SMEs should not blame talent for not opting to work for them, if they are not doing the right things to attract the type of employees they want, says B2B brand specialist StrategiCom.
This is because some of the 'right things' that are being done by bigger companies can be done by SMEs too and perhaps even in a better way.
'In a larger organisation, there may be policies and guidelines that prevent space and empowerment, and reporting of course,' explained StrategiCom principal consultant and CEO Wilson Chew. 'It's not wrong. It's structural dynamics in organisations. I think in smaller organisations, people are given more space, a lot more decision-making space. In smaller organisations, it is easier for someone who is relatively new to be part of a strategic thinking process.'
And this could work to the benefit of SMEs. According to a recent research by StrategiCom and Singapore National Employers Federation, the most important attribute in a company that people look for when seeking a job is the freedom to work on their own initiative. Forty-three out of 150 respondents, or 29 per cent, picked that as a key factor to consider.
And contrary to common perception, overall compensation and benefits only come in as the fourth most important attribute (35 hits, or 23 per cent) they look for in an employer, after 'recognition and appreciation of employees' work' (42 hits), and 'opportunity for long-term career progression' (39 hits). Compensation and benefits was more important than training and development, which was the fifth most important factor in talent attraction, being ticked by 32 respondents.
Initiated in September, the research aims to help SMEs brand themselves as potential employers of graduates and professionals, as SMEs had consistently cited difficulties in attracting and retaining talent as one of the key challenges in their development.
The study included interviews with 33 SMEs and 150 individuals who are either MBA students, undergraduates in their final year or graduate working professionals. A total of 55 attributes were listed in each of the questions asked.
'The research findings showed that . . . there are some salient things that talent do want to hear about the organisation, whether they are this sort of organisation,' said Mr Chew. 'And what I'm saying is, if you are that sort of SME - which is highly possible because you're smaller, more agile and more flexible - then tell them.'
Unfortunately, many SMEs are not taking a proactive approach in communication or see it as an expensive exercise. But a simple thing as a corporate website presence can be an effective channel to project a company's values, vision and culture.
'I tell you something about talented people when they jobseek - they head straight for your website,' said Mr Chew. 'So one of the most effective ways is to put yourself on the Internet, and have a dotcom suffix, make sure that you are seen on the Internet when someone searches for you. If you are not there, how to know you? So you have to do that. If you don't, then your mindset must change.'
Apart from the Internet, Mr Chew says B2B SMEs may want to streamline their recruitment efforts to be more targeted. Narrower platforms, such as trade shows and industry-specific channels, may be faster and more effective in getting the right people than mass market channels.
But before communication, SMEs also need to take a step back and find out what their unique attributes are, build that differentiator into the corporate brand and align their HR strategy with it.
For instance, an SME in a traditional Chinese medicine business may build its corporate branding around its century-long heritage. The rich heritage could be linked with being masters of the business. Then its HR strategy could be developed in a way that would attract people who want to become masters of TCM, or who are great believers in alternative healing.
Even B2B businesses can apply branding to their HR capabilities. Mr Chew highlighted a commercial vehicle firm, which is known to integrate its general equipment with its commercial vehicle and package it as a purpose-built, industrial vehicle. And in this new category, the company is the market leader, a unique point which then can be used as a brand differentiator.
In turn that brand positioning can be tied to its talent attraction strategy. 'Operationalise it into HR development and say, 'If you have the creativity for equipment integration, we'll give you that space to explore',' said Mr Chew. 'Or, 'We want creative engineers to join us'.'
If the concept still sounds abstract to SMEs, SNEF and StrategiCom are offering an SME Employer Study Briefing on April 15. The two partners will also organise a one-day workshop in May to help SMEs translate some of the findings in their recent survey into practical techniques.
'Doing some things that are D-I-Y (do-it-yourself) is better than doing nothing,' said Mr Chew. 'Some SMEs don't even have a web page.'
Source: http://business.asiaone.com/
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