PIHRA Scope - Spring 2008 - (Page 19) ortage it makes sense to hire older people. The “gray brigade” comes with experience and a strong work ethic. While you may think that everyone over 60 is looking for a Florida retirement, many within that population are opting to stay in the workforce. We are living longer and healthier lives, so there are fewer reasons to reach for the rocking chair on your 60th birthday. Contact AARP, local senior centers and your local government’s office of aging to seek out seniors. Strategy #2: Offer seasonal opportunities If your business experiences predictable peaks, plan to use seasonal employees to fill those positions. Rethink your busipresident of Omaha, Neb.-based Solution One, uses a thorough ness model to determine where and how you can use limitapproach to finding the right people. He believes that one bad ed-term workers to fill gaps in your current staffing. Consider employee can cost you a customer that you have had for many which projects lend themselves to seasonal workers. Perhaps it years. Rather than risk a customer defection, Kuchta uses a wellis order fulfillment that is consuming too much time. Or, it may planned approach to hiring. He makes sure that the message is be managing major mailings and marketing campaigns. Once clear—they will not settle for just a you identify projects that lend warm body. He has high standards themselves to seasonal or tempoand a tough screening process, but rary employees, begin advertising neither recruitment nor retention are in community newspapers. Yes, It is far wiser to be selective problems for his company. Kuchta the major newspapers in your metattributes this to the fact that his ropolitan area can yield leads, but in hiring than to hire the first community papers are often read company uses a detailed process on by people looking for part-time and the front-end. His process begins with a screening interview and an asshort-term work. warm, breathing body you sessment. The results are measured against the job description. The subStrategy #3: Flexibility find. The work that it takes sequent interview is typically three Keeping your best employees hours long. It allows the candidate requires flexibility. Each business to get to know the company and vice defines flexibility differently. In to deal with an incompetent, versa. Each and every hiring mansome companies it will mean creatager is trained for the screening proing flexible work schedules to acuncooperative or uncommitted cess. Kuchta approves every hire and commodate the needs of part-time is active in the recruitment process. employees. In other organizations, flexibility may be defined as job employee is more taxing than CATCHING AND KEEPING sharing between two part-time emTHE RIGHT PEOPLE ployees. And yet, in other organizawaiting for the right person. Recognizing the fact that there tions, flexibility may mean alloware fewer well-qualified people for ing telecommuting for appropriate jobs in many regions of the counpositions. Ask your employees to try, it is necessary for managers to find out where you could become implement smart recruitment and more flexible and accommodating. retention strategies. Reevaluating Flexibility is especially important if your approach to getting and keeping good people will enable you are going to utilize the talents of semi-retired seniors or you to feel less of the pain of the labor shortage. There are five stay-at-home parents. They have built full lives and will work strategies that, when consistently implemented, will enable you if the work can meld with their existing commitments. It is to skillfully staff your organization. important for employers to develop sensitivity to these needs. When employees see that you are willing to work with them, they will work with you. You will engender commitment by Strategy #1: Look where you have never looked before. being reasonable and responsive. If you typically hire from the newspaper or the Internet, consider unusual places. This new terrain can include local graduate schools. Masters programs draw mid-career professionals, Strategy #4: Create a welcoming workplace many of whom may be looking for the next challenge. It is If you intend to keep solid new and old employees, you surprising how many people enter graduate programs with the must give serious consideration to your organizational culture. hope of making a career transition. This is the prime location for finding your next managers. Since the population is aging, SHORTAGE continued on page 20 Spring 2008 PIHRAScope 19
For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.