The purpose of this article is not to discuss the if’s, buts and wherefore’s of whether Brexit is the right decision. We are going to leave that old chestnut to the politicians. We want to focus on what you as employers need to put in place now to counteract the impact of the uncertainty which is being created as a result of the ongoing deal no deal discussions.

This is clearly generating a lot of uncertainty not only to the business community but to individuals from the EU where a number of people are taking the decision to leave the UK.

Whilst the Government is putting in place provisions to encourage EU citizens to stay by inviting them to apply for permanent residency in the UK, the fact remains that individuals are still feeling very uncertain which has meant that more companies are going to be competing for a smaller pool of workers.

This is why it is key that a robust recruitment and retention strategy is put in place to plan for, attract and retain the necessary skillset you require your teams of the future to have.

Recruitment

So what factors do you need to consider in developing your recruitment strategy?

Here are our Top Hot Tips:

• Identify what skillset your will require your employees to have in the future to support your business growth plans taking into account any changes, such as, technological, legal, economic etc..
• Identify what are the best methods for attracting your future workforce, for instance, through apprenticeship schemes so that you can nurture your own talent;
• Ensure that you have a robust recruitment and selection process in place to both attract the right people with the right skillset and equally importantly who will fit into the team.

Retention

Every employee is an individual with their own motivations and reasons to come to work. It’s a given that money, whilst important isn’t the prime reason people come to work. As employers we’d like to think that people actually enjoy being at work and some even measure employee satisfaction through employee opinion surveys.

So what would be our Top Hot Tips?

• Make sure that your pay rates are competitive with your local competitors.
• Make it obvious to your employees that their personal growth is a priority for you.
• It’s all in a ‘thank you’ – If an employee does a great job, shout it from the rooftops. Let them know that you appreciate what they do for you.
• Don’t be afraid to have those difficult conversations – If an employee is underperforming, feedback to them, try to understand and let them know that you want to support them and provide them with any additional support that they may need. A difficult conversation does not need to be a negative experience.

We hope that you have found this blog useful and to find out more, please give us a call on 07951 356700.