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With Australia’s border closings preventing technical and skilled workers from entering the country from overseas, businesses now have to struggle for available resources and it becomes more difficult for small businesses. Roslyn Newbound, Founder and CEO of Accuratus, explains how small businesses can differentiate themselves in the talent market.

Many skilled workers can now name their price as the job market is heating up. Small businesses already hit by lockdowns have a hard time competing against larger businesses with bigger budgets.

For local workers, the flexibility of working from home since the beginning of the pandemic has created resistance to a return to pre-Covid-19 work arrangements. Coming to and from work, paying horrendous parking fees and, quite simply, the inability to reconcile living and working life to meet the growing demands of hectic life is not an attractive option when there are alternatives now. Companies of all sizes are losing staff and critical business knowledge at the same time.

Local employee opposition and overseas labor shortages are expected to be one of the greatest business risks across all industries in 2022. Entrepreneurs and executives will be interested in recovering lost revenue from the 20th / 21st You run the risk of losing important internal business skills and knowledge that are necessary to achieve the goals.

For too long, companies have ignored the need to capture organizational knowledge, intellectual property, and learning in a structured management system. The considerable risk of losing important information to a competitor if an employee leaves or starts their own start-up is very real for many companies today. That risk will only increase until the company defines an employee retention strategy.

While there are a few things companies can do to create a team culture that supports employee retention, in the current environment where budget is an issue, companies must consider other strategies and tactics to attract quality employees hold up and get dressed without getting into a wage war.

The average wage increase an employee accepts when they take another job is 15 percent. While salary plays a huge role in employee retention, it’s important to understand that it isn’t the only factor.

How can small businesses increase employee retention and attract new employees? Five possible strategies:

1. Guidelines for flexible working from home

Although Covid-19 has changed the way we work, many people mistakenly believe that everyone will simply return to the office environment once things have calmed down.

The reality is that many people enjoy working from home and prefer this environment. If you have the capacity and ability to offer employee home office offerings that go beyond Covid-19, then this is definitely something that you can implement on a permanent basis.

In order to bring the company and its employees to success, take the time to define work processes and agree KPIs with employees – autonomy goes hand in hand with responsibility. If you agree to work from home on a full-time basis or combine a combination of home office and office arrangements, with the right framework, this can strengthen your business. Satisfied employees mean more pride and productivity in the job done.

Continue reading: Reinventing the workplace to meet employee expectations.

2. Consider value-added options instead of money

Many people are looking for different ways to grow their wealth and benefit from long hours of hard work.

Pay sacrifices are often viewed as reserved for large companies only. In fact, any employer can offer their employees pay sacrifices. The upside is that the loss of wages for employees provides an opportunity to increase pension insurance contributions, and this is an attractive option for people approaching retirement age, buying a new car, paying school fees, and paying for health insurance with pre-tax money.

Better still, the cost burden on the employer mostly covers payroll fees. Talk to your accountant and see if this option makes employment in your company more attractive.

3. Offer mental health support

Mental health support is an important factor in today’s work environment. Actively support your employees. Increase communication more than you think you need to. Check back in with your team members regularly to find out how they’re doing with work and life in general.

Surprise them with gifts that support their mental health, such as flowers, books, vouchers, etc. Praise and thank them for their work. Do something as simple as remembering birthdays. Calling a member of staff to just say “Happy Birthday” is not expensive. A call like this sends a clear message to an employee that they are valued.

Incorporate official mental health days into your vacation structure to support them where possible.

4. Offer memberships

Get in touch with organizations that can offer your employees membership benefits at reduced prices. You may even be able to finance this yourself and make it available to your employees as an organizational advantage.

This can include discounted phone rates, gym memberships, weight loss meal packages, health insurance. Companies are constantly looking for ways to build their customer bases and are providing significant incentives for companies to introduce their employees.

At Accuratus [a business advisory firm] We offer the “Accuratus Wellness Package” to employees who have completed a full business year with us. It includes great benefits such as paid health insurance, wellness days, and two additional days of annual vacation per year. This plan is designed to complement our “family” culture at Accuratus. We invest a lot in our people and want our people to see us as a long-term employment option.

5. Invest in education

Thanks to the Internet, training is actually cheaper and easier than ever.

One of the main complaints from workers is that the promised training courses are never delivered unless the employer sees an immediate return on investment. If there is a position in the annual training budget, use that position. Education is not just about courses and qualifications; An employee attaches great importance to being looked after personally by the CEO for one hour a month.

For small business owners who may not have a huge budget right now, it helps to devote some time to employee development to plan company succession, nurture employee development, and keep their finger on the pulse when the team is out of business Works remotely.

For formal training, take the effort to find out what options are available and offer them to employees. If possible, offer them time to study for their study work.

Either of these options can be provided to an employer at a relatively low cost. If there’s one thing Covid-19 has done for employers that has a silver lining, it is definitely the opportunity to be creative in finding solutions for employee engagement and retention.