National and Local media alike are all abuzz about the current state of the economy.
(Nothing rivets attention to a newscast like bad news, I guess).
But Houston is blissfully being spared most of the pain of the current economic issues.
Houston was recently listed by
Kiplinger’s as the
best place to live, work, and play in America!
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (
BLS) reports that Houston ’s
local area unemployment rate is at 4.2% - a mild upward move from 3.8% in April, but still a full 1.3% below the national rate. (And almost a point beneath the generally accepted
“natural” unemployment rate of 5%) The employment pendulum swings in favor of the job seeker when unemployment drops below 5%.
That is, an unemployment rate below 5% indicates a talent shortage, and employers need to start making some changes.
For years now, HR professionals have spoken, written, read, blogged, (and some even screamed and stomped) about “the impending crisis” – referring to the retiring Baby Boomers and the labor vacuum they will leave behind – and the “upcoming war for talent” that will ensue shortly thereafter.
I have big news for you, Houston HR Professionals, Business Owners, and Hiring Managers:
The War for Talent is already on! The $10,000,000 question is: are you equipped to fight it or are you losing ground?
To answer that question, take a look at the following list of factors and answer honestly.
Does your organization have an HR team, professional, or at least a dedicated “champion” for all things recruiting/retention related?
- And when I define “dedicated” as used in this question, I mean “greater than 75% of this person’s time” is invested in the recruiting/retention area. Consider the cost to your company for not having someone head up the Sales activities….or the Accounting activities…or the Leadership/Strategic vision portion of your business. How well would any of these areas do without a dedicated leader? Why would you expect anything else from your hiring and retention portion of your business if you are unwilling to dedicate someone to lead, manage, drive, and execute in that area? If you suffer from high turnover, poor hiring, and skyrocketing recruiting costs – you probably need to designate a leader.
When is the last time your organization openly evaluated who the “type of people we hire” are?
- If it has been several years since you last questioned/evaluated the KSAs of your workforce and how they relate to the direction you/your leadership team want to take the business, I encourage you to do a review today. The marketplace of 2008 is vastly different than that of 2000…or even 2005! Generational differences, increased globalization, and the consolidation in many industries pose individual and distinct challenges to your finding and hiring the best talent. The new employees of today are not willing to “show up and shut up” as many of their Baby Boom counterparts were – they just have not been raised that way. So you better be ready to adapt?
Does your company look at employees as assets or expenses?
- Too often, business leaders get caught in the trap of defining a truck, pipe, pump, or other widget as an “asset” and their people as “expenses.” I recently appeared on CNN Radio with JD Messinger and we had a great conversation about this exact issue. My personal view is very clear: people are the backbone of any company and must be invested in, coached, trained, corrected, managed, and grown.
Does your company embrace technology or is it stuck in the Stone Age?
- Today’s workers grew up connected to the world via the Internet, Cable Television, E-mail, and Social Networking Sites. How does your company rate when it comes to strategically deploying technology to increase efficiency, productivity, and ease of work for your team? If you find you are one of those organizations that is resistant to do things in a new and different way, I recommend that you do some research about what happened/what is happening to wagon wheel makers, travel agents, home telephone service, and newspapers – they will give you a glimpse of your future.
Does your company’s recruiting process include constant interviewing and relationship recruiting?
- Ok, so you’re not hiring today. Are you sure that the team you have is the perfect team? Are you sure that none of your current team are shopping for a job? People quit. People get fired. People move away and can’t stay. People choose their family over work. People find a job that pays $50 a month more than yours, and it’s 3 miles closer to home.
I say this with love in my heart: Get real. You always need to be recruiting or your business will eventually die. Read my prior blog on the subject for more enlightening information and support.
When is the last time you evaluated your compensation plan/structure vs. the other benefits of working at your organization?
- I can feel managers and business owners collectively tensing up right now… Relax please - when I say “evaluate your compensation plan/structure” I do NOT mean “you need to increase wages.” What I mean is: Your total compensation plan – salary, benefits, location, perks, and culture (more on this later.) Does your total compensation plan cover the needs of 2008 or was it built for 1978? Today’s workers are not necessarily looking for a huge raise. They want their work to mean something, be able to pay their bills, and facilitate their life. The mantra is “work to live, not live to work.”
Can you describe the culture of your workplace in less than 45 seconds?
- If not, then there probably has not been a conscious plan to actually develop a workplace culture. An intentional culture will attract the right people, encourage the wrong people to leave (or identify themselves so you can help them find their happiness elsewhere), increase your retention, improve productivity, and – ultimately – increase your profitability. Establishing an intentional culture does not need to be expensive…it just needs to match the needs and desires of the company with those of the employees….and there are hundreds of awesome books, tapes, blogs, and consultants to help you with doing it. For a really inexpensive (FREE) option, visit our site and browse the videos of great thought leaders, or shoot me an e-mail and get signed up for our quarterly GoJobing! Magazine, where you will find tons of useful information from noted authors like Marcus Buckingham, Stephen M.R. Covey, Stedman Graham, Chester Elton, and many others.
Again I’ve run off at the blog. It’s just that I am just very passionate about this – as are all of us here at Jobing.com. The bottom line is this: the war is on and you are either winning or losing, there is no in-between. If you, or an organization you know of, want or need some help with employment, hiring, recruiting, or retention issues, feel free to contact me any time. Whether you are a "paying" Jobing.com client or not, my mission – OUR mission – is to help grow the employment base of Houston and connect local job seekers with local employers!
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