Commonly, we see organizations turn to mergers as a way to stay stronger, capitalize on knowledge and perhaps weather the storms ahead. Mergers and acquisitions can be excellent strategies, but the winners in the process will be those who pay close attention to people in addition to numbers and data.Business leaders can’t overlook the human element inherent in a merger. Studies have shown that companies who come through a merger “very successfully” are those who have a strategy in place to retain their key talent, take time to marry-up corporate cultures and focus on aligning leadership practices and strategies. This is more than just communication, it’s about planning. Just as the balance sheets are scrutinized, so too must be departments and people when considering a merger. Get to know the cultures of teams, departments and the overall business. Look for common ground and establish ways to make a big deal out of it. Don’t downplay the differences, but do consider which direction is best for the organization going forward. People are going to play a key role in making these changes happen and in order to have the most successful merger possible, those people need to be “on-board” and aware of the realities ahead. It may seem like an odd thing for an accounting firm to be centred on people, but if you get to know us at Invictus, you’ll understand that people are the key.  The flexibility of working from home or running a contractor-based business can be a wonderful option for workers, but both employers and the people they hire, need to be conscious of what makes up an employee relationship and what defines a contractor relationship. A few months ago, we heard from an employer who was confused as to whether their worker was a contractor or an employee. The worker had come to them stating they were a contractor and for the employer, that seemed like a solid answer. After all, the individual had their own business number, company name and billing process. They had an office within their residence and occasionally worked there. Unfortunately, to the CRA, there is more to the definition of employee or contractor. In Canada there is a Four-Point Test that allows workers and employers to define the nature of their relationship. Flexibility in working arrangements is commonplace and no longer does having a home office define a contractor like it once did, even having a business name and number isn’t enough. Categories like control over the work and how it is done, ownership of tools, chance of profit or risk of loss and integration are all aspects that must be addressed. When the Four-Point Test was applied to the case of the employer who came to us, we found that for a number of reasons, the worker they had hired was in fact a contractor. The worker made decisions on where and how to perform the work and used their own tools to do so in addition to other aspects. Before making the decision of who is an employee and who is a contractor, be sure to check the CRA’s guidelines to avoid concerns down the road. |
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