The talent market is tight. With executive unemployment hovering around 1.7% companies are scrambling to fill critical roles. The shortage of talent with “Soft skills” – communication, teamwork, adaptability – has led to a shortfall of 1.4 Million executives. Larger companies with strong employer brands and dedicated recruiting teams have a distinct advantage over their smaller counterparts. Smaller organizations are having a tough time attracting top talent. So what can they do, especially if they can’t compete with the salary ranges larger companies can offer?
Fortunately, there’s still hope for companies not named Google or Facebook. Recent research from Linked In reveals that company culture remains the number one motivator for talent to join and stay with a company. A strong positive company culture is even more important than monetary compensation for the vast majority of executive professionals. So what can a company do to foster a great culture and attract and retain top talent? Here are a few key factors…
Invest in talent
Remember when companies thought having a ping pong table and free snacks was considered an important part of company culture? Why was that again? Turns out that perks of that nature are the least important factor towards keeping your strong in-house talent engaged and fulfilled at work. A comprehensive benefits package is one of the most important factors in employee retention. Health insurance options, PTO, and parental leave rank far higher than “Scooby Snacks” or a tchotchke for winning the company Foosball tournament. Work-Life Balance and flexibility are also highly valued. With commute times in major metropolitan areas getting longer and more arduous, the ability to work from home part time or flexible commute hours may be a deciding factor for that sought after talent that is considering between your company and your competitor.
Values count
Top talent increasingly want to use their super powers for good. Many want to know that what they are doing at their jobs is contributing positively to the common good. 71% of the professionals surveyed in the Linked In report said that would be willing to take a pay cut to work at a company that aligned with their values and had a mission they agreed with. We can bear this out in our work here at Hager Executive Search. We placed a top creative talent from a top 5 retail brand with a non-profit. He accepted a pay cut and title adjustment because he wanted to use his creative talents to help people rather than simply encourage people to buy cheap consumer goods.
And it works in reverse as well. Nearly 40% of executives said they would quit were they asked to do something they felt was unethical or antithetical to their values. Encouraging employees to participate in volunteer opportunities with each other would not only foster strong interpersonal relationships between team members but could be an additional factor in attracting and retaining great talent.
A Culture of Inclusion
Talent want to be where they feel like they can be themselves and have a sense of belonging. A company’s culture is defined from the inside out and CEO’s are wise to consider how their actions and choices effect their company culture. Fostering an inclusive atmosphere where employees are valued and respected for their contributions is a significant factor in talent retention. Certainly we can all remember a job we held in the past where we stayed perhaps longer than we should have because we loved our co-workers and were proud to be a part of a great group of people. Having a culture of inclusion can be a deciding factor on whether you retain your great performers and attract new ones.