Over the last few posts, we covered the need to define your company’s culture and how to develop a human capital strategy.
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Now that you’ve built a solid Values Statement and Human Capital Strategy, be sure to tell your story.
Market to Talent
Help HR “sell” prospective employees on your company. From the multitude of social media sites to your website, there are boundless opportunities to communicate with prospective employees. How well you get your message across affects the quality and number of applicants you receive.
Challenge your marketing and HR teams to develop a strategy to promote your organization. Feature current employees and have them provide testimonials—these workers are the best source for new employees and are likely the most cost-effective and efficient means of finding new talent.
Make sure current employees understand and support your Values Statement to ensure high-quality referrals.
Onboard with Style
Keep applicants informed throughout the interview process. Uncertainty, or feeling ignored or forgotten, is a surefire way to lose a candidate. Once you have an accepted offer, provide a warm welcome to your organization.
Evaluate your onboarding process. Leverage your network to discuss best practices that can be incorporated into your company. New employees often feel awkward as they acclimate to your culture, terminology, technology, and new responsibilities. Provide a formal schedule to shorten and define the learning curve.
Great leaders take the time to personally welcome every new employee to the organization. This practice sends a strong message that people matter and underscores your culture. For employees joining in remote locations, use your e-learning system to provide that welcome via video.
Consider the network connected to the new employee (family, friends, and former coworkers). They are certainly asking that employee how he or she likes the new employer. The answer he or she gives at that crucial moment is a golden opportunity to supercharge your brand as an employer and attract other talent connected to that new employee.
Be Professional When Employees Leave
Turnover is unavoidable; sometimes, it is even positive. Your Value Statement likely includes a “golden rule” commitment. Remember that the “golden rule” applies to you and your employees alike. Thank departing employees for their contribution. You will earn respect from current employees and (usually) goodwill from those who are departing.
Teams with the best talent almost always win. It is crucial that all of your Human Capital Systems are interrelated and are aimed at cultivating a winning team. By taking a strategic approach to HR, you will be a step ahead of the competition in a tight talent market. And when this massive business upturn ends (as it always does), your business will be more sustainable than those that simply throw money at employees to attract and keep them.
| Kurt Meyer is an award-winning HR leader and the Managing Consultant at Best Workplace Solutions, a division of Michael Best Consulting. To learn more about Meyer and Best Workplace Solutions, please visit www.bestworkplacesolutions.com. Chuck Palmer is a Partner in Michael Best & Friedrich LLP’s Labor & Employee Relations Practice. Palmer has been selected by his peers as one of The Best Lawyers in America for the past 8 years and was named the Milwaukee “Lawyer of the Year” in Employment Law in 2013. To learn more about Palmer and Michael Best, please visit www.michaelbest.com. |