First the good news, most employers (78%) say that they will hold steady with their staff for 2012, according to Abbey Lombardi in www.wantedanalytics.com (12/29/11). 18% will be expanding their staff and about 4% may reduce current needs due to business loss or redundncies in staff. This is MUCH better than we have seen in the past 4 years. Some of the key growth internationally is in the Asia Pacific, more specifically China. We are consistently seeing employers ask for “Mandarin speaking skills preferred” in candidates. Though the U.S. is seeing steady growth, it is not as aggressive as China is seeing.

Some of the more difficult job searches are for web development, user experience, mobile marketing, CRM research/analytics and social media marketing, according to Keith Cline (Inc. Magazine 12/19/11). These positions require specialized skills that are in high demand and consequently, pay some of the top salaries and pay rates. Recruiters are ALWAYS looking for these people and once they have people who have proven their worth in these areas, they keep them consistently working. This is the area where we foresee bidding wars occurring for talent.

Today’s process of finding marketing/creative talent has changed greatly from where we were just a few years ago. Traditional methods of newspaper, yellow page postings, magazine ads and job fairs do not have the same impact or attendance as they once did and therefore the results often miss the mark. Of course, this varies based on the skill set being sourced as well as the geographic resources available. Recruiting firms today rely on the digital platform, social media and word-of-mouth to get the candidates with the skills our clients demand.

Social media is a HUGE factor in finding today’s talent. Some of the more common sites are LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter & YouTube. Each resource is unique in how the person’s information is viewed and perceived. LinkedIn is a great tool to find key employer experience, educational training, professional associations and built in recommendations of the person’s performance. Facebook is often used to verify a cultural fit with an employer. The notion that information on Facebook is private and it is okay to say or do whatever online is foolish. Anything posted on the web can be viewed by all. Some high security or government positions are including a review of personal Facebook sites as part of their personality/security assessments. There is state legislation in process now regarding individual rights and public need to know. Keep in mind, it isn’t just what you might say or pictures you post, it is also the company that you keep. Be smart about monitoring your Facebook wall and updates. There are options to potentially limit access to a broader audience that should be considered.

Recruiters are getting creative in sourcing talent. We find that sponsoring unique events that cater to a specific target audience can yield long-term benefits. Referral incentives are also seeing a surge again.

The absolute best way to find talent is by referrals from people you trust or from employees who are doing an outstanding job. It is who you know and who knows you!

Employers need to make sure to utilize internal referrals in securing new people. It not only can control your costs but it builds a team approach and makes them feel more invested in the company.

Today’s final takeaway is that digital is the platform to find talent and to be found. Constantly update your information so that it is relevant and current. Monitor your personal sites so that there are no surprises. It is okay to de-friend a person on Facebook if they are making inappropriate statements or propaganda that is contrary to your stance, even if it is “Aunt Sally”. It is a good thing to connect with others in your field on LinkedIn. It can improve your rating and also give you the appearance of being the person to know. It is not necessary to connect with a stranger that is outside of your focus or in a path that you do not want to follow. More connections are not better if the relationship is distant or non-existent. Report spammers IMMEDIATELY and protect your online image.

The digital pace is faster and much more detailed. Use it wisely and the payoff will be evident.

We are beginning to see counter-offers and bidding wars for top level talent. If you have to counter in order to keep an employee, you might save yourself the cost and frustration by taking care of them now before they want to leave. My experience has proven that a counter offer is just a short-term fix. A loyal and committed employer would serve themselves well to evaluate their company’s risk of losing key personnel who are critical to the success of day to day business and growth. Direct turnover costs per employee are about 25%-30% of an individual employee’s salary/benefits package, according to market research firm InsightLink Communications.

We interview candidates every day and see a broad range of experience and talent. I thought it might be helpful to get another perspective of why people leave a job.

Some of the more common reasons people share with us regarding why they are looking to leave are: broken promises, loss of business, change in management, no growth in role, role has changed, money, benefits, commute, staff conflict, merger/acquisition, review/raise. Almost all of these can be remedied or addressed before people leave.

Broken Promises- Whether real or in a person’s own mind, a broken promise is hard to overcome. It could be as simple as a dedicated parking space or a review that never happens. Once the trust is gone, you have an uphill battle.

Loss of business- Business comes and goes. Unfortunately, the people who support that business do as well.

Change in management- Employees don’t like breaking in a new boss. It is always uncomfortable and creates a shuffling of roles and relationships. No one wants to be the odd man out.

No Growth in Role- Driven employees have a full agenda of what they are trying to accomplish in their career. If the advancement in their career at your firm is not to the level they expect, they will jump to find it elsewhere.

Role has changed- Change is not always perceived as good. A person who is a routine style employee will find any alteration in their work rhythm as painful.

Money- Competitive pay for services rendered is an expectation. An employee may take less when the market is down for survival, but once it improves they will be gone if they are not given a fair increase. Also, there is an unspoken expectation that a person’s salary increases with years of service. It could be in promotion, performance or a cost of living increase. Money is the most sacred of areas protected by an employee.

Benefits- This concern is most important to individuals with families to support or people who might have a pre-existing condition. They need cost-effective and comprehensive options that are broad and affordable. A job with little to no health benefits is a high turnover risk.

Commute- People prefer to work, as a general rule, within a 30 minute commute from their home. Our candidates are reluctant to consider jobs more than an hour commute.

Staff conflict- People do not want to work in an environment where there is personality or personal conflict.

Merger/Acquisition- When two companies combine there is often a redundancy of staff. Reducing the additional people helps control costs and improves productivity. It can be perceived as the perfect time for people who are afraid that they might be on the chopping block to jump ship. Good people who are fearful may jump too soon.

Review/Raise- This is the most common reason I hear from people for leaving a job. It could be because they haven’t had a review and don’t feel valued or that they don’t agree with the reviewer’s opinion of them, or lack of a pay adjustment.

Total Score 50-60 You have a work environment where staff grow and are loyal.

35-49 Your firm is considered stable and provides most of the things an employee seeks

25-34 You have and environment that is not for everyone.

0-24 Your firm is at a high risk of losing key staff for better opportunities

This assessment is not a scientific tool. It is based on social feedback and the opinions of staff and recruiters compiling this data.

As we gear up for a great 2011, we are adding key people to our team. I would like to introduce three team members that joined us most recently:

Robert Walker joined as a Business Development Manager. He is located in Dallas and has extensive creative staffing experience both in DFW and nationally. Broad experience across multiple industries including healthcare, finance, pharma and retail. - Robert.Walker@paladinstaff.com

Pam Maret is our new Regional Manager for Paladin NYC. Pam was a top producer for a competitor before relocating from Charlotte to New York. Prior to entering the staffing industry, Pam was a Manager and sales executive in corporate advertising. - Pamela.Maret@paladinstaff.com

Don Schneider has joined as an Executive Recruiter. He will focus on senior level direct-hire roles in Marketing, Creative and Communications fields. He has over 15 years of experience in marketing managing account, creative and production teams on both the client and agency side. - Don.Schneider@paladinstaff.com

We are excited to provide Robert’s, Pam’s and Don’s expertise to you, the Paladin community. We believe that they will be invaluable partners to clients and candidates.

Please join us in welcoming all three to our team. And look forward to more new talent to join Paladin as we grow in 2011.

I’ve just returned from a managers meeting at our corporate HQ. While there, we covered lots of the topics expected - sales, management, hiring, best practices, how to grow and mentor a team etc.  But one of the most surprising topics covered was - vacations.

I am one of those managers who is guilty of putting off  vacation time until the end of the year and then not being able to use it.  l do like folks that put in tons of hours and are fully engaged in their roles at work.  But also I have also seen the effects of burn-out. I have learned over time - that taking time off is, in fact, an important element in keeping employees performing at their best.  So I thought I would share the research finding I received from our communications team.

Time Off

If you’ve been handing out an unspoken pat on the back to employees that work more than 40 hours each week and rarely take vacation, you’re likely not alone. According to the American Workplace Insights survey conducted by Harris Interactive:

• 57% of employees do not expect their employer to encourage vacation use.
• 58% believe their employers likely won’t offer flexible work hours this year.

It’s time to rethink your strategy. All work and no play may or may not lead to dull employees, but it will directly and negatively impact your bottom line. The following are a list of eight reasons to encourage your employees’ regular use of paid vacation:

1. Put a cap on accrued vacation payables. When an employee’s unused vacation time is allowed to accrue for an extended period of time, employers are left holding the bag if that employee leaves the company or suddenly decides to take many weeks at one time. A “use-it-or-lose-it” policy encourages employees to use their earned vacation time within the calendar year, and protects your balance sheet from an unlimited or unexpected payout.
2. Rested workers result in reduced premiums. The hallmarks of workaholism include fatigue, poor health, and stress, all of which lead to an increase in worker’s compensation and health insurance costs. Keep your employees healthier and safer while minimizing the premiums you pay, by enforcing necessary breaks in engagement and regular time off.
3. Increase output with higher productivity and accuracy levels. Studies have shown that productive, successful employees are those who take vacation and occasional time off to relax, rejuvenate and refresh. Upon return from vacation, their renewed sense of drive and determination can provide both short-term and long-term boosts in productivity. Additionally, the necessary rest and replenishment will help them avoid costly mistakes, which overworked employees are more apt to make.
4. Employees that get away are more likely to stick around. When you consider the total cost of recruiting, hiring and training new employees, turnover expenses can be devastating. Help improve employee morale when you facilitate, and even encourage, employee retention through the use of vacation time and an environment that supports employee-centered work hours.
5. A change of scenery promotes ingenuity. Hum-drum routine rarely leads to inspired thinking. When on vacation, we often find ourselves in a new environment, and going through different routines. By being forced to behave and think differently for a period of time, we gain fresh perspective, creative inspiration, and new ideas. It is impossible to put a dollar value on the innovation and ingenuity that will result for your company when you encourage your employees to take vacation as a sabbatical.
6. Happy employees minimize risk and adversity. The ever-elusive office culture – you tout it to recruits, but do you really understand its value? Overworked employees are cranky employees, and are often the cause of infighting as well as office politics. They are more likely to berate their boss, resent coworkers that don’t work as hard as they do, and even resent the job itself. Your entire office, and its work product, suffers the effects of an overworked employee. You can prevent unnecessary crankiness on your team by simply making it clear that working long hours and foregoing vacation are not the way to get ahead.
7. Reduce unplanned outages. Overworked employees may take fewer vacation days off, but the tradeoff is that they likely will require more sick days. Additionally, if your employees are nervous about how you will react to their vacation request, they will be more likely to procrastinate – leaving little time for a back-up plan – or even play hooky. Conversely, employees who feel open to use their vacation time at their discretion will more proactively plan for their outages and have fewer sick days. Foster an environment that supports your employees’ efforts to balance work and their personal lives through paid time off, and the result will be loyal employees that won’t leave you hanging.
8. Detect and deter fraud by interrupting individual controls. According to the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners’ (ACFE) 2010 Report to the Nations, a typical organization will lose 5% of its annual revenue to occupational fraud and abuse. Fraudulent behavior often requires complete control over an activity by one or more persons to cover up the paper trail, and is difficult to maintain while out of the office for a week or more. In fact, refusal to take vacation was one of the key red flag behaviors identified by the ACFE in their study. While the reality of these statistics is unpleasant, companies must acknowledge the need for a required vacation policy to help detect, and ideally deter, any existing or potential fraudulent behavior.