The hunt for employee talent

Oct. 20, 2016
With the expanded usage and sophistication of technology, rapidly changing workforce generational demographics and intensifying marketplace pressures, business owners and operators are faced with challenges unlike those they have seen before.

Let’s get the obvious out of the way first. The workplace has changed dramatically over the past 20 years. Period. With the expanded usage and sophistication of technology, rapidly changing workforce generational demographics and intensifying marketplace pressures, business owners and operators are faced with challenges unlike those they have seen before. 

Each of these challenges have varying levels of impact on the organization, dependent upon so many other variables. That said, one constant is and will continue to be the demand to find, retain and develop talented employees.

In his assessment of measuring a successful organization, Jack Welch, former CEO of GE, said it best regarding the role of employees in the overall equation: “There are only three measurements that tell you nearly everything you need to know about your organization’s overall performance: employee engagement, customer satisfaction and cash flow. It goes without saying that no company, small or large, can win over the long run without energized employees who believe in the mission and understand how to achieve it.”

So if we focus on achieving an engaged and energized workforce, how do we get there and how do we know if we’ve arrived? There are really four elements to consider when creating and sustaining the engaged workforce you want. 

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Organizational culture
The value of a defined organizational culture cannot be overstated, not only for the day-to-day operational processes, but more importantly for the “feel” of the company and the interconnectedness of the team. Your culture, intentionally or not, dictates so many things including the level of support from each employee to one another, the forms and effectiveness of communication used, overall customer and employee satisfaction, and what type of employee you attract, retain and develop. 

To be effective and sustainable, the organizational culture cannot be created and implemented in a vacuum, devoid of the employee base. Nothing ensures mixed results (or failure) quite like top-down directives without employee input. In a collaborative workplace, all voices are recognized and noted, maximizing not only expanded communication, but also the encouragement of new ideas. Your business has a culture, but it may not be clearly defined in such a way as to be repeated to customers easily. To do so, focus on what your business stands for (such as quality, professionalism, employee development, integrity, customer service) and what you value in your employees (such as character, supportive of others, intelligent, desire to learn, selfless). Take input, gather data, define and communicate; repeat.   

Staffing needs assessment
Another element for creating an engaged workforce is in the basics — clearly defining and openly communicating throughout the organization the staffing needs for the business, both immediate and long term. The emphasis must be on more than simply filling an open position in a reactive manner.  This is a proactive, collaborative effort with the employee base and management, understanding and defining the needs of the business going forward, including creating and communicating realistic job descriptions. Items to consider include the likely changes in staffing based on turnover, training and development opportunities, technology enhancements, process modifications and customer or business partner demands. By promoting input from the existing employees, communication is open and organizational buy-in is more likely to occur from top to bottom. 

Finding and identifying talent
Engagement also occurs when we set our sights on finding and identifying our future employees. With the changing dynamic in today’s workforce, this is not simply recruiting anymore; in fact, we are marketing our business, our brand and our reputation in the community as the best place to work. Staffing is a continuous endeavor, even without job openings, as we always want a pipeline of talent for those unexpected changes in our workforce. Strategically, to be cost effective, increase efficiency and ensure successful outcomes, business owners can do any or all of the following: create and expand their relationships with local technical/trade school placement offices and instructors; maximize consistent usage of social media tools such as Facebook and LinkedIn; place low-cost/high-impact virtual ads with industry publications, associations and placement services; communicate via email blasts to vendor partners, customers and local community affiliates; and post hard-copy ads where available in high candidate traffic locales. You never know what will work, so use as many tools as you can manage! 

Now that you’ve found candidates, targeted selection is critical to your overall process. What this means is, to a certain extent, a resume is a resume is a resume. We need to find the differentiator between candidates A, B and C. In the workforce of tomorrow, the business owner should identify those qualities or characteristics they want in an employee including intelligence, adaptability, communication skills, team oriented and eager to learn. Regarding pure experience, if we are seeking someone with experience, does their background reveal progression of roles or leadership or cross-training experience? Is that important to us? Are there gaps in the resume, begging questions of consistency or commitment? Is there any evidence of expanded skills or certifications or education beyond simply doing the job, such as participating as a mentor in the workplace? If we are seeking new candidates to the workplace, what professional experience, if any, do they have in addition to training? Have they served as an apprentice in their past?  It takes work, but it is worth it to go beyond typical recruiting and identify the right people for your organization.     

Onboarding
So many times we hear about, read about or discuss among ourselves the value of effectively onboarding a new employee. This is your first impression (owners/operators, I’m talking to you) to a new hire. You made the commitment of time and expense to identify talent, and you made the commitment to change the dynamic of your business to add a new employee to the mix. Why can’t you make the commitment to document and implement a plan to integrating new staff vs. praying they learn, stay and fit within your organization? Day one is the first of many critical days in the life cycle of an employee. This is your opportunity to not only engage the new employee, but tap into the excitement of a new hire. Beyond the necessary but mind-numbing business of employment paperwork (Thanks, HR), the early stages of the new employee’s days in your business can dictate not only their attitude, but ultimately their tenure with you. By seeking input from existing employees and taking the time to define a plan for new employee onboarding, with timeframes and deliverables, both parties ultimately will benefit. Prepare the organization to receive and develop new employees, track and measure results, and create an engaged workforce beginning on day one. 

In today’s workplace, it’s not enough to do business as usual, same as you always have, when it comes to your employees. To create a sustainable energy and passion for the job, the team and the business, focus on involving and engaging each member of the staff. From your culture to understanding your staffing needs to identifying talent to effectively onboarding new employees, each element matters and when done right, will lead to higher employee satisfaction and higher customer satisfaction and, ultimately higher profits.   

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