I saw this coming years ago and have been writing about this crisis for years. (See other blogs on http://www.stanfieldassociates.com). It is now in full force. “We are hiring” signs are everywhere. I actually saw a sign on a Burger King front door that said, “Lobby closed do to lack of staff. Please go through the drive thru.” We have reached an all time low in candidate availability. I believe anyone that wants to work is working.
So, what do we do now? I believe it starts with how happy your current workforce is. We must be an “Employer of Choice”. Any candidate has multiple options for a job. The question we must ask is, “Why would someone choose to work with us?”
I am convinced the best recruiters you have are your employees. They all know a lot of people. If you had 50 happy employees that all knew 10 people that are wondering if they should look around for a new place to work, you could potentially have 500 candidates in a hurry.
How do you know if you are an Employer of Choice? Ask your employees. If you are concerned they won’t tell you the truth, you are already NOT an Employer of Choice. If you don’t trust your people, you are in trouble.
I would gather a panel from two different groups; a group with over 20 years seniority and a group with less than 2 years seniority. Ask them to get together and give you a collective list of the top reasons they are working for you. Let them meet alone to remain autonomous. Compare the two groups’ lists. I think you will be surprised how close they are to each other.
After that, get them back together and ask them to list the areas that need the greatest improvement. A warning however, don’t ask that question unless you are open to real change. If they sense your openness, your world will be on a path you could not imagine.
In short, without happy, productive employees we will all be in trouble. It has come down to the “survival of the fittest”. We need to be an Employer of Choice or slowly die.
Christian Life Coach 