Snippet: a bit more info on our new Pay-as-you-Go HR Advice solution for SME's

The silver lining is that we’ve all had more time on our hands. Time to speak to friends & family, educate ourselves, exercise and tackle those more daunting tasks that have been habitually bumped from one day’s to-do list to the next.

In our case, one of those is launching Snippet; our “MVP” to serve small businesses with ad-hoc HR advice by the hour in a flexible, on-demand way through our affiliated HR partners.

Few matters make business owners recoil like employment law related ones, and this caution is indeed warranted - for they can become complex and are fraught with risk if not handled correctly.

But what the rule book tells us we're allowed to do is only part of overall picture, for employers must then consider adjacent issues, such as how a decision could actually play out given the context. Matters such as: how an action might affect company morale, or their employer reputation, or indeed, one’s own conscience.

And this is typically where employers feel really in the dark. You can get textbook advice from ACAS, and you can get better advice from an employment lawyer, but both lack pragmatism and a commercial outlook, which can ultimately result in a poor outcome.

We also noticed that many outsourced HR providers seek to lock clients in to a 12 month subscription-based HR advice package. The relatively complex decision-making process of signing a long-term contract is the last distraction a busy Founder needs when an urgent HR issue is weighing on their mind. They don't want to negotiate price, review long & formal documents and go through an arduous new-client onboarding program - they want a solution now. At least, this is our hypothesis...

Lockdown has conjured up yet-greater complexity as owner-managers now try to navigate social distancing in the workplace, redeployment of staff, optimising home working, employee wellbeing and a whole host of other issues, all while trying to keep their business afloat during a crisis.

As UK unemployment is set to more than double to 10%+ this year, Hawkwood have sadly observed that many of our HR contacts have not been immune from the swathes of cutbacks. We hope that, Snippet can begin to bring a flexible, home-based source of income to some of those affected HR professionals we have got to know over the years.

We’re attempting to better bridge the gap between small business owners in need of ad-hoc HR advice with those with the experience and “know-how” to provide it.

Step 1: Head to www.snippet.hr and purchase a 1 hour call slot

Step 2: Book in a call for your preferred time via a Calendly link

Step 3: We’ll match your need with one of our affiliated HR Partners based on your industry, company size and the nature of the issue you need resolving

Step 4: You’ll receive an email telling you all about your dedicated HR Partner and why we've chosen them for you

Step 5: Discuss your issue (+anything else you can fit in to an hour) via Google Hangout or a phone call

Step 6: You’ll receive an email summarising key actions via email to ensure nothing is missed

A huge thank you to those of you who offered the necessary advice to help get Snippet to this point. For the remainder of June and July, we are going to commit 100% of the profits of this venture to selected NHS charities, and 50% throughout August and September.

We are keen to ensure our dedicated HR Partners have enough work to make a meaningful impact on their circumstances. For this reason, we are starting with a very small group of HR pro's and we plan to open this up to further application once (if!) the client demand is there. If you'd like to express your interest in offering HR advice through Snippet in the future then please do let us know by emailing team@snippet.hr.

Thank you for reading and please feel free to share this article with anyone who could be open to considering Snippet.

Kristian James

Founder of Hawkwood