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Important HR needs in your business
As your business continues to grow and you hire more employees, you are likely finding yourself taking on more roles within the business, particularly the role of the human resources representative. Whether you hire someone for this position or manage the department yourself, much of what HR does is preventative, from the interview process through the completion of separation surveys.
It may seem overwhelming, but through HR proactivity, your employees know their rights and responsibilities, and you have clear guidelines within which to act. Therefore, it may benefit you to take a close look at your HR department to ensure there are no gaps or oversights that may come back to bite you in the event of a dispute or accusation.
Handling handbook issues
Your employees may frequently overstep their boundaries if they are unsure of where you have set those boundaries. This is why an employee handbook is a vital tool for a business, no matter how few employees you have. Business advocates recommend a frequent review of the policies and rules in your handbook to keep it current with any changes in the laws or expectations within the company. Some important features you will find in successful employee handbooks include:
What mediation can do for your small business
If you own and operate your small business for any length of time, you will more than likely end up in a dispute with another business, a vendor or a customer. In many cases, the dispute can be resolved with minimum fuss.
In other cases, however, the dispute seems to only grow and fester. You or the other party involved may begin talking about litigation as a way to resolve the issue. Fortunately, there is another option that could work out better for all of the parties involved: mediation.
The highlights of mediation
When you participate in mediation, you agree to allow a neutral third party to help guide you through negotiations. Each party receives the opportunity to present his or her side of the story. Thereafter, both parties and the mediator propose options for resolution. The mediator keeps both sides on track and can provide potential solutions.
When you and the other party reach an agreement, a settlement memorializes your agreement. Because each side listened to the other and had input into the agreement, satisfaction is often higher than through litigation. If any similar issues come up between the parties in the future, a foundation of cooperation and compromise already exists.
How important is your business model?
In Texas and throughout the nation, entrepreneurship is the wave of the future. In fact, many people are choosing to forgo post-secondary education in favor of stepping right out into the deep to give their business-related dreams a try. Some people are better prepared to launch such ventures than others. Creating a successful business may be your current dream, or, are you one of the lucky ones who has already brought your dream to fruition? Either way, you're likely familiar with the topic of choosing a business model.
If someone asked you to rate choosing a business model on a scale of importance with one being insignificant and unnecessary and 10 being absolutely crucial to entrepreneurial success, how would you score it? Hopefully, it would score high.
The bottom line
Many entrepreneurs love the challenge of creating and building new companies. Others aren't so crazy about the start-up process but really enjoy maintaining a business, interacting with clients and providing products and/or services after a business is established. Perhaps, you like both processes and can relate to most other business owners who focus on making money as an ultimate goal. The following business model ideas may help you forge a path to productivity and profit:
Do I need a contract for new hires?
The success of your business is something for which you have worked hard. However, with more business comes added responsibility. Among those responsibilities may be hiring more employees to learn about your brand or your particular way of offering a service.
Bringing new workers into the company may also bring questions about protecting your brand, preventing misunderstandings and reducing the possibility of legal trouble. Perhaps you are considering implementing an employee contract to accomplish these goals.
What should my contract include?
An employee contract can go a long way in protecting your business. You will be able to train your employees well, knowing they've committed to staying until the contract expires. You can also protect any company secrets or client lists that are the heart of your business. Your contract can include the expectations you have for your workers, allowing you to control the quality of your product by eliminating workers who don't meet the standards in their contracts. Some of the elements in a typical contract may include:
Protect business interests when a special someone is interested
If you worked long and hard to build a business in Texas, you most likely understand how crucial it is to protect your interests. Like other business owners, you live a dual life. There's your professional side, and then there's your personal life. Building, launching and sustaining a business takes a lot of time. Many business owners will tell you they don't have much time for private lives, but most try to fit a little rest and relaxation into their schedules from time to time.
Perhaps you were able to do so and finally met that special someone. Maybe you were even lucky enough to find a partner who fully supports your entrepreneurial efforts and is willing to make whatever sacrifices necessary to help keep your business afloat. As the two of you consider marriage, you might want to think ahead and be as prepared as possible for any curve ball life may throw at you one, five or 10 years from now.
What's next? Planning your exit from your small business.
Successfully owning and operating a small business is part of the American dream for many people. As a Texas business owner, you know the challenges that can come from being your own boss and navigating the complications of entrepreneurship, but that should not stop you from thinking ahead to your future.
It is easy to have your complete focus on the present to the point that you forget to think about what will happen in the future, but succession planning is important. Regardless of the type or the size of your small business, you will find peace of mind in knowing that you have planned for contingencies and protected the interests of your loved ones.
Important questions to answer
Simply telling your spouse or a loved one how you want to leave your business is not enough. Whether it is after your unexpected passing or retirement, something is going to happen to your business. You have the right to decide exactly what happens to it, and you can do this with a proper succession plan.
Partnerships on the rocks
Maybe you were friends since high school or you met in a university business class. Wherever your partnership began, it blossomed into the business arrangement that has served you successfully for years. Lately, however, you and your partner are not always seeing eye to eye.
With some foresight, you may have drafted a partnership agreement early in your business relationship. That agreement can guide you as the two of you make decisions about the direction in which you want to go. If no such agreement exists, you may want to consider how you can protect your interests in case the disputes escalate into a storm.
Getting to the root of the problem
Partners grow apart. It happens. You and your associate may have differing ideas about the future of the company, or your personal lives are interfering with your work relationship. There may be another cause altogether. Some common reasons why partnerships flounder include the following:
A merger is a complicated legal process
Whether in Texas or elsewhere, companies that combine typically do so with the purpose of benefiting all parties involved. A business merger is a complicated legal process. If you choose to pursue a merger as a company owner, it will take careful planning to ensure a smooth execution.
Whether your company is big or small, there are a lot of things to consider before signing any contracts to combine with another business. An experienced business law attorney will be able to assist you with all of the legal aspects of your merger in order to ensure everything is up to par and to help you move the process along as swiftly and smoothly as possible.
Is a merger right for my business?
Deciding whether a merger is right for your business can be a difficult question to answer. There will need to be a thorough evaluation of many factors before making this move. These factors include the ability to protect company values and standards and determining if the merger fits one's plans for future growth and development - among many others.
Are non-compete agreements enforceable in Texas?
Non-compete agreements are a popular way for businesses and companies of all types and sizes to protect their intellectual property and trade secrets. Employers can ask new employees to sign contracts that would only take effect after the employee-employer relationship ends. While there are a variety of reasons why non-compete agreements can be beneficial, they should be carefully worded and drafted with the help of an experienced attorney.
In some cases, a non-compete contract can become the center of a legal battle between a person and his or her former employee. The court may closely scrutinize these contracts, and, as an employer, you would benefit greatly from experienced guidance when developing this type of contract.
How you can protect your business interests in a non-compete agreement
Non-compete agreements are enforceable under Texas law as long as they meet certain requirements. They must clearly demonstrate that a business interest, such as a trade secret, is truly at risk, threating a business's bottom line, but they must also not place an unfair burden on the former employee or restrict his or her ability to earn a living.
Why non-compete agreements are important to your small business
If you run a small business in Texas, you may have the goal of building a staff that is like an extended family. You hope to hire employees who are enthusiastic and reliable, and you want them to feel that you trust them. This may be one of several reasons why you may be reluctant to ask your new employees to sign a non-compete agreement.
However, a non-compete contract - or any covenant that restricts competition - may be valuable to a small business in many situations. Much like a prenuptial agreement does with marriage, the non-compete contract can minimize complications and costs if an employee leaves your company.
A non-compete is good for your company
Competitive restriction contracts state that your employee cannot work for a competitor company or start his or her own similar company for a reasonable period of time within a reasonable geographical area after leaving your employ. Such a contract may also stipulate that an employee who leaves your business cannot recruit your customers or disclose any confidential information about clients or products.
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817-645-1717
