Be the Employer of Choice

by Tony Enger
President, Electrical Association Board of Directors

All of us are well aware and are feeling the effects of a shortage in skilled laborers. There may be negative temps outside today but spring and summer will be here before we know it. I recently attended a Success Group International Conference in Texas and wanted to share a few of the ideas I took away to help us all remain the employer of choice in our communities. Once we find those rock star employees, we want to make sure that they stay with us and continue to do a good job for our company.

Recruiting

Year-round recruiting is key, not just right before the busy season. None of us want to miss an opportunity to hire great employees because we don’t need them that day. If we are accepting applications throughout the entire year, we are less likely to miss a great opportunity. Create an appealing job description that really sells the company. Highlight all of the benefits that you offer. If people come across this job posting, you want them to get excited about what you provide and how great it is to work at your company.

Referrals

Reward others for bringing someone into your company. This can be beneficial for a number of reasons. Employees will stay at a company where they have connections, relationships or friendships. Depending on how your program is set up, the employee who refers an individual could get an incentive after the other employee stays for a length of time. Another approach could be a continuous incentive each month that the employee stays with the company. One of the other attendees mentioned that he gives his employees $100/mo for each employee that they refer to the company for as long as they stay with the company. This system puts a built-in retention program into your business. That initial employee is then assisting you in keeping workers at your company. Maybe the incentive could even extend to people who work for distributors that you go through? They talk with a lot of individuals and may be the ideal candidate to vet new employees for you.

Training

Give them the knowledge that they need to succeed. A quote that the Electrical Association uses in their promotional materials that is helpful to remember is “Your competitor is training their employees, can you afford to not train yours?”

Rewards

Show them how much they are appreciated. Milestone Electric in Garland, TX gives out the pickle award each month. The employee who receives the pickle is someone who has gone above and beyond in one way or another in the last month. It is simple yet motivating.

In this tough market for good employees, we want to make sure that we are the first company on their mind for employment.

<< Back to "Be Prepared to Answers Questions."