Your Total Guide To Business

What will September bring for Skora HR?

It’s the middle of September and the weather is changing. We’ve been speaking to businesses to find out what this month will bring for them and today we’re talking to Heidi Skirrow, owner of Skora HR which is a consultancy firm that provides HR services for small businesses. Skora are based in Poole, Dorset.

It’s ‘back to school’ month – is this relevant to you personally or professionally?
I’ve loved having the kids around for the summer as we’ve had so much fun but I’m so ready for them and me to be back in a normal routine with far less mum guilt trying to juggle making the holidays fun for them and have a normal working day!

World Gratitude Day takes place this month (Sept 21) – what are you grateful for at the moment?
I’m grateful that I have a business that allows me to use my strengths in HR to help my clients and feel I’m making a real difference to them, their people and their businesses whilst having the freedom to choose when and where I work!

Who are you grateful for at the moment?
I’m grateful for my two gorgeous children who for the most part get on really well and are just lovely human beings

What are your hopes for business for the rest of this year?
I hope to help more businesses see for themselves the true value of having a HR expert on their side and to widen our client base across even more industries.

We are dealing with a lot of messages around ‘bad’ news such as the rising cost of living, inflation rising and interest rates rising. How are you keeping positive – what tips can you share with others?
I try not to think about it as I like to focus on the things I can control or change and not the things that I can’t because I think it’s wasted energy. However, I am being a lot stricter with lights being on when they don’t need to be and have started shopping around more than before. Lidl is so cheap compared to Sainsbury and the quality isn’t bad! I’m also re-mortgaging earlier than expected with a lender who will keep the offer of todays interest rates on the table for 6 months which is the point where my early termination charge will be next to nothing.

Have you got any services or special offers you’d like to mention?
With the recent Supreme Court ruling in the case of Harpur Trust v Brazel, the employment world has been rocked when it comes to part year workers, variable hours and zero hours workers (basically anyone who doesn’t work 52 weeks of the year on a permanent contract). It means that these workers will get 5.6 weeks holiday not pro-rated to that of a full-time worker and the calculation for how it’s paid changes too. Gone are the days of rolling up holiday pay. I’m offering free 20-minute consultations to help employers understand how it may affect their business.

And finally, September 30 is International Podcast Day – do you listen to podcasts or do you have one of your own? Can you share a tip? Which podcasts should others check out?
I love a good podcast! On Purpose with Jay Shetty is great - He speaks with some fantastic guests. But the best ones are the ones that make me laugh like S**ged Married Annoyed with Chris and Rosie Ramsey or My dad wrote a Porno!