How to Win the War for Talent

In spite of the seemingly-poor economy, small business employers tell us that good people are unavailable. Numerous surveys confirm that CEOs and presidents are struggling to hire the best employees, retain talented staff, replace aging skilled workers, and let go of people not performing as expected.

Mary Lynn Fayoumi, President & CEO of The Management Association of Illinois, confirms that the labor shortage faced by small businesses will intensify. “Once upon a time,” she remarked, “people were happy to just have a job. Now, there is a ‘war for talent’ and small business owners need to know how to win.”

Ms. Fayoumi told a diverse group of small business presidents, CEOs, and owners that retention and recruitment efforts need to be more sophisticated. Thanks to technology, it is easy for employees to look for other opportunities “with your equipment, on your time, and on your dime.” Companies need to be aware of what drives talented staff away. It is not merely compensation but the entire work experience. She says that it is the simple things that cause dissatisfaction. “Employees may join a company, but they usually leave a supervisor.”

The statement that business presidents and CEOs must win the war for talent “may seem more banal than profound,” writes human resources expert Dennis Zeleny. He says that relatively few business leaders grasp the importance of treating this issue as strategically critical. Even more troubling, he says, is that even if presidents and CEOs are “waking up, recognition doesn’t guarantee success in the competition for the best people.”

What should a business owner do?

• Look at your business objectives. Select the talent specifically for the needs you have. Are you formulating the right job descriptions?
• Look inside your company. Describe your culture in one word and then have your staff do the same. If they are not the same, and they won’t be, why are there differences? Are you searching for candidates that fit the culture you want or the culture you have?
• Look at your employees’ supervisors. Are you providing them with the training and tools necessary to keep the best talent?
• Look at your development programs. Are you helping your people learn and grow? By the way, this is an important retention strategy that does not have to involve promotions.
  
  

Energy Independence In Our Time?

I'm a Baby Boomer who well remembers the oil embargos of the 1970's. Back then, it made no sense to me that we were so dependent on other countries for a basic natural resource that is a necessary raw material for our ecomony. Since then, I've believed that it is the biggest failure of my generation to not have figured this out.

I heard a compelling interview yesterday morning on CNBC (www.cnbc.com) with Boone Pickens http://www.boonepickens.com/. Mr. Pickens said that we spend $500 billion annually on imported oil. Over a ten year span, that means $5 trillion will leave our country. This is a compelling reason to demand that the Presidential candidates articulate their visions for an energy-independent USA. Now, over 30 years later, we also know that there's a compelling environmental reason to get off our oil addiction.

I hope you will think about this major public policy issue. At least one of these three themes must certainly resonate with you:

1. Economics: What does it mean to send a half-trillion of our dollars every year to foreign oil sources? Most of these sources are government-owned national oil companies, some of which are our enemies.

2. Geo-politics: Our interests and prestige are compromised on a regular basis by the complications created by our dependence on foreign oil.

3. Environment: Most agree that global warming is caused, at least in part, by mankind's carbon emissions. If you believe this, getting off of imported oil is the single most effective thing we can do to help reverse the trend in global warming.

Despite this serious reality, I am a firm believer that innovation and free enterprise will solve this issue. But, we need those who develop public policy to make this a priority. Keep this in mind as you decide who to vote for this November.

Can Green Business Practices Pay Off?

I recently spent a morning with Phil Baugh, a Chicago real estate developer whose latest project is the Green Exchange, a unique business center and professional community.

The Green Exchange is aimed at entrepreneurs looking to grow sustainable businesses –companies that promote sustainable products and services or support those that do.

Inspired by the green movement, a business is considered sustainable if it “has adapted its practices for the use of renewable resources and holds itself accountable for the environmental and human rights impacts of its activities.” This is the UN Development Programme’s definition.

It may be easier to use Phil’s shorthand: the Green Exchange exemplifies the triple bottom line of People, Planet, and Profit. Companies following the triple bottom line mantra are the target tenants for the Green Exchange.

The Green Exchange is a refurbished 270,000 square foot factory in an old industrial sector of Chicago. Its “green design” is built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum certification standards. To earn this rating, Phil’s facility will be evaluated against six criteria:

1. Sustainable Site: erosion control, minimal site disturbance, high density area, alternative transportation
2. Water Efficiency: effective waste water and water use techniques
3. Energy and Atmosphere: energy performance, ozone protection
4. Materials and Resources: waste management, reduced toxic materials, recycling
5. Indoor Environmental Quality: outside air delivery, indoor chemical and pollutant control, thermal comfort, “daylighting”, “green cleaning”
6. Innovation and Design Process: basically, other ideas and practices that contribute to positive environmental outcomes

I asked Phil about the benefits to a small business of locating to such a building. Fundamentally, Phil said, it is about improved productivity, increased employee retention, decreased costs, and increased sales. Here are some facts he shared with me:

• A Harvard Business Review article said employee productivity can increase by as much as 15%.
• PNC Financial reports that employee retention and satisfaction was 50% better in its green facility compared to a traditional building.
• Toyota’s customer service unit moved to a LEED-certified facility and saw absenteeism fall by 14%.
• Genzyme’s 12-story, 350,000 square foot headquarters building uses 42% less energy and 34% less water than a like-sized standard building.
• "Green” retail space can boost sales by 40% while bringing down overall energy costs.

What is my bottom line? Well, as far as design principles go, LEED certification criteria make a lot of sense. It is easy to see the benefits to customers, staff, and financials. And green marketing is certainly popular and presumably effective. I guess the test for me is whether the Green Exchange is a marketing gimmick or a truly unique business community. I am rooting for the latter.

What do you think?

Craig