Part I. Finding

Referrals, Mutual Connections, Vocational &Trade Schools, Online, Job Posting Sites, Optimize, Consistent, Remote, Competitive, Universities.

If you’re a Startup or Small Business (S/SB) owner with no HR Dept, recruiting & advertising your Job openings yourself can be a real pain in your posterior. For credibility with S/SB, who may be skeptical of traditional HR advice, a Researcher reached out to a Biz contact, and found other business owners, then approached their own in-house startup experts. In terms of the ordering of the list, ideas that came up time and again found their natural spots near the top. Whether high or low on the list, every small business looking to grow will find something, and likely several things, on the list to help them get on their the way.

from Smart Recruiters 8/12 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4.biz More? Click on Hiring.

Top Three:

**1. Reward current Employees to refer New Talent**

A Bonus of some kind or a Cash award for every prospect recommended who is then hired, and lasts a significant amount of time, say a year or six months, often works great. Your current employees know what it takes to do the job. They have a vested interest in bringing in people who will make the workload lighter, not heavier.

2. Contact Mutual Connections

I go to my personal network to find good employees. My friends & colleagues former colleagues know me well and they know to recommend the right type of candidate who would be a good fit. I also use my networks on LinkedIn, Twitter or Facebook – if we are interviewing a candidate I don’t know – I want to see if there are any mutual connections I can ask.

3. Contact Vocational & Trade Schools

If a high percentage of your jobs are entry–level, reach out to the local community technical colleges that offer SW, IT & Hdwe courses. These students tend to be familiar with some of our more basic repairs, and have a good foundation for learning more complex repairs.

15 other Surefire Ways to Find Employees you’ll Love

When you’re trying to find employees, it can sometimes feel like the right candidates just aren’t out there; or worse, it’s a great hiring market, but you’re not getting any qualified bites. Luckily, there are some tried and true approaches that can simplify the process—whether you’re trying to hire for remote or in-office positions, looking for contractors or full-time employees, or needing to find someone at the last minute.

One go-to strategy for finding employees is using a job board like ZipRecruiter. You can post a new position in minutes and share it on more than 100 other job sites. And when you sign up, you can start posting jobs for free. Create an account today. Here are our top tips on how you can find employees you’re sure to love:

A. Best Strategies for Finding Employees Online

1. Develop Your Company’s Online Presence

Regardless of whether you’re relying on the internet to hire employees, the importance of a cohesive online presence cannot be overstated. Not only will having a professional Website & Social Media (SM) profiles help you earn the trust of your potential clients, but it will make a positive impression on the most attractive job candidates. Consider these tips when optimizing your company’s online presence to attract high-caliber employees:

Apply consistent Branding standards across your Website & SM profiles
Complete your company Profile and monitor employee reviews on sites like Glassdoor
Keep an eye on Customer feedback across sites like Google Maps and Yelp

CareerBuilder reported that 64% of Job seekers research a company online. What’s more, if they can’t find info about the company, 37% of candidates will move on to another offer.

2. Sign Up on a Job Posting Site

While it is possible to fill positions using only SM & your company Website, you’ll drastically improve your chances of filling a role by posting to a site like ZipRecruiter (ZR). Not only does ZR provide easy-to-use and customizable Job Post templates, it automatically sends your listing to over 100 Job search sites. Because of this increased visibility, more top-tier candidates are likely to see the job in a shorter period, making it easier for you to fill openings quickly.

3. Optimize your Job Postings

As with almost everything else, the first place people turn when searching for a job is Google or another search engine. Because of that, you should optimize Job postings so that they’re more likely to land at the top of relevant search results. To ensure your company’s open positions are actually found by top candidates, follow these tips when writing a Job description:

Incorporate relevant Keywords: Help Google find your job posting by including relevant search terms in the job title and throughout the description. Consider using the free Google Ads Keyword Planner to see which keywords you should target.
Include your Job location: If you’re using a Job posting platform like ZR, there will be a field to enter the job location. This will help job seekers who enter a search term like “IT job in Denver CO” find your posting.
Optimize your URL: For jobs that are posted to your company’s Website, choose a Webpage slug that includes the Job title & location of the role
Add transcripts of Multi-media content: If your company incorporates videos into its job descriptions or hiring pages, make sure these scripts are also optimized for the keywords you selected. Then, include transcripts of each video on the corresponding webpage to ensure Google picks up those keywords.

4. Be Consistent

Once you post an open position—on SM, a site like ZR, or elsewhere—take the time to review Candidates every day. Just like you, other businesses in your industry are looking for the most qualified candidates. Failing to respond to applicants quickly can mean the difference between hiring your next great employee and losing the candidate to your competitor. Avoid this pitfall by reviewing applicants for every job posting as soon as you can. Just because you aren’t getting a huge number of applications each day doesn’t mean you should wait until the submission deadline to review them. This is especially important if you have an extensive interview process—the faster you identify a promising candidate and schedule an interview, the more quickly you’ll be able to fill the position.

B. Top Ways to find Remote Employees

5. Choose the Right Job Boards

Posting open roles to Job boards can expose your Job description to a large number of candidates—especially if you’re trying to fill a local role. But if you’re specifically trying to hire remote workers, some posting sites may fail to get your job in front of the right candidates. For that reason, it’s important to choose job boards that cater to remote employees. This way, you’re more likely to find candidates who are already comfortable with a remote work setting and expect some of the challenges that can come with a remote role. Here are a few popular sites that specialize in connecting employers with highly qualified remote candidates:

6. Brag about your Remote Culture

When searching for a new job, a study by staffing firm Robert Half estimated that 35% of American workers would not accept a job if they didn’t synch with the corporate culture—even if the role was otherwise perfect. And, while this may seem less important for remote roles, developing an appealing corporate culture is still incredibly valuable for those outside the office. If you have a large contingent of remote employees and are proud of efforts you’ve made to keep them engaged, share the details on your Website. Likewise, use a portion of your Job description to list benefits & other perks available to remote employees.

7. Provide as many Details as possible

Communication is often one of the most challenging aspects of retaining Remote employees and helping them succeed. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that this can also pose challenges during the recruiting, hiring & on-boarding process. Overcome these hurdles by including as many details about your remote role in the Job description as possible.

Make it clear that the Role is remote: When searching for remote positions, many Job seekers get frustrated by unclear expectations. If the role is fully remote, state that clearly. If the job requires some travel or some in-office time, include that as well. Other common terms for remote work include “work from home,” “distributed,” “work from anywhere,” and “virtual.”
Be honest about the role: It may be tempting to limit the job description to the fun stuff, but it’s important to include all relevant responsibilities. This might cause you to lose some potential candidates, but those likely weren’t the best fit anyway.
Mention the likely meeting cadence: Many people choose remote work because of the flexibility it affords them. For that reason, it’s helpful to clearly state whether remote employees are expected to attend scheduled meetings and, if so, how many each week. This will help potential applicants decide whether the role is a good fit for their lifestyle.
Describe Technology requirements: If your job opening requires an employee to have access to specific equipment or a minimum internet speed, now is the time to mention it. Likewise, if your company will provide the necessary equipment, include that in the description as well.
Outline the Hiring process: Depending on the role, the hiring process for a remote position may be more extensive than for a traditional office job. If your company requires multiple stages of interviews—or a Test project—make sure to spell this out in the job posting.

8. Stay Competitive

In the wake of COVID-19, more & more companies are turning to remote work. This is great news for employees who prefer to work from home, but it means that companies need to be more competitive. To improve your chances of finding qualified, enthusiastic remote employees, make sure your salary & benefits packages are up to par with industry standards. You’ll also have more luck hiring remote candidates if you can demonstrate the ways in which your company makes remote employment a rewarding & enjoyable experience for its employees.

C. Tips for Finding Hourly Employees

9. Try a Staffing Agency

Depending on how many hourly employees you need to hire—and how frequently—the recruiting process can take up a huge amount of time and resources. Staffing agencies can simplify recruiting for hourly employees by identifying candidates, hiring new employees, and—in some cases—managing benefits & payments. What’s more, staffing agencies often specialize in specific industries, so find a company that’s familiar with the type of contractors you need.

10. Advertise Locally

If you need hourly employees who can work flexible schedules, you likely want someone who lives locally. In this case, traditional job posting websites may not be necessary. Instead, consider using a more grassroots approach to hiring. Consider posting your job on local Job boards, Facebook Groups, or websites like Craigslist. It may also be worth it to attend local Job fairs or other recruiting events to meet locals looking for consistent hourly opportunities.

11. Build Relationships with local Universities

For small businesses interested in hiring Interns or Contractors with specific skills or interests, local universities are a great place to start the recruiting process. Not only can you find candidates who are interested in your industry, but college students may also be more open to hourly employment than other highly qualified workers. This form of recruiting is also a great way to build relationships with top-caliber candidates who will soon be entering the workforce. By hiring top students as Interns, you’re more likely to keep them on as full-time employees in a competitive market—saving you time & hiring costs down the road.

D. Quickest Ways to find Replacement Employees

12. Choose an efficient Applicant Tracking System (ATS)

The hiring process can be time consuming under the best conditions, but it’s even more so if you don’t have a system for organizing & tracking applicants. To streamline—and speed up—the hiring process, choose an applicant tracking system like Freshteam. These platforms can help you hire employees more quickly by providing job description templates, candidate management pipelines, & resume analyzing features.

13. Network, Network, Network

One of the keys to successful hiring is to never stop Recruiting. Business owners & hiring managers who only look for employees when they’re hiring often find themselves with a limited pool of applicants—especially if they’re in a hurry. If, instead, you’ve cultivated a robust network of high performers in your industry, you’ll always have a strong starting point when filling an open role.

14. Ask for Referrals

The traditional recruiting process can be long and frustrating. And if you’re in a hurry, you may not have time to pore over a pile of applications to find the few qualified candidates. One way to condense this process is to ask your current employees for referrals. Not only can they tap into a larger network of potential hires quickly, your employees are already familiar with the company culture and will be better able to identify candidates who are a good fit.

15. Request Applicant Feedback

If you have the type of business that frequently needs to hire employees quickly, take the time to find out which Job postings are getting the most attention. To do this, ask applicants where they saw your job posting. If you want additional insight, you can also ask what about the Job description stood out to them and made them want to apply. Applicants may not always be willing to provide this information, but it can provide valuable insight into which recruiting strategies are working. Once you know that, it will become easier to speed up the hiring process and bring on new employees faster.

Bottom Line

Employees are the backbone of every S/SB, so it’s incredibly important to find team members who are both qualified & a good culture fit for your company. Depending on your needs—and the hiring climate—this can be difficult to accomplish. If you’re struggling to find qualified candidates and want to get your job posting on over 100 job sites and social networks, ZipRecruiter can save you time & frustration. You can try the platform for free and then choose the combination of recruiting tools that most closely fit your needs.

Part II. 21 Effective Ways to Keep Employees Happy & Productive

by your Local Wise Team 8/21 enhanced by Peter/CXO Wiz4.biz

Topics: Recognize, Team Building, Trust, Offer, BiG Pix, Work/Life Balance, Goals, Milestones, Breaks, Perks, Innovation, Consistent, Tools, Flexibility.

The key to a successful business means not only focusing on your Customers’ needs, but ensuring that their employees are well taken care of. Here are a few easy & effective solutions to help keep your employees happy & productive !!!

1. Recognize their Progress

While giving constructive criticism helps guide people in the right direction, it’s great to also point out the good things your employees do. Acknowledge them individually & verbally show to them that you are aware of where they started and where they can possibly go to next.

2. Plan Team Building activities unrelated to work

While there are different positions in the workforce, it is important to gather the different areas in your business under one umbrella. Plan social gatherings or games for the crew to help build relationships.

3. Trust your Employees

Delegate without micro-managing. Once you instill more trust, you both will learn. Start by giving employees more projects and in turn ask for their input on issues or ideas for the company.

4. Offer, don’t assign responsibility

Create a friendly competition amongst the office. This will get employees to step up to the plate and be productive while offering a chance for you to evaluate how others work. You may discover some work better in cooperative teams or as leaders.

5. Make your Employees part of the bigger picture

Informing the team is key to running a successful business. In order to have great communication & trust, it’s great to talk about the company’s Vision & Goals for the upcoming months or years. This will make them feel valued and demonstrate to them that their hard work is going towards something great for the company.

6. Prioritize a good Work/Life balance

As employers & employees, they all share the common aspect of learning to balance good work with a good life. Embrace the importance of work, but also understand the importance of maintaining a healthy life.

7. Be receptive to Employee preference

While your business shifts and you notice areas that may need more help, it’s a great time to ask your staff for their advice. Ask employees if they’d like to learn something new or improve their skills in a designated area. This helps motivate them to work harder & do the job well.

8. Set clear Goals

Make sure to define the company’s goals in which employees can work together towards. While working together as a team permits productivity, it’s also great to hone in on them as individuals and help set personal goals.

9. Celebrate both Personal & Team milestones

As you set goals & track employees’ progress, it’s nice to take a step back from the work and see what everyone has accomplished. Make sure to celebrate the goals you all accomplished.

10. Encourage Breaks

It’s important to work hard but also put value on rest periods. By allowing employees to take a breather, they’ll be energized, more productive and come back to work with a focused mindset.

11. Provide Perks (w/out breaking the Bank)

Make work into a type of Game show. By setting up common or individual goals, propose creative employee perks such as free meals, casual dress Friday’s, or concert tickets.

12. Don’t be afraid to Switch it up

As the business has a set regular schedule, it helps to add diverse routines throughout the day. Change the order of things or try to come up with a new way of approaching a common task. It doesn’t hurt to try something different!

13. Offer mutual Evaluations

Whether you’re the head of the company or an employee, it’s important to have both sides evaluated. By working as a team, you can communicate to one another your concerns and ask for feedback. By doing so, it helps to create a sense of ownership.

14. Support Innovation – whether or not it works out

A great way to include your staff in making an impact towards the company as a whole is to encourage them to innovate. Try new methods and test run them together. By allowing this, the whole team can learn what works and what doesn’t. It helps them understand their challenges & encourages growth.

15. Be Consistent

In order to let things run smoothly, make sure you’re consistent. While it’s great to connect with team members on a personal and relatable level, it is just as important to act as the Leader with everyone.

16. Take an interest in your employees personalities

While you may be busy with instructing employees on what to do next, it’s important to get to know them. Understanding employees as individuals is key to understanding what areas they excel in & how you can use those passions in your favor to help your business grow.

17. Provide Tools for success

While policy may be the sole focus at first, remember to think of creative solutions. Instead of giving strict guidelines, try to allow problem-solving come into play. Create safe environments for employees to express their thoughts & ideas for the company.

18. Respect Staff Time

While the needs of your business may shift from time to time, it’s important to have a consistent schedule. Implementing scheduling tricks for the weekend shifts, for example, helps show you respect everyone’s time.

19. Don’t keep Score

It’s important to not keep track of all of the good & bad results employees have produced. Remaining positive & reassuring a common goal to have everyone work towards is what is most helpful.

20. Allow workplace flexibility

While showing up to work on time and completing all tasks in a timely manner is important to keep a business flowing, it’s also great to show flexibility. If respect is shown at work, employers should respect that their employees have a life outside of work as well.

21. Say “Thank You”

Simply saying the words “Thank You” can go a long way. There is a sense of comfort & recognition that is felt when these words are heard.