‘Think in ink’ to keep track of work
It’s busy on farm, calving, new staff, long hours, but even with all this going on it is crucial that you remember to ‘‘Think in Ink’’ and write things down.
Everything from what you plan to do on farm in your weekly meetings, to all health and safety, writing it down will help you have better systems and better records should they ever be called upon.
Health and safety – write it down. This is the only way to prove that you have policies and systems in place should an inspector visit.
Training staff – write it down, shows that you went through training processes with them. Document what you showed them and discussed with them. Detail when you did this, whether it was their first training session or a refresher. This will help if you have issues further down track.
Staff concerns that you speak to them about – write it down, this is highly likely to be useful later. There is no such thing as a casual conversation with staff, if you have any concerns with staff, even a coaching conversation you should keep a record of.
So in summary even though you are busy anything around staff orientation, training, health and safety definitely record it. This also includes employment records, timesheets, employment agreements, leave records. You got – they should all be recorded.
John Brosnan, Human advisor at CooperAitken Accountants, Morrinsville, Matamata and Thames, DDI 07 889 8838 or email john@cooperaitken.co.nz.