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Recruit and Retain the Best Talent
May 09, 2008
Don't let turnover woes get you down. Follow these recruiting and retention best practices to find and keep your next management star.
By Walter R. Hall Jr.
Rapid management-level employee turnover has long been an issue with a variety of industries, not only impacting business but the ability of upper-management teams to perform executive duties as well. By practicing a number of enlightened policies and programs that resonate with today's workforce, you can recruit and retain the talent required for your business to prosper.
Reeling in Recruits
• Clearly define the qualifications desired in prospective managers. The employee selection process cannot effectively begin until you know exactly what type of employee you are looking for. Do you want someone who has experience in your current industry, or a fresh face who may have something new to bring to the table? What qualifications and skills are important for the position and which are not as much of a priority? Recruiting top talent translates into “selling” your business. An organization cannot genuinely promote itself unless its expectations are clearly stated and practiced.
• Accurately represent your core culture. An organization's culture—or what is sometimes referred to as its collective personality—is another significant element to recruiting and retaining top talent. A company's culture should be a natural extension of its core values, those deeply held beliefs of how the company sees itself relating to employees, customers, service suppliers, and literally everyone it comes in contact with. Certainly, a high quality manager could perform well practically anywhere, but if your culture offers the best possible environment in which to thrive and grow careers, top level talent will be more likely to join your team.
A direct correlation between a facility's core values and its benefits also exists. If the employees you're anxious to recruit are attracted by your core values and culture, they will naturally want to transition conversations into more tangible aspects, like salary and benefits. A potential recruit, once attracted by your core values will quickly ascertain if you can "walk the talk" when evaluating your culture, pay, benefits and leadership.
• Don't hesitate to get competitive. Candidates of stellar caliber don't stay on the available list long. If you want to offer someone a key position, chances are that other industry competitors may be willing to up the ante to hire that "just right" candidate. Increasingly, the time between an executive job offer and an acceptance is becoming longer (You can't blame a candidate for wanting to get the most out of the best situation). Therefore it's wise to "cut to the chase" and offer a prized candidate not only a competitive salary and benefits, but a variety of other reasons to sign on with your company.
Emphasize the best qualities of your organization and make the candidate aware of inherent career opportunities, such as challenging assignments and an environment in which to further develop skills. That strategy may not only tip the potential hire toward your favor, it will also provide you information on whether salary is his/her primary motivation or if the candidate has aspirations that focus less on money and more on achievement and career growth.
• Match the candidate to the the position. It's best not to hire someone who will be taking a major step back in salary or position. If you have taken on someone who is seeing a diminished paycheck and/or role, you may be saying goodbye to each other in a short time, leaving that position vacant once again and costing your company additional time and money to fill it.
Keeping Your Newfound Talent
Once recruited, a manager's job to retain is never done. Such effort is crucial to retain top-notch employees, especially in today's shaky economy. In One More Time: How Do You Motivate Employees?, Frederick Herzberg maintained that true employee motivation comes from achievement, personal development, job satisfaction and recognition, with the latter being a critical component of motivation and employee retention. Managers need to make sure they:
• Know what initially drives employees. It is important to identify the core motivations of an individual early on to discover what makes that person "tick." Ultimately, salary will be at the top of the professional agenda for most people, but varying forms of ancillary compensation must be considered on an individual basis.
To some, especially those with families, health benefits may be of vital importance, while to others a career development program will be primary. By offering continuing education benefits, or reimbursement for costs associated with advanced professional certifications, your company will set a tone of support and motivation. You will also have an in-house field of candidates to choose from should a higher-level position open up, not to mention the loyalty your company will foster from promoting from within.
• Don't forget about the importance of gathering feedback from employees. It's a good rule of thumb to check in with a new hire regularly throughout the first weeks of their coming on board. That way you'll receive first impressions of your company via fresh eyes. Your interest will also go a long way toward making that new employee feel a part of the organization. Regular conversations beyond those initial weeks will further cement the relationship.
• Periodically reassess employee goals. Needs change and that is a fact of life that management teams must always keep in mind. What may have been an important benefit to a valued team member last year may have been replaced by a more urgent need today. A superior management team checks in with its employees regularly and performs professional evaluations, either in a formal or informal manner.
• Gather intelligence. And since people often eventually move on to other opportunities, make sure you turn the valued employee’s departure into a learning experience by conducting an exit survey. Try to ascertain from departing staff why they are leaving, and if that departure could have been avoided. Consistent acquisition of information from new arrivals, in-place employees and departing staff will provide you a realistic picture of your company's job performance.
Walter Hall is the author of The Three Pillars of Sustainable Profit & Growth (Values, Leadership, Organization) published by Auctoris Press and available through www.threepillarsbook.com.
Sales & Marketing Management Magazine
This article is brought to you by Sales & Marketing Management, the leading authority for executives in the sales and marketing field.
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