How Cezanne HR helps you make the most of working with contractors
Contractors, freelancers, interns and volunteer workers are an invaluable resource for many companies; providing essential cover while staff are away, allowing organisations to flex their workforce to meet changing needs, providing essential skills on a short term basis, or helping companies identify and develop the next generation of workers.
Managing them in the right way can, however, be something of a headache for HR teams.
Employee, worker or something else…
Firstly, there’s the sticky question of what kind of a “worker” they really are. Get the employment status wrong, and you could find yourself under investigation from the HMRC for not paying the correct tax or National Insurance contributions, or face claims of discrimination or unfair dismissal.
Once you’ve settled on the classification, here are some of ways that Cezanne HR can make managing contractors simpler for you.
Centralise information
In Cezanne HR, you can keep a record of all of your workers – flag up which ones are directly employed, and which ones are working with you on a different basis.
You’ll be able to upload contractual and right to work documents, so they are easier to find; set start and end dates (with reminders prior to contracts ending); record contact information, skills and qualifications, and prior history of working with you.
Reporting is simpler, key dates are less likely to get overlooked, and you’ve a ready-made talent pool if someone else in the business is looking for a similar resource.
Keep a check on status
Regular employment status reviews are important. For example, visas could expire, remote contractors move location, or your part-time freelance web designer could become so invaluable, that they end up working just for you – with your company effectively dictating the hours they work and the activities they do.
In addition to the automatic alerts around contract-end dates, Cezanne HR lets you run reports, and trigger update activities – such as sending out a letter to check on visa status or address details.
Save time on essential HR admin
Employing a contractor is typically more expensive than taking on permanent staff, so it makes sense to streamline the admin and help them get up to speed quickly. Allowing them to update their personal information, and access contact information, like the org charts or team calendars, will reduce admin overheads and help them find the right people quickly. With Cezanne HR, you have the option to set up specific security roles for contractors to limit what they can do, and exclude them from your headcount reports, so they won’t skew your overall figures.
Set up a dedicated portal
Knowledge-sharing is simpler too. The HR portal means it’s straight-forward to include contractors in company-wide news announcements or discussions. It may also make sense to create dedicated portals with relevant documents or links, specifically targeted at your contractors, freelancers, interns or volunteers. You may find it useful to enable the feedback area, and ask a couple of your senior managers to monitor the feed, so they can answer any questions.
Monitor training
You’ll often need to provide contractors with some training or guidance – whether it’s what to do in the event of a fire, or what’s expected of them in terms of data security, working with customers or representing your company. Any training or mentoring sessions you arrange can be set up as an activity in Cezanne HR, and the outcome recorded. That way you can keep track of what training they’ve received (a helpful step to ensuring you comply with legislation, such as Health and Safety).
Comply with health and safety
Both employers and contractors have duties under Health and Safety law. For the employer, this ranges from making sure that your contractors are qualified to do the job to having appropriate training and supervision is in place.
As well as using Cezanne HR to record training, make the most of the document tracking features. That way you can track the documents you’ve sent out, and see what’s been signed off as read. You’ll also be register any Health and Safety incidents in the system, and track follow up activities to ensure the appropriate records are kept.
It may also make sense to use the Performance review module to set up regular check-ins between the contractor and their supervisor.
Track time effectively
Many contractors, especially those supplied by an independent agency, provide their own timesheets as part of the billing process. But, if the contractor is working directly for you, why not make use of the integrated Time module. That way it’s easier for approving managers to see what activities contractors are spending their time on and for finance or HR to pick up the information needed for payment – or to feed into future resourcing plans.
Are you managing contractors in Cezanne HR? Let us know what features you find most useful.
Sue Lingard
Sue studied Personnel Management at the London School of Economics before taking on management roles in the travel, recruitment and finally HR software industry. She's particularly interested in how technologies enable HR teams - and the people they support - to work better together.
