How we accessed HR support for free: Frontline Integrity
As a new and ambitious business, Frontline Integrity is embracing new opportunities and challenges every day. Business Manager Hannah Kerrigan tells us how The Business Factory is helping the team to move forward with confidence…
Our business provides bespoke engineering consultancy and software to pipeline operators in the energy and mining industries.
Our goal is to support the integrity management of their infrastructure, protecting people and the environment. We help companies identify and manage credible integrity threats to their assets and help them to build a strategic management plan – repairing and replacing where necessary.
We also offer specialist training and host technical events to share our expert knowledge with pipeline operators. Our consultancy was set up by my husband Brian in 2020 who leads the technical side of the business, and our team is now into double digits spread across the globe. Our main office is located at Silverlink Business Park.
I can’t imagine how long it would have taken me to wade through Google to even work out what should be included!
But our consultant knew exactly what was needed from a practical and legal point of view, and then personalised this for us based on our company values. The final document was a thick and substantial piece of work and not something I could have done without her expertise. She helped us to underpin everything we wanted to do as a company.
The project delivered so much more than an employee handbook alone because her questions got to the heart of our company values.
They gave us reason to stop and give proper consideration to who we are and what we stand for. We’d always had this at the back of our minds but we’d not put pen to paper so this was the perfect opportunity to formalise that. This thinking has become a pilar of our company and it really guides our decision-making on a day-to-day basis.
The support we received lifted a huge weight off my shoulders.
We’ve worked with The Business Factory from the very beginning and found out we could ask them to offer solutions or point us in the right direction.
The team is so well-connected to all the opportunities, funding and services out there. Thanks to a recommendation from them, we entered and won the North Tyneside Business Awards 2021. They’re really good at helping us to find what support we need and the best people to get it from. As a small business we’re always short of time and striving to be efficient, so this is a huge help. Instead of wading through Google and going down blind alleys looking for answers, we can get in touch, and they’ll help us find out where we should go to for help.
As a former teacher, I’m very much learning about how to run a business as I go – the way most business owners have to do things.
As a small business, it’s typical for one person to take on a few business areas, seeking support when required. I support with the finance, human resources and development of a quality management system. Recently, we initiated the creation of an employee handbook, but I was unsure of where to start. So, when the Business Factory offered us some fully-funded HR consultancy support, I jumped at the chance.
We were matched with a consultant who made the process so simple. She laid out some specific questions for us to learn about our specific approach to business, and we provided her with the raw information.
Running a business comes with a lot of responsibility and at times it can be daunting. When it comes to HR there can be a lot of anxiety around the need to understand and abide by legislation and protocols. Knowing an expert has supported the development of our company handbook gives me such confidence and reassurance. The document is now part of our quality management system now and is a constant and reliable resource. We were awarded ISO9001 in September and having an employee handbook in place supported us on this journey.
People’s time and their expertise is expensive. As consultants ourselves, we know that and we appreciate why that’s totally right.
So, we really appreciated the incredible value free time with an HR specialist presented. Plus, it introduced us to a quality consultant who we could ask to help us on other projects and challenges, and we know where the Business Factory is to help us with anything else.
Has Hannah’s story got you thinking?
Find out how we can help your business by calling us on 0191 643 6409 or drop us an email on info@businessnorthtyneside.co.uk
