The Secret to Attract & Retain Small Business Talent is Revealed

In our post, “3 Ways to Get the Best Talent More Often”, we cover how to recruit talent. In this post, we reveal the secret of how to attract and retain talent in your small business.

While small businesses can’t hold concerts, have a free cafeteria, or other major perks, we can be as creative and personalized as we want. And, that’s the secret to attract and retain talent. What keeps people motivated and dedicated is not their salary, but the intangibles. Luckily, as a small business, we can be flexible. Because we can be flexible, we provide our employees with benefits tailored specifically to their needs. This can be an asset in attracting and retaining talent. Let’s go through a few examples.

First, Use Location Flexibility to Attract & Retain Talent as a Small Business

While some jobs require employees to physically be at one location, others don’t. Therefore, for those positions, offering location and time flexibility can be a great way to attract and retain talent. Why? It’s because people can choose when and where to work so that they fit their lives. Normally your work schedule dominates your life. But, in this case, your life guides your work. It’s an incredible perk. For instance, it’s very attractive to working families where childcare is an issue. Therefore, ask them when it is important to be in the office. If they can get their job done from home part of the time, let them.

Second, Build a Team Where Everyone Feels Valued

Remember the team picnic or barbecue? Simple things with events and food can be powerful tools.  These can ensure that people feel bonded. Humans are social creatures. As a result, relationships are one of the most powerful tools to attract and retain talent, especially in small business. It doesn’t need to be a big event, just something your employees would enjoy. Ask for opinions and involve the team in planning it. It not only helps the inner workings of the business, but helps the company grow as well.

Third, Attract & Retain Talent as a Small Business by Not Setting Hours

One of our key tools to attract and retain talent is providing work-time flexibility. For instance, we allow our team to set their own hours. It takes some time to adjust. You still need to set fixed times to review progress, like how we have weekly calls at a fixed time. During the call, each employee reviews their weekly status report with their manager. Businesses waste time, brainpower, and creativity by strapping people to a desk for 8 hours a day.

Finally, Get Creative

Importantly, take the time to get to know your employees. Because by getting to know them, you can uncover what they value. And, what they value, likely others like them will value. Thus, it starts to build a self-sustaining culture. If you will want to delegate to your employees, it is helpful to make sure they like the environment they all work in. Importantly, it makes it someplace people want to work. In other words, that’s the true secret to attract and retain the talent you want. For even more information, Forbes has a number of great articles on attracting & retaining business talent, but for a more personal touch, come to us