“Never stop recruiting the people that are already here because somebody else is.”
That’s the message from Paul Martineau, of the Employers’ Association, a message that he says takes on even greater importance in a tight labor market.
It’s also a message that is being repeated often, as companies, not only in Rhode Island, and not only in high-tech, are finding it more and more difficult to find talented employees.
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It is a job market that has been driving up wages and benefits, and that has tested the creativity of employers who are recognizing more the value of other benefits and working conditions that are meant to not only attract good employees, but to retain the ones you have.
At the recent forum of information officers at last week’s ITEC conference, employment was a key topic, with much of the emphasis on employee retention.
It was not that long ago that we saw surveys talking about the reduction in employee loyalty along with a reduction in terms of a company’s loyalty to their employees. Longevity and loyalty were no longer cherished commodities. But now that’s changing, as it becomes harder to find new qualified employees, and as other companies look over your shoulder to see just which employees may no longer be content to remain in your employ.
And while salary and benefits are important, if all is equal, Martineau and the CIOs [computer information officers]suggest that the key to retention is demonstrating appreciation and creating challenges.
If an employee does not feel valued he or she will be apt to listen when another offer comes along. When employees are not challenged they no longer have that enthusiastic approach to their work and will look for challenges that can rekindle that spark that simply made work – fun.
Martineau says employers must be more creative, making accommodations for flex time, something the CIOs endorsed. One CIO of a growing Web development company suggested that since his employees were mostly young, they had other pressures, such as the morning-after syndrome, and that he didn’t care when they came to work as long as the work got done. He called that a corporate culture. We might disagree that most companies require a more uniform work schedule, but we do agree that flexibility appears to be the byword when it comes to employee retention these days.
Martineau, whose organization just completed its employee benefits survey, says he’s found that companies are giving additional time off, bending education reimbursement rules to allow payment for non-job related courses, and allowing for telecommuting for some employees. And, he said, companies are becoming better at communicating with their employees.
“They’re just paying closer attention,” he says. “They are more sensitive to the outside needs of a good employee. There’s increased attentiveness, sensitivity, letting them know they’re valued.”
And neither Martineau nor the CIOs are talking about huge differences, but enough, says Martineau, to just simply let the employee know that he or she is appreciated.
“It’s the little things that make a difference,” he says, cautioning once more that you “never stop recruiting the people that are already here because somebody else is.”
