workers would like the option to work remotely, while up to 87% want to work on their own schedules.

They also perceive themselves to be more socially aware and eco-friendly and expect these traits from their employers too. Luckily, with the significant improvements in technology over the past decade, this expectation is neither misplaced nor impossible to achieve, as long as employers are prepared to innovate.

Technological improvements make remote working an easy option

Take flexibility, eco-friendliness and well-being for example. With massive improvements in communication-related technology, it is now possible to work remotely without any loss of productivity. Providing flexible working options not only reduces real-estate costs and lowers the firm’s carbon footprint but can also help increase employee motivation.

So, if done correctly, one single action or statement, such as allowing employees to start work earlier or later, or to take longer lunch breaks to facilitate participation in sporting activities, can lead to a chain of events that significantly improves the attractiveness of an employer.

But, the reverse is also true. What if a telecommuting employee needs to come into the office for a face-to-face meeting and realises that he/she doesn’t have a desk to work from? The obvious impact is a decrease in efficiency. However, research shows that not knowing whether you have a desk space can also lead to lack of motivation and stress and can in turn, have a serious impact on an employee’s overall well-being. In addition, it can create an environment of unhealthy competition due to a lack of information, in this case, related to desk space and employee whereabouts. Unlike employees from previous generations, millennials don’t tend to feel the same connection to their company and as a result will not stay somewhere they are not happy.

It’s all about work-life balance

As a result, it may be worth managers considering the way in which a flexible work schedule provides a stronger sense of work-life balance – a quality that is reported to attract millennial employees to a workplace in droves and keep them happier for longer than the two-year stint that has become the norm.

It may be worth managers considering the way in which a flexible work schedule provides a stronger sense of work-life balance.

Typically, desk space is the responsibility of real-estate management teams and doesn’t list as a top priority for senior operational managers. Desk allocations are usually managed on spreadsheets or similar static data-storage tools, which don’t allow for the constant monitoring required for effective desk-space allocation. Technology can again rectify this situation, with tools (such as HotDeskPlus, a new workplace optimisation tool and app powered by Brickendon Digital) that use mobile apps, sensors and QR codes to allow employees to view, reserve and check-in-and-out of specific desk spaces at a specific time.

Millennials may require more recognition and faster routes to promotion

Equally important is to foresee the problems that may arise as time evolves and millennials move through the ranks and take up senior positions. They may require more recognition and therefore faster routes to promotion. At the same time, incoming employees may prefer a more informal and non-hierarchical structure. This will require a shift in the organisational model and a willingness to embrace change in a way not seen before.

A quick look at the last couple of years reveals that many CEOs were either asked to leave their positions or forced to deal with discontented employees. These non-unionised breeds of relatively new organisations, such as Google, Microsoft and Uber, were expected to be torch bearers for the next generation of working practices, but their actions have largely been reactive. There is no doubt that what is thought to be an isolated incident can very quickly gain momentum and become a global phenomenon.

So, when it comes to millennials, you may want to count (and listen to) your chickens before they tweet, otherwise they may leave your roost sooner than you expect.