10 Ways to Recruit & Retain Employees

Here are some top ways to get- and keep- a good team together. Matt Trusela, Shamrock Foods Enterprise Business Consultant, shares his top tips for employers.

1. Hire in line with your brand. “Have a clear vision of who your operation is and what kind of talent you want to attract. Hire in alignment with your brand and culture, and never out of desperation. Hire people that you could see being an easy fit as a customer, fan and advocate,” Trusela advises.

2. Determine behavioral traits. Partner with a hiring and onboarding service that offers tests for assessing candidates’ work ethic, integrity, conscientiousness, and people skills.

3. Learn from customers. Solicit their feedback. What’s your staff doing well? What could be better? Use this feedback to assess the type of soft skills that should be a priority for hiring

4. Tap into social. Recruit via your brand’s social-media channels and word of mouth. Offer referral bonuses to current employees who bring in new recruits. This way, you know you’re finding potential hires who are fans of your brand who are in alignment with your vision and practices.

5. Offer a good place to work. Give employees what they need — properly working equipment, a comfortable work environment with good ventilation and clean workstations. “Provide benefits, opportunities for growth, great wages and, above all else, proper training,” says Chef Angel Morales, Shamrock Foods Corporate Chef.

6. Train. “The beginning of any training plan goes back to your brand, the specific experiences you want to be able to provide to your customers, and understanding the people and tasks that will make that happen,” advises Brandon Biederman, Shamrock Foods Business Review Specialist.

Considerations:

• What do I want from each employee?
• Who does what, when, where, how and why?
• How do I want it done?

Offer systematized training. Bypass manuals. In addition to hands-on, use IT solutions, YouTube videos and online training modules. “We find that a focused, thorough onboarding program is essential to a well-run restaurant. Training and cross-training are key to keeping things flowing during busy shifts and seasons,” says Jeff Pivin, Shamrock Foods Business Review Specialist.

7. Get help from staffers. Have employees show new hires around and demonstrate best practices. Get top-performing employees to wear a GoPro to show how they do things, and share this video with new hires during onboarding.

8. Consider demographic dynamics. Broadly speaking, Gen Z wants to feel taken care of by and to feel a strong connection with their employer’s core brand. Millennials crave flexibility and self-expression. Understanding generational outlook and needs helps retain employees. That said, don’t stereotype. Get to know employees’ individual strengths and needs. Observe how individuals work.

9. Learn from former employees. Conduct exit interviews about why employees left. It may uncover opportunities for growth and re-alignment with your employees

10. Be a good boss. “People don’t quit jobs,” Morales emphasizes. “They quit bosses.” How are you and your managers supporting your associates ?