Hiring for Keeps: How to attract the right employees and keep them.
Getting On board with new post-covid flexibility and life balance requirements.

One of the biggest issues for small to mid-sized businesses is how to attract the right fit team members and how to keep them when they do. The basic issue of attracting the right people and keeping them happy to work for you has become a top priority issue. Add to that, many prospective team members have been working in jobs that have moved from in person to remote jobs, which was done to prevent the spread of Covid. Some of them have worked remote for more than a year. It worked well for many people as they learned that not having the commute time, fewer meetings, less expenses, more time with loved ones, and less wasted time overall during the day allowed them to be more productive and less stressed. For some, having flexibility within their children’s schedule also proved a perk. No one knew when the world would go back to “normal” or what the new “normal” might be.

There are many ways to look at what the new normal is. After having worked remotely, many employees want to have the flexibility to continue to do so as they find that it gives them the ability to have more of a balance in their life. They can be there for their families and still be productive. Employers also saw that their productivity didn’t decrease, and work was being done as expected. In response to that trend, large Fortune 500 companies are looking at blending in-person days of the week and remote days of the week to provide flexibility. Some tech companies have gone to all remote from anywhere. In the days where companies cannot find additional team members to work for them, large companies are looking to provide the flexibility (and sometimes the additional pay) that would attract the team that they want.

Having a completely remote work force may work in some businesses, but it may not always translate well for some industries, e.g., manufacturing, banking, or for some smaller companies who need to have their teams provide face-to-face service to their customers. Even in those businesses, some team members may like the flexibility of working a day or two a week remotely, other hours rather than 9:00–5:00, or other perks like additional vacation time. The managers of these companies must balance the need of the business to get the job done against this new reality that this type of flexibility and life balance can produce a stronger team and more loyal employees.

In addition, it creates a need for management to determine the productivity of its remote workers, which employees want these options and for those who don’t want remote work, then what can be offered as a balance? There also needs to be policies, technology, and resources in place to make this type of new work landscape possible.

Besides flexibility in terms of working remotely or at different times of the day, additional vacation, and competitive wages, what else can a business do to attract and retain team members who will give you their all? We have to go back to the basics. Why do your best workers like working for you? Do you treat all with respect from the C-suite executives to workers on the dock? Do you ask for and respect their opinions? Do they feel like they are a valued member of the team? Your workers can be one of the best sources for new team members wanting to join your company and will sell the idea of working for you, if they are happy with their overall experience. Research also shows that when employees are paid well, feel valued, cared for, and treated fairly, they work harder, more productively, and are more loyal – meaning they give you their best work and stay with you in the long run.

In addition, one of the things that is rarely looked at is what are the life goals of your team members. What are they trying to accomplish and how can you help them accomplish it? What are the dreams for the team member and their family? Do they want all their kids to graduate from college? Do they want to buy a dream home? Do they want to make sure that their autistic child can make their way in life? There are any number of dreams that people have.

This thought process is unique in the work environment. It normally does not show up in large Fortune 500 companies. It is a process that makes a small to mid-sized company’s culture unique. The team members may need to work 9:00-5:00 but they dream from 5:00 -12:00. If they are not dreaming about their future, they may lose passion and energy in life generally, which the company – if astute to their employee’s well-being and productivity – will surely notice.

Consider the case of Jancoa, a company in Cincinnati, Ohio. Jancoa is a company that cleans office buildings. In the mid-2000’s, they had more than 400 team members who cleaned buildings, and at one point had a 60% turnover rate among their 400 workers! Jancoa devised a new position in their company called “The Dream Manager” who was responsible for helping the team members’ dreams come true. Jancoa’s Dream Manager would become acquainted with each employee and interview them about their unique dreams. With the knowledge from that interview, the Dream Manager was able to prepare a step-by-step list of how to achieve those steps. If more information or assistance was needed, the team member could visit with the Dream Manager to find out the “how” of achieving their dream. Once the team members achieved their dreams, they became the strongest members of the staff, stayed with the company for a longer term, moved up within the company, and referred the new team members to the company. In Jancoa’s case, the turnover rate diminished tremendously and helped the company become more successful.

Having a “Dream Manager” is an innovative concept, which you may feel fits your company or not. What it does show is how innovation with employee’s well-being in mind can produce the right fit team who will enjoy coming to work every day and will help you find future team members who will also love and be loyal to your company. That innovation combined with the flexibility of time and other necessary life-balancing benefits can create a much more productive, positive workplace that will allow business owners and leaders to reach their goals quicker and with less issues overall. Don’t be too quick to say, “I can’t do that in my business,” rather think “How can I do this in my business?” and you will reap the rewards of employees who care about your company like you do.

If you want to be alerted to new articles as they come out, please follow us on LinkedIn. You can also Sign-up for our Email List, and our Weekly Blogs.

Denice Gierach

Gierach Law Firm

Denice Gierach is an attorney, CPA, Northwestern University business master's graduate, and has owned several businesses from real estate to manufacturing. She is the lead attorney at Gierach Law Firm in the Chicago area. With more than 30 years of experience, she has been a respected and sought-after resource for businesses looking to grow, sell, solve problems, and succeed long term. Her insights across business areas gives a fuller lens to business issues and solutions, and helps businesses grow and succeed with less time spent on legal issues and other time-consuming problems.

x

Blog Sign Up

First Name *

Last Name *

Email *

Phone

Subscribe to

Both Blogs Estate Planning Blog

Business Law Blog

 

Submit