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Copy linkFord Fuels heats up efficiency with Staffology: A warm welcome to streamlined HR
Supplying fuels and lubricants across the South West of England for over 50 years, Ford Fuels had relied on spreadsheets to support their HR efforts for far too long, and with the team growing in recent years, the need for software was evident.
Joining the business in 2020, Debbie Caple came in as the Head of Human Resources to bring in efficiency and provide visibility of their staff data. With things heating up across the business, software that was scalable and intuitive was crucial to their continued success.
Harnessing data for energy efficiency
With just under 200 members of staff, and with 50% of the team out on the road delivering fuel, there was a clear need for a centralised HR system. Debbie tells us, “When I joined the business 3 years ago, everything was done via spreadsheet. This is probably a feasible way to do things when you’re a small team, but as you grow, that rapidly falls out of control. It becomes impossible to keep control of holiday allowance, absence requests, and training. To get any information we needed to dig through spreadsheets, and everything took far longer than it should have. I was desperate to bring a system into the business to help streamline our processes and make life easier for our managers, and our employees.”
Having previously used other HR systems in previous roles, Debbie knew what her requirements were, and what wasn’t going to work for Ford Fuels. She tells us, “We knew we needed a system that would be scalable, and a system that was intuitive for people who hadn’t used an HR system before was also critical. With a lot of our employees out on the road, we knew we needed software that would allow self-serve and with an app, so that they could book their holiday, for example, with ease. And another big thing was the possibility of payroll integration in the future; if working efficiently is your aim, then you need an integrated HR & Payroll system to be as efficient as possible.”
Warming up from spreadsheets to software
Previously, holidays were booked through managers and recorded on spreadsheets, which meant the team in the office had little visibility of who was in or out, and what holiday allowance people had remaining. Debbie tells us, “When you don’t have visibility over your data, it’s very difficult to feel in control of your HR. Something as simple as people leaving the organisation and not knowing what holiday allowance they had left was a real headache for us; small tasks that should be easy were time-consuming and required lots of manual digging, and for a small HR team this can become a real headache.
“Bringing in Staffology has allowed us to make so many improvements across so many different areas, from knowing what terms and conditions colleagues have, to tracking sickness, to ensuring training and development is up to date. One of the best features of Staffology for us is the alerts, so if someone does fall behind on their training it’s picked up straight away and not hidden in a spreadsheet. It’s allowed us to work more efficiently and more importantly has made the working environment for our staff far better.”
Fueling small business success: A HR System that fits just right
Choosing an HR system that is right for your business is key, particularly if you are moving from spreadsheets to software. Knowing your must-haves before scanning the market is a tip that Debbie recommends taking on board. She tells us, “For us, we needed a system that was user-friendly, able to grow with the business, and had the right price point. As a small business, an HR system is a big investment, so it needs to be right. We’re really pleased with the efficiencies we’ve made in the first year with Staffology and having all our data, visible, in one place has had such a positive impact on the business.
The team loves the ease of having control of their own HR and we are thrilled with the reports we can now run at the click of a button. We’ve made incredible time savings and made so many improvements across the business because of Staffology, so yes, we’d certainly recommend it to other businesses. If you’re still struggling with spreadsheets, I’d highly recommend looking at Staffology to make your lives easier!”
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