Based in Esher, Surrey, The Oakwood is a ‘community clubhouse’ offering adventure sports, fitness, wellness, skiing, parties and events. Formerly known as Sandown Sports, it was acquired in 2023 by Louise and Bill Saville. It employs 99 staff across its gym, skywalk, ski, party, holiday clubs, bar and clubhouse.
The challenge
When the business was acquired, the new owners discovered that all staff had varying contracts ranging from zero hours to fixed. In addition, rotas were managed through multiple Excel spreadsheets and WhatsApp groups. All files and contracts were stored on Dropbox and not easily accessible to staff or management.
Working with Bespoke HR, the team quickly identified the need for a more efficient rota management system and to be able to access documentation easily. The new owners needed access to information in one place to make informed decisions and continue to grow the business.
With so many staff on different contracts with varying pay, managing rotas, payroll, holidays and absence was a huge headache. Staff worked different shift patterns across the site, and we quickly realised that our first task was to streamline the entire process. We have been acquainted with Alison at Bespoke HR for years and knew its track record of working with growing businesses like ours. We enlisted their help as soon as possible.
The solution
Nicky Mori, Managing Consultant at Bespoke HR worked with the team to conduct an HR audit. This identified where the gaps were in the existing HR set-up and where efficiencies could be made. She audited all the processes and systems which led her to recommend the Planday HR system, renowned for efficient rota scheduling and cost-effective for smaller businesses. Nicky then worked to implement and onboard the system, including training the team on its use.
The Planday system at The Oakwood includes:
- Holiday booking systems.
- Rota management.
- Staff communication channels.
- Absence management
- All staff contracts and paperwork.
Outcomes
Planday is accessed via an app so the team and staff can now communicate with each other without relying on multiple WhatsApp messages. Rotas are no longer confusing, and the process has been sped up due to the efficient scheduling tools in the HR system. Contracts are aligned, which has made it easier to process payroll avoiding potential pay errors or miscalculations.
With the support of Bespoke HR, we now have an efficient system that has streamlined these time-consuming tasks which were a drain on our resources. Bespoke HR has made a new system’s implementation and onboarding process seamless, and it’s great to know that we can rely on them for strategic HR support to help grow the business
If you would like help with implementing an HR system, get in touch with the team.