Transcript Talent Acquisition and Retention

Infopeople Webcast:
Retaining & Motivating
Excellent Library Employees
March 6, 2006
Noon – 1:00 pm
Presenter: Paula M. Singer PhD
[email protected]
Housekeeping
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Today’s webcast:
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presentation: 50 minutes
Q&A: final 10 minutes
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Agenda
Why retention matters
 Why employees stay
 Orientation
 Retention
 Recognition
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Why Retention Matters
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Costs: 1½ - 2 times salary & benefits
 Staffing costs – costs to hire
 Vacancy costs – lost productivity
 Training costs – to prepare new employee
 “Acting” pay
Loss of knowledge
Work not done, priorities not met
Impact on colleagues
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Obstacles to Retention
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Competition for the tech savvy, interpersonally
skilled
Declining supply of library & information
science professionals
More choices for both degreed and nondegreed personnel
Low compensation
Retirements
Freezes
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Population Decline
3.0%
2.5%
2.0%
1.5%
1.0%
0.5%
0.0%
1975
1980
1985
1990
1995
2000
2005
2010
2015
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Talent Pool
35- to 44-year-olds in the U.S.
Index 1970 = 100
220
200
180
Today
160
15%
140
drop
120
100
20
20
10
20
00
90
80
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70
80
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The Changed
Employer-Employee Relationship
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The “contract” is broken
Life Long Employment
vs. Mutuality of Purpose
Free agents
Flexibility to meet diverse
needs
Work/life considerations
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Think about yourself
and your staff….
What keeps you
at your library?
Why do you stay?
Why Employees Stay
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A feeling of connection
Feeling valued
Personal and professional growth
Continuous learning
Making a difference
Good management
Can’t afford to leave
Fair pay and benefits
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Compensation is
More than a Salary
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Salary
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Benefits - the “other paycheck”
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Work environment
A three legged stool!
ALA toolkit for salaries
http://www.ala-apa.org/salaries/toolkit.pdf
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Retention Begins with
Orientation
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Orientation
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Relationship begins before the hire
Employees value a personal connection
Accommodate different learning styles
Make it interactive and fun
Complete paperwork and procedural
“stuff” in advance
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Orientation
Beyond the Workplace
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Offer dual career assistance
Include family in the equation, invite to
orientation
Match new employees with friends and
services, new neighbors, teenage
babysitters, etc.
Help with relocation
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Assimilation
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Provide a buddy/
mentoring
Create & reward best practices
Develop expectations for management
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Welcome!
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Desk, computer, workspace ready on
day one
Welcome card
Balloons, food
New employee party at work site
Formal follow-up at 30, 60, 90, 120
days
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Keys to Retaining
Top Talent
Job Satisfaction & Retention
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1. Increase Opportunity
Challenge
 Interesting projects
 Responsibility
 Team leadership
 Special assignments
 Promotion
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Opportunities for Employee
Development
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Internal recruitment
Support for education
Job rotation/cross training
Task forces, project assignments
Academies of learning
Career ladders
Mobility among libraries
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Cultivating Excellence
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Individual development plans
Coaching/mentoring
Performance management with real
feedback and coaching
360 feedback
Accelerated advancement/steps
Co-manager opportunities
Shared staff opportunities
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2. Decrease Stress
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Identify stressors
Distribute work evenly
Eliminate red tape
Manage interruptions
Promote and model
stress-reducing activities
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Work/Life Balance
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Define work in terms of what
is to be accomplished
Provide flexible work schedules
Evaluate alternative work places and
telecommuting
Appreciate dilemma of child care, elder care,
multiple individual roles
“Allow” voluntary demotions
Appreciate diversity of personal values and
priorities
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3. Provide Leadership
Build trust
 Commit to helping others succeed
 Offer motivation
 Seek excellence
 Take action
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4. Emphasize Work Standards
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Focus on taking pride
Link performance to customer
satisfaction
Develop customer service and
quality measures collaboratively
Be very clear on expectations
Celebrate achievements
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5. Provide Fair Rewards
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Employees want fair rewards for the work
they do, based on:
 Skill
 Responsibilities
 Effort
 Working conditions
 Communicate
 Reward for top performance
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New & Emerging Benefits
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Extra insurance(s) at group rate
Auto, legal, & pet insurance
529 savings plans
Counteroffers
Eldercare – 411
Lactation Rooms
Research leave/sabbaticals
“Stop the clock” tenure
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Convenience/Concierge Services
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Dry cleaner pick-up
Supermarket / Carry-out delivery
Financial planning
Passes, discounts – zoo, museum
Classes on-site – educational, fitness
Discount coupons – cleaning services,
manicures, lawn care
Wellness, health screening
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6. Allow Adequate Authority
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Empower
employees to act
Encourage
employee input to
decisions, goals,
and direction
setting
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Retaining Talented Workers as
They Near Retirement
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Phased retirement
Re-hiring as part-timers
or consultants
Temp work
Training/mentoring
assignment
Sabbatical
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Recognizing Employees
“People will forget what you
said. People will forget what you
did. But people will never forget
how you made them feel.”
Anonymous
Recognition
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Enhances performance
Helps motivate
Provides practical
feedback
Makes it easier to get
the work done
Improves productivity
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“Old School” Recognition
Programs
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Formal
1 size fits all
Centrally (HR) managed
Infrequent
Culture of entitlement
Selectively used for top performers only
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Recognition Updated
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Includes informal elements
Multiple programs & activities
Leader-oriented
Frequent & flexible
Culture of performance
Used for everyone
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Carroll County Public Library
Everyone Counts!
Mission: Created to celebrate the
contributions of CCPL staff members, and
to foster an atmosphere of appreciation,
respect and motivation
• Coworker
• Supervisor to Staff
• Formal
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Coworkers Recognize Colleagues
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Dedication
Achievement
Character
Service
“Can do”attitude
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Respect
Cooperation
Helpfulness
Flexibility
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Supervisors Recognize Staff
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Handling an emergency or difficult
situation
Filling in on another job
Completing a special task
Consistently presenting a positive attitude
that inspires
Giving time & assistance to an area or
staff person outside dept. or responsibility
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More Formal Rewards
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Customer Service Award
Spirit Award
Service Awards
Retirements
[email protected]
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“Spirit of CCPL” Recognition
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Providing consistently outstanding service to internal
and/or external customers
Bringing innovative idea(s) to the system
Enhancing operations
Accomplishing a specific project
Contributing to the mission and/or goals of CCPL
Providing exceptional service in spite of extraordinary
circumstances
Presenting an idea or recommendation that resulted in a
cost savings to CCPL
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Tulsa City County Library
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Rave Review
Team Award
Standing Ovation
Applause
[email protected]
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Low Cost - High Impact
Recognition
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BRAVO award coupons
Special recognition for pages and hourly
employees
Xerox hand
Bragging sessions
Start each staff meeting with good news &
praise for employees who deserve it
Read thank you letters from customers
Self-recognition days
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More Ideas
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Anniversary letter
Thanks button on website
Lifesaver award”
Employee nominated EZTDBW award
“Eagle award”
Employees write about others
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Developing a
Recognition Program
Focus on the areas that have the most
impact
 Involve employees
 Announce the program with fanfare
 Publicly track progress Have lots of winners
 Allow flexibility of rewards
 Renew the program as needed
 Link informal and formal rewards
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Getting Started
Start in your own
sphere
 Do just one thing
differently
 Focus on what you
CAN do
 Don’t expect
perfection
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Building Commitment
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Focus - employees know what they need to do
and what is expected of them
Involvement - people support most what they
help to create
Development – encourage opportunities for
learning and growth
Gratitude - recognize good performance
(formal or informal)
Accountability - employees are responsible
for their performance and lack thereof
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Fine-Tuning Retention Strategies
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Analyze turnover - address any problems
Do exit interviews and USE the data
Survey incumbents
 Paper/pencil, online
 Town hall meetings
 Meetings with senior management
Not one size fits all! Target to individual
needs
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Resources
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ALA. “Advocating for Better Salaries and Pay Equity
Toolkit.” www.ala-apa.org/toolkit.pdf.
Bob Nelson & Dean Spitzer, The 1001 Rewards &
Recognition Fieldbook, Workman Publishing, NY
2003.
Public Libraries, Recruitment and Retention Issue,
Vol. 45, No.1, Jan/Febr 2006.
Paula M. Singer & Jeanne Goodrich, Retaining and
Motivating High-performing Employees, Public
Libraries Recruitment and Retention Issue, pp 58-63.
Paula M. Singer, Designing a Compensation Program
for Your Library. ALA, 2002.
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THANK YOU!
Paula M. Singer, Ph.D.
The Singer Group, Inc.
12915 Dover Road
Reisterstown, MD 21136
410-561-7561
[email protected]
www.singergrp.com
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