Creating a sustainable and engaged workforce is a two-way street, and as employers look for talent to fill open positions, job seekers are also evaluating their options while they’re in the driver’s seat.
Dr. Joe Saviak is an experienced senior executive, leadership and management consultant, author, researcher, and college professor. As this week’s The Big Five guest, he shares insight both employers and potential employees should be considering.
How did you become involved in leadership development?
As an employee and an executive, I saw both effective and poor leaders. It determines an organization’s destiny. As a professor, I focused on teaching the proven strategies and skills needed for successful leadership. We know what works and what does not. Today, as a consultant, I aid leaders and organizations in being their best.
Businesses are scrambling to find workforce talent and willing to hire just about anyone to fill the open positions. How can this mentality be detrimental in the long run?
Identify who you need and how to best recruit and retain them. Study where and how you got your best employees. Hire who you need not who you like or who is like you. We hire who we are so you have to be who you say you are or you won’t get the winners or they won’t stay long. Hire slow and fire fast. Hiring is one of the big 3 that decide how successful you’ll be or won’t be. Invest in recruitment and retention. Don’t train quality employees for your competitors. Make them want to stay.
Are there any qualities or characteristics employers should look for that may indicate a diamond in the rough from a stack of applications or rounds of interviews?
Yes. The movie “Moneyball” is correct. Subjective biases often cause employers to overlook real talent because it does not look like their incorrect expectations. Hire character, strengthen skills, and teach subjects. Yes, you may need to invest in skills and knowledge but if the right personal qualities are there, be willing to do it. Grow your employees. Have you seen them perform in another setting before the interview? Give them real world problems to solve during the interview so you can see how they perform.
During the workforce shortage, is this a good time to promote or train up long-term employees? Why or why not?
It’s always the right time to invest in the right employees. This is seen by high performers as a major on the job benefit aiding in retention. Cross-train. Mentor. Provide in house training or send them to cost-effective local/regional training available through professional associations. Share quick videos from YouTube or articles on leadership or other important organizational issues with them. Give them some freedom and flexibility so they have to make decisions and own them as this grows them. We need to be free to fail so we fail forward and fail up. As they grow, reward and recognize them and give them a clear career path with you so they stay.
What advice would you give to out-of-work professionals holding out for “the perfect job” and passing over a step down option? Can these options lead to greater opportunity?
Consider all options. We reinvent ourselves all the time today. We do several careers not one. First, ask and answer the Drucker question: who am I? What are my values, strengths, and skills and I perform best in what kind of organization with what team doing what work to help whom? Who I am is what I should do. Secondly, obtain the credentials, experience, references, and contacts needed for entry and success in that career. All work is inherently honorable so we should never look down on any job. However, it is all about match and fit. Florida’s economy will boom again and it’s on its way now. There will be opportunities. Prepare for them now. Utilize all tools and resources in a successful job search. Practice for interviews. Interviewing is a skill.
Anything else we should know?
Final advice: Be the employer for whom everyone wants to work. Have the right leadership, culture, and hiring to make that possible.
