It is easy to get flustered over staffing challenges, especially for small business and nonprofit leaders who know every role on the team counts. A recent article in Forbes asked the question, “Is it too late to retain your talent?” They cited the Pew Research Center who found 57% of individuals left a job because they felt disrespected at work. Additionally, 63% left due to pay concerns or lack of advancement opportunities. These are age-old issues businesses face, impacting an existing employee base, but are also considerations when recruiting new talent.
In our blog, Is there a “Great Resignation” Workaround? Preparation, we’ve discussed staffing challenges businesses are facing coming out of the pandemic. In this blog we’ll take a deeper dive at important considerations around employee retention and recruiting; in other words, proactive preparedness, to help you manage staffing considerations successfully.
Understanding the hiring and recruitment trends.
According to Eric Friedman, a Forbes Council Member (the Forbes Human Resources Council), there is an “ever-widening skills gap” referring to a “fundamental mismatch between the abilities required to fill vacant positions and the prospective employees' skills.” The bottom line, what do you need to do to get prospects with the right experience interested in your company, much less, onboarding them? You may be missing out on top talent by following outdated or passive recruiting processes for hiring. And while networking continues to be a key component of finding good talent, it’s increasingly an employee’s market to swim around searching for the best hook. The good news, there are many helpful resources online to get your hiring manager up to speed, and to choose the methods that work best for your business and culture.
Survey your staff.
In the emerging business landscape, the one-size fits all model may no longer apply. Becoming flexible to meet the individual needs of staff, of course within reason, may mean the difference between their staying on or going elsewhere. Do a critical analysis of your existing plans. Like the home improvement show, Love It or List It, employees are actively observing your management. Are you shoring up their old “house” and making it attractive to stay or are you allowing someone else to tempt them away? Some of the other areas of employee dissatisfaction The Pew Research Center exposed included work flexibility, hours, and benefits packages. While you won’t be able to meet all needs now, good faith efforts to let your teams know they are respected, empowered, trusted, and heard will go a long way, especially if they feel like they can be a part of the solution.
Reevaluating your employee benefit options.
Following the trends in benefit packages may reveal where true employee satisfaction lies and may be less costly in the long run depending how often you must replace team members. Either add new benefits or enhance what is already offered, like adding more perks, or making changes to the work environment, or equipment. For instance, implementing standing desk options is a relatively low-cost investment with high ROI in employee wellness and productivity. Or perhaps increasing employer matching on charitable contributions, or other insurance options which could positively impact current and potential employees without breaking the bank. Create a plan that can be shared, then phase in change over time as budget allows. Communicating commitment to any changes benefiting employees helps encourage their loyalty to you and may increase their incentives to stay.
What are your other options?
Sometimes, your employees’ biggest need may be to have more help to relieve their overall workload. And some areas, like financial management of your business, cannot risk being fudged by untrained staff. If you haven’t before, explore outsourcing for key roles. All In One Accounting would like to be your outsourced accounting services partner if you are facing staff challenges. If you are ready to explore your options or have immediate needs to keep your business running smoothly today, let us know! We're here to help.