When starting out in the hyper competitive world of business, it’s all too easy to think that you have to take on the world alone. After all, that bullish self-determinism is a big part of what makes entrepreneurs step away from the daily grind and strike out for themselves. As your business grows, however, the recruitment and retention of the right employees becomes increasingly clear. After all, no entrepreneur, however masterful, can do everything by themselves. But your business is more than just a source of income, it’s a part of you and you want the top-tier candidates that will embody that when you employ them. They will be what facilitates your growth and pushes your business into the stratosphere. But how do you make sure that they flock to you and not your competitors? It’s important to frame yourself and your business in ways that will make you attractive to the right candidates.
Salaries and benefits
Needless to say, top drawer talent doesn’t come cheap. If you expect to skim off the cream of the crop and keep the very best of the best on your payroll you need to make sure that you offer a competitive salary. Moreover, this should be supplemented with benefits that will help the right candidates to be happy, healthy and productive employees. Allowing them the flexibility to manage their home and family life is very important as is the granting of maternity and paternity leave in accordance with government guidelines. Accommodating childcare needs and dietary requirements is also a must. On-site childcare is hugely attractive for candidates with young children. Likewise, there’s a lot of value in honouring employees’ dietary requirements. Stocking your cafeteria or having an external caterer like ABM Catering supply gluten free, halal, kosher, vegetarian and vegan meals will show how much you value your employees beliefs, values and requirements. Who says it’s all about money?
Training, development and career guidance
Candidates are selected with a particular role in mind, but they’ll soon cross the street to join your competitors if you don’t demonstrate a personal investment in their professional development and growth in their current position and beyond. Regular appraisals, training programs and opportunities for progression and lateral progression are great ways to retain the right talent. The more you invest in their career development, the more they’ll invest in you.
Ethics and culture
In the age of social media and corporate transparency, it’s not enough for businesses to merely operate, they need an ethos. Thus, great candidates will want to know not only about the operations aspect of your business but also about its ethics and culture. Initiatives that help your business to run in a way that reduces waste, helps the environment, or help to celebrate cultural diversity are hugely attractive.
Employee empowerment
Great candidates don’t just want to be worker drones, they want to be empowered autonomous individuals who are valued and respective members of the team. Creating an environment that’s open to new ideas from everyone and values each individual contribution is the key to making sure employees feel empowered.
