Struggling to keep talent?

3 things you can do to minimise disruption to your business

First, and foremost, we have got to tackle the mindset of leadership. It is so easy when the inbox starts piling up to roll up the sleeves, get up to your elbows, and truck on.

There is no doubt that the job market is an interesting place at the minute. There seems to be a veritable carousel of news around workforce shortages, employee burnout, issues around attracting talent, and more around keeping them. And look, this Linkedin article is not a solve-all for all of the above, but rather an abridged look at some of the ways businesses are operating in 2022 to keep going, and to keep growing, even when there is a big juice order, and not a lot of people to squeeze those oranges.

And yes, this article contains a few abstract analogies throughout. But, here are our 3 things you can do to get through.

Survey the kingdom

First, and foremost, we have got to tackle the mindset of leadership. It is so easy when the inbox starts piling up to roll up the sleeves, get up to your elbows and truck on. Hell, sometimes that is all you can do, but there is value in the assessment before you make your plan.

In the gaming industry, this is called ‘crunch’, hitting those deadlines and to hell with the sleep cycle. Here is the thing though, it is completely unsustainable. And your staff cannot keep it up forever. There are also a whole bunch of recruiters out there who can sell the greener grass, especially to the disaffected and disenfranchised who feel they are shovelling a mountain.

So, know thyself. Look at your day-to-day business. Where are the inefficiencies? Where are the bottlenecks? Can you adjust internally to get more done with what you have? Doing this CAN have the same effect as bringing in another pair of hands to help with the shovelling. 

Listen, really listen.

This sounds like low-hanging fruit, doesn’t it? But you would be amazed how often it is missing in business. You, the business owner/director/manager, live in the rarified air, or certainly, that can be the perception. You know, we know, that the ivory tower has a different set of pressures, and challenges, that need your attention, however, to those shovelling the aforementioned mountain, it may not seem so bad.

Really understanding the day-to-day challenges your front-line face is key to driving your business. This doesn’t have to be formal, it just has to be authentic. Get the feedback from your employees, your staff know the trenches better than you do, and you have to respect that and learn from that. 

Where are the annoyances? Why are things falling down a little? What solutions would they put in place? Is it admin? Is it a slow process? When you really know, then, and only then can you do something about it. Perception is massive here, are you engaging with your staff when there is a problem, and only then? Are you approachable to float ideas or problems? If not, why not?

Action what you hear

Obviously, this is not universal but, when you understand the frustrations, and challenges of your staff, you had better make sure that you investigate a solution. There are a plethora of solutions in the market, from paperwork digitisation to workflow management, to business intelligence platforms, that can help you, and your staff, with the grind.

Now, not all things are within budget, or indeed available, but you have to look, at them and feedback. The positive loop you create here is massive. You cannot lose, if there is a solution you can deploy, you are very quickly regarded as a great boss/leader who listens, engages, and actively wants to make things better for their workforce. If there is no solution that is perfect, you can feedback with adjustments, and your staff still know you have their interests at heart.

There really is no downside to this. If you find a process that annoys the hell out of your staff, you may find a way to remove it or automate it. Your end-of-month reports? Could you be building a solution that means they collate themselves by reading already input data? Does doing this remove a problem? Will it make your staff happier with the removal of these burdens? Will that improve culture? Could it all cost less than the recruitment costs of one more pair of hands?

We’d say it is worth a shot.