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Building Your Work Force Recruiting for the 21st Century
Many contractors need to reevaluate their image and recruiting networks to compete successfully for today’s top candidates
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Gary Warner
Management Consultant
Gary Warner is a nationally known speaker and management consultant on construction human-resource issues. He has more than 30 years of HR experience in the industry and has been actively involved in AGC, both at the national and state levels.
Email: gwarner@gbwresults.com
Web site: www.gbwresults.com |
Talk to contractors today, and you’ll find that one of the most significant problems they face is finding and keeping good employees. Unfortunately, this is not new for the construction industry. It’s a problem of epidemic proportions that affects every company, large or small, union or merit shop.
Just look at the dynamics fueling the problem: an aging work force, stiff competition for employees from other industries and the industry’s poor image. The employment motivators for those entering the work force today are much different than they were 20 years ago.
Given the seriousness of the problem, you’d think that everyone in the industry would have taken steps long ago to correct the situation. Unfortunately, this is not the case. The “warm-body syndrome” is still being used by many, with marginal results, at best. However, contractors can take some positive steps to greatly improve their odds of finding, keeping and growing a qualified work force.
Everyone knows how important first impressions can be. How a company projects itself during the hiring process is critical to determining how successful it will be in recruiting the best employees. Every step must be a positive experience for prospective employees—from the quality of the recruitment ads and the company’s promotional materials, to the interview and screening process, and even the timing of the actual employment offer.
Managers at all levels of the hiring process must think of themselves as professional salespeople. In fact, their own career success should be evaluated, in part, by how well they can “close the deal.” The Wall Street Journal recently reported that significant delays in the hiring process can adversely affect employers: “Many companies drag out the selection process, leaving applicants in anxious limbo for months,” the WSJ says.
“Time kills all deals,” Frank Bruckner, executive vice president of Kimmel & Associates, a recruiting firm in Asheville, N.C., says, pointing at the cardinal rule of employment recruiting. “Outstanding candidates for new positions are like eggs; they are perishable. Once their immediate problem at their current employer is solved, their motivation to change jobs and join your firm diminishes dramatically. Strike while the iron is hot.”
Recruiting Help
Companies can significantly improve their chances for success by looking at their relationship with a professional recruiter just like the one they have with their banker, bonding company or insurance agent. Take time to pre-qualify the candidates by asking them some key questions:
> How much experience does the recruiter have placing qualified candidates in the construction industry?
> Can the recruiter provide contractor-client references similar to your organization? How long has the recruiter had a working relationship with these references?
> In what type of positions does the recruiter specialize?
> What segments of the industry do they work in most often (buildings/heavy-highway, etc.)?
> Will the recruiter negotiate its fee structure to accommodate multiple placements?
> What type of “guarantee” does the recruiter provide? Is it appropriate for your company’s needs?
> What does the recruitment process look like and what role does the contractor play?
> What’s on the recruiter’s Website?
This checklist is just the beginning. Once you’ve made your selection, the recruiter needs to develop an understanding of your company’s culture, business model and how best to “project” the firm to candidates. Only by building a long-term partnership can the recruiter be successful in meeting a contractor’s employee needs.
Even though you may think you’ve developed a successful recruitment process, many times the job is only half completed. Too often, the significant role that retention and training play in the process is all but forgotten: “OK, you’re hired. Here’s your hard hat, now go to work—my job is done.”
Not so fast. We all know that for most employees, money is not the primary motivator. It’s other things such as an opportunity for advancement, how the company demonstrates an interest in employees and how it recognizes them so they feel they’re making a difference.
These, along with utilizing other critical items, including meaningful employee orientation and evaluation processes, effective employee communications, competitive pay and benefits and training/career enhancement opportunities, are the key not only to being successful in recruiting qualified candidates, but also in helping to retain the excellent employees that are important to the overall future of your organization.
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Always:
>Make sure safety is the No. 1 priority
>Communicate, communicate, communicate with your employees
>Listen to what your employees are saying
>Be proactive in dealing with employee issues, and be quick about it
>Recognize individual/group achievements
>Encourage employees to be part of the problem-solving process
>Lead by example
>Invest in your employees’ futures by supporting training initiatives
>Maintain competitive pay and benefits
>Evaluate managers’ performance by how well they are “builders of people”
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