7 HR Tips New Managers in a Small Business Should Know

Being an effective employee and being an effective manager are two very different jobs.

In a small business, it’s common for a high-performing employee to be promoted into a supervisory or management role. They know the work, understand the business, and may already have strong relationships with the team. But suddenly, they’re expected to manage performance, address employee concerns, navigate conflict, and have conversations that can feel uncomfortable.

And too often, no one has given them much training on how to do any of that.

New managers don’t need to become HR experts. But they do need a basic understanding of their responsibilities, some practical tools, and a clear idea of when to handle something themselves and when to involve HR or leadership.

Here are seven HR tips every new manager should know.

One of the biggest adjustments for a new manager is realizing that success is no longer measured solely by their own individual performance.

As a manager, part of your job is to help other staff succeed.

That means setting clear expectations, providing feedback, removing obstacles, communicating priorities, and addressing problems when they arise. It also means resisting the temptation to simply do the work yourself whenever someone on your team is struggling.

This can be especially difficult for managers who were promoted because they were excellent individual contributors. They may think, “It will be faster if I just do it myself.”

Sometimes it will be.

But if you continually take over rather than coaching your employees to handle the task themselves, you aren’t solving the underlying problem or helping your team to become more independent.

A good manager asks:

• Have I clearly explained what I expect?
• Does the employee have the tools and information they need?
• Have I provided feedback along the way?
• Have I given the employee an opportunity to improve?
• Am I holding employees to consistent expectations?

Effective managers create the conditions for their team to do good work.

One of the most common management mistakes is failing to provide ongoing feedback or saving feedback for a formal performance review.

If an employee is doing something well, tell them. If something needs to change, tell them that, too.

Feedback is most useful when it is timely, specific, and focused on the behavior or result.

For example, instead of saying:

“You need to communicate better.”

Try:

“When project timelines change, it’s important you let the team know as soon as you are aware of the change. Yesterday, the team didn’t learn about the revised deadline until the afternoon, which made it difficult to adjust the schedule and impacted our ability to meet the new deadline.”

The second version gives the employee something they can actually act on.

Feedback shouldn’t always be critical or constructive, either. Regularly recognizing good work is an important part of managing people. A simple “That worked really well” or “I appreciate you taking care of that” can go a long way.

Avoiding a difficult conversation rarely makes the underlying issue disappear. In fact, waiting often makes the conversation harder.

If an employee is repeatedly late, missing deadlines, behaving inappropriately toward coworkers, or not meeting expectations, address the issue early rather than allowing frustration to build.

A useful framework is:

Describe what happened.

Explain the impact.

Clarify the expectation.

Ask for the employee’s perspective.

Agree on next steps.

For example:

“I’ve noticed that you’ve been arriving 15–20 minutes after your scheduled start time several times over the past few weeks. When that happens, the morning handoff isn’t covered and other team members have to step in. Your scheduled start time is 8:30, so I need you to be ready to begin work at that time. Is there something going on that I should be aware of?”

Notice that the manager isn’t starting with an accusation or making assumptions about why the employee is late.

The goal is to understand the situation while still being clear about expectations.

And if the conversation involves a potentially serious performance, conduct, discrimination, harassment, leave, accommodation, or other employment issue, involve HR or the appropriate leader before taking action.

Managers are often the first people employees approach with questions or concerns. That doesn’t mean managers are expected to resolve every issue on their own.

One of the most important skills for a new manager is knowing when to pause and involve HR.

For example, contact HR or leadership when an employee raises concerns involving:

• Harassment or discrimination
• Retaliation
• Workplace safety
• Medical conditions or accommodations
• Leave requests
• Pay or wage concerns
• Potential policy violations
• Serious conflicts between employees
• Threats or workplace violence
• Potential termination or significant disciplinary action

Even when a situation seems straightforward, getting HR involved early can help ensure that the issue is handled consistently and appropriately.

And involving HR doesn’t necessarily mean something has gone terribly wrong. HR is a valuable resource for managers, not just the department that gets called when there is a problem.

Documentation doesn’t have to mean writing a novel every time you talk to an employee. But if you’re addressing an ongoing performance or conduct issue, keeping a clear record is important.

Useful manager notes should generally answer:

• What happened?
• When did it happen?
• What was discussed?
• What expectations were communicated?
• How did the employee respond?
• What are the next steps?

Stick to facts and avoid editorializing.

For example:

Less helpful:

“Jane was completely unprofessional and clearly doesn’t care about the project.”

More helpful:

“On September 15, Jane interrupted the project meeting several times while another employee was speaking. I reminded her of the expectation that employees allow others to finish before responding. Jane said she understood.”

The second example documents an observable behavior and the manager’s response without making assumptions about Jane’s intentions.

Good documentation also helps managers be consistent. If a similar issue comes up later, you have a record of what was discussed and what expectations were communicated.

Managers sometimes hear that they need to “treat everyone the same.” While consistency is important, that doesn’t necessarily mean every employee will receive exactly the same response in every situation.

Different circumstances may require different approaches.

For example, one employee may need additional training because they are new to the role. Another may have extensive experience but repeatedly fail to meet an established expectation. Those situations may appropriately be managed differently.

The key is to apply your organization’s policies and expectations consistently and to have a legitimate, job-related reason when circumstances are different.

Managers should also avoid making exceptions based on personal relationships or preferences.

If one employee is allowed to arrive late every Friday while everyone else is expected to be on time, eventually someone is likely to notice, and morale can suffer.

When you’re unsure whether you’re being consistent, ask HR or another leader to help you step back and look at the situation objectively.

Perhaps the most important lesson for a new manager is this:

You are not expected to know everything.

Employment issues can be complicated, particularly as a small business grows and begins employing people across multiple states or dealing with increasingly complex employee situations.

A manager who confidently gives an incorrect answer about leave, pay, accommodations, or company policy can create a much bigger problem than a manager who says:

“I’m not sure. Let me check on that and get back to you.”

That’s a perfectly good response.

Create a habit of knowing where to go for answers. That might be your HR consultant, business owner, payroll provider, or another designated resource.

Build Your Manager HR Toolkit

If you’re a small business without an HR department, you don’t need a complicated management system to get started.

Give your managers a few basic tools:

• A clear job description

Managers need to understand what they are actually expected to do.

• Your employee handbook and key policies

Managers should know what the company’s policies say and where to find them.

• A performance conversation framework

Give managers a basic structure for providing feedback and addressing problems.

• A documentation template

Make it easy for managers to record important conversations objectively.

• A “Call HR” checklist

Managers should know which issues require HR or leadership involvement.

• Regular manager training

Don’t assume that someone knows how to manage simply because they were good at their job. Give managers opportunities to learn and practice management skills.

Managing people can feel intimidating, especially when you’re doing it for the first time. But managers don’t need to be perfect. They need clear expectations, good communication skills, consistency, and the confidence to ask for help when they need it.

For small businesses, investing in managers can have an outsized impact. Managers are often the people employees interact with most, and their day-to-day decisions shape the employee experience (we’ve all heard the saying, “Employees leave managers, not companies”).

If your managers are struggling with difficult conversations, performance issues, employee concerns, or simply aren’t sure what they’re supposed to handle themselves, it may be time to give them some additional support.

Orchard HR can help.

Whether you need manager training, help developing practical HR tools and policies, or ongoing HR support for your growing business, Orchard HR can help you build an HR approach that works for your organization.

Not sure what your business needs? Start with an HR needs assessment. We’ll take a look at your current HR practices, identify gaps and priorities, and help you determine where to focus your time and resources.

Contact us to start the conversation.