Holden Associates Blog

As I promised on Friday today I am going to cover attracting and hopefully retain the best staff for your business.

Most small businesses feel that they loose out in the war for talent, after all bigger business can usually offer bigger salaries and greater career progression, although much of this may have some truth to it, it is not totally true.

Like with everything in life it depends, it depends on who you want to employ, what their role will be, what are you thinking longer term for this person, but more important than any of this, it really depends on what this person thinks about your business, how they see them selves fitting in and in what role, and where do they see themselves in five years if they join you.

It’s fair to say that not everyone wants to join a big business, so what can you do to make your business attractive enough to entice the best of the talent pool to join you, well here are a few ideas to get you going:

• create an environment that encourages learning, one that encourages people to push themselves to acquire new skills,
• show you want to help employees develop a career, but more than that offer an environment that aids personal development too, this maybe through mentoring or coaching,
• keep an eye out for the best talent, and then push them to achieve new heights, but not only this,
• ensure that you recognise the potential in all your staff, everyone has different abilities and goals, create an environment that allows everyone to flourish to their own heights,
• create an environment that encourages creativity, one that does not place blame when things don’t go to plan, imagine you run a car sales showroom, and one day a member of your staff comes to you and says he has a great idea to sell more cars and it involves the internet, and he/she asks ‘can I develop this in your time’, now what do you do?
  a) say no
  b) them him/her you sell cars from a forecourt, always have always will, now go away
  c) say hello to your new business partner in sellcars.com your new cars sales showroom
• find out what it is that really motivates staff, although money is a starting point it is not really a motivator as such, remember people go to work to live not live to go to work,
• treat all staff as individuals, this is especially true if you offer financial incentives, those who work hard and commit will stop if they see everyone gets a bonus because they work there,
• offer a real chance for staff to become part of your business and its success, ask them for ideas, feedback, help and even guidance, what you think you are the only one with ideas?
• If they are really good, why do you employ them, why don’t you partner with them?

Hopefully I have given you a few ideas, attracting staff is getting harder, attracting the best staff is the hardest, but because you aren’t a large PLC doesn’t mean you can’t, just put a bit of though into it.