The Herman Trend Alert

June 23, 2021

Post-COVID Career Shifts---Part 2

In last week's Herman Trend Alert, I detailed the five reasons I believe there will be major churning in the talent marketplace. If you missed it, you may find it here. This week's Alert is about what employers can (and must) do---if they want to stay in business?

What Employers Can Do About This Challenging Situation

There is no doubt about it; employers are in a bind. They must have people to make their products and serve their customers and experienced people who have the qualifications they are looking for are in very short supply---if they even exist at all. So what can employers do?

Grow your own. Revitalize your internal training department. Go into the high schools, vocational programs, and community colleges and start talking about the careers you offer. Talk to the teachers and partner with them to identify the best and brightest. Have your employees mentor promising students.

Talk about how your products and services make a difference in people's lives. Ensure that your people know what a tremendous difference they make for your company and for the world.

Get creative about benefits. Your total rewards package can make the difference, if it includes what that employee is looking for. It may mean subsidizing childcare onsite or off---including overnight. It may mean providing financial wellness, like the BestMoneyMoves app. Or it may mean even offering pet insurance to your childless employees? It is vital that you realize that "one size does not fit all."

Look at how you can support your workers who desire to stay working remotely. What can you do to bridge the gap between your onsite and your remote employees? Is it technology or simply regular home visits? And if/when you go, bring their favorite lunch. Create the conditions so that your employees look forward to your visits, rather than dread them.

If you are in the hospitality or healthcare field, get creative. Consider adopting one of the 4-day work week arrangements or better yet, find a way to give workers more family time off, while working the same number of hours each month. (Yes, it is possible!)

Find out what people value in working with you and support it. I keep recommending "stay interviews" for a reason. They are your very best chance to find out what's working and what's not. If you do not ask, you may not learn the answers before it's too late.

Finally, get recognized as an Employer of Choice^®. Full disclosure, yes, Employer of Choice International, Inc. is a subsidiary of The Herman Group of Companies. However, being recognized as an Employer of Choice^® can be your competitive advantage. And you will definitely need that competitive advantage, no matter what talent you are trying to recruit.

Making the effort to engage and retain your valuable talent will reap tremendous rewards.

Next Week's Herman Trend Alert: Unprecedented Churning in the Labor Marketplace

Related to this week's Alert, this long-expected situation has been forecast (by The Herman Group and others) for years. Now, it is here. Next week, I will cover the sad details, and more strategies for employers to prevent this high turnover in your organization.