Contract Management

These days employees expect to be developed as part of the deal. Human Resource folk mumble (and sometimes grumble) about something called the psychological contract. This is an unwritten, tacit contract that sits alongside the formal, written employment contract and is just as important. The employment contract sets out the basic consideration which will be along the lines of “if you do what we ask you to do, we’ll pay you X”. In reality things are of course more complex and the nature of the work required will be detailed in role profiles and the like, while the reward part will be similarly defined as salary, bonus, etc. and a range of non-financial rewards such as holidays. The psychological contract is each party’s understanding of what each other will do to play ‘fair’. For most of the 20th Century that ran along the lines of ‘turn up for work and do a reasonable job and we’ll employ you for life’ But this contract was torn up as part of the way working life was transformed from the 1980s to date. The ‘job for life’ has gone forever and it is probably impossible and certainly unwise to assume that we will have only one or two employers throughout our working life. The psychological contract these days runs along the lines of ‘in exchange for my efforts at work I expect to be developed and build my CV so that I increase my overall employment prospects’.

In the UK at the time of writing, there is still a scarcity of skills which means that employers are having to work harder to recruit and retain the best people; the so-called war for talent. This makes the job market a seller’s market with potential employees in a strong bargaining position. Recruitment firms even talk of the ‘reverse interview’ where candidates size up their chances of development before considering whether to accept any offer. To match this expectation with only the orthodox training and development offering of classroom training and external qualifications would be dreadfully expensive and ultimately unworkable. There will always be a time and a place for such things in an overall learning and development strategy of course, but coaching – particularly when delivered by managers – provides a more cost effective,tailor made and timely solution.

The change to the psychological contract is but one of numerous changes that have been played out in the theatre of work in recent years. The current industrial relations climate sees the pendulum swinging back towards the employee and their rights, with some employers bemoaning the bureaucracy and red-tape that this entails. Nevertheless it seems that family friendly policies like Flexible Working and Parental Leave are here to stay; driven at least in part by people’s desire to want a better work-life balance.

Other social changes have also had an impact on working life. Work now has a very different role in people’s lives. Where once work was simply the way we made enough money to pay the bills, we now work for a host of psychological as well as economic reasons. For example many people now fulfil their need for social interaction through work – I guess because of the amount of time we spend there! Others fulfil their esteem needs through work; enjoying the satisfaction that comes from doing a meaningful work and doing it well. It’s as if collectively we’ve all moved up a level or two on Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. In Western economies in general and in the UK in particular it is unlikely that anyone is going to fall on really hard times if they’re out of work – we have a welfare system that provides support, so a management style that invites people to be thankful they receive a salary is unlikely to prove very motivating. Instead we need to acknowledge that we need a more human approach; one that captures the variety of motivations for people to come to work. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a start but there is much work to do at the level of the fundamental relationship between the manager and their team.

Matt Somers
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/coaching-skills-training-making-the-case-for-coaching-part-one-688374.html

Got an invention?  Have a product which you would like manufactured?  Consider having your products made by a contract manufacturer in China. Contract Manufacturing (CM) is where one business hires another company to manufacture their product. The contract manufacturer will charge the business for the manufacturing services based on the processes, amount of labor, tooling, and the cost of materials.

There are many companies, from small Mom and Pop to large ones, that use <a href=”http://www.manufacturingsite.net/”> Contract Manufacturing Services</a> rather than running their own factories. Contract manufacturing can be used to manufacture anything from product parts to a whole product. Cabinets, doors, sports equipment and toys are some of the products being made using contract manufacturing.  Contract manufacturers can either make products to your exact specifications or help you design them. Some people use contract manufacturers on a seasonal basis. This is very useful because once the tooling is done, production runs can be started anytime new products are needed.

In addition to letting a business focus more on their product advertising, marketing, and development aspects, Chinese contract manufacturers present many other advantages.  One of the problems with many domestic companies is the cost of labor. Chinese manufacturing enables you to save money by tapping into a cheaper workforce.  Not only do you pay less,  you can increases your profits all at the same time.  Some Chinese manufacturers are even managed by English speaking Americans so there will not be any communication problems.

A great way to get your product or invention made at the lowest costs possible, without all the hassles of running your own factory, is by using a contract manufacturer.  Many quality Chinese factories are available to build your products. This is one of the best management decisions for the small entrepreneur or large company to get their brand out in the market without having to worry about the manufacturing process.

Mark Ralph
http://www.articlesbase.com/outsourcing-articles/the-benefits-of-china-contract-manufacturing-701995.html

Getting a horse agistment contract drawn up and signed before you commence using a particular facility has become normal practice in the last few years. You may ask yourself do you really need to go to the expense of getting one. The answer, most definitely, is yes. It is recommended that you get a legal adviser to draw up the contract, especially if you have any particular requirements, but there are standard contracts available and further information can be obtained from a number of websites on the Internet.

For many years landowners and horse owners would only have a verbal agreement between them. This gave rise to many problems for example, if the horse fell ill or the horse owner defaulted on payment of agreed fees. With a horse agistment contract in place these problems do not arise as the contract can deal with all these eventualities and both parties know what is expected of them. To enable the horse agistment contract to be drawn up to adequately cover all likely problems the correct information must be given to your legal adviser.

A basic horse agistment contract would normally include clauses covering horse owner’s responsibilities for example, welfare of the horse, payment of veterinary fees, insurance against the horse damaging the landowners property etc. Clauses covering landowners responsibilities would generally be, advising the owner of any injury to the horse, advising the owner of the horse if the land or facility has become infected by disease, water quality and availability etc. Obviously, if you have any particular requirements pertaining to your own arrangement you should include these.

Horse agistment contracts normally also include a clause covering late or non-payment of fees. Should this problem occur the landowner would have the right to a lien over the horse in question enabling the landowner to recover any fees or costs outstanding. If a horse agistment contract has not been signed it is possible that a landowner can claim a lien under the Impounding of Livestock Act 1994. However any clause dealing with late or non-payment of fees, in a horse agistment contract would take precedence.

Although the horse agistment contract is between two people, additional information for example, the full name of the horse and any distinctive markings or scars of old injuries should also be included to clarify which specific horse the horse agistment contract is for.

The horse agistment contract should stipulate that the management of the horse should be of an accepted standard and may cover such items as accommodation, quality of pastureland and food, veterinary and farrier attention, vaccination against disease and pest treatment etc.

If the landowner has taken on the management of the horse, under the horse agistment contract, the horse owner should check the horse’s welfare on a regular basis. Both landowners and horse owners can be held to account for animal neglect or cruelty.

Get a horse agistment contract, it can save you money in the long term

Lina Smith
http://www.articlesbase.com/business-articles/do-you-need-a-horse-agistment-contract-726820.html