7 minute read
Be an employer of choice: How to attract and retain the best tradies
Scratching your head on how to be an employer of choice? Wondering why all your tradies are staying for a short time and buggering off? In this article, we’ve outlined some helpful ways you can stand out from other trade businesses vying for the best recruits. Ready? Let’s go!
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We all want to think we’re a great employer. The reality is, all employers have their share of faults, and areas for improvement. How willing are you to take onboard constructive feedback – and make things better?
Forbes business magazine notes:
“The first step in benefiting from criticism, is to be open to it. Actively listen and take time to absorb the information.
Don’t jump to the conclusion that the person delivering the critique is out to get you.”
If you don’t know what you’re doing well, how do you know to keep doing it? It’s the same for your shortcomings. If you don’t know what impact they are having on your business, how can your business ever improve?
Hire fast, fire fast
Good tradies are always snapped up quickly and you might be left with the ‘jack of all trades, master of none’. Hire good people fast, but also don’t be afraid to let them go if it’s not working out. The goal is to retain valued employees — and it’s no surprise businesses with high turnover often have low business performance. Therefore, it’s important to understand why your employees are quitting. According to the Harvard Business Review: “If people are leaving an organisation in ever-increasing numbers, figuring out why is crucial.” Going through this process will expose hidden issues in your business, and highlight opportunities to be an employer of choice.
Be consistent
Do you fly off the handle when there’s been a stuff up? Or, are you the type to take a passiveaggressive approach? How consistent is your behaviour, as a leader in the business? Could it do with some reflection? Consistency in your business practices — and in your behaviour — will give your staff a sense of consistency and structure. Forbes says: “[Business owners] fail to behave in a consistent way when carrying out daily tasks … so many people amount to a fraction of their true capability because they are so inconsistent with what they do.”
Consistent business practices
This means everybody in the business, does everything the same way. The McDonald’s business model embodies this — no matter what state, or even country you’re in, a Big Mac is a Big Mac. It’s systemised. Everybody follows the same process and doesn’t stray from the path. If everybody does it the same way, the chance of mistakes arising are minimised. If a mistake is made, 99 per cent of the time, it’s because the employee didn’t follow the process. Do your tradies know what to do — and what you expect?
Consistency in your behaviour
As the boss, the way you act will determine your employees’ actions. If you rock up to site, dusty from a big night out — your staff will think it’s okay to do the same. You don’t get a free pass because
you’re the boss.
In short, the best way to become an employer of choice, is to be the employer you wish you had. When you were back on the tools, working for somebody else and you looked at your boss – remember what you used to think about the culture and how you used to feel about them as a leader? Here’s your turn to make things right.
ITS ZOOMED BY!
In 2021, we say goodbye to Zoom and hello to in-person events!
Reminiscing our time with zoom is bitter-sweet. We loved being in the studio, and felt like movie stars surrounded by so many cameras. But mostly, we missed the buzz and excitement of seeing you all together, sharing a beer and having a laugh.
Our most recent member event headlined some of our biggest names — kicking off with the truly inspiring, Justin Jones. He took us through his amazing journey’s of trial and tribune, and truly left us gobsmacked. The didactic message he left us with was: “It’s 90 per cent planning, and 10 per cent execution.” His travels only lasted a few weeks, but took years of careful planning, and that’s why he made it back alive each time. It’s the same with business, if you want to survive and thrive, it’s all in the planning — and backing yourself. Kate Toon filled our heads with digital inspiration and aspiration. With her fast-pace rhetoric, she broke down how to perform in a digital sphere into bite-sized chunks. We follow her religiously, and you should, too! Mike Michalowicz showed us the light with his book, Fix This Next. He broke down the complicated journey all business owners go through — likening it to being lost in the woods roaming in circles, he struck a chord with us. We’re keen to hear more from him in our March 2021 R&R, where he takes us through his best-selling book, Profit First!
So, get your dancing shoes on because 2021 is going to be a big one. Get ready to have a big hug in person — or maybe an elbow bump.
NEXT ISSUE
Retaining good staff
Staff turnover is a constant business headache — people are chopping and changing jobs like never before! In 2021 it’s time to take hold of the reigns, and improve your staff retention so you can build a better trade business.
No one likes the boss
Nobody said being the boss was going to be easy. It’s hard to build a relationship with your employees based on trust and respect, and few can maintain it. So, where’s the line between being a boss and being a mate?
Lifestyle Tradie Live is a national series of free education events for tradies who want to make more money and get a handle on the chaos.
GET YOUR FREE TICKET AT lifestyletradie.com.au/events
Lifestyle Tradie Magazine is published by and © copyright by Andrew & Angela Smith, Lifestyle Tradie Group Pty Ltd 2021. All Rights Reserved. This newsletter and any accompanying material are for general information purposes only. It is the responsibility of the reader to comply with any local, state or federal laws. The Publisher has taken all reasonable measures to ensure that the material contained within this newsletter is correct. The Publisher provides no representation and gives no warranty as to the accuracy of the information and does not accept any responsibility for errors or inaccuracies in the information contained herein and shall not be liable for any loss or damage arising as a result of any person acting in reliance on information contained herein.
