Recruit and retain

Gary Godshall, owner of PrideStaff in Long Beach, California tackled one of the biggest issues in the industry at the Finding and Retaining Good Employees Point of Connection Contractor Briefing at the Irrigation Show in Long Beach.

Finding applicants. The first step is creating a strategic plan and job description, Godshall said. You should know what that person is going to do, their next steps at the company, general duties, wages and requirements.

“Make sure you’re in the right wage range for your community,” he said. Otherwise, workers will be looking for higher paying jobs. Godshall recommended careerbuilder.com and onet.com as good resources to find average wages.

It’s also important to know what kind of personality the job requires. Do you want someone who’s organized or laid back? What kind of office atmosphere are you trying to cultivate?

Also consider what kind of background check you want to do and what offenses are make or break.

Before you bring someone on board, detail your expectations and performance indicators, Godshall said. “Have a timeline for growth and put it in the job description.”

When you’re ready to recruit, there are several options out there. Craigslist is a possibility for quick and dirty jobs, but “You get more junk coming through that system than people who will work out,” he said.

Godshall has noticed that Simply Hired is becoming more popular, and Monster and Career Builder are also good websites. He also mentioned Indeed.com, which will pull job postings from other websites and aggregate them. If you’re hoping to use Indeed, be sure to be updating the listing on your page so the listing keeps moving to the top of the list. Repeating the job title in the description also helps improve your search engine optimization for sites like Indeed, he said.

Godshall said that print media is becoming too expensive and obsolete, but community or association papers will help you find a better quality of potential employee. The same goes for business and association websites.

Other options include local or state employment offices, job fairs, staffing agencies and referrals. Godshall recommends giving bonuses for referrals to keep them coming in. “I think referrals are probably an underlooked area,” he said.

Interviewing applicants. Once you have resumes, it’s time to filter them and begin the interview process. “At least of 35 percent of resumes out there contain lies or exaggerations,” he said, which is why the interview process is key.

Asking behavioral questions rather than talking about past experience will give you better insight into the kind of person you’re interviewing. “It’s more about the thought process than the answer,” he said, adding that you should look at soft skills like work ethic along with experience.

Group meetings can help make sure your potential new employee will fit into the culture, and gives your staff the chance to give feedback on a new team member.

If you find an applicant that will work well and you bring him or her on board, it’s important to make that person feel valued. To do that, provide a relatable vision or mission and share your passion for your work, Godshall said.

And if it’s not a good fit, avoid hanging on to people who aren’t meeting your standards, he said.