Business Word

Why Every Creative Enterprise Needs Redundant Employees

by Peter Zvalo

Career counselors advise people to carve out a niche for themselves and become a centre of expertise within an organization. The employee's objective: to demonstrate that he or she possesses such unique and specialized skills and knowledge that to replace him or her would be difficult, if not impossible. The hope is that, before long, the employee will be viewed as an indispensable resource to the company and who can start earning the salary and benefits he or she has only read about in Forbes.

For a small- or medium-sized business, having employees who are considered indispensable can spell danger. By allowing an employee to believe that he or she is indispensable, management ceases to manage and becomes the managed. The key to avoiding such a situation is to incorporate the concept of redundancy into an organization.

The concept of redundancy is well known in the information technology industry. Redundancy, in this sense is not something to be eliminated, but rather a mechanism to be carefully controlled. Redundancy can mean having a backup printer in case the main one is out of service for an extended period of time. It can also mean hiring backup personnel in case a problem develops with your primary sources of expertise.

Employing more than one person with the same skills and expertise is a good idea, especially when times are good and the business can afford it. In this way, no single employee can hold a company hostage. Furthermore, redundancy is likely to encourage friendly competition in which individuals try to outdo each other in an effort to be recognized as the most valuable. In a creative environment, such as that found in high tech development firms or advertising agencies, innovative ideas are more likely to emerge when a spirit of competition combined with cooperation is fostered.

Paradoxically, redundancy is more critical to a firm when times are not so good as it is during such slowdowns that firms are least inclined to make use of redundancy. When business is slow and the company's income falls, the best and brightest soon become bored and restless, and may start to look for work elsewhere. Without redundancy built into the organization, a difficult situation may arise when the star employee hands in his or her letter of resignation.

When the option of employing more people than a firm absolutely needs is impractical or impossible, redundancy can still be achieved. Maintaining a network outside the firm of qualified individuals who are available to work on a contract basis or who have shown a genuine interest in working for the company serves as a form of redundancy. In this way, the time-consuming task of pre-screening candidates to fill last-minute vacancies is avoided; the most suitable candidate need only be chosen from an existing cache.

Establishing a network of qualified individuals is best done when no immediate vacancies are available by placing a recruitment advertisement in the local newspaper or on the Internet. Replenish the network by periodically placing ads for individuals, but be sure to be up-front and honest about your firm's intentions and thereby maintain a positive relationship with the people who may be needed in the coming months or years.

Businesses that plan for the future are most likely to survive and prosper in the long term. Part of that planning includes ensuring that redundancy is built into the organization in the event of staff changes. It's probably the best insurance money can't buy.