Post Image
  It has been estimated that over 75% of small businesses have challenges attracting the right type of talents to join their organizations. Below are some of the ways small businesses can compete and win in the talent marketplace:
Read more about Business
Have basic sustainable business structure and systems in place: Let’s look at HR structure. Make your recruitment system interesting, attractive and systemic. Ensure your system put in place job descriptions, give offer/appointment letters with the employment conditions, work tools ready etc. Share and sell the big picture: The Mission and Purpose. Today’s workplace generation wants to understand the “why” behind what the company does. They need to know the purpose behind their work and believe in the mission. They want to know their work matters and how it benefits the greater cause. Having a great mission and purpose statement is a good start but it has to be genuine. Consistency and follow-through are imperative. The mission and purpose must be communicated from the top. Point out to potential hires the benefits of working in a close-knit team and the opportunity to contribute and have your “voice” heard as an individual: In this instance, small is winning! Also, show why working in a “small” business like yours is the best place to acquire real hands-on work experience. In other words, sell your organization to prospective talents. Think of your brand as a product or service and highlight why these top talents should “buy” you. Think of your brand and incorporate modern marketing techniques when crafting your recruitment strategy. Leadership: New job candidates want to know who they are going to be working for and aligning themselves with. The founders, Senior executives, managers, and anyone with authority. That means you need great leadership that exhibits integrity and upholds the values of the company on and off the battlefield. They will be doing their research, so make sure that the figureheads have their house in order, so to speak. Remix talent acquisition and management strategies used by large corporations and tailor them to your own unique needs and environment: Remember, there is a reason why these organizations spend a lot of money yearly improving these strategies. Take advantage of the work they have done already in this area and adopt these techniques to work for your “small” business.
Sign up to the Connect Nigeria daily newsletter
Invest in training and development and showcase this as a key talent attractor to your organization. This should form an important step for you in attracting and retaining the best hands in the marketplace. Recognition and Reward: Compensation, Benefits, Rewards and Recognition must be both intrinsic and extrinsic. Extrinsic motivation involves public recognition and external rewards such as bonuses and praise. Intrinsic motivation is even more important. This allows employees to feel connected like they are “in” on things, that they have autonomy and freedom and opportunity. Put in place a very attractive and progressive benefits package especially when you cannot afford to pay the big bucks yet. This should be tailored to your unique organization and can include health insurance, free or subsidized daily lunches etc, which can all be used as talent attractors. Also ensuring that statutory benefits like pension, group life insurance are actually deducted and remitted shows your organization as one that cares for its employees. Career Growth: Being able to show candidates where they can go and how they can get there is critical. Building an organizational structure that allows for career-pathing takes time and strategy. You also have to prove that you can provide the right resources for professional development.

Conclusion

In conclusion, top talent might be hard to attract and even harder to keep but make sure you are bringing in people that have a shared sense of purpose and believe in your mission, purpose and values. Just because your competitors are drooling over them does not mean they are a good fit for your company. If your company does something meaningful or novel, you might become a magnet for those truly talented people you seek. Please note that every business has its stage of growth and the quality of talent required at every stage of growth.

What To Do? Go For It!

Take steps to ensure hiring and retention of the right talents for your business. You can also discuss this with your business development support consultant. Featured Image Source: Technext
Got a suggestion? Contact us: editor@connectnigeria.com
You might also like:
This article was first published on 4th October 2021

funke-medun

Funke Medun is a World Bank trained business development support (BDS) services consultant, a licensed HR practitioner, an international development consultant, a seasoned professional with several years’ experience in banking, consulting, human resources, training, executive coaching, and entrepreneurship development.

Comments (319)

319 thoughts on “Practical Ways To Attract And Retain Talents For Your Small Business”

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *