In an increasingly competitive employment market, employers must keep up-to-date with the compensation, perks and benefits that the best talent is looking for, or risk losing them to your competitors.

I speak to candidates daily, and I hear the same incentives that are driving candidates away from specific workplaces and into others.

In this blog, I will share what the most talented candidates are looking for in their new employers right now – are you offering these incentives?

Flexible Work Schedules

We have seen a decrease in the typical 9-5 working schedule for some years now, with flexi-time gaining popularity in the ‘90s through to the present day.

But increasingly, employees are looking for even more flexibility from their employers.

Employees today – and especially millennial employees who now make up the majority of workplaces – want schedules that are flexible to their personal needs.

This is different to flexitime, as instead of being able to come into work anytime between 7-10 am and leave between 3-7 pm, they might ask for flexibility at other times. For example, a half-day finish when they have an appointment and be able to make the time up somewhere else or to come in later on days when they have to take their child to playgroup when their partner is busy.

As well as a flexible working arrangement, another popular demand among employees is a compressed working week – let me explain how this works.

Compressed Work Week

A compressed working schedule allows employees to work full time, putting in more of their hours on the days they choose, and allowing them to take time off elsewhere. For example, an employee might want to work four 10 hour days and have Fridays off.

Employees love this perk, as it allows them to have a better work-life balance, and studies show that working non-regular office hours improves productivity. Employees are more focused on their tasks, they have fewer interruptions, and it reduces fatigue which causes productivity and quality of work to slip.

Pension Scheme

We’re all living longer, and with government pensions not as reliable as they once were, employees are looking to their employers to provide them with an excellent pension scheme.

Employees highly value an employer who invests in an excellent pension scheme for them – it shows that they are invested in their future.

Working with a workplace pension provider to ensure that your employees are given a good rate on their pensions and that they can have as much or as little input as they want in the matter is a highly desirable bonus to many employees.

On-Site Amenities

Depending on the type of your workplace, there will be a range of amenities that you can provide for employees.

If your organisation is based somewhere away from shops and other conveniences, can you provide food for employees?

Some larger organisations can provide gyms, which is seen as one of the most sought-after perks; of course, this is not always possible and will depend on your size and budget. A good alternative is a chill-out zone, where employees can take time out to de-stress or have a quiet 5 minutes.

Even something as small as making your workspace bright, with plenty of natural light and indoor plants can make workplaces much more appealing to candidates.

Your goal should be to provide a workspace that your employees look forward to coming to, where they feel that they can thrive and work towards the shared goal of being healthy and happy.

Creating a positive place to work for your employees contributes to their overall wellbeing, which in turn increases productivity – it’s a win-win!

Finally, a great way to boost morale and give employees a little something that everyone enjoys – free social events!

Social Events

The solitary annual Christmas party doesn’t cut it anymore – many workplaces provide events for their employees throughout the year, and this is has become the mark of a great employer.

It doesn’t have to be monthly away-days at outdoor pursuit facilities; something as low-key as a shared team breakfast every few weeks, or making sure you celebrate birthdays in the office, makes team members feel valued.

Not only this, but research shows that employees who spend time together form stronger bonds which enables them to work better as a team when they are at work.

Your Benefits

How many of these benefits do you currently provide, in one form or another, to attract and retain the best employees?

The smartest organisations are always on the lookout for the most talented employees, and so attraction and retention should be something you are actively monitoring.

Hopefully, this article will have given you some inspiration on how you can make changes to transform your organisation into a talent magnet.

If you need further help or advice on how to recruit top employees, we can help. We work with organisations in the North West to help them find the talent they need to drive their business forwards – get in contact with us today to find out more.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989, and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

The start of a new year – how many business owners have been mulling over their plans for 2020 and the coming decade while they were at home celebrating with family? I know I was!

Here is the thing.

To achieve growth, to scale your business and to more importantly – increase revenue – what you need is a great team.

Some people go as far as saying that your team are as equally as important as your customers. No successful business has ever made it with a sub-standard team in place, and engaged employees are widely considered to be essential to higher efficiency, productivity and profits.

The cost of a bad hire, while expensive in monetary terms (estimates range from £12,000 to up to tens of thousands of pounds) will potentially send shockwaves which will be felt throughout your business.

And the smaller your company, the more impact making the wrong hire will have. Increased workloads and stress for current employees, low morale, decreased productivity…all of these put a strain on your business in a time when you were planning on growing.

So, with this in mind – what are you doing to ensure the hires that you make in 2020 will be the right ones to ensure your business grows and moves in the right direction?

Make 2020 the year that you put your recruitment process in the hands of the experts by working with a specialist recruiter; and here is how it will benefit your business.

Unrivalled Expertise

Unfortunately, many business owners who are not well acquainted with the world of recruitment don’t realise the vast difference in service they will receive between a specialist and a general recruiter.

This is understandable, as those who don’t live and breathe recruitment (unlike us!) have less of an understanding of what different recruiters provide within their service.

Most people don’t realise the extent of the knowledge gaps that a general recruiter can have, and the impact this will have on your eventual hire. Every employee in your organisation has a bearing on your success, and so each employee must be hired for the value that they can add to your business.

You can only achieve this by working with a recruiter who has an in-depth understanding of your sector, and sadly, this is not what a general recruiter will provide.

Local Knowledge

As well as extensive sector knowledge, one of the most crucial elements of working with a specialist recruiter is their geographical location. Can you expect your recruiter to understand current issues affecting your town or city when they are based elsewhere in the country?

Understanding, and having a good knowledge of the businesses in the area is an added benefit that people often overlook when choosing a recruiter.

If your specialist recruiter focuses their recruiting in one geographical area, this means that they can give a vastly improved service. Understanding your local area, the current economic and job climate, and the local candidate base is an added layer to your specialist recruiter’s service, which strengthens their hiring process.

The Skills Shortage

A recent survey of recruitment in the accounting and finance sector found that there is a current ‘moderate’ skills shortage in pivotal roles. Another accounting survey found that 95% of recruiting partners have struggled to find skilled accountants – does this sound familiar?

There is a distinct lack of talent in the active accounting candidate market. Firms who attempt to recruit by themselves, or use a general recruiter, are failing to interview candidates who possess the right skills and attitude.

A niche specialist will have access to the broader talent pool and will have contact with candidates that would not otherwise be looking to apply to your organisation.

An Efficient Process

How fast is your recruitment process? How many stages are there to ensure that the candidate is right for the role?

Or is it more of a relaxed affair that can take weeks depending on when the senior staff can get together? Is it more a case of hiring the person who can start the soonest? Your specialist recruiter will have every stage, and more importantly – the time frame already in mind.

One of the biggest complaints I hear from candidates, and sadly, one of the reasons many businesses miss out on great candidates is that ‘the hiring process took too long’.

The speed and efficiency of your hiring process is something which many business owners fail to recognise as essential to the candidates. Your specialist recruiter has the time to keep in touch with candidates at every step of the way, ensuring that they don’t switch off or worse – get approached by a rival company..

The Right Hire – First Time

Finally, but certainly not least – perhaps the most value-adding aspect of working with a specialist recruiter is the guarantee that the right hire will be made for your organisation.

As I have highlighted in this article, it is so essential to make the right hire, the first time around, and working with a specialist recruiter will ensure that this happens. It reduces the chance of being left for weeks (or months) of uncertainty as you attempt to carry out the recruitment process around your businesses daily tasks.

Or the worry that a sub-standard hire might be made, as a result of working with a recruiter who doesn’t understand your businesses and your sector-specific needs.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989, and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to download our latest interview checklist, you can do so here.

How many millennials do you have in your organisation? If you’re not sure as to what constitutes a ‘millennial’ – it is generally accepted that this generation was born between 1981-1996, meaning that their current age is from their early 20s to late 30s.

As a Manager, it is vital to understand the needs of all generations in the workplace, but as of 2020, millennials will make up the most significant section of the UK workforce, so it pays to understand what they’re really looking for from their job.

Managers who understand what millennials want, and who offer them the opportunities that they’re looking for, will reap the benefits in the long run – these employees will stay and grow with your organisation rather than moving on in a year.

So, what exactly is it that millennials are looking for from their job?

Innovative Technology

Millennials have grown up around technology, and figuring out how to make the lives of everyone in the office a little easier is part of their DNA.

You might be thinking ‘, but we’re a small accountancy company, we don’t have any innovative tech’ – but this is not as complicated as it might sound.

Any office with a computer system will have processes in place – the organisation of files, the procedure of dealing with a client, even updating your website; these are all examples of conventional technology which millennials are adept at working with.

If your cloud filing system is a mess (or non-existent), if you have held back on upgrading your website or even your internet speed, these can all put millennials off from wanting to join your company.

They are looking for forward-thinking and innovative workspaces; however, it isn’t all about how futuristic your office is, it is more a state of mind – which brings me onto my next point.

Collaboration and Flexibility

The millennial workforce is known for their love of collaborative working, of pushing boundaries and of rejecting the style of work where you basically get your head down, do as the Manager says and don’t ask any questions – this is seen as a ‘baby boomer’ trait, and is now less common in the world of work.

When you harbour and encourage an atmosphere of collaboration and shared knowledge, this is an attractive trait to high-performing millennials. Equal partaking makes millennials (and indeed employees of all generations) feel that they are valued, rather than simply a ‘cog’ in the wheel, and gives them a sense of purpose – let me explain this in more detail.

Purpose

Millennials want to undertake work which gives them a sense of purpose. Whether that’s on updating a mortgage administration process, taking ownership of their bookkeeping role, or doing an excellent job of pulling together contracts for your contracts administrator role.

Older millennials might be old enough to have experienced the world of work before open-plan offices and when being an ‘angry Manager’ was still seen as a reliable leadership quality – not any more.

The workplace is a much more open and forward-thinking place these days, with companies of all sizes and in all sectors striving to show their clients and their employees that they are purpose-led. A recent Forbes article even highlighted that purpose-driven companies evolve faster than others.

So, to attract the best millennial talent, make sure your company not only has a mission and a vision statement but that all employees are committed to the cause. If you are an accountancy firm who has honesty and customer service at the heart of your ethos – highlight this to your millennial candidates; it will make them consider working for your business even more seriously.

To Be Developed

Lastly, I want to talk a little bit about millennials and their long-term career plans. Many employers wrongly believe that this generation of workers are ‘job-hoppers’ and they have gained a reputation for being more likely to leave their jobs than their boomer predecessors.

But how true it this?

In reality, millennials are actually no more likely to leave their job than any other employee of different age.

Yes, it is true that the workforce, in general, changes their jobs more often now than previously, but this is the same across all ages. The average employee now changes their position up to 12 times throughout their career, but this is not because they are flighty. It happens because the idea of a ‘job for life’ is not in practice anymore, because of the unstable economic times of the last ten years in the UK and because there is more choice for employees.

A recent study on millennials in the workplace found that the number one factor that they consider before taking a new job is if they will be trained and developed in their role.

Millennials want to develop and grow with your company – they will be put off any role which does not offer scope for growth, and this is not just for the increase in salary; they want to feel the sense of accomplishment that comes from personal growth and pride in doing their job increasingly well.

Finally

Do you need help locating quality candidates for your finance or accounting vacancies? We work with accounting talent for roles in the North West and have been recruiting in this sector for 30 years – get in contact with our team today to find out more.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989, and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

Your accountant has a central role within your business, so the notion that they might be about to leave can be an alarming one.

But the reality is that accountants rarely stay in the same place for a long time; they are often recruited onto bigger contracts and higher salaries elsewhere – you probably won’t even know if your accountant is planning on leaving.

However, there are some signs that you can look out for.

As a recruiter, I am used to hearing the reasons that top accountants give when leaving their jobs. Starting a family is a primary example – considering leaving for a higher salary in preparation for an addition to your family, and also planning on a reduction of hours to accommodate new parental responsibilities are both reasons candidates regularly give.

Perhaps they have simply been given a better salary and compensation with a firm they have been on the radar of for a while – this article contains the signs to look out for which might indicate your accountant is about to leave.

1. Their Performance Has Dropped

A drop in performance indicates that your accountant is either less engaged with their role, which often leads to the desire for a new role, or worse still, that they are actively looking for a new job and they have mentally checked-out of your business.

Have they started giving less detail in their financial statements, making careless mistakes or missing deadlines which is out of their normal character?

Keeping regular reviews and even informal chats every couple of weeks to discuss your accountant’s projects and how they are generally feeling at work can prevent negative emotions from harbouring, and solutions can be worked out for problems before they become serious.

2. They Have Closed Themselves Off

Any good leader will be able to recognise a change in their employee’s behaviour. An unfavourable change in behaviour might mean a few different things – your accountant might be going through personal issues, they might be finding their current work too stressful, or not challenging enough; or it might mean that they have disengaged from your company.

An informal chat with your accountant who appears to have shut down might reveal that they are struggling – and this is something you can help them with. Likewise, if they tell you that everything is fine, but continue to be secretive with phone calls and checking their phone, or missing work without any good reason – more on this next – it could signal that they are about to leave.

3. They Have Begun an Irregular Working Schedule

A sudden irregular working schedule might mean that your accountant has things going on outside of work – it is not up to your employees to tell you every detail of their personal lives, but a sudden or drastic change to their once steady routine could be a sign of imminent disruption.

Working late to reconcile the accounts and coming in late regularly over consecutive weeks are two different things – the latter might mean that your accountant has been attending interviews elsewhere.

4. They’ve Got a Big Life Change Going On

If you share a great relationship with your accountant, there’s a good chance that they will divulge their personal news with you. You will probably be aware of any significant life changes your employee has going on – a house move, planning a wedding, looking after a family a member, etc.

Sometimes the personal circumstances of an employee mean that they are forced to reassess their career. Your accountant might not necessarily want to hand their notice in, but a significant change in their personal life might make it the only option.

Have they been mentioning starting a family recently, have they been decreasing their hours to take care of an elderly parent? Life comes at us all fast, but being mindful of at what stage your accountant is at in their personal life should mean that you are better equipped to predict their career movements.

Unfortunately, however, sometimes when employees leave there have been warning signs, but their employer has failed to notice them.

5. They Have Demonstrated That They are Less Fulfilled

If only every employer listened to their employees! Many times, when a great employee like your star accountant leaves, they have been exhibiting visible warning signs that their employer has overlooked.

Quite often, candidates who we work with tell us that they are planning on leaving because they have been unhappy in their accountancy role and have tried to offer solutions to the company to no avail. A recent accountancy candidate who I placed in a great new role had been vocal about their previous company updating their recording systems for over a year, and nothing was ever implemented to help her out. In the end, she left to work for a more dynamic company and her old employer was surprised to receive her notice – he simply hadn’t been paying attention to the needs of his staff!

Finally

Actively listening to your key employees can prevent a surprising notice on your desk, but unfortunately, sometimes your accountant will leave for a career move, and there is little that can be done to avoid this.

If you need help in locating talented accountants or building your talent pipeline so that you have a great candidate in mind for the future of your business, get in touch with us to discuss our recruitment solutions.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989, and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to download our latest interview checklist, you can do so here.

Is your company paying attention to its employees, as well as your customers?

Your employer brand might be the silent reason between attracting the accountancy candidates you want and being left wondering ‘where are all the great candidates?’

Currently, three in four employers state that they find it hard to fill vacancies. It is a candidate-driven market, and the best candidates invariably flock to the ‘best’ companies.

Your employer brand is a tool which you can use to attract the kind of people who will enrich your company and who will be good for business – so what exactly is an employer brand? And how can you use it to your advantage? This article will show you how.

What Does Your Employer Brand Say About You?

Before you can decide how your employer brand needs to be tweaked (or overhauled), you first need to understand what kind of employer brand you currently have.

When you think of a company – take Google, for example – what is the kind of ethos that you associate with this brand? They’re forward-thinking, have a famous reputation for their incredible workspaces and are at the cutting edge of most software technologies.

What do you think would be the first things that pop into potential candidates’ minds when they think about your company? Do you have a strong market presence? Are you active on social media? What kind of people works for you?

You can create an audit using a variety of sources – ask your current employees to take part in surveys, hold stakeholder interviews with key figures, and send questionnaires to people who have rejected your job offers.

When you have compiled an analysis of your current employer brand, you can start to see where you might like to improve.

Size Up The Competition

In your quest to win the best candidates, your main barrier is your direct competitors.

When you are based in a big city, there can be several firms all competing for the best talent, but over a smaller area, the numbers can get uncomfortably close. You might even personally know the accountants working for other firms – you might have lost out to them previously.

If you have one, or a few, direct competitors (be that geographically or in your sector specialism) how does your firm measure up?

I’m not suggesting you copy mission statements or logos from your competitors, but you can take inspiration from organisations you admire. Has a rival firm recently upped their marketing with physical and online adverts? What are their job descriptions like? These are places where you can take inspiration from.

Create a Plan

Once you have identified the issues with your current employer brand, how would you like these to improve?

If you are attracting X kind of candidates, but you want Y candidates, how can you get these candidates to interact with your business more?

It is here that you can develop your ‘Employer Value Proposition’. Your EVP describes the salary, compensation and benefits that you provide to your employees.

In today’s job market, EVP’s are becoming increasingly competitive. Driven by a younger workforce (millennials are set to make up a third of the global workforce by 2020), employers are increasingly offering health insurance, dental plans, childcare, and health and wellbeing programmes.

Recent research from the United States shows that 80% of employees think that workplace benefits are more important than salary, and it’s a similar picture in the UK too. Get your benefits package right, and the great candidates will follow.

Review your candidate avatar and direct your online presence toward the kind of candidate you want – starting with your online content.

Upgrade Your Online Presence

Updating your online profile is a great way to cultivate your employer brand. Gone are the days of dry finance websites full of blocks of monochrome text.

While accountancy might have once had a reputation for being a sector which operates strictly behind the scenes, this is now changing.

A desire for transparency in all areas of the workplace has meant that companies are now more forthcoming with information which was previously only ‘behind the scenes’. An example of this is CEOs of companies getting involved in online videos that can be shared as advertising – think of Amazon’s Jeff Bezos. Twenty years ago we never knew the directors of large multinational companies: now they are never out of the news.

Some of the biggest news stories in the last few years have included accountancy – there is rarely a week where the global financial powers are not in the news.

Adapting your online presence is an easy way of remodelling your employer brand. Most job seekers will now check your website as their first port of call before applying to your firm, and they have certain expectations. They will be looking for active social media accounts, a modern and informative website containing blogs and other forms of content.

Encourage Advocates

Thanks to our hyper-connected world, review culture have made it possible to ‘try before you buy’ for almost anything and everything.

Your current employees should be involved in your employer branding strategy, and this is an opportunity to build the kind of team you want.

LinkedIn is a great way to involve your current employees to act as advocates for your firm.

Use your company’s LinkedIn company page to share articles, give company updates and engage with your staff and other companies whose values align with your own.

A company with a robust online presence with actively engaged employees is a crucial way to impress prospective candidates. Job seekers are far more likely to apply to a company that has provided them with some credible information and can demonstrate a good employee experience.

Remember – you can’t make your employees engage with you on social media, but they are far more likely to if you are providing them with a great employee experience!

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989 and during that time has built up an excellent reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to download our latest interview checklist, you can do so here.

Does it feel like your company is forever going back to the drawing board in attempting to fill vacancies? Many companies wildly underestimate both the time and the cost of recruiting the wrong candidates again and again. At Clayton Recruitment we are experts at finding the right candidates for the right clients, and we can easily spot the mistakes companies continue to make in their hiring process.

In this article we share five of the most common big mistakes we see hiring managers make in hiring the wrong talent.

1. Hiring On Your ‘Gut Feeling’

There can be a lot to say for basing decisions on ‘gut feeling’ and it isn’t the panacea we sometimes think. Yes, hiring managers need to be interested in people, but they must also look beyond the shiny exterior candidates often present to them. Candidates can often be over, or under friendly on the day of the interview, as is familiar with nerves.

A skilled interviewer can see past the veneer and ask relevant questions that dig deeper to reveal what a person is like beyond what they are presenting.

If your hiring manager has a tendency towards one particular type of person (we all do, we’re all human) this can sway them one way or another, but they should be mindful of what will be good for the business as a whole, not just who they think they will get on best with.

2. Rushing the Process

We are currently in the lowest period of unemployment we have seen for 40 years. While this is excellent news for candidates, it means that many companies are struggling to recruit not just the right candidates but any candidates at all.

As a result many employers are taking what they can get – literally, even if they know straight away that this person is not right for the job or the business. The cost of hiring someone because there is a vacancy that needs filling urgently only accentuates the problem.

When the candidate doesn’t work out, it means investing more money on advertising the position as well as hr and the hiring managers time to go through the whole recruiting process again.

We understand that it might seem like the logical thing to do at the time, but it really is detrimental to your company in the long run, costing more money and time overall.

Hold off for the right candidate and you will not end up paying twice for the privilege.

3. Taking Too Long

One of the biggest mistakes hiring managers make in their process is taking too long to get back to interested candidates. The Balance report that the average time to hire is around 38 days – this is far too long considering the shortage of candidates in many sectors.

A job-seeker will probably have applied to a handful of positions in their initial job search – can you afford to be the last company that gets back to them? If you have legitimate reasons for taking more than a couple of weeks to get back to candidates, tell them there will be a delay.
Candidates appreciate honesty, and it stops them from wondering if they have been rejected without so much as a callback. They might be setting up more interviews in the time you are taking to reply, and are likely to accept an offer from a responsive employer.

Lack of communication is a problem which is so easy to solve, yet it can be so costly if done wrong.

4. Searching For a Unicorn

You want the very best candidate for the job, we understand. But is your search for a specific person and their talents causing you to reject hidden gems?

You might be delaying your search for a person that doesn’t exist. In recruiting we refer to these candidates as ‘unicorns’, and a hiring manager’s fixation on finding one could be to your company’s detriment.

If you haven’t captured the exact candidate that you want, take a look at the soft skills of the ones who have applied. Have any of the candidates got a strong track record of turning their hand at a variety of skills? Are they exceedingly bright?

A proven track record of the skills you desire might be your first choice, but in the skills-short job market we are currently in, now is the time to start looking to develop talent rather than pluck it out of the hiring process.

5. Ignoring Company Culture

Each time you have a vacancy that needs filling, this is a new opportunity for you to shape your company culture in the way you want. One of the main reasons people cite when deciding to leave their job is their relationship with co-workers. Do you have a harmonious workplace where everyone respects each other and gets along? Or are there often issues and disagreements?

If you are interviewing a candidate and they have a perfect set of skills, but they clearly would not get along with the rest of the staff, are they the best hire for the job?

Are you a hiring manager struggling to identify the best talent for your company? Clayton Recruitment is a trusted expert with 30 years of experience in the field. Get in touch with us today to take the stress out of boxing-off those hard-to-fill positions.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to download our latest interview checklist, you can do so here.

Business can often be very fast-paced and demanding, but that doesn’t mean you have to neglect the wellbeing of your employees. A stressed employee is often an unproductive employee, which can ultimately hurt your company’s bottom line.

There’s a growing body of research that confirms the link between employee happiness and workplace productivity. For example, a recent study at the University of Warwick revealed that happy employees work harder and are 12% more productive and motivated than those who are unhappy or stressed.

Workplace stress can often be alleviated simply by providing opportunities to fulfil basic human needs. In addition to being less stressed, employees who feel their needs are being met in the workplace, feel more comfortable, confident, and motivated to work productively.

Here are five simple practices that will help foster a stress-free culture in your company.

1. Develop a Wellness Programme

This is something Japanese businesses have known for some time: the company that exercises together, stays together. Working out as an office will not only build camaraderie; research shows that daily exercise out can be extremely effective in lowering stress.

Whether it’s a lunchtime yoga class or an office sports team, your company’s exercise can take many different forms. You could even arrange to have monthly matches against other companies – imagine competing in a football match against your leading business competitor! Working together to achieve a common goal on the field will translate to having a high-performing team in the office. It’s also a great way for people to get to know everyone in the company better.

In addition to providing opportunities for group exercise, you could bring in a wellness coach to speak to staff on ways they can fit daily workouts and proper nutrition into their busy professional lives. Having a healthy diet and regular physical exercise will not only reduce work-related stress; it will also lead to clearer and more creative thinking.

2. Mentor Young Talent

Research shows that employees who benefit from mentoring programmes have higher job satisfaction, which often correlates to increased productivity and reduced turnover. Frustration and stress over not knowing how to correctly do a job are some of the leading causes of turnover for many organisations; therefore, providing new talent with the scaffolding and feedback necessary to carry out their work correctly and effectively will increase both workplace efficiency and retention.

So, if you’ve recently hired an assistant accountant, it’s crucial to ensure that a more experienced member of your accounting team will be assigned to answer any questions they might have about using the SAGE 200 software your company just purchased.

Workplace mentoring programmes not only help new employees learn the ropes; they also help them to build strong professional relationships with senior members of staff. In addition to helping them perform more effectively, mentorships also give younger new team members a sense of belonging and worth.

3. Encourage Open Communication & Employee Feedback

Ineffective communication is one of the leading causes of workplace stress and discontent. One of the best ways to reduce anxiety in the workplace is to improve employer to employee communication channels as well as encouraging open communication between all team members. This will help to ensure that all employees are clear on their purpose and what their role is in the company’s shared vision, which will facilitate a reduction in work-related stress.

Another great way to help improve workplace culture and reduce stress is by implementing an employee feedback system, where all employees can provide feedback to your company’s leadership team. An employee feedback system will give your employees a sense of importance, allowing them to feel understood by giving them an outlet to voice their opinions and concerns.

4. Focus On Work-Life Balance

The secret behind many highly successful companies is their promotion of work-life balance. In addition to encouraging staff to make the most of their personal time, there are many things your business can do to promote a healthier work-life balance amongst your team.

You could adopt a flexible schedule, allowing employees to start/end work an hour or two later when needed. In addition to this, you could also implement a work-from-home scheme, where employees might be eligible to occasionally work at home in certain circumstances. You could even promote digital downtime by encouraging staff to go for a walk at lunchtime and take ‘digital breaks’.

Allowing employees to take time off when they’re feeling burnt out — or encouraging them to work from home when appropriate — can make a big difference in the health and satisfaction of your team. For instance, if your PA needs to stay at home during the week to look after a sick child, allowing her the option to answer emails and manage your schedule from home will help to reduce her stress while making her feel valued and appreciated.

5. Recognise and Reward Employee Achievements

Employees appreciate sincere and specific recognition of their contributions and achievements. Effectively recognising your team members will not only increase their sense of belonging in your company, but it will also simultaneously reduce any work-related anxiety while increasing their commitment to their role, resulting in a happier and more productive employee.

However, it’s important that employee rewards are not forced or seem contrived. While there are many ways you could show your appreciation, it’s crucial to ensure that your acknowledgements do not become expectations or entitlements. Each recognition should be tailored to the individual employee and the nature of their contribution.

Implementing an employee recognition programme that effectively rewards the successes of your staff, will not only help you to reduce stress and engage your employees, it will also work to attract the top talent you want in your company.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or email us here.

If you would like to download our latest interview checklist, you can do so here.

Every company wants a team that performs well and critically delivers the results the organisation needs. Identifying, hiring, engaging and developing these individuals isn’t as easy as it looks.

Working with different personalities, agendas, and abilities to develop into a single unit devoted towards a specific goal is a task that requires exceptional focus.

So, when you want to build the most productive team for your commercial business, here’s where to start.

1. Decide On The ‘Ingredients’ You Need

In some circles, people call this finding the fit in other words matching roles to requirements. If your department has lots of team members, they will all have specific tasks that they are responsible for. It’s not uncommon that one or two key hires might be missing which leaves a gap in your teams’ capability.

This might seem logical and yet it’s not uncommon for some firms to limp along wondering why everything seems a struggle. When it might be that they need a customer service advisor, or a project manager to ensure everything is working like clockwork.

This needs to be your first start to ensure you have all the right ‘cogs’ in place to enable the engine to work effectively’. Depending on your growth plans you might be able to develop someone from another part of the business or more likely recruit someone into a specific role you create. This is where a recruiter versed in your sector can help.

2. Shared Goals

The goals your team have as an objective need to be clear. If your team doesn’t have a joint mission, then they’re just people working together.

Focused goals connect people as a unit, through passion and understanding. If you have multiple results in mind, then link them to objectives and priorities so that all the members of your team can begin to map their way towards success.

3. Set Clear Expectations

Research suggests that only about half of most teams at work understand clearly what is expected of them. If you want to develop a high-performing team in your organisation, then make your expectations clear from the beginning.

Whether you’re onboarding new hires or bringing internal employees together to work on a specific project, make sure that you highlight clear requirements during your first conversation with each person.

4. Be a Leader and Lead

You’ve heard the term “practice what you preach”, and that phrase fits perfectly into the professional world of business growth. Beyond any high-performing employee, is a confident leader. Think about how you can support your staff and guide them on your joint success journey.

A highly-engaged leader can increase engagement by 39% according to this CIPD report.

Considering this it’s then necessary too:

• Focus on building commitment and trust
• Be solution rather than problem orientated
• Provide opportunities for all team members to achieve
• Be accountable

No matter how skilled and adept your team members might be, there’s always a risk that they’ll run into a challenge or two on the road to success. The difference between most staff and high-performing groups is that the latter know which strategies to use, and which techniques to access to overcome these hurdles.

To reduce your risk of having to deal with constant problems or issues with productivity, set up a few established guidelines for what your people must do if they face a challenge with their work.

5. Provide Coaching and Feedback

The only way for a team member to know whether they’re performing well in their role is to receive consistent coaching and feedback from you, their leader.

Communicating with your employees can help them to understand what they need to do to improve their performance.

If a team is underperforming, it generally boils down to a few key things. It might be the wrong person in the wrong role or more likely an employee that needs coaching guidance and support.

People want to be successful they don’t want to fail. All they need is feedback and guidance. Deploy this strategy, and you will be amazed how quickly your results start to change.

6. Actively Appreciate Your Team

Finally, as human beings, we are happiest when we feel appreciated and recognised at work. The research department at Warwick University conducted a study to validate that happy employees are more productive. No surprises that the answer came out that the two are closely linked.

That being the case how can you appreciate your team? As I write this post, we are gripped by snow across the country. Maybe it’s hot chocolate all round or finishing an hour early.

Alternatively, how about a good old fashioned; ‘thank you, Amanda, I appreciate what you have done for the team this week.’

While creating a high performing team might not be a simple process, it is an incredible way to improve the profitability and potential of your company. If you can unite and empower your staff, then you can achieve anything.

About Clayton Recruitment

Clayton Recruitment has been partnering with organisations across the country since 1989 and during that time has built up an enviable reputation for trust and reliability.

With specialist divisions covering Commercial, Financial, Industrial, and Engineering appointments, on both a permanent and temporary basis. If you are building your team or looking for your next career move, we can help. Call us on 01772 259 121 or

If you would like to know even more about building a high performing team this year you can download our latest guide here.

A stable workforce means that things run smoothly and without interruption, so when a staff member leaves it can have a big impact on the rest of the business. Valuable skills and job-specific knowledge that has built up over time disappear with a departing staff member, leaving you in a tricky position to bridge the gap. These practical implications of recruitment can have just as heavy a cost to your company as the financial element.

That’s why we’ve put together this guide to help explain what the true cost of recruiting is to your business. From finances to how attrition rates impact your recruitment, we’ve considered some of the things you may not have thought about when it comes to recruiting.

Recruitment costs: facts and figures

To understand the true cost of recruiting, it’s useful to look at the facts and figures and what costs they refer to. When a staff member leaves, your business could find itself paying for everything from recruitment costs to the wages of temporary staff.

Research carried out by Oxford Economics suggests that it costs more than £30,000 to replace a staff member. Two main reasons for this cost are highlighted in the findings:

• Firstly, the logistics of recruiting a new staff member and the associated costs that go along with that. For example, HR activity and the cost to the business of the interview process.
• Secondly, the reduction in productivity while the new staff member gets up to speed. According to the report, it can take between 20 and 32 weeks for a new starter to reach optimum efficiency, depending on the industry.

The financial figures are striking of course, although it’s important not to overlook the bigger picture. Not only does a departing staff member result in a monetary cost to the business there is a range of knock-on effects:

• HR spends considerable time going through leaving and joining processes, completing all the relevant paperwork as well as sourcing a replacement.
• Management has to spend time arranging for the work to be covered, either by distributing it amongst existing staff or appointing temporary cover. There’s also the time spent away from everyday work conducting interviews to take into account.
• The workload of colleagues increases and there is a general reduction in productivity as staff take time to readjust and the new person to settle in.

Not only is this expensive, it’s time-consuming: resources which could be used to retain staff are instead spent on finding a replacement. There’s the commercial element to consider also, as time and energy are put into recruitment which could be put to more effective use by serving clients, refining work processes, and developing new products and services.

Attrition rates and their impact on recruitment costs

Losing a well-established member of staff is undoubtedly a blow to your business, although it’s equally important to consider how attrition rates play into your overall recruitment costs. If you find that you hire someone only for them to leave after a short while, or if staff aren’t sticking with you for the long term, it can have a huge impact on your overall cost of recruitment. What’s more, if staff churn is causing disruption, then it’s unlikely that your workforce is operating at maximum productivity.

There’s a mixed picture on attrition across the board, with turnover rates varying by profession and industry. Research carried out by XpertHR shows that general management and admin staff has one of the lowest turnover rates at 3.1%. The second and third lowest rates were engineers at 4.9% and technology staff at 6.8%. At the other end of the scale, the highest turnover rates are amongst publishing and events staff at 17.7%.

Each individual industry faces its own specific challenges, however it’s important to remember that each departing staff member impacts on your business. So, while the turnover rate for engineers at 4.9% seems low compared to the 17.7% average staff turnover in publishing and events, it doesn’t necessarily lessen the impact. The need to source candidates with specific skills and qualifications can take a long time, which extends the period that you’re without a valuable individual and means that the optimum productivity of your workforce is reduced for longer.

Each individual industry faces its own specific challenges, however it’s important to remember that each departing staff member impacts on your business. So, while the turnover rate for engineers at 4.9% seems low compared to the 17.7% average staff turnover in publishing and events, it doesn’t necessarily lessen the impact. The need to source candidates with specific skills and qualifications can take a long time, which extends the period that you’re without a valuable individual and means that the optimum productivity of your workforce is reduced for longer.

And while positions such as general admin may have a lower skills threshold than engineering, making them easier to fill, staff churn is disruptive. Having a plan in place to attract and retain the best talent is always a good idea, and if you find that your turnover rates are starting to creep up it’s worth revisiting your employer branding. Perhaps something is missing, or not connecting with staff and candidates and a few small changes could reduce turnover. The important thing is to monitor and refine: stick with what works and change what doesn’t.

Why businesses benefit from using a recruitment agency

Knowing what will attract candidates, what will drive them away and what will help to keep employees is invaluable. And especially when it comes to attracting candidates in a specialist field, having the experience and know-how of a recruitment agency on your side can make a big difference.

Of course, using a recruitment agency rather than recruiting in-house incurs a cost. However, by making use of a partner with specialist skills, your staff are free to do what they do best, meaning that you save time and money in the long term. Placing the right candidate with your firm will also reduce attrition rates, meaning you spend less on recruitment than you otherwise would have done.

A recruitment agency will be able to personalise their service to the needs of your business, so you can choose exactly the level of involvement that suits you. What’s more, an extensive network of candidates will mean that your agent can think outside of the box and help you to consider candidates that you might not otherwise have done, giving you more choice.

If the true cost of recruitment is proving to be an issue for your business, perhaps we can help? Even if staff retention is something that your company has been struggling with why not give us a call on 01772 259 121? We’ve over thirty years’ recruitment experience and would be pleased to help.

You may also find out recent blog ‘Staff retention – worth the effort?’, of interest if you’re looking for some new ideas on how to retain your staff.

And please feel free to register your vacancy online, if you’re looking to recruit at the moment.

Highly skilled employees set your business apart and finding individuals with the right talent takes time and resources. This is why companies need to consider the importance of retention, rather than just focusing on recruitment.

Resignation rates are at 15.5% according to XpertHR. That figure is a five-year high, the need to improve retention is evident. Reducing turnover of staff isn’t just a cost-saving exercise. Staff that stay with you, are highly skilled and happy in their job make for a more profitable business that runs with fewer disruptions.

Cost of recruitment

Recruiting new employees is a cost to your business. According to research published by Glassdoor, the average time it takes to hire a new recruit in the U.K. is 27.5 days. This means one-twelfth of a year is spent on reviewing CVs, carrying out preliminary interviews, secondary interviews, communicating with recruiters and checking references. Factor in multiple hires, and that figure increases significantly.

Considering the amount of resource, time, money and effort hiring takes, it’s evident that concentrating efforts on retention becomes far more beneficial.

It’s never too early to think about retention

Onboarding is the first step towards retaining talent. Yes, of course, it’s more effective to retain existing talent than recruit new talent, but sometimes a new hire is what your business needs. Even before they start, a new employee needs to feel looked after – keeping in touch regularly and sending a welcome pack that explains benefits and expectations makes the perks of working with you clear and maintains their interest levels.

Brexit might be a source of uncertainty for many industries, but it seems to have sharpened the mind on one thing – ensuring your staff feel valued. CIPD found that 26% of organisations ‘report a greater emphasis on developing existing staff’. The report also highlighted that more organisations are involving employees with their business strategies and encouraging them to contribute their own ideas.

Management is your best defence against staff leaving

When staff feel secure and supported at work they are less likely to look elsewhere. Management must demonstrate excellent leadership skills, this isn’t just managing the workload or a team with exacting standards, it means having good soft skills too.

If you want to keep hold of your best employees, then you must also encourage them to manage themselves and be invested in their careers. Maintain regular contact with them through formal appraisals, informal and open discussions and put the ball in their court. If they feel that they have a say in their own work and career they’ll be more engaged and more likely to stick around.

Training and Development

These two words are the most important words in your vocabulary if you’re going to successfully retain staff. If your employees don’t have what they need to do the job then their focus and energy will be put towards finding a new position elsewhere. The Distance Learning College found that 69% of employees are ‘open to better opportunities’ and a huge 40% of staff leave within a year if they have received poor training.

A strong training plan for new starters will equip them with the knowledge they need to feel confident on the job. Encourage staff to think about their own development, support their plans and listen to them. Investing in your people shows that you’re dedicated to them and will increase their commitment to you.

Recruitment costs vs. benefits

Recruitment takes time, effort and resources. There’s no denying that the right hire at the right time can make a huge difference to the business, yet a revolving door of talent increases the cost of recruitment exponentially. Retention starts to look a lot more appealing if you weigh the cost of recruitment against the benefits of retaining staff. Time spent training and looking after your best talent will pay you back dividends, with happier staff, you’ll have happier clients, and your business will be all the more competitive.

If you enjoyed reading this blog you might like our other post: Talent drought: How to attract the best against the odds.

And if you’re recruiting now, you can talk to one of the team on 01772 259 121, or you can register your vacancy online.