The Competitive Employer Market and Your Sweeping Business

As a small business owner, you need to manage everything well, even external obstacles. What you master helps your operations run smoothly and what you struggle with keeps you worrying about staying on pace. Throw in the persistent labor shortage — which, by the way, the experts predict will continue for the "foreseeable future" — and the need to adapt and compensate for it is magnified and more urgent. But how can you adjust sufficiently? Especially in the increasingly competitive employer market where those who’ve discovered solutions faster are outrunning you. 

So, you need ways to be more competitive in your labor recruitment and retention to help your company adapt effectively to the new potentially long-term business reality. Let’s look at recruitment in the tough labor market.

24 Hours – 2400 Daily Responsibilities

Just looking at the list of all the areas of focus for business leaders to tend to in order to reduce attrition is daunting. There’s compensation, marketing, recruiting, hiring, onboarding, training, employee engagement, employee development, performance tracking, culture building, team building, communication, employer branding, workspace improvements, safety, quality, community impact programs, and other retention strategies. Who can sustain the hot pursuit of success in all of these essential personnel management areas and fulfill all the other routine functions involved in operating a profitable business?

HINT: The solution is going to be around the concept of delegating HR responsibilities to a highly effective person or outsourcing those to a professional. 

The So-Called “Talent Gap” 

The harsh reality for small to mid-sized businesses competing against the big players in the industry is that the tight supply of well-skilled candidates is getting tighter. The COVID crisis brought on the talent gap that economics experts had been predicting in the business sector for some years prior to its onset in 2020. 

Today, identifying and recruiting people with the ideal skill sets is a serious challenge for virtually all small and mid-sized businesses. And, top talent is rarer than at any time in recent history across the population of active participants in the employment market. At the same time, current employees are increasingly being burned out in their existing jobs, which has generated repetitive turnover for a vast number of businesses. 

The US American small business community is being most severely impacted in its most vulnerable competitive area — hiring power compared to larger competitors. For medium-sized businesses, it may be time to bring a professional HR administrator onboard. For smaller but growing operators, enlisting outsourced, a.k.a. managed HR services can often provide a seamless solution. An experienced in-house or external contract service laser-focused on the issue can shrink the talent acquisition problem. You can further utilize select other HR functions on your provider’s menu of services to alleviate other pain points you are experiencing.

Employer Branding Boosts Recruitment

Trying to compete against the largest competitors in the nationwide industry who’ve come with plans to dominate your local market can be a discouraging proposition. But, since your options are giving in to defeat or going for the big win in the talent acquisition contest, you may as well prepare and get in there and face down those higher compensation programs with your own kind of desirable employment package. It may seem counterintuitive, but a higher wage is not all that the most talented jobseekers consider in comparing their employment opportunities. 

The best workers also want flexibility, vs. a more rigid corporate structure in which to try to showcase their talents. They also want growth opportunities within the company, and/or educational options that can help them advance. Top talents further seek employment with a company that shares their values and contributes well to a meaningful community impact. They also want to be a part of an organization that actually cares about the people on their team. And, they want to feel like they belong and are recognized as an important part of the company. These are areas of interest in which small businesses can distinguish their employer brand and draw top talent to their teams.

How Does Employer Branding Work? 

This type of branding works the same way that marketing a product or service in the consumer market works. But, instead, you’re marketing your company in the labor market. In the same way you market your brand’s most attractive features to prospective customers, you’ll market your most appealing aspects to prospective workers. For example, instead of marketing your sweeping service’s quality, you may market your quality of work environment, work-lifestyle advantages of working for you, etc.

Providing a safe workplace, an acceptable pay rate, and basic benefits does not distinguish an employer from others in today’s employment market. To tip the scale in their favor, larger businesses may offer higher pay rates, which you may not be able to do. But, you can offer options that a larger company cannot — like the alternative of not working for a big company. You may offer a more satisfying work environment, the chance to be a part of something the employee can help build. Most big companies cannot provide that. So, these are aspects of working for a smaller company that can bring the most talented people to your business. 

Key advantages you may choose to promote your brand include opportunities for advancement, advanced training programs, recognition and rewards for significant contributions, flexible schedules, an inviting company culture, and many others. Feature your company’s track record in helping people in your organization achieve their short- and long-term goals. These can include a better work/life balance, working in a more unique environment, a remote or hybrid work arrangement, etc. Good employer branding means identifying what’s best about your business as a workplace and getting the word out in the most persuasive way. 

Employer branding has a strong impact on your appeal to the best talent in your market area. It can significantly help your small business recruit. So, it’s essential, not optional. It’s true, your business probably doesn’t have the degree of local name recognition as your bigger competitor(s). However, building a strong employer brand at your current growth level can take you far in your efforts to attract talent. It’s the same strategy the larger companies are using, so it puts you on a much more even playing field with them.  

How to Implement Effective Employer Branding

Many jobseekers may obtain their introduction to and first impression of your business through your job ad. So, begin by designing a clear job description for the open position. But, instead of simply spelling out the essential tasks and requirements of the position, also use the job description to give people an impression of what belonging to your organization is like. 

Talk about your vision and core values and how those positively affect your employees and the work environment. Add a list of the standard benefits and other great perks you offer. For example, education benefits, career growth, flex scheduling, remote work alternatives, community betterment programs, regular events for employees, etc.

Maintain your branding promotion whether you’re in a hiring mode or not. For example, participate in local events, and share social posts about your organization. Talk about your great company culture, training, milestones, nonprofit activities, exciting events, and team achievements and celebrations. Share any news and information that helps prospective employees relate to your company as one that seems like a good choice of places for them to work.

Increase Your Employer Market Competitiveness

We’ve talked about how to be effective in the employer market as a small business looking to attract and persuade prospective candidates of what’s special about your employer brand. Of course, after successfully recruiting talented people, you must focus on keeping them onboard and escaping costly perpetual turnover cycles. The solution is to do what you’ve promised in your job ads. 

Show your existing employees that you mean what you say in your advertising and that they are valued members of the team. Complete the picture of your outstanding employer brand by maintaining that image to current workers. Accomplish that by following through on everything you advertised. Create a desirable relationship between management and staff by treating people fairly and generally being the kind of boss you’d prefer to work for. 

With that approach, you will find that word of mouth from your team to the surrounding community will work as well or better for you than your published ads in the employer market. Of course, that’s where your success is decided, not in the local product and service market where you can only perform well if you have good enough employees to compete on your reputation for quality and reliability.

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