8 Ways to Attract and Retain Top Talent
As a small business or large corporation, you must learn how to attract top talent. But as well as attracting them to the role, you must also know how to retain them and prevent them from being influenced by a competitor. Continue reading to familiarise yourself with how to attract and retain top talent in your chosen field.
1. Build a strong reputation
Even if you are an emerging company, you must build a strong reputation for your brand from the very onset. This can even be implemented during your company’s first advertising campaign prior to your launch. If a prospective employee is interested in applying for a recent vacancy within your company, they must be able to gain a basic understanding of your brand and, at the very least, what you stand for. A positive working environment can also lead to greater brand awareness as well as promote cooperation and collaboration within your workforce. To do so, you must make your employees feel valued from the second they enter to the second they exit at the end of the day. If your employees feel empowered to make a difference, they are more likely to submit recommendations and contribute towards helping you reach your long-term goals as a business.
2. Offer competitive employee benefits
In today’s crowded marketplace, you must ensure your business stands out from the crowd and stays ahead of the curve. If a prospective employee is stuck between accepting a job offer with you or a competitor, your exclusive employee benefits package could be a key determining factor. But it is no longer enough to simply offer employee benefits. To attract and retain top talent, they must surpass those offered by your competitors. The most common employee benefits job seekers look for tend to be related to healthcare. This can include dental insurance, sick leave, retirement plans, and health insurance. By finding the best private health insurance package for your workforce, you may end up paying less in monthly premiums than you would with health insurance when you go private.
3. Share your company goals
By sharing your company goals with existing and prospective employees, you can ensure your entire workforce is working towards the same goal. If employees personally invest in these goals and feel as if they contribute towards the greater success of the business as a whole, they are less likely to seek out alternative working arrangements elsewhere. Offering a number of performance-based incentives is another great way to ensure your employees are engaged on the task at hand and focused on the long-term picture. For example, if your goal as a business is to command the most market share within your chosen niche, you may choose to reward employees for getting the word out there and recommending the product to a friend or family member. By familiarising yourself with mission statements from a number of global brands, you can learn how to set goals and stick to them.
4. Provide flexible working arrangements
The popularity of flexible working arrangements has exploded in recent years. With more ways to work from home than ever before, a growing number of employers are beginning to reap the benefits of increased employee flexibility. This can also lead to an enhanced sense of trust between you and your workforce with the option to offer flexible working arrangements on a part-time or full-time basis. A change in scenery can also be a great way to foster new ideas and boost morale. If you are unfamiliar with flexible working arrangements or how to implement them, it can be difficult to know where to begin. Ask your employees whether or not they feel they would benefit from flexible working arrangements and consider running it on a trial basis first.
5. Discuss career progression
One of the main reasons for employees packing up and leaving their current role is due to a lack of career progression. By letting your workforce know there is room for career progression with your company, they are less likely to leave or even consider relocating in order to progress to the next rung of the career ladder. This is especially important for young employees or recent graduates with this particular age bracket most likely to jump from company to company until they are settled in a job they are confident offers the opportunity for promotion. By prioritising professional development during recruitment, prospective employees can decide whether or not they are looking for a temporary position or something a little more permanent.
6. Guarantee personal fulfilment
As well as feeling like a respected member of a larger team working towards the same goal, employees must be fulfilled at work. If they view themselves as a mere cog in a machine, they will be sacrificing their personal happiness to get the job done. This can lead to a general sense of low morale and productivity. Recent recruits will be interested in using their individual skills and experience to make a difference within the company as a whole. By nurturing their needs and wants from the very onset and providing regular performance reviews, they will not only feel as if they are making a difference but be inspired to contribute to the decision-making process on a company-wide scale. By highlighting opportunities for employees to make their voice heard, they are more likely to benefit from a sense of personal fulfilment and happiness whilst at work.
7. Build personal relationships
As well as assessing whether or not prospective candidates are suitably qualified for the advertised position, you must also attempt to build a personal relationship with them from the very onset. Interviews may be daunting for both parties, but they can be a great opportunity to get to know a future employee or employer on an interpersonal level. By building a friendship first, employees are more likely to trust you and come to you with any questions or queries they may have during the first few months of employment at your company. The way in which you present yourself during an interview can also determine whether or not the candidate accepts your offer or an offer from a company where they received a warmer welcome.
8. Identify your intended target audience ahead of time
By identifying your intended target audience ahead of time, you can gain a better understanding of what your company has to offer prospective employees. You must be ready and willing to answer any questions they may have such as what you have to offer them in exchange for their skills and experience, and who is likely to benefit from the products and services you provide. By answering these questions ahead of time, you can find out where you stand and advertise in a way that attracts the top talent in your field.
As a business, you must learn to not only attract top talent but retain it too. There are a number of steps you can take to achieve this including building a strong reputation, offering competitive employee benefits, sharing your company goals, providing flexible working arrangements, discussing career progression, guaranteeing personal fulfilment, building personal relationships, and identifying your intended target audience ahead of time.
