Why is it important to become an employer of choice?

We are working in a serious talent shortage, from nurses to drivers, to engineers, to chefs you name the profession good people are VERY hard to find.

This is going to become more difficult. We are at the lowest level of unemployment we have ever had in the UK since 1971 and because of BREXIT we are losing our migrant workforce slowly and steadily.

At any one point, there are 770k job vacancies in the UK each month.

Of the 2.2 million EU workers that work here if we send those that have been with us less than 5 years back home (this is being muted by government as we speak) that leaves us with 700k EU workers in the UK, even if every single one of those 1.4 million unemployed in the UK get a job, and honestly if they could/wanted to work they most likely would be by now. You do the maths we are seriously in a talent deficit, not enough people to go around.

SO, and it’s a big so, you need to become better than your competitors in terms of offering. I’m not saying that we need to be a GOOGLE but thing about what makes them special and why people want to work for them and it’s not just about the fact that they are household names.

Things to think about that will set you apart from the rest and we aren’t talking monetary benefits here either

• Do you offer flexible working? Millions don’t. Can you workforce start early? Finish later? Work at home? Can they work part-time? Job Share? If not why not? – There is huge talent out there that are looking for part-time to fit around children. They might be a carer for an elderly relative or be studying two days a week. Or like to have freedom to pursue other interests.
• What are your employers work life balances like? Do they work over 40 hours a week? If they do how often do they do this? Do they need to do this? Are your processes and procedures tight and streamline? Can you make their role easier to manage and free up time for more creativity instead of pen pushing?
• Are you leader’s great?! Are they inspiring, approachable, leading from the front? Have you got leaders that have come up through the ranks but have never had a leadership post? Do they need training? Do they need to become a better leader to create and motivate better teams?
• Lastly look at three three reasons staff come to work and what makes them happy and engaged. They need to feel part of a team with the ability to form relationships and have friends at work. They need to be able to progress within their role and lastly, they need to be able to make a difference. This could be as simple as helping other staff members or some sort of Corporate social responsibility cause, for instance we at RSE are currently undertaking some 1000 volunteer hours for the staff’s favourite charities. 

Think outside the box what makes you happy at work?