The Skilled Workforce Shortage

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Facilitator Manual

The Skilled workforce shortage the negative impact on your organization and what you can do about it Ken Stratford “Even when the national unemployment rate was at a worrisome 12% Stratford saw this labor shortage crisis coming down the tracks.

Now he has developed the strategies to your passion • our program overcome the otherwise inevitable.”

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The Skilled Workforce Shortage The negative impact on your organization and what you can do about it.

An Encore Workshop

Facilitator’s Manual

Š 2012 The Skilled Workforce Shortage Facilitator Manual Author: Ken Stratford

To order an Encore Workshop please visit our website www.encoreworkshops.com Encore Workshops is an imprint of Small Business Success (a division of Blue Beetle Books Inc.) Blue Beetle Books Inc. www.bluebeetlebooks.com www.smallbusinesssuccess.ca Tel: 778.265.3070

Email: janie@bluebeetlebooks.com

Š 2012 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system without the prior written consent of Encore.

Encore Workshops If you would like to find out more about Encore Workshops please visit our website www.encoreworkshops.com.

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Table of Contents

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Introduction

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Module 1 - A Changing Work Environment

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Module 2 - The Skill Shortage: Organizational Change

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Module 3 - New Models of Employment

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Module 4 - Employee Motivation

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Module 5 - How Work/Life Balance Can Impact an Organization

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Module 6 - Attracting Quality Candidates

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Module 7 - Next Steps

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INTRODUCTION

About This Manual Thank-you for purchasing this Encore Workshop. We take a lot of care to ensure that our workshops are professionally produced. If there is anything we can do to assist you in delivering this workshop successfully please do not hesitate to email us at help@encoreworkshops.com.

This manual will provide you with an outline of the information that you can deliver as the facilitator and instructor. There are several sections that allow your audience to note down information about themselves that will be useful during the presentation (e.g. their expectations and what challenges they face); we urge you to make use of these as they will enhance your audience’s learning experience.

We strongly encourage you to read this manual thoroughly while at the same time going through the PowerPoint deck that accompanies it. You will find the PowerPoint deck on the CD that came in your Encore Workshop box. Take a few minutes to check out the additional material and handouts that you will find on the CD. Depending on the number of exercises you decide to use, this workshop can usually be delivered in a half-day session.

8 INTRODUCTION

Workshop overview Every company, every government agency, and every not for profit organization in North America is facing a situation never before seen; a severe shortage of skilled labor.

While it has already hit a number of economic sectors, most notably the construction and health care industries, a logical extension of our demographics points to a time when every organization in every sector will feel the impact.

For all employers this new reality calls for unprecedented strategic thinking which must include attracting more than one’s share of the available pool of labor, and building new relationships with existing employees.

This workshop will provide managers, supervisors and HR specialists with a clear understanding of the various factors that lie behind this phenomenon, the tools to predict how it will impact their organization and strategies that can be utilized to attract new staff and to retain existing staff by becoming what the author calls a ‘magnet’ company.

Encore Tip What 5 things do you want participants to learn? (specific to their role in your company)

1. ______________________________________________ 2. ______________________________________________ 3. ______________________________________________ 4. ______________________________________________ 5. ______________________________________________

9 INTRODUCTION

What Are Participants Going To Learn?

Participants will:  gain a new understanding of the powerful forces at work in reducing the supply of skilled and semi-skilled labor 

begin to understand how the skill shortage will impact their industry and their department or division

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learn how to develop inventories of existing staff; their needs, values and goals

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be able to identify the probable needs, values and goals of their target candidates for new positions

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learn the importance of developing a new ‘corporate brand’ as an employer, which reflects the needs, values and goals of their staff and the people they want to attract as employees

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learn what they can do as employees to help develop a magnet company that entices prospective employees to seek out employment with them

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learn to develop pro-active strategies to keep staff longer through harmonization of their needs and the company needs, and by creating a work/life balance

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be able to build defensive strategies to offset ‘skills piracy’ from the competition.

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learn how to become part of a magnet company that entices prospective employees to seek out employment with them

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be able to determine what strategies their competition will use to gain a larger share of the labor market

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be able to develop new efficiencies in productivity that can lessen the number of people required to carry out the work or the mandate

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start to understand how to balance increased labor costs, increased prices and customer retention

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understand the importance of supporting the HR function by focusing on new corporate skills strategies, marketing, communication and production.

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The Skilled Workforce Shortage

INTRODUCTION

How Will Your Organization Benefit?

Your organization will: 

gain the immediate respect of existing staff who will feel more valued

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be able to meet all its labor needs from the existing local labor pool

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by being perceived as an employer of choice, gain additional sales and market-share since studies show that customers want to deal with a well-thought-of company

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gain media exposure as a preferred employer since media has become aware of the new labor reality and is looking for related stories

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through an increased understanding of the needs, values and goals of employees be better positioned to use the unique talents of each one to the ultimate benefit of the company.

Encore Tip What benefits do you want to see from the workshop? (specific to your company)

1. ______________________________________________ 2. ______________________________________________ 3. ______________________________________________ 4. ______________________________________________ 5. ______________________________________________

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The Skilled Workforce Shortage

INTRODUCTION

Participants’ Expectations Ask your group to take a few moments and list the expectations they have for this workshop. They will find a table to complete in their manual. You should offer them an opportunity to discuss these at the beginning of the workshop. The points listed below can be used as examples; participants should then be encouraged to add further expectations. You may or may not choose to draw these out as part of the workshop.

Ask them to think of at least three additional expectations. For instance: 

Increased understanding of employment trends

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Learn new techniques in hiring and retaining qualified staff

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Improved utilization of the skills of present staff

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Ways to improve my work/life balance

Factoid In 2006, for the first time ever, the cohort leaving the workforce in the United States exceeded the 15-24 age cohort.

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Module One

A Changing Work Environment First, understand that the work environment has changed dramatically.

The president of Craig Group, Rita Craig (an award winning author and human resource consultant) has identified seven trends that are effecting the human resources industry. They are: 1. A shrinking talent pool 2. An increase in outsourcing 3. A more intense focus on work/life balance 4. Changing workplace demographics 5. Greater need for talent management 6. Ethics requirements 7. Globalization

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Social Changes to the Work Environment Issue

The Old Model

Today’s Reality

WHERE ARE THE JOBS?

Large or small manufacturing, agriculture, retail, government

+ Knowledge & service industries

DOMINANT JOB TYPES

Blue collar & White collar

Technical, professional, administrative, creative

CHARACTERISTICS OF JOB

A few highly stable job descriptions

Rapidly evolving roles

YOUR CAREER PREPARATION

Complete formal education K-12 + possible postsecondary i.e. trades

Formal education plus continued learning & creativity

FACTORS IN ADVANCEMENT

Luck, geographic proximity, family and local culture

Commitment, decisionmaking skills, industry knowledge, broad interests, continued self-improvement

WHO CONTROLS YOU

Company, Union

YOU, your career & education choices & your ability to ‘sell’ yourself

CAREER OBJECTIVE

Climb predetermined scale

Personal growth, financial growth & quality of life

CAREER REWARDS

Salary, benefits, promotion

Learning, stimulation, financial goals

LIMITS TO ADVANCEMENT Gender, age, company politics, race, class distinction

Shortage of: skills, industry and general knowledge, personal adaptability and creativity

RETIREMENT FINANCING

Company pension plan, OA Security

Personal financial planning & secondary income sources through life

WHY CONSIDER SELF EMPLOYMENT?

Desperation, Local opportunity, father’s footsteps

Self-fulfillment, global opportunities, personal work/ life balance i.e. home with kids

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Social Changes to the Work Environment The following pages provide background information on the table opposite. We suggest you also use the PowerPoint slides that accompany this workshop.

Where are the Jobs?

Historically these were the only sources of work in almost any community, large or small. That began to change with the dramatic increases in the information and service industries beginning in the 1970’s.

The ‘old’ model industries still exist but have been eclipsed by the information, or knowledge, industries. For example, agriculture employed 60% of the national workforce in 1900; 20% at the end of WWII and now it sits at 3%.

Manufacturing is still important in industries such as automobile production but continues to decline as a percentage of the labor force due to increases in productivity, which in turn creates more knowledgetype jobs.

Dominant Job Types One of the greatest changes in the workplace has been the segmentation of skills. The first change in the so-called blue collar/white collar mix was the emergence of the ‘pink collar’ as more women entered the workforce and began to move into jobs with supervisory and management responsibilities.

Today, even the blue collar worker has evolved into a knowledge worker with the need to use computer based equipment such as point of sale devices. The ‘white collar’ worker was a term used to describe male management. That individual is now more likely to forgo the executive look in favor of jeans and a button down collar as he/she is both a manager and a worker actively retaining their professional skill sets while managing in (rather than on) the corporation as a worker alongside their subordinates.

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The Skilled Workforce Shortage

Characteristics of Job This point is closely allied with the former one relating to dominant job types. Notice the parallel, in that both older model categories had a limited number of descriptions for both the type of worker and the type of job.

This is a cause of much concern in labor negotiations in a union environment in that the stability of job description is a comfort level few workers are willing to leave – and this is understandable. At the same time, few companies (if any) can now operate with a fixed-definition workforce in a competitive free market environment that is everchanging. This is particularly true where a company is going through a shifting environment of downsizing; rapid growth; technological shift in products and services, or acquisition which requires the merging of two corporate cultures and missions.

Your Career Preparation Career preparation in the old model allowed the individual to operate almost on ‘automatic pilot’. He or she was discouraged from breaking out of the mold of a society’s pre-planned and programmed series of steps through kindergarten through to high school.

Some element of free choice emerged for those who went into university, where alternatives were available in the discipline to be studied. For those who went on to trades training, the learning environment was similar to high school in its structure. In a highly competitive job market, their relationship with the employer was close to the historic master-servant role, with learning opportunities limited to the product of the company to which he was indentured.

Today the scope of choice is almost overwhelming and encourages a high level of individuality. Many of today’s young people see the selection of their employer as a part of their education. They are more likely to take all or part of their learning on-line and to make greater use of Mentors than their parent’s generation. Their life-long learning is in some ways almost accidental, since they have a highly developed curiosity about the

The Skilled Workforce Shortage

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information age and feel a need to always be up to date on the latest information advances.

Who after all, wants to be the last one to know about ‘You Tube’ or ‘Myspace? This ongoing exposure to the ‘New’ will continually open them up to both an awareness and an acceptance of change.

Factors in Advancement Earlier models of advancement within a company tended to be largely beyond the control of the individual with the possible exception of a willingness to work hard, which may or may not have been noticed by the boss. In most situations however, advancement tended to be driven more by the luck of being in the right place at the right time and even then may have been limited by one’s seniority within the union. In larger firms seniority is still a factor, but review panels, looking internally to fill a new higher position, are increasingly using seniority as a tie-breaker only when other qualifications are equal.

Career advancement today is much more likely if the employee manages his or marketable skills within the organization, just as they would if they were a private entrepreneur. This means being empathetic to the company’s goals and understanding the corporate culture – and believe me every company has a distinct culture. This doesn’t mean that the employee will get promoted just because he ‘sucks up’ (to use a vulgarism) but it does mean that senior management is going to make sure that “we don’t lose this guy”, because he has proved himself invaluable by continuing with his education, staying up to date around trends and new ideas and is prepared to assist the organization without looking for short-term rewards.

Who Controls You? In an earlier section we talked about one’s schooling being on ‘automatic pilot’. The same could have been said about older methods of control in a work environment. In fact the very term ‘control’ seems old fashioned since we like to think that today’s work environment is more of a contract between equals with the employer on one side needing the skills and the

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The Skilled Workforce Shortage

employee on the other side seeking job satisfaction, and a range of needs including remuneration. So, control has shifted to self-control with the employee directing herself toward her goals, and imposing self-discipline in ongoing education and skills upgrade making it easier to advance.

Career Objective Whereas career objectives were once easily predictable, today the individual’s personal objectives are no longer limited to the workplace, but they see the job as a part of life’s broader goals. Increasingly, employees are saying that they want quality of life including family time and time for self-education, and may be willing to forego some of the higher rungs on the ladder of promotion. This approach is much easier to accomplish in the current and future labor market and the wise employer will incorporate some of these wider ambitions into individualized employment packages.

Limits to Advancement While we would like to believe that all discriminatory factors are a thing of the past in hiring and promotion, in reality some still remain, particularly those that are unstated, but just as real.

However, we have come a long way in that issues of discrimination based upon race, class and gender are now illegal in all jurisdictions, and age discrimination is suddenly getting much attention.

Age discrimination will soon disappear, as companies ( and legislators) come to realize that those 60+ individuals that want to keep on working represent a supply of labor that they cannot afford to overlook, plus they bring an advantage to their employers in that they come with corporate memory and can help the organization to avoid repeating the same mistakes.

Retirement Financing With people living longer and healthier lives in their later years, there is a high level of awareness of the importance of retirement planning with particular emphasis on financial security.

The Skilled Workforce Shortage

In the old model, most people could only look forward to a minimum lifestyle based upon the company pension plan (where it existed) and government old age security. In later years, the RRSP model and the Canada Pension Plan came along in Canada, and the 401(k) plan in the US, as a means for people to do their own planning to supplement government pensions.

Generally the old level was adequate, in part because expectations were lower and also because most people didn’t live many years beyond retirement. Today’s 55+ workers, if they consider full retirement as an option (and those are getting less each year), plan to live a lot longer, remain in good health, and plan to travel and take up new and sometimes expensive hobbies.

Today’s magnet companies know that they have to be in synch with this group, sometimes supplying counselling which begins several years before retirement. Very progressive companies are looking to restructure work so that long term employees can still contribute but with more elastic timelines and responsibilities.

Participants should be challenged to consider ways in which their organization might create higher comfort zones for their older workers and how they might be kept on as a labor resource.

Why Consider Self-Employment?

Self employment, such as retail store ownership was often the choice for a livelihood, simply because Dad ran a shoe store or hardware store and the kids were expected to take it over. Other factors in choosing selfemployment often revolved around the fact that few jobs existed in your home town and creating a job was sometimes the only choice.

Today, the fastest growing ‘job’ in North America is self-employment and this in a market where jobs are going begging.

Why do so many choose this path? In part it’s because technology has made it much easier to run a business online. As just one example, over 250,000 North Americans now make a full-time living running an e-Bay store.

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Ironically, self employment also grows when jobs are plentiful, since many entrepreneurs feel that if it doesn’t work out then they can fall back on traditional employment.

Participants in this workshop should be encouraged to identify the pro’s and con’s of using freelancer entrepreneurs, including ways in which the company could utilize these people without jeopardizing company standards.

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Module Two

The Skill Shortage—Organizational Challenges In the history of any corporation the biggest challenge it will ever face is when the day comes that the decisions made on the needs and the size of the marketplace are tested in the real world. But at least this challenge is self-imposed. Throughout the life of the organization other challenges will arise that are far more complex, since they are external in origin. Those pressures might result from legislative changes such as new trade laws, taxation laws and environmental regulations, or they may come from the emergence of new competitors or disruptive technologies.

In the case of the skilled workforce shortage, these externally imposed changes arise from a dramatic shift in the availability of labor. This new environment calls for a radical shift in the use of labor, and strategic thinking in HR. Part of that process requires the organization to focus upon the demands of today’s employees and determine where shortfalls exist in meeting those needs.

Encore Workshops - an imprint of Small Business Success (a wholly owned subsidiary of Blue Beetle Books Inc.)

If you would like to review the full manual, or discuss your current training needs please call our customer service manager Janie Dunning at 778.265.3070 or email janie@bluebeetlebooks.com.

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