by Fronetics | Jan 12, 2016 | Blog, Leadership, Marketing, Strategy, Supply Chain, Talent
Recruiting and retaining top talent is one of the largest issues the supply chain faces today. It has, in many ways, become an industry of gaps: skills, talent, and gender, to name a few. How can companies secure their future by acquiring, developing, and keeping employees with the potential to undertake future leadership roles?
Fronetics Strategic Advisors works with clients to understand and execute on talent acquisition, performance management, learning and development, and succession management. We also work with clients to design and develop roles and responsibilities, on leadership development, mentoring and counseling, and on performance management and compensation strategies.
Here are our most-read talent articles of 2015:
While the number of full-time women in the workforce is up 15% since 1979, the number of women in the manufacturing sector is the lowest it has been since 1971.The gender gap extends more broadly to the supply chain, as well, with 70% and 80% of positions held by men. This article examines the talent crisis within the industry as an opportunity to help close the gender gap, and offers suggestions for building that bridge. Read the full article.
This interview with Rodney Apple, founder of the SCM Talent Group and supply chain recruiter for the majority of his 19-year career within the staffing industry, examines the challenges facing the industry and opportunities to address the talent crisis moving forward. Read the full article.
The outlook seems dire: by 2025, 60 million baby boomers will exit the workforce, leaving a gigantic gap when 40 million millennials take their place. What’s more, as few as 20% of the workforce will possess the broad range of skills required of 60% of all new supply chain jobs. The good news is that this looming crisis represents an ideal opportunity for recent college grads and mid-level supply chain management. Companies hoping to appeal to top candidates in the future should be proactive about meeting their professional needs through initiatives like competitive salaries and cross-functional training — or else, they might miss out. Read the full article.
Zappos offers new hires a $4,000 bonus to quit after an initial training program — and it actually has helped them retain top talent. Offering an early out to employees can be an effective method to detect personnel issues up front and ultimately can save your company from a major financial loss in the future. Read the full article.
When it comes to your career, connections matter. This article lists five reasons why building a strong network is crucial to your professional success. Read the full article.
Millennials — or, those born after 1981 — potentially could breathe new life into the graying supply chain industry. This article examines who millennials are and how companies might attract and retain talent within this oft-misunderstood generation. Read the full article.
Promising employees expect more from their employers when they outperform their peers — and not just in terms of compensation (though that is very important). When those expectations are met with disappointment, the company is at risk for losing top talent. This article discusses strategies for mitigating the loss of talented employees. Read the full article.
According to one study, only 12.5% of companies in the supply chain industry engage in formal succession planning, or the process of identifying top internal performers with the potential to fill key leadership positions. With the dearth of talent facing the supply chain, employers would be wise to invest in succession planning (and their most promising employees) — particularly through these three aspects of the process. Read the full article.
Focusing on education and training, employee retention and growth, and rethinking the talent pool itself does not address the bigger issue in the supply chain skills gap: the industry just isn’t perceived as sexy. What can companies do to overhaul their image and attract new and qualified talent? Read the full article.
Replacing employees is extremely costly — anywhere from 50 to 400% of their annual salaries, it is estimated — yet more than 2 million people voluntarily leave their jobs each month. Companies who are not tending to their human resource assets may be taking a major financial hit. Here are five employee retention strategies to help create a culture where employees are satisfied and interested in working for you long term. Read the full article.
by Fronetics | Apr 23, 2015 | Blog, Leadership, Strategy, Talent
When it comes to hiring it is important to get it right. This is especially true for small businesses. This is not only because of the significant financial implications of a bad hire, but also because, as Jeff Haden points out,
“When employee No. 300 turns out to be a disaster, the impact on the business is relatively small and often confined to a small group of staff. When employee No. 3 turns out to be a disaster, everyone—and everything—suffers.”
When considering candidate for a position intelligent companies don’t focus on where the individual went to school, what degree was obtained, or the companies for which the individual has worked. Rather, intelligent companies focus on qualities; good employees tend to possess distinct qualities.
Here are 14 qualities that good employees possess:
Innovative
Good employees think outside the box and introduce new ideas and new methods for accomplishing a task or achieving goals.
Determined
Determined employees don’t see challenges or constraints as roadblocks. Rather they are unwavering in their resolve to accomplish the task, achieve the goal, or further their career.
Positive
Individuals who have a positive attitude and come to work with an optimistic outlook and tend to be more productive than negative or pessimistic individuals. Moreover, a positive attitude tends to be contagious; therefore, creating a more positive (and productive) workplace.
Confident
A confident individual is one who is willing to take on tasks that others avoid out of fear of failure or fear of a challenge. A confident individual is also someone who is not afraid to speak up and introduce new ideas, or question the status quo.
Honest
As Benjamin Franklin said: “Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that don’t have brains enough to be honest.”
Detail-oriented
While it is important to be able to see the big picture, being detail-oriented is critical.
Smart
When someone is smart they are willing and able to learn, to evolve, and to tackle challenges without needing to be coached or coddled.
Ambitious
An individual with a desire enhance their career is someone who will bring valuable contributions to your company.
Hard working
There is no substitute for hard work. As Vince Lombardi put it: “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
Cultural fit
It is critical that the individual be a good match for the culture of the company. If there is no cultural fit it is not only likely that there will be friction, it is also likely that the person won’t stay with the company very long.
Autonomous
A good employee is one who is able to work on their own without hand-holding.
Magnanimous
An individual who is considerate, humble, and recognizes the contributions and work of others is someone you want to have join your company and your team.
Accountable
A person who has proven that they are accountable to themselves and to others is someone you want to hire.
Proactive
When an individual is proactive they are more likely to approach their job with energy, and they are more likely to address and tackle challenges before challenges become problems.
by Fronetics | Apr 23, 2015 | Blog, Leadership, Strategy, Talent
When it comes to hiring it is important to get it right. This is especially true for small businesses. This is not only because of the significant financial implications of a bad hire, but also because, as Jeff Haden points out,
“When employee No. 300 turns out to be a disaster, the impact on the business is relatively small and often confined to a small group of staff. When employee No. 3 turns out to be a disaster, everyone—and everything—suffers.”
When considering candidate for a position intelligent companies don’t focus on where the individual went to school, what degree was obtained, or the companies for which the individual has worked. Rather, intelligent companies focus on qualities; good employees tend to possess distinct qualities.
Here are 14 qualities that good employees possess:
Innovative
Good employees think outside the box and introduce new ideas and new methods for accomplishing a task or achieving goals.
Determined
Determined employees don’t see challenges or constraints as roadblocks. Rather they are unwavering in their resolve to accomplish the task, achieve the goal, or further their career.
Positive
Individuals who have a positive attitude and come to work with an optimistic outlook and tend to be more productive than negative or pessimistic individuals. Moreover, a positive attitude tends to be contagious; therefore, creating a more positive (and productive) workplace.
Confident
A confident individual is one who is willing to take on tasks that others avoid out of fear of failure or fear of a challenge. A confident individual is also someone who is not afraid to speak up and introduce new ideas, or question the status quo.
Honest
As Benjamin Franklin said: “Tricks and treachery are the practice of fools, that don’t have brains enough to be honest.”
Detail-oriented
While it is important to be able to see the big picture, being detail-oriented is critical.
Smart
When someone is smart they are willing and able to learn, to evolve, and to tackle challenges without needing to be coached or coddled.
Ambitious
An individual with a desire enhance their career is someone who will bring valuable contributions to your company.
Hard working
There is no substitute for hard work. As Vince Lombardi put it: “The price of success is hard work, dedication to the job at hand, and the determination that whether we win or lose, we have applied the best of ourselves to the task at hand.”
Cultural fit
It is critical that the individual be a good match for the culture of the company. If there is no cultural fit it is not only likely that there will be friction, it is also likely that the person won’t stay with the company very long.
Autonomous
A good employee is one who is able to work on their own without hand-holding.
Magnanimous
An individual who is considerate, humble, and recognizes the contributions and work of others is someone you want to have join your company and your team.
Accountable
A person who has proven that they are accountable to themselves and to others is someone you want to hire.
Proactive
When an individual is proactive they are more likely to approach their job with energy, and they are more likely to address and tackle challenges before challenges become problems.
by Fronetics | Mar 18, 2015 | Blog, Strategy, Talent
Here’s why paying out actually pays off.
Contract buyouts within the sports and business worlds aren’t exactly a novel approach to making personnel changes. But what about paying employees — employees who don’t have contracts and haven’t yet earned further compensation — to quit? It’s a move that’s finding ground in the business world.
Take Zappos for example. The company pays employees $4,000 to quit. Yes, the company shells out $4,000 to employees who say just two words: “I quit.”
Here’s why it is a great idea.
All Zappos employees must participate in a four-week training program when they are hired. When they complete the four weeks, they are given a choice: They can continue to work for Zappos, or they can quit. Those who quit will be paid a bonus of $4,000.
Essentially, Zappos is putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to cultivating its company culture. Zappos leadership believes an employee who is not happy after participating in the training program or is not excited about the company and its culture won’t be a good match. By offering such employees an out, Zappos can quickly and effectively weed out employees who are not a good fit within the company’s culture.
This may seem crazy, but the reality is that when unhappy employees leave the company within their first four weeks of employment, the financial implications are much, much lower than the cost of unhappy employees who are likely to be uninspired at work and quit in less than a year.
Why does Zappos do this?
It wants to attract and retain great talent. In his book Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh says: “Your personal core values define who you are, and a company’s core values ultimately define the company’s character and brand. For individuals, character is destiny. For organizations, culture is destiny.” In short, Zappos is big on company culture. This focus has made it successful — very successful.
So how many Zappos employees take the money and run? You might be surprised to learn that only between 2 to 3 percent of people quit and take the $4,000.
Another example of front-end hiring processes from eBay
During his time as the COO of eBay, Maynard Webb also employed front-end hiring processes to determine if a candidate would be a good fit within the company’s culture. To assemble a solid team, he recommends asking the right questions during the hiring process. He gives as an example of a question he would routinely ask job candidates to determine fit at eBay. “If something breaks at 2 a.m. but miraculously resolves itself before anyone understands it, is it okay to unplug and go to sleep? The answer should be no.”
With the U.S. Department of Labor currently estimating the average cost of a bad hiring decision to be as much as 30% of an individual’s first-year potential earnings, a single bad hire with an annual income of $50,000 can equal a potential $15,000 loss for a company. It might actually pay to create a company payment system that is designed to weed out new hires who reveal themselves to be less-than-stellar prospects for long-term employment.
What do you think about the idea of paying your employees to quit? What processes do you have in place to detect personnel issues up front?
Related posts:
by Fronetics | Mar 18, 2015 | Blog, Strategy, Talent
Here’s why paying out actually pays off.
Contract buyouts within the sports and business worlds aren’t exactly a novel approach to making personnel changes. But what about paying employees — employees who don’t have contracts and haven’t yet earned further compensation — to quit? It’s a move that’s finding ground in the business world.
Take Zappos for example. The company pays employees $4,000 to quit. Yes, the company shells out $4,000 to employees who say just two words: “I quit.”
Here’s why it is a great idea.
All Zappos employees must participate in a four-week training program when they are hired. When they complete the four weeks, they are given a choice: They can continue to work for Zappos, or they can quit. Those who quit will be paid a bonus of $4,000.
Essentially, Zappos is putting their money where their mouth is when it comes to cultivating its company culture. Zappos leadership believes an employee who is not happy after participating in the training program or is not excited about the company and its culture won’t be a good match. By offering such employees an out, Zappos can quickly and effectively weed out employees who are not a good fit within the company’s culture.
This may seem crazy, but the reality is that when unhappy employees leave the company within their first four weeks of employment, the financial implications are much, much lower than the cost of unhappy employees who are likely to be uninspired at work and quit in less than a year.
Why does Zappos do this?
It wants to attract and retain great talent. In his book Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh says: “Your personal core values define who you are, and a company’s core values ultimately define the company’s character and brand. For individuals, character is destiny. For organizations, culture is destiny.” In short, Zappos is big on company culture. This focus has made it successful — very successful.
So how many Zappos employees take the money and run? You might be surprised to learn that only between 2 to 3 percent of people quit and take the $4,000.
Another example of front-end hiring processes from eBay
During his time as the COO of eBay, Maynard Webb also employed front-end hiring processes to determine if a candidate would be a good fit within the company’s culture. To assemble a solid team, he recommends asking the right questions during the hiring process. He gives as an example of a question he would routinely ask job candidates to determine fit at eBay. “If something breaks at 2 a.m. but miraculously resolves itself before anyone understands it, is it okay to unplug and go to sleep? The answer should be no.”
With the U.S. Department of Labor currently estimating the average cost of a bad hiring decision to be as much as 30% of an individual’s first-year potential earnings, a single bad hire with an annual income of $50,000 can equal a potential $15,000 loss for a company. It might actually pay to create a company payment system that is designed to weed out new hires who reveal themselves to be less-than-stellar prospects for long-term employment.
What do you think about the idea of paying your employees to quit? What processes do you have in place to detect personnel issues up front?
Related posts:
