28 | Q1 2022 Oct21413 Most Outstanding Virtual HR Consultancy 2022 - UK Natalie Ellis is a HR Consultant at Rebox HR, having started her consultancy in March 2020 – two weeks before the first lockdown. Since then, her business has significantly grown by providing a high-quality HR service to over 60 clients throughout the UK. We speak to Natalie and find out more. Rebox HR is a tailored HR advice service, specialising in employment relations. In addition to the HR advice service, it also offers bespoke HR documentation, management training and support HR projects such as restructures, TUPE, recruitment, onboarding and redundancies. “Basically, we support businesses throughout the UK by supporting them through some of the trickiest situations you can think of when employing people!” explains Natalie, who founded the company just over 18 months ago. Rebox HR has five core values at the heart of the business, Natalie continues to tell us. These values not only define the firm but also provide customers with the reassurance they need when considering a HR consultancy. They centre around being personable, balanced, consistent, pragmatic, and supportive. Rebox HR offers both a bespoke service and a cost effective one which makes it different to large scale consultancies. It is very much a partner to the businesses it works with, irrespective of if they want an employee policy, contract or handbook, right through to its retainer service where the firm effectively acts as their HR department. Each client gets a high standard of service and Natalie really prides herself on that. “This bespoke approach is what makes us unique and HR approachable because it hasn’t always been this way!” she states. “The values also set the foundation for our relationships with our clients but will also set out meaning for our future employees too.” Natalie is responsible for delivering best practices and providing HR advice to SMEs with a unique commercial approach. She is passionate about helping employers to realise their potential by empowering their people and educating business leaders on the importance of good people management, producing cultures of fairness, consistency, and equality. She advises on the entire employment lifecycle, including employment relations, performance, leadership development, and organisational design. But it hasn’t been plain sailing all the way and the initial inception of her own HR firm was challenging. “At first, we really had to hustle for business, and it was really tough going for the first 4-5 months, especially when you are competing against larger firms. Now, we are 18 months into the business venture, we no longer have to work as hard as a lot of our business comes from word of mouth and recommendations from existing clients,” Natalie tells us. A familiar face in HR and national publications, Natalie is highlighted as an industry expert and keynote speaker. A key achievement was the creation of the “HR Acts of Kindness” social media movement in 2016, designed to unite workplaces following the Brexit announcement. Natalie was determined to continue inspiring the future of the profession during the pandemic. She has helped to motivate and inspire over 200 HR students by giving virtual talks to universities and colleges. In November 2020, Natalie published her first book “Launch Your HR Career” to help aspiring HR professionals find their feet. “The pandemic has only increased the demand for HR support,” says Natalie, speaking of the current appetite for outsourced HR services. “With the introduction and wind up of the Job Support Scheme (Furlough) additionally, when businesses recognise the contribution HR can make rather than seeing it as a processing department, they really see a transformation in their people both in performance and in respect of their company culture.” Future challenges for both businesses and HR is the scope of diversity topics such as the Black Lives Matter movement, equal opportunities awareness and mental health in the workplace; businesses need to be prepared and understand how this impacts them because no matter the size of the business, they will be affected if they employ anyone. Training and empowerment of line managers to instil best practices are critical to protecting businesses from any potential Employment Tribunal claims. Recently, Natalie was awarded the prestigious accolade of Most Outstanding Virtual HR Consultancy 2022 – UK for Rebox HR and now aims to grow the business substantially in 2022, as well as giving something back to others. She adds, “I’d like to give future HR professionals an opportunity to learn from everything I have built both in my 16-year career and in my business so far.” Contact Details Contact: Natalie Ellis Company: Rebox HR Ltd Web Address: www.reboxhr.co.uk
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