Hiring Administrative Staff For Your Trade Business

While having top-notch job management software like Tradify will save you hours of admin time per week, there may come a time in your business when bringing on administrative help will be key to helping your trade business grow. However, there are several important factors to think about before hiring administrative staff in your trade business.

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1. When do you need to hire administrative staff?
2. What can admin staff help with? 
3. Can you afford to hire an admin staff member?
4. Types of administrative employees

1. When do you need to hire administrative staff?  

If your business is missing deadlines, you’re feeling overworked, or receiving more customer complaints, it’s time to weigh the cost-benefit of hiring admin staff. While there are initial expenses associated with new hires,  your investment pays off by boosting efficiency, improving customer service, and freeing you up to make strategic decisions and grow your trade business. Ultimately, bringing in admin support helps to manage your workload and positions your business for sustainable long-term success. 

2. What can admin staff help with? 

Admin staff can be the backbone of your business, especially when paired with Tradify's job management software. By handling admin tasks such as job scheduling, invoicing, and customer communication, they can streamline workflows, reduce errors, and boost your business efficiency. This allows you and your trade employees to focus on delivering quality work — rather than getting bogged down by admin tasks.

A good administrative staff member could cover: 

Scheduling and job management:

• Managing jobs and schedules
• Managing field staff
• Communicating job updates with clients and tradespeople

Invoicing and payments:

• Creating and sending invoices to clients
• Tracking outstanding payments and following up on overdue accounts
• Managing supplier invoices and payments

Customer communication:

• Answering phone calls, emails, and other enquiries
• Ensuring customers get accurate quotes and estimates 
• Addressing customer complaints or concerns
• Keeping customers updated on job progress

Record keeping:

• Entering job details, customer information, and supplier data into Tradify
• Maintaining accurate and up-to-date records of all business transactions

Inventory management:

• Ordering materials and supplies for upcoming jobs
• Tracking inventory levels and managing stock
• Communicating with suppliers regarding deliveries and stock availability

Compliance and documentation:

• Managing compliance documents such as licenses, certifications, and insurance
• Ensuring health and safety protocols are followed and documented

Payroll and timesheet management:

• Processing timesheets for staff and subcontractors
• Managing payroll and ensuring correct payments to employees
• Tracking leave and overtime

Marketing and social media:

• Managing social media accounts and posting updates
• Updating your business website with new content or job listings

If you think your business would benefit from help in these areas, it may be time to hire an administrative staff member. 

3. Can you afford to hire an admin staff member?

Hiring an additional staff member to your payroll won't be cheap. Before making the decision, check whether your financial resources and cash flow can sustain their wages, even during challenging times. To help you evaluate, use our free Cash Flow Forecast Template. If cash flow might be tight, consider increasing your hourly rate to generate additional revenue.

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Ideally, the first step would be to chat with an accountant and review your numbers. If this isn't an option, the first step should be to forecast your revenue for the year and compare it to the cost of hiring a new employee. Ensure you have enough funds left after paying the new employee to cover all other business expenses, including wages for other employees, overhead, and materials.

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4. Employment options for administrative employees

If you're not sure if your business needs a full-time staff member to carry out administrative tasks, there are several alternative employment-type options to get help to lighten the load! 

• Salaried employees: Employees who receive a fixed annual salary, regardless of the number of hours worked. They are typically eligible for benefits like health insurance and paid time off.
• Hourly employees: These are employees who are paid based on the number of hours they work. They are usually eligible for overtime pay and benefits, depending on their hours.
• Part-time employees: These are employees who work less than 30-35 hours per week, and may receive limited benefits.
• Independent contractors/freelancers: These are usually self-employed individuals who are contracted to perform specific tasks or projects for a business, but are not considered employees and do not receive employee benefits or tax withholding.

The choice of employment type will be determined by the size of your business, the scope of their role and the amount you can afford to put towards a new staff member! 

An admin staff takes care of more than just the day-to-day tasks of running a business. Bringing on extra help can be crucial for maintaining a reasonable workload - supporting you to be the best boss and business owner you can be. 

Ready to see the benefits of an organised business? Try Tradify free for 14 days or pop into one of our walkthrough demos to get started.