37 minute read
5 Tips to Overcome Recruitment Challenges for Small Businesses
5 Tips to Overcome Recruitment Challenges
for Small Businesses
COVID-19 changed the way we used to work before. So much so, that it even altered the process of recruitments for businesses all around the world. And this change in the work process is here to stay. A lot of factors, including the fear of contracting the virus, have significantly impacted the recruitment segment. More so, for small businesses, hiring real talents has become quite a task. But there ’ s no stopping when it comes to doing business, big or small.
So, in this article, we have curated 5 very simple steps to overcome recruitment challenges for all those small businesses who are all set to take a leap post-pandemic.
1. Offer Flexibility:
Remote work has become the new normal. Also, this is going to stay. And being an employer, you should provide your workers with the flexibility of choosing their workplace. If your business belongs to an industry where remote working is possible, offer your employees that flexibility. This will ensure that they are safe while working from you and you will also not have to worry about them contracting the virus while at work, which might become a huge responsibility for you as an employer.
2. Offer Joining Incentives:
If your business belongs to an industry where it’ s mandatory for your workers to visit the office, for example, shift workers for manufacturing processes, you can offer your employees a rejoining benefit in terms of financial incentives. This will lure them to join the office back and some of the giants like Uber and Amazon have already done this.
3. Be Proactive:
The talent acquisition teams have become a little reactive when it comes to hiring talents in an organization. They only act when there is a requirement. So, in order to stay ahead of the competition, it’ s imperative for employers to maintain a hiring pipeline that can build and nurture talents who may become a good fit for future roles. This proactive recruitment strategy can prepare you to meet the hiring needs of your company better.
4. Build a Robust Employer Brand
This will help you to attract and engage better employees. According to a report by Glassdoor, businesses which can invest in proper employer branding are three times more likely to hire quality employees. Promote your business culture on social media, reply to online reviews (good or bad), encourage your employees to talk about your brand through videos or blogs, and so on. And above all, try to be a fair employer.
5. Be Fair in Recruitment:
Do not follow any bias while recruiting your employees. Try to provide equal opportunities to all your future hires. Hiring objectively will help your business to hire the best talent out there. Also, this will result in an inclusive workplace where you will treat everyone equally and where the potentials of all your employees will be given equal importance to.
Being a small business owner, it’ s often difficult to realize the hiring challenges. However, it’ s equally important to attract the right candidates in order to ensure that the business growth is maintained. So, by keeping the above-listed hiring tips for small businesses in mind, it will be easier for you to start your next recruitment process for your brand, isn ’t it?
Summing it Up
To know more about such amazing tips and tricks of maintaining your small business in Canada, do not forget to subscribe to our monthly Canadian SME Small Business Magazine.
BREAKING AWAY FROM TRADITIONAL offering employees WORKING MODELS, significant incentives
Greg Bambury
C h i e f H u m a n R e s o u r c e s O f f i c e r f o r M e d a v i e
Greg Bambury is the Chief Human Resources Officer for Medavie, a health company that oversees Medavie Blue Cross and Medavie Health Services. In his role, Greg oversees employee engagement and supports the ongoing growth and transformation of the organization. In his more than 25 years of experience as a leader in human resources, Greg has driven major strategic initiatives within numerous large and complex organizations.
What Canadians want from their employers has changed significantly due to the pandemic. What is the cause of the change?
The COVID-19 pandemic has shifted the way Canadians live and work, and this ever-changing landscape is expected to continue for years to come. What business leaders have learned along the way is that the status quo just won ’t do. Staying current, focusing on organizational transformation and modernization is essential to growth.
The same principles that rang true prior to the pandemic will continue when it comes to talent retention and attraction. Employers need to design work-life with flexibility and choice at the forefront. Whether it’ s a work from anywhere or hybrid model, greater access to mental health resources, or increased paid sick leave, Canadian business owners must proactively adapt what they are offering – or face employee turnover which impacts productivity, innovation and revenue. Do you think the introduction of remote work has made it easier for employees to leave their jobs?
We have all been hearing about the “ great
resignation
” in Canada and COVID has been a catalyst for rethinking every aspect of life. The shift from bricks and mortar to remote work is changing the office culture dynamic and opening the job market in new ways. Having the option to work from anywhere (or in a hybrid model) creates more flexibility for those looking to move outside of urban centers. And for those in rural areas, have the option to seek careers historically linked to cities.
So yes, the introduction of remote work is making an impact. Organizations that are adapting and offering new ways of working are attracting talent and taking mindshare from those who are not seizing this moment of change.
At Medavie Blue Cross, communicating with our team has been key with most working remotely throughout the pandemic. Ultimately as we work together to establish new boundaries, we all recognize we are at a moment of significant opportunity – one that will drive us into the future – and building on our foundations will remain essential in preparing for our workplace of the future.
What changes do you think need to happen within small businesses before reliance on remote workers can diminish?
Small and medium-sized businesses are vital to Canada’s economy and have a huge impact on the job market. In many ways smaller employers have the advantage of developing a more personal relationship with their employees and their ability to maintain the relational employer/employee foundations will be key as they shift to more reliance on remote staff.
Like health insurers, we are always looking at ways to reimagine benefit plans that best support the needs of Canada’s diverse workforce, including the vital small and medium-sized business sector. Many SMEs have faced significant challenges throughout the pandemic in terms of business continuity, personnel management, and financial stress. We have worked with our SME clients and their advisors to make modifications to their plans to adjust to the new realities and help meet the needs of their employees. For instance, offering Benefits for Small businesses as a cost-effective way for small business owners to protect the health and wellbeing of their employees. The plan is designed to pool claims together, lowering the impact of high claims activity and containing costs over time.
With up to half of Canadian employers planning on increasing staffing levels in the last quarter of this year, what should employers consider to attract and retain employees?
At Medavie Blue Cross, we believe employees are increasingly looking to work for an organization with a strong purpose and values that align with their own. As a trusted health solutions partner, it is our aim to foster a culture that promotes openness, understanding, and flexibility. We want our team to feel valued and champion a healthy work environment that allows everyone to have a voice and bring their true selves to work.
Employers need to take stock of their workforce and offer benefits, incentives, and wellness programs that reflect a diverse employee culture with varying interests and needs. Optional benefits, personal wellness, and health spending accounts should be considered as part of recruitment and retention plans too. And equally as important is providing employees with access to innovative, expanded virtual care options to ensure they can receive care when and where they need it. On a final note, what is the importance of investing in valuable incentives in a remote and hybrid environment that cater to the specific needs of the modern workforce?
People-first organizations set the bar high. They build with purpose, grow and innovate, and are more productive and profitable. Investing in employees and their well-being is not only the right thing to do, it’ s also a competitive advantage. From small local businesses to those with a national reach, it’ s time for Canadian leaders to empower their employees with the tools, resources, and benefits they need to thrive and flourish.
IS YOUR BRAND GETTING
INFLUENCER MARKETING WRONG?
Kim Salzer
Partner & CMO with Chief Outsiders
Millions of people interact with influencers on social media every day. Social media influencers can be a powerful way to reach new customers or convert skeptics. With the spectacular rise of Tik Tok, image-based brands—like cosmetics, fashion, music, and gaming—have been able to target masses of Millennials and Gen Z.
But how can you know if influencer marketing is for you? And if it is, how would you choose which influencers to work with? Between the nano, micro, mid-tier, and macro levels, there are probably thousands of influencers that might work for you. That’ s why it’ s important to write down a list of traits you ’ re looking for in an influencer before you start looking. Here are some key considerations as you decide whether to embark on an influencer campaign:
#1 Goals, Measurements, and Contracts
Like all advertising, you have to know your goals before starting. From there, figure out things like platform, influencer target, messaging that fits specific influencers and what your call to action is, and how that' s communicated through the content.
Proper measurement is also key. You need to make sure you set the right KPIs for your team so that you ’ re clear about the ROI you seek from engaging influencers. Are you engaging influencers to: ·Drive sales?
Drive sales?
Build awareness?
Help with a specific consumer demographic for new
customer acquisition?
Change consumer perception of your brand?
Answer your brand’ s critique?
Finally, the contract negotiation should be very specific, and stay true to your goals and measurements, as discussed above. For example, you should set expectations on:
Type and number of posts
Which platforms will be used
Messaging
Usage rights
Links to e-commerce
Revenue-sharing vs. compensation on activity In terms of negotiating, see what the sticking points are on price. Usually this centers around exclusivity requirements, licensing rights, number of draft reviews—keep in mind video reshoots can be particularly pricy—and ownership rights. You can negotiate lower rates by having some give on these areas.
Also note that advertising needs to be disclosed by the influencer, per the Federal Trade Commission.
By narrowing among dozens of reasons to engage influencers to a key singular goal will help with specifics around setting team expectations and specific measurements. And if you don 't set proper expectations, things will not pan out as planned and the relationship could be ruined. That leads to wasted money and bad publicity.
#3 Authentic Match
Companies must compare their Brand Value Proposition and Buyer Personas and find authentic matches. Otherwise, customers will discount content from an influencer who seems to be just “doing it for the money. ” Additionally, marketers must gauge each influencer ' s passion for the brand and their desire to work with you. The key is not to just chase influencers that you think are up and coming, but to go after influencers that will help build an authentic brand.
#2 In-House vs. Out-Source
Your company hires experts in marketing, advertising, PR, digital, etc. You should also hire someone that knows influencers. This could be in-house or agency side. Managing influencer programs in-house helps maintain more control of the brand and the campaigns if influencers are a key pillar of your marketing strategy.
On the other hand, working with digital influencers can take a large toll on internal teams—in terms of the heavy lifting of time—from forming deals for content creation to pushing paid ads across your brands ’ social channels, and measurement. Stacy DeBroff, CEO of Influence Central, tells me “Many companies opt to engage seasoned specialists like my team to run their influencer engagements, as it ensures deep vetting of potential influencers, carefully framed and signed influencer agreements that include an extension of content rights to the brand, seamless campaign management, online draft reviews before content gets posted and detailed and guaranteed campaign metrics drawing directly from each influencer ’ s behind the scenes data.
#4 Influencer Strategy
Rather than defaulting to the bottom of the rung with micro-influencers or spending your way to the top (unless you ’ re a large brand) with social media celebrities, the best strategy is a mix of nano, micro, and mid-tier influencers. Such a mix will usually give the best ROI, since these groups together have a decent mix of followers and are perceived to be more authentic, generally. And of course, marketers need to aim for a mix of influencers that fit the brand/business life stage.
Below are the different levels of influencers:
Nano influencers (1-10k followers):
It costs dramatically less to engage this group since many of them will create content simply for product samples in return. As such, they can offer you the ability to engage certain groups at lower costs. But be sure they have some experience with such campaigns prior to engagement. Of course, some first-timers will do a great job, but consider their experience level before you go all-in.
Micro influencers (10-50k followers):
Typically, micro-influencers do not have agents— which can often try to pull more money from your pockets—and they tend to be more personal. Though they have smaller followings, comparatively, they can be very effective.
Mid-tier influencers (50-500k followers):
They have a substantial number of followers, but they typically use many brand partnerships to make money. So since social media can be their primary source of income, they can be dramatically more expensive than the previous tiers. Additionally, many mid-tier influencers have started to engage agents. project. They can also miss the message of authenticity, which is critical and should be a dealbreaker.
While follower count is okay for gauging cost and reach, you can 't make your decisions simply based on this number. KPIs like views and engagement will usually give you a much better idea, and a simple conversation with the influencer in mind can go a long way.
Premium/Macro influencers (500k-1m+ followers):
They are best used for big, themed, and/or seasonal campaigns. But it is often best to avoid them. They often communicate through agents, and the relationship is much less personal. As a result, they frequently dedicate much less of their time to the Conclusion
Influencers can be a powerful tool in a marketer
’ s toolbox, but they must remember that this is about relationship building. That’ s why it’ s key to involve influencers in your brand, get them passionate, and to not treat them as just an execution point. But at the same time, don 't let them take advantage of you, which is why it is so important to gauge up front how passionate and authentic they are about your brand and have a very clear and specific contract.
All in all, remember to:
Set specific goals, measurements, and contracts Decide if you want influencer management done in-house or out-sourced
Find authentic matches and foster passionate relationships Create a strategy that will maximize ROI
Kim Salzer is a Partner & CMO with Chief Outsiders, the nation ’ s fastest-growing “ executive-as-aservice ” company. More information at ChiefOutsiders.com
Collapsing Timelines:
How Business Owners Can Get More Done, Faster!
Productivity. Scalability. Profitability. The ultimate trifecta for every business owner out there. To excel in all three, there ’ s one question we have to answer to make it all possible: how do we get more done, faster?
The answer to collapsing timelines will seem completely backward and counterproductive, but in actuality, if you apply the practices, you ’ll accelerate your business in a mind-blowing way.
Stop Working
It’ s a physical fact that when you
’ re extremely focused on your thinking, your ability to be creative shrinks because all your energy is going in one direction. You need creativity if you want to boost your productivity and figure out ways to do things bigger, better, and faster.
Creativity comes when your brain is relaxed, which is when it can make connections between ideas that you didn ’t think of before. That’ s why so many people get inspiration in the shower.
You
’ re not thinking about anything specific, so brilliance has room to strike.
That’ s why you need to stop working and give yourself time to relax. Let your mind wander and you ’ll be surprised at the insights and solutions that come to life. But the key to making that happen is to make sure that the “do nothing ” appointment you make with yourself never gets bumped, otherwise, you ’ll end up in a reactive doing mode, which feels like you ’ re getting stuff done, but is really just slowing down your growth.
Break Your Systems
You constantly hear that if you want to scale you have to get systems and automation in place. That’ s absolutely true, but if you want to collapse timelines, you have to figure out how to do it better and faster. That means breaking the systems you set up, to find ways to make them even more effective.
When you have a big vision, the only way you ’ re going to be able to make that vision come to life is to enlist others to help you. If you can do it all on your own, your vision isn ’t
big enough and you
’ re not going to make the impact you were really meant to make.
All you really have to do is be clear on your end goal, then allow other people to come in and contribute to it from all different angles. It’ s only with those new perspectives that you
’ll collapse your timelines in a massive way and figure out the new systems or tweaks to your current systems to help you do it.
Be sure to get your team involved in this process too. They ’ll see things that you don ’t.
They
’ll know where they needlessly lose time or what’ s causing bottlenecks in their workday. Then, get them to brainstorm solutions to fix the issues to become more productive. New perspectives open new possibilities, and as an added bonus, if your team is generating the solutions, they ’ re going to have a lot more buy-in when it comes to making the change, and that means you ’ll be able to get it done much faster. That’ s a lot more productive from the get-go.
Retreat
Complacency and doubt are two of your biggest challenges as a business owner. If you ’ re not constantly growing personally and professionally, you ’ re falling behind because, guaranteed, your competitors won ’t be taking the back seat on expanding themselves and their market share. And, if you ’ re hesitating on decisions because you ’ re not quite sure of the next step or how to accomplish it, you ’ll end up in the same boat, and that status quo will definitely create drag for your business, slowing down your growth and profitability.
That’ s exactly the time you need to retreat and get a mindset reset, so you can regroup and make the decisions that will help you move forward faster.
To be at the top of your game and have the ability to collapse timelines, you have to constantly look for ways to level up your thinking and that means learning from people who think differently than you and have a different set of experiences. That kind of learning can improve your decision-making process too, because you can see new angles you just couldn ’t before. Dedicate time to build your network inside and outside your industry. Explore with those contacts new ways of getting better at business. Ask them what they do in challenging situations and consider how you can apply them to your own business to make it, and you, more productive. Work with mindset coaches, join masterminds, or at the very least educate yourself in a brand-new area. Even if that area is nowhere near what you do, the things you learn about a new topic might spark something new in your business, as your brain puts together a creative solution in your “do nothing ” time.
Those are the things that will improve your impact and help you scale faster, and your profitability will grow right along with it.
Summing It Up
Seemingly counterproductive practices can actually be the gas your business needs to rev up and keep going. Once you take a step back and start looking at your business, and the tasks you personally perform within it, through a different lens, you ’ll start to find ways to improve efficiency. Enlist other people to help you and you ’ll do it even faster. Before you know it, you ’ll be making a massive impact on the world and because you are, the trifecta for productivity, scalability and profitability will be yours and your business will be running like a well-oiled machine… until you break it again to make it run even better.
Christan Hiscock is on a personal mission to change the conversation in the business world, moving away from the pursuit of success, to focusing on fulfillment instead. Because if you ’ re fulfilled, success is a given, but not so much the other way around. He can often be heard saying, “You mean more than you know, ” because he believes that as people learn to understand their worth, their fears fade and amazing feats become reality. He considers this the foundation for all his achievements as the Co-Founder and CEO of Kardia and leader of 14 thriving companies. Through Kardia, which means heart in Greek, Christan is determined to bring more heart into the business world. Heart in the form of kindness, compassion, and altruism. A heart that fuels, roots, and guides each company to do the right things for its team members, clients, and for the greater communities they serve. www.hellokardia.com
Post-COVID SMB Banking Needs: The New Normal
By Michael Dolenko
P a r t n e r a t P h a s e 5 a n d t h e c o - l e a d o f t h e I n n o v a t i o n a n d P r o d u c t D e v e l o p m e n t p r a c t i c e
Small business banking: is the new normal less “new” and more “normal”?
Over the past year, there has been lots of talk about Covid’ s impact on how small businesses bank and manage their finances. And while it’ s certainly true that small businesses have been doing more of their banking in digital channels, has the pandemic changed what small businesses need and want from their financial institutions?
Research (Phase 5) conducted over the past 24 months shows that the pandemic has impacted channel use and capital needs for small and medium businesses (SMBs). But what’ s important to them - their experience as customers –has not shifted much at all. Moreover, many small businesses, especially the very small, think their banks could be doing better on this front.
L e t ' s s t a r t w i t h w h a t h a s c h a n g e d f o r s m a l l b u s i n e s s e s i n t e r m s o f b a n k i n g .
Capital needs.
A Spring 2021 survey of North American small businesses (defined as fewer than 100 employees) we conducted in partnership with Cargo shows that the pandemic has had an impact on many small businesses ’ balance sheets. Just over half of small businesses (51%) indicated that their sales had been negatively impacted during the pandemic. For some, this has created a need to borrow more. Our research found that just over 1 in 5 small businesses (22%) had increased their borrowing during the pandemic and for most of these, the additional amounts were in excess of $20,000.
While greater debt loads make survival a more precarious proposition for some small businesses, a large majority –two-thirds – reported no change in capital needs. And another 11% said they borrowed less. So it’ s important to keep in mind that the impacts of Covid have been different for different small businesses. Like consumers, small businesses use of online and mobile banking accelerated during the pandemic. A small business survey we conducted in 2020 found that 24% were doing more online banking than before the pandemic while 29% were doing less in person and 18% had stopped in-person banking altogether. This increasing reliance on digital seems to have stuck. Follow-up research in 2021 showed that, while a segment of small businesses still prefers in-person interactions for many of their banking needs,
Digital banking.
86% of them were now banking online and 55% were using mobile banking (with only 12% not using any digital channels).
While COVID has impacted small businesses, their perceptions of banks have not changed dramatically, nor has what they want from their financial institutions:
Low NPS but low likelihood to switch.
When we look at banking NPS scores, unfortunately there are more bank detractors (33%) than promoters among small businesses (25%). In aggregate, small businesses give their FIs a -8 NPS. But this isn ’t new: low NPS scores have persisted for years. At the same time, less than 10% of small businesses indicate any imminent desire to switch banks. Our research has shown that switching costs and a perceived lack of differentiation among business banking providers underpins this “loyalty. ”
Products meet their needs.
For the most part, SMBs have straightforward banking needs that are met through standard deposit, credit and cash management solutions. While only 16% “ strongly agree ” that their business bank offers innovative solutions, this does not seem to matter to most small business owners – 61% feel that the quality of the banking products they have access to are good or very good.
Fee averse.
Small businesses have historically been price sensitive and the pandemic has done nothing to increase their perception of the value of banking services they receive. Only 14% rate the overall cost-to-benefit ratio of their banking services as “ very good” and just 11% feel their bank’ s pricing model does a very good job of meeting their needs. A similarly small minority 16% agree that their bank does a very good job in being transparent about their fees.
Feeling ignored and treated like a number.
On a battery of customer experience (CX) metrics, banks were least likely to do well in terms of demonstrating that they care about small businesses (only 10% of businesses surveyed gave top marks to their bank on this measure). Another CX pain point for small businesses is the perceived lack of flexibility in how banks deal with them. Only 16% of small business decision-makers gave their banks top marks on this. While this is not a new sentiment, it may have been exacerbated for some small businesses in terms of how banks administered government support programs during the pandemic, and to what degree they were willing to offer relief on loan payments.
Despite all this, small businesses continue to trust their FIs. More than 6 in 10 small businesses say they trust their business bank, a rating that has been consistent over time. This foundation of trust offers a platform for FIs to strengthen their relationship with small businesses.
Watch for my future posts regarding specific opportunities to deepen customer relationships with small businesses. For now, I’ll leave you to ponder the French saying “plus ça change…
Please contact us to learn more about any of the above studies, or to schedule a discussion about your specific business challenges.
Michael Dolenko, MA, is a partner at Phase 5 and the co-lead of the Innovation and Product Development practice. Michael is a sought-after moderator and survey researcher for clients in financial services, retail, technology, education and publishing. He and his team focus on product and service innovation and studies that support go-to-market initiatives.
COGECO FEATURES REAL EMPLOYEES IN THEIR NEW BRAND CAMPAIGN YOUR LOCAL CONNECTION
Cogeco has recently launched a new brand campaign: featuring their own employees! This strategy of showcasing their local employees is something new for the telecommunications company. The campaign materials include billboard and bus shelter ads, website and social media ads, as well as 30 and 90 second online videos and TV commercials.
These authentic advertisements feature three local Cogeco employees and the communities in which they live and work. It demonstrates the campaign slogan perfectly, Your Local Connection. The campaign highlights what being local means to them, showcasing their own local stories.
By Kristen Curry
Communications and Public Relations Manager, Ontario at Cogeco Connexion
The Strategy
To launch a successful brand campaign, you must start with data. It’ s essential to know the key drivers of customer perception. For Cogeco, these are trust, experience, reliability, and community investments. They then dug below the major metrics by using the quantitative data points available to them. Cogeco utilized its internal databases to understand what influences the perception of trust and reliability in both positive or negative ways. For example, to gauge their level of trust, they gathered data from their Contact Centre interactions and call resolutions.
Next, they conducted extensive customer research to gain a deeper understanding of their customers ’ and the publics ’ perception of Cogeco. This included an external panel (of customers and non-customers) and a survey that Cogeco sent to their customers.
Finally, Cogeco initiated a very interactive process with their internal Marketing Team, their core Ontario resources, and different media agencies. Once the data was collected, they moved from the quantitative approach to deeper qualitative research with both customers and non-customers. Cogeco held three waves of focus groups with customers and noncustomers throughout this research process. They validated the brand positioning and messages for credibility (e.g. can we claim this) and impact (would it change the brand’ s perception). To build the brand, Cogeco did an enormous amount of testing and validation. They organized virtual focus groups with customers and non-customers that lasted over 90 minutes each during each stage of the process.
The general public knows that Cogeco provides Internet, TV, and telephone services - but not much else. They didn ’t know their purpose or their culture.
Building the Brand
“Our research respondents indicated that they wanted to get to know us better and who we are! It was a natural fit when we started leaning towards our differentiator: being local, ” said Corban Secor, Director of Web Sales and Digital Marketing at Cogeco.
Cogeco decided to focus their campaign on highlighting that they have a local presence in cities and towns throughout the province and 100 percent local employees. They determined that their employees should be featured in the campaign to show the faces and voices of the people who support their clients ’ needs every day. And above all, because Cogeco is proud of its employees!
Showcasing real employees, in their homes and in their communities, (instead of models and actors) was proven to be more authentic, honest and trustworthy during the focus groups. These folks are active members of their communities and represent all of us. Furthermore, when engaging with a brand, people prefer to engage with real people. Plus - no one knows your brand and culture better than your employees. It makes them the ultimate spokespeople for your brand.
Using real employees not only improves the public perception of your brand, but it improves your company ' s culture. When the brand ambassadors were revealed internally, there was an overwhelming sense of pride and support for these employees throughout the company.
Cogeco worked with their creative agency on a variety of concepts, which they tested with different focus groups. The tagline “ your local connection ” was the one that tested the best and resonated with customers and non-customers alike. “It also unites our two main ideas: local as a differentiator and our ability to connect people through our reliable technology, ” added Corban.
The Brand
The campaign features real Cogeco employees sharing why they love working for Cogeco, what they enjoy in their communities, and what makes being local so important.
“They really are true representatives of what makes Cogeco great - caring about one another, supporting each other, and always doing what is right for the customer, ” said Corban.
Cogeco builds human connections and vibrant communities and now uses its employees to demonstrate this to the public. Click to watch each video on Cogeco ’ s YouTube page
The Videos
There is a vaccine against homelessness:
It’s called affordable social housing
Juha Kaakinen
CEO, Y-Foundation
An experienced and passionate developer of innovative housing solutions to homeless people and social housing. Before, he has worked in public administration of the City of Helsinki and as a CEO of Social Development Ltd, a company devoted to developing social and health services for cities and municipalities. He has also worked as a programme leader of a national program to end long-term homelessness, and as a researcher and a consultant. He is internationally known as an advocate of the Housing First policy.
Juha Kaakinen is Chief Executive of Y-Foundation, the biggest Finnish NGO providing housing for homeless people and social housing with a housing stock of 18 000 flats.
You are running the largest Finnish NGO providing housing for homeless people. Can you please discuss how housing is a basic human and social right?
Housing as a basic human and social right has a strong ethical justification and is expressed for ex. in the Human Rights Declaration of the UN. Housing as a basic human and social right is about treating people equally and with dignity. Decent housing, a home, is the foundation for living and participating in social life and work. It is not enough to have housing as a right expressed in legislation, it needs concrete action and in the case of homelessness, it means providing people unconditionally a safe affordable apartment to start with.
What are your thoughts on the current homeless situation in Toronto?
Based on what I have read and heard from local experts the situation is catastrophic and requires urgent action. In my understanding, the level of street homelessness shows that homeless people themselves don ’t regard shelters and other temporary accommodations as a solution to their situation. The current homelessness situation seems to be also directly related to a serious lack of affordable housing. How Housing First is one of the world’ s best approaches to ending homelessness?
Housing First is this century
’ s solution to homelessness. There is very consistent scientific evidence that Housing First is the most sustainable and even cost-effective solution to homelessness, especially to long-term, chronic homelessness. Housing First is based on simple principles that respect the dignity of homeless people: providing unconditionally permanent housing and support in normal surroundings, not shelters.
In Finland, Housing First has been implemented as a systemic model, as a national policy. As Housing First is based on permanent housing therefore there is now only a small amount of emergency accommodation needed.
On any given day, more than 8,700 people in Toronto are experiencing homelessness, many more are experiencing “hidden homelessness ” , and thousands of others are on the waitlist for supportive housing. What are some of your thoughts about resolving homelessness in Toronto?
Only a policy and an implementation based on a long-term plan based on Housing First can solve homelessness for good. Increasing shelters beds is not a solution as people in shelters are still homeless. But to change the system requires political will and decisions and a wide collaboration between the city, province, and NGOs. And it requires a very concrete plan on how to get the housing needed and how to provide the support people may need. It is not a question of money as managing homelessness with shelters and temporary solutions costs more than providing permanent housing.
How can we help people transition back into society after experiencing extended periods of isolation and previous trauma?
The longer one is homeless the greater is the risk of serious health and social issues like mental health problems and substance abuse. For this reason, it is important to focus on prevention and rapid rehousing. Housing First doesn ’t solve all issues at once, but it creates a foundation that makes it possible to succeed. In many cases simply providing a safe environment with permanent housing seems to stabilize things. Although it is mainly a question of basic needs also professional support and rehabilitation may be needed.
In our experience offering even temporary job opportunities can be the best possible support for somebody who has moved into his/her own apartment.
Empathy a top leadership skill for Tomorrow’s SME leaders
Women are more likely to lead with empathy
By Janine Allen
President of Kaiser & Partners According to a recent CEMS study, empathy, communication and resilience top the list of the fastest-rising leadership traits, replacing traditionally-heralded technical skills and authority. This is a stark change from the leadership style of yesterday. The COVID-19 pandemic has forever changed leadership, and with it, the expectations for how good leaders should communicate.
The communication skills that were traditionally valued by leaders were more focused on strategy, strength, and steadfastness. But this type of leadership based often came at the expense of the individual. When the pandemic blurred the lines between work and home, and business and personal, employees needed more from their leaders. They needed empathy.
Women leaders were well-suited to lead through this transformational employer-employee relationship as studies consistently show that women display more empathy and compassion, the effective skills for managing through times of crisis. But as we emerge from this crisis, and look ahead to tomorrow ’ s workforce, will empathy continue to as important to small and medium businesses?
The answer is yes. And here ’ s why:
Empathy builds a strong organizational culture
When workers feel supported, stable and safe, feelings of belonging increase. With threats of the “Great Resignation ” still looming, small businesses may have an even harder time recruiting and retaining talent than larger organizations as often the CEO is also the head of Human Resources. It’ s imperative that culture, wellbeing and support are at the core of their approach to HR. Empathy increase engagement
According to a study by Catalyst, 76 percent of employees with more empathetic leaders reported higher levels of engagement.
Higher engagement among a workforce means that employees are more likely to be invested in the company and the work they are doing, resulting in higher quality and productivity. This engagement enhances an SME’s ability to compete in competitive marketplaces.
Empathy has financial benefits
Resistance to this shift towards more empathetic leadership is typically because of concerns that financial results will be a secondary focus, forfeited to make way for new, effective leadership soft skills. But the reality is that empathy has tangible financial outcomes. With lower turnover, you save the costs of recruiting and training. With increased wellbeing, the costs of absenteeism and burnout are minimized. And the same Catalyst study also found that empathy encourages innovation, which is critical to business growth and expansion.
The pandemic put a spotlight on great, and notso-great leaders. While women may be more naturally empathetic, both men and women rose to the top of that list. The “ secret sauce ” for this success is strong communications skills and an ability to both steer the ship and make sure the crew was ok simultaneously.
As president of Kaiser & Partners, Janine Allen, CM, develops and oversees strategic communications programs that enhance visibility and transform relationships. She helps clients manage through challenge and change, protecting and repairing corporate brand reputation.
About Author
Leaders will need to continue to go beyond traditional management skills and embrace their EQ to motivate and nurture their teams.
Janine holds a post-graduate degree in public relations from Humber College and an honours Bachelor of Arts degree in psychology from Queen ’ s University. She is recognized as a designated Chartered Marketer by the Canadian Marketing Association and was named CPRS’ s PR Practitioner of the Year in 2017. She is currently an executive board member of CPRS and a board member of the Pickering Baseball Association.
