CPA Practice Advisor - 21

THE STAFFING & HR ADVISOR
Should you become more flexible in the candidates you consider?
Or would that be tantamount to
lowering standards and settling for
mediocrity? The answers are yes
to the first question and no to the
second. These days, relaxing your
hiring criteria and offering training
to fill in a candidate's gaps is likely
necessary, not "settling." If you don't
take such steps, you're fishing from
a candidate pool that doesn't really
exist.

Recent research shows many
organizations are already flexible
with their hiring demands. In a Robert Half survey, 84 percent of human
resources managers said they are at
least somewhat open to hiring and
training an employee who doesn't
meet the skills requirements for a
position. Meanwhile, 62 percent of
workers reported they have been
offered a job when they didn't meet
all the hiring criteria.
To help you land the skilled

talent you need, here are ways to
adjust your practices.
■ Get back to the basics. You want
the best person for the job, but a
long and involved set of requirements could put off excellent
candidates. Focus on the core role
and determine which criteria are
genuine must-haves and which are
nice-to-haves. For example, you
can train on new financial systems
and new regulatory compliance
mandates but not work ethic.

■ Prioritize interpersonal abilities.
Client relat ions can make the
difference between a thriving and
lackluster firm. While it makes
sense to relax cer tain cr iter ia
when hiring staff, soft skills like
c om mu n icat ion, leade r sh ip,
intellectual curiosity and business
acumen should not be among them.
Nontechnical abilities are much
more difficult to train for.
■ Emphasize organizational culture
fit. No matter how talented accoun-

10
WAYS TO IMPROVE EMPLOYEE RETENTION
very area of the employer-employee relationship in your organiza-

E

tion deserves your attention. Embrace these key strategies to
improve your organization's employee retention and boost employee
satisfaction:
Onboarding and orientation
- Every new hire should be set up
for success from the very start, from
the first day of work to the first week and
beyond. The job orientation is just one
component of onboarding, which can
last for weeks or months, depending
on your organization. Aim to develop
an onboarding process where new staff
members not only learn about the job but
also the company culture and how they
can contribute and thrive, with ongoing
discussions, goals and opportunities to
address questions and issues as they
arrive.
Mentorship programs - Pairing a new employee with a mentor
is a great idea for onboarding.
New team members can learn the ropes
from a veteran with a wealth of resources,
and the new hire offers a fresh viewpoint
to experienced staff. Mentors shouldn't
be work supervisors, but they can offer
guidance and be a sounding board for
newcomers, welcoming them into the
company culture.
Employee compensation
- It's absolutely essential in
this competitive labor market for
companies to offer attractive compensation packages. That includes salaries, of

course, but also bonuses, paid time off,
health benefits, retirement plans and all
the other perks that can distinguish one
workplace from another. Every employee
should have a full understanding of all
the benefits they receive from your
organization.
Recognition and rewards
systems - Every person
wants to feel appreciated for
what they do. Make it a habit to thank
your direct reports when they go the
extra mile, whether it's with a sincere
email, a gift card or an extra day off.
Show your employees you appreciate
them, and share how their hard work
helps the organization. Some companies
set up rewards systems that incentivize
great ideas and innovation, but you can
institute recognition programs even on a
small team with a small budget.
Work-life balance - What
message is your company culture
sending? If staff are expected
to regularly work long hours and be at
your beck and call, you'll likely run into
issues with employee retention. Burnout
is real. A healthy work-life balance is
essential, and people need to know that
management understands its importance.
Encourage staff to take vacation time, and

if late nights are necessary to wrap up a
project, see if you can offer late arrivals
or an extra day off to compensate and
increase job satisfaction. Many companies
offer telecommuting or flexible schedules
to improve work-life balance for their
employees.
Training and development -
In any position and industry, professionals want the possibility for
advancement. Smart managers invest in
their workers' professional development
and seek opportunities for them to grow.
Ask each of your direct reports about their
short- and long-term goals to determine
how you can help achieve them. Some
companies pay for employees to attend
conferences or industry events each
year, or provide tuition reimbursement
or continuing education training.
Communication and feedback - Keeping open lines of
communication is essential for
employee retention. Your direct reports
should feel that they can come to you
with ideas, questions and concerns, and
likewise, they expect you to be honest and
open with them about improvements they
need to make in their own performance.
Make sure you connect with each staff
member on a regular basis - don't let
issues build up for the annual review.
Dealing with change - Every
workplace has to deal with
unpleasant changes occasionally, and the staff looks to leadership

MAY 2019 ■

for reassurance. If your organization is
going through a merger, layoffs or other
big changes, keep your staff informed
as much as you can to avoid feeding the
rumor mill. Make big announcements face
to face, and make sure you allow time for
their questions.
Fostering teamwork - When
people work together, they can
achieve more than they would
have individually. Foster a culture of
collaboration that accommodates
individuals' working styles and lets their
talents shine. Do this by clarifying team
objectives, business goals and roles, and
encouraging everyone to contribute ideas
and solutions.
Team celebration - Celebrate major milestones for
individuals and for the team.
Whether the team just finished that huge
quarterly project under budget or an
employee brought home a new baby,
seize the chance to celebrate together
with a shared meal or group excursion.
A final tip: Remember to assess
your employee retention strategies at
least once a year. You'll want to stay
current on market salary rates and
benefits, and best practices in developing
workplace culture and manager-employee
relations. Doing so will help you keep staff
morale high and turnover low while guaranteeing your organization's success. ■

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