Running a successful and growing business in today’s economic climate is challenging for both owners and managers. There is a myriad of legislative requirements to address; sophisticated financial management is needed to keep costs under control, and keeping up with software, social media and internet changes is a constant struggle.
On top of all that, business managers must also find good staff with the attributes the business needs, then work hard to retain them. Employees these days are looking for more than a pay cheque, and the days where offering just a job are long gone. In the modern workforce, good employees look for interesting work, development opportunities and a caring management culture.
Staffing Issues are Similar in Every Business
This is something we promote in running our business, and which we also discuss with our clients. At Carbon Group we not only provide financial management and accounting services to our clients, but we also work with them to improve their businesses. They face the same staffing challenges that we do, and they ask us for advice if they are having difficulty attracting and retaining quality staff.
Our clients have experienced the quality and professionalism of our staff members in their dealings with us, so it is only natural that they come to us for assistance. Sometimes their issues need more specialised attention than we can offer, and in those instances we refer them to human resource experts.
Treat Employees as a Valuable Resource
In other instances, we remind them that their staff are their most valuable resource, and costs associated with upskilling them or offering opportunities for growth are an investment in the future of the business. We have found that people will put everything into their job if they believe that management cares, not just about their job performance, but about them as people.
Flexibility and Family-Friendly Policies Show Employers Care
Current studies show that the most valuable things an employer can offer in these times are flexibility and a family-friendly workplace. Employees nowadays are juggling different external responsibilities from those of twenty years ago. Some are carers for ageing parents, others have very young children and as the family mix has changed, these responsibilities often fall onto the person in the workforce.
Being able to leave early to pick up a sick child from school, or to respond to an emergency like a fall at home by an elderly parent is every bit as valuable to employees as a pay rise. Knowing they can attend to their responsibilities without fearing for their job is a demonstration by employers that they care about the whole person, not just their job skills.
This approach works at Carbon Group and it will work for other types of business. Of course, the work must still be done for the business to continue employing, but the old model of the robotic employee virtually chained to a workstation for the duration of their shift is long gone.
