EDITOR’S COLUMN

BY JEFF WOOTEN

Wanting for Help

The challenge in finding the right workers.

It appears there has been a tectonic shift that occurred in the general American workplace sometime over the last several years. “Workplace Culture” has become a big, driving philosophy, particularly in relation to employee health and retention. While this mindset might be weighted more heavily toward the white collar business side of the workforce, there are hints it’s taking shape on the blue collar production side too—with the sign industry being a perfect cocktail with its blue-white mix of design, fabrication, and/or installation.

Making generalizations can be a dangerous thing, but I’ve read several recent reports concluding that many members of the youngest working demographic are more attracted to hours worked than dollars earned (not even taking the pandemic into account for future feedback). But this attitude is at direct odds with the production-oriented sign industry. So does something like this influence whether you’re looking for age or experience?

Workplace improvement factored heavily into the role Sign Builder Illustrated played at last month’s ISA International Sign Expo 2021 – Virtual sessions. (Note: See page 6.)

For example, Managing Editor Ashley Bray facilitated a Peer Group discussion dedicated to SBI and ISA’s Women Leading the Industry initiative, where participants had a lively conversation on topics ranging from personal development to workplace challenges (visit https://bit. ly/3s9RsYs). And I was fortunate enough to host a “Most Pressing Industry Needs” session on project and employee management where I spoke in-depth with Adam Brown, president of full-service Sign Effectz, Inc., in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, about the methodologies he implements.

A poll during the session asked attendees the biggest challenge to running their sign shop today, and an overwhelming majority picked “Finding/Hiring New Workers.” Interestingly we also conducted a recently concluded month-long reader survey with a similar “biggest challenge” question, and 50 percent of respondents selected the same (ahead of “pricing sign projects”). And I’m sure, once you’ve found employees, retaining them is just as important for your shop.

So let’s return to my earlier question of age or experience. If you’re interested in bringing younger minds onboard at your shop, be sure to join us for a Webinar later this month called “Business Management: Successful Ways to Recruit Younger Workers to Your Shop” that will be hosted on our Web site (signshop.com). We’ll be speaking with several sign shops that have successfully hired young people looking for careers in this industry, and we’ll discuss how you can do so too.

Photo: Shutterstock/ ADragan.

AGENDA

Note: Due to COVID-19 concerns, all events listed below are subject to change. Please check each show’s Web site for any cancellations or reschedulings that may have taken place after press time.

JULY 2021

JULY 21-24:

The Mid-South Sign Association’s SignConnexion event will be occurring at the Ross Bridge Golf Resort in Birmingham, Alabama. (midsouthsign.org)

OCTOBER 2021

OCTOBER 6-8:

PRINTING United Alliance, which brings together the largest and most diverse audience in the printing industry, is scheduled to take place in Orlando, Florida. (printingunited.com) OCTOBER 25-29:

The 2021 LightFair architectural and commercial lighting conference and tradeshow, which will be incorporating new safety protocols and specific mitigration measures, will be happening at the Jacob K. Javits Center in New York City, New York. (lightfair.com)

NOVEMBER 2021

NOVEMBER 4-6:

Reconnect, Rethink, and Recharge, in-person, at the 2021 SEGD Conference Experience Philadelphia. This gathering is the only conference specifically created for the experiential design community. The three-day event will focus on inspiration and education, with a combination of hands-on workshops, design tours, summits, networking socials, thought leadership sessions, and the NEXPO show floor. (segd.org)