The sky has changed to that peculiarly September blue, there’s dew on the grass in the morning and the early scent of Autumn is in the air.

As all of us educated in the northern hemisphere recognise the unmistakable feel of going back to school, what’s ready for a refresh in your HR life?

For many, this time is the halfway point of the financial year – the moment when we realise all those goals set around January and February should have got some traction now. The main areas we are seeing with clients are:

Gender pay – if you haven’t started yet, you are officially behind the times.  With over 7,000 organisations due to report by April, and only around 65 having actually done so, you could be forgiven for thinking that everyone else is a bit late handing in their summer project too - but you’d be wrong.  There are a lot of organisations sitting on their hands, and their completed report, wondering when everyone else will publish.  Our view is that a lot of organisations are waiting for their half year employee update to release the internal message and will publish soon after.  We’re expecting a fair rush between September and November.  And if you haven’t started grappling with the mysteries of ‘ordinary pay’, how to include bonus if you paid it in April (make plans to change that for 2018 now) and what needs to go into your narrative – then it needs to go to the top of your agenda for this September, and make a pledge to get it underway by the end of the month.

RemCom season – make this the year that you are ready for the rush.  Plan your meetings and what will be covered in each, and stick it in front of your Chair of RemCom’s nose. Planning your benchmarking requirements, bonus review timetable and annual pay review now will give you a feeling of zen for the rest of the RemCom season.  If you are new to RemCom or want a refresher, here’s a link to our short video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GYtsfgoen5A

Bonus review – we supported several companies with a bonus review earlier in the year – what about yours?  If you are approaching half way through your bonus year or beyond, conducting a review of effectiveness now allows you to spot any on-going issues and to consider a refresh for 2018. This includes annual bonus, and sales bonus. The gender pay gap for bonus is often embarrassingly huge – far more than the ordinary pay gap. Many organisations would like to think through how their scheme works now, rather than be caught out again in 2018. Is this a matter for your RemCom or full Board?

As always, Innecto are on hand with fresh and flexible thinking to support you in driving forward your Reward agenda for the rest of 2017 and into 2018. With some big name new clients this year, we’re likely to have an in-depth knowledge of your sector. In any case, we’re likely to help your thinking. Give us a call on 020 3457 0894.

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