Finders and keepers - April 2023

Finders and keepers

Hiring and retention in a competitive employment environment

By Andrew Wright, Rockford Chamber of Commerce

In Winnebago County, the unemployment rate in December 2022 was at the lowest it’s been since the COVID-19 outbreak. At 5.3%, it’s comparable to the lowest unemployment numbers in the last 20 years.

This February, Stephanie Ferguson, director of global employment policy and special initiatives for the U.S. Chamber, published an article titled “Understanding America’s Labor Shortage: e Most Impacted Industries.”

In the article, Ferguson writes about the rising numbers of job openings in a wide range of industries, including education, health services, professional and business services, leisure and hospitality, and the trades.

Companies are actively competing to ll positions in a very employee-friendly environment. And for companies looking to grow and expand through 2023, that means HR managers and business owners need an edge to hire quality candidates.

The growing need for professional hiring experts

Hughes Resources is a Freeport-based staffng agency that recently opened a new location in Rockford to meet the growing demand for workforce development in the area. In May, they’ll celebrate 20 years in business.

“Employers are still looking to ll a variety of jobs, and I haven’t sensed a slow-down in 2023. It continues to be incredibly diffcult to ll all those jobs,”

Vanessa Hughes, president of Hughes Resources explained.

According to Hughes, workforce shortages come from a variety of reasons, including boomers retiring earlier than expected because of COVID, people choosing to stay home and operate on one income, and a disengagement among potential employees.

A focus on work-life balance has intensified due to the shutdown during the pandemic.

“It takes a lot more work to find good candidates that are going to be committed to the job that they’re attempting,” she said.

Hughes describes how companies are working harder to cater to employees to increase retention and make the workplace more appealing to new hires: “Most companies are trying to do all the things one would think to attract and retain employees. Various fun days and treats and food to make employees feel appreciated. Benefits are well-rounded for the most part. Safety has advanced dramatically in manufacturing in the 20 plus years I’ve been in the industry.”

And while creating and maintaining a healthy corporate culture remains vital, Hughes says some of it boils down to pay, because it’s easier now to quit and go find another job if the engagement, loyalty and pay isn’t there.

Managing staff demand in the healthcare sector

Natasha Weberg, chief nursing officer for Encompass Health Van Matre Rockford, has to be exceptionally creative when attracting new talent in the competitive field of healthcare. Weberg was a divisional director of clinical services for a national hospice company, overseeing 35 agencies in six states, before joining Van Matre.

“The workforce crisis we’ve been in pertains to healthcare as much as it pertains to the service industry, so recruiting people has been difficult. COVID forced a lot of people out of healthcare, so we’ve had to be creative on how we bring people on,” she said.

Weberg described some of the new ways Van Matre is approaching the hiring process, including opening doors to nursing colleges, helping those nurses to complete rotations, as well as creating nurse external positions—paying student nurses to learn the nursing role in the hope that they will like working at Van Matre and want to stay.

“Many people hear about Encompass Health Van Matre and think we’re a nursing home; they don’t think we’re a hospital. When they come here and see what it’s like within this hospital, they see how much they like it. O en, students see patients at the onset of an illness. Here, they get to see those patients recover through the illness and what they’re like a er the illness. There’s a whole new sense of reward and gratification that comes from that,” Weberg said.

These internship and externship opportunities create a competitive advantage for Van Matre, helping students new to the workforce to nd a home right away. And there are advantages to taking on graduating students entering the workforce as well.

“Keep an open mind to a lack of experience. You can guide them to be the employee you would like them to be, and they don’t bring bad habits with them,” Weberg said. “New grads are some of the best nurses you can get.”

Weberg recommends making significant efforts to keep staff happy once they’re hired: “Happy employees don’t leave.”

Weberg regularly makes the rounds with the nursing sta at Van Matre, referring to it as “swooping the loop.” She addresses everyone by name, asks about their day, answers call lights and takes part in employee recognition and celebrations.

“We need to put the term ‘employee engagement’ at the forefront of our mind and continue to think outside the box about how we develop and nurture employee engagement. If you can figure out employee engagement, you can almost figure out your turnover problem,” she said.

A workforce of equals

Rebecca Francis, founder and CEO of Ignite Change Solutions, works hard to make sure business owners appreciate the value that everyone can bring to the table.

“When I was working as a hiring manager in education, I learned really quickly that sometimes we assume that it’s OK to only hire those who have a certain degree or have the most experience,” Francis said. “But some industry veterans can be the hardest to guide or course correct. Sometimes it’s better not to seek out someone who has a degree in something but rather seek out someone who has the skill set to do it.”

Although Francis understands the appeal of an experienced employee that doesn’t require micromanaging, she thinks there is value in people who are eager to learn and understand something new.

“They’re not just trainable; they’re eager to do the work. You tend to see a stronger retention rate there than with people who feel they can do their job somewhere else,” she said.

Right now, millennials and Generation Z are entering the workforce with a better understanding of technology and entrepreneurship than the generations before them. Between online influencer culture, and YouTube videos with full and clear explanations on how to do just about anything, a workplace must have an appeal that goes beyond simply earning a paycheck.

“I try to tell employers, ‘Please don’t get cocky. These people will walk out on you. And they will figure it out,’” Francis said. “Employers must open their eyes and pay attention to trends. Pay attention to exit interviews; that’s free advice. It’ll teach you what you have to do to keep your best employees.”

Ignite Change Solutions helps educate business leaders and staff about diversity, equity and inclusion, aspects of a healthier corporate culture that have increasingly become sought a er as younger generations take their place in the job market.

“As younger generations enter the workforce, they’re coming with different expectations, and they want to make sure that their organization is equitable,” Francis said. “If you’re telling me that people don’t want to work at your workplace, and you’re telling me that you don’t want to be respectful of someone’s gender identity, what they believe, you’re going to create an issue about race or name or pronouns, you can’t create a bathroom within the organization for them, and you’re questioning them as if they owe you an explanation behind any of it—why would they stay there?”

Professional development makes a workplace inviting and helps retain a diverse and loyal workforce. That’s what drives Francis’ work with Ignite Change Solutions—the opportunity to help companies build a healthier workplace culture that attracts young talent and keeps them engaged in the teamwork needed to succeed in a competitive workforce environment.

Professional development is also key to promoting from within, which is another critical step in creating a loyal workforce.

“Organizations have to get really good at supporting their staff through promotion and empowerment. Nobody wants to keep doing the same thing forever. And if they do, you’re still not doing your job because you should be growing your team,” said Francis. “there’s usually something deep down inside that drives everyone in your organization and it’s the job of the leader to figure out what that is to help them grow and to retain them. It’s really easy to retain someone who loves their job.”

Francis says today’s job seekers place greater importance on work-life balance: “I’ve worked in a corporate setting, I’ve worked in education, I’ve had all these different experiences and my work-life balance was o because I’ve always been in a leadership position. Working for myself, I can make my own schedule, I can still make money, and I can have a sense of normalcy in my life. And if I were to return to a corporate role, it would be only for an organization that understands that, because I could never go back to a job where my whole life is predicated on the company’s demands.”