How Are Companies Addressing the Workforce Shortage?
How Are Companies Addressing the Workforce Shortage?
It’s no secret that many companies have been impacted by labor shortages over the past several years. In order to combat the issue, companies have started approaching recruiting and employee retention efforts differently compared to how they have handled these processes in the past. A study conducted by the Society for Human Resource Management reported eleven different ways that business leaders and HR managers are shifting their approaches.
- Searching specialized social networks and organizations for highly skilled workers: Recruiting on platforms that tend to draw a common type of user can be beneficial for companies that are looking for candidates in that field. For example, if you represent an interior design company, you might browse a platform like Pinterest to find potential candidates. You could also explore existing groups on platforms like LinkedIn to find a concentrated pool of candidates with common skills and backgrounds.
- Removing barriers to hiring new employees: As an example, a large problem facing those who are reentering the workforce is the lack of access to daycare. Providing flexible options such as remote or hybrid work or having more flexibility with the hours an employee works removes a potential barrier that could mean opening the door to attracting more candidates.
- Implementing an aggressive hiring strategy: Hiring top talent is extremely competitive as today’s candidates are considering multiple positions at once. When you find a candidate who’s a good fit for the position and your company, express your interest immediately and earnestly as possible. The more time you allow to lapse between communications with the candidate, the more likely they are to accept another offer.
- Offering competitive employee wellness benefits: Not all companies prioritize the overall wellbeing of their employees and will instead focus their marketing on the position’s compensation and benefits. Offering benefits such as gym membership, a continuing education allowance or free mental health services might just be the edge that will have a candidate choosing you over your competitor.
- Recruiting student veterans: It is predicted that in 2023, student veterans will be the untapped goldmine for critical job openings because of their tendencies to be overlooked by recruiters. This typically occurs because of recruiters’ inability to properly match these individuals who use their military experience to appropriate positions. These candidates bring both their military skills and post-service educational achievements to the table.
- Hiring foreign workers through the H-1 B Visa Program: The pool of skilled workers in the U.S. has been declining as Baby Boomers retire. The number of foreign-born workers with advanced degrees has been increasing which has led to international recruiting through the H-1 B Visa Program.
- Looking at internal talent pools: Sometimes the best recruiting happens under an organization’s own roof. Examining your staff and the potential skillsets they might have an interest in learning is often a more sensible alternative to external recruiting in addition to increasing that individual’s rate of long-term retention.
- Paying attention to employee referrals: Establishing an ongoing employee referral program hands both a sense of importance and responsibility to your current staff. It gives employees a voice in who they work beside while also holding them accountable for that recommendation.
- Hiring talent globally for remote work: Talent is not limited to a geographic location. The corporate world has adapted to this principle and can now hire employees from virtually anywhere, but smaller companies should consider pursuing this avenue as well. Recruiting globally whenever possible opens a whole new pool of candidates and talent to recruit from.
- Partnering with higher education institutions to find and train candidates: Companies have started partnering with universities in order to access a larger pool of candidates. There is also potential for partnerships with the institutions’ career development office to provide training and skills workshops for students applying for the position. These types of partnerships are beneficial for the recruiter, the university, and the student.
- Shifting attention to a pipeline-driven approach: Shifting the mindset of hiring fully trained individuals to hiring for potential can widen your range of qualified candidates. No, the person you hire might not check every box in terms of experience and skills, but they can be trained into a more senior role over time.
When it comes down to it, hiring has become more challenging, but does not need to be a stumbling block. Looking in the right places and teaming up with the right people can keep your team growing and on the upward trajectory. Decision Associates partners with clients to work toward hiring top talent and helping you manage your growing staff. Learn more about our executive recruiting services: https://www.decisionassociates.net/client-services/executive-recruitment/
Resources: https://blog.shrm.org/blog/11-ways-companies-can-address-workforce-shortages