Security Sales & Integration October 2021 - 59

EXECUTIVE DECISIONS
Business Fitness by Paul Boucherle
How to Attract,
Hire & Retain
Talent (Part 2)
If you rewound
your career
clock back
to when you
started, would
you join your
company
and why? We
all have had
great and bad
bosses. Can
you remember
the lessons
they taught
and what
motivated you?
Paul Boucherle, Certifi ed
Protection Professional
(CPP) and Certifi ed Sherpa
Coach (CSC), is principal
of Canfi eld, Ohio-based
Matterhorn Consulting
(matterhornconsulting.
com) and an SSI Industry
Hall of Famer. He has more
than 30 years of diverse
security and safety industry
experience.
securitysales.com
▶ WE LEFT OFF LAST MONTH with suggestions
to attract and retain talent in a time when
" poachers " are reaching in for your best talent.
Your managers are the glue that hold and recruit
talent with a career path based on your company
culture. Remember, people often leave supervisors/managers
and not companies if they don't
have a clear career path the opportunity to learn
and contribute.
Th e complaint I hear from clients most often
is, " We train technicians for our competitors to
poach. " I get it. You invest in their education with
certifi cations; however, my argument is, have you
created a culture that provides additional growth
in their careers, responsibilities and roles? Th is
requires some strategic business thinking. What
should your goal be in making this decision?
Th ink in terms of a chess game, which is
strategic by its defi nition. Technicians are often
trained, certifi ed and competent in narrow and
diverse product lines. Th is can happen as companies
take on " we are everything to everybody " or
are driven by sales opportunities around a specific
product line expansion. Having many product
lines stretches your resources.
Typically, companies have specialized technicians
for specifi c product lines. Th e result is not
being able to move your resources around based
on certifi cations, competence and having so many
customer solutions. Delays in delivering service
based on availability of technicians limits revenue
and customer service. What is a better strategy?
Begin by evaluating all the diff erent systems
you service. How profi table are those customers
and the support of those systems? Second, what
is the overhead loading to maintain competency
with those systems as software and training requirements
change and evolve over time? If this
is about a strategic customer, I completely understand;
however, if those customers have changed
their buying processes to the lowest common
denominator of pricing competitive bids, how
paul@matterhornconsulting.com
@swisssherpa
many are you winning with new competition? If
the answer is less than 30% it's time to reevaluate
your business model.
Employee empowerment based on training,
tools and progressively more responsibility for
business outcomes is a great start. People like to
do good work. Th ey also like to be able to make
a diff erence for a customer on a personal level. If
your business model limits their learning, skills
and authority to make decisions in the moment,
they will become frustrated and even demoralized.
If your processes and supervisors handcuff
their ability based on putting them in a " box, "
well, you will lose both people and money over
time. Here are some key questions to ask yourself.
1. Are we enabling our team to be competent
on their feet with no one looking to solve
customers' problems in real-time?
2. Are we OK with mistakes that help teach
our people to learn and do better next
time? How did you learn your most valuable
career lessons?
3. Do we have gaps in training and tools
needed to help our people make better
decisions and learn from their mistakes?
4. Do we provide a career path that enables
our talent to expand their earnings based
on the value they provide to the company
depending on their observable competence?
5. Do you really know your talents' key
motivators (career and fi nancial goals) to
help guide the coaching and development
of your resources?
If you rewound your career clock back to when
you started, would you join your company and
why? We all have had great and bad bosses. Can
you remember the lessons they taught and what
motivated you? I certainly can. My good bosses
were smarter than I was, and they challenged and
supported me to do better.
Finally, rethink the progress of your talent in
defi ned steps they understand. I hark back to my
military training in the Marines and rank progression.
I had a clear defi nition of the skills I
needed to demonstrate to gain my next stripe,
a pay raise and more responsibility to lead others.
Th at motivated me to do better and be more
committed to the mission.
Tell a new company story based on concrete
values if you want to attract, hire and retain the
talent needed for your company's success. Not a
simple task, but doable with strategic thinking.
OCTOBER 2021 Security Sales & Integration 59
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Security Sales & Integration October 2021

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