It’s time to reevaluate how your company attracts top talent. The hiring landscape has changed significantly since the Great Recession, and enticing qualified and motivated employees is no longer as simple as it once was. While there is still plenty of competition among job candidates for the most desirable positions, the real battle has shifted to the employers themselves. HR divisions across the country are looking for ways to differentiate themselves from the competition. What may surprise you is that the “carrot on the stick” many top companies are using to attract employees isn’t necessarily higher salaries. Here are some things to consider if you want to lead the pack and attract top talent.

Flexibility

This is a big one. If you feel married to the traditional on-location 40-hour workweek, it’s time for a divorce. Today’s top talent expects more flexibility in their career. That means it’s time to implement adjustable schedules, telecommuting and the option to work from home. According to a recent survey, as many as 45% of working adults are willing to take a pay cut in exchange for a more flexible position in their careers. People’s priorities are changing, and the work-life balance is more important than ever before.

Professional Growth

Let’s get this out of the way: your company is most likely just a stepping-stone in your employees’ careers. Don’t take it personally — the same can be said about every one of your competitors. The days of staying at a company for a lifetime are over, and most employees expect to be somewhere completely new in five years or less.

As a company executive or hiring manager, this fact might seem terrifying, but it doesn’t have to. Understanding the fluid marketplace of workers can give your company an edge. You can incorporate more transparent onboarding processes with new hires, discussing how they will grow over the next few years and listening to their goals and expectations. This will increase the likelihood of employee retention, and improve the company’s reputation among future hires.

The Death of Micro Management

Think of all the ways a company may imply that it doesn’t have faith in its employees. None of these factors are immediately obvious, but if you look closely at the traditional work model, it’s apparent that there is some level of distrust between management and everyone else. Feverishly tracking work hours, limiting small talk and instilling fear through sink-or-swim tactics may keep your current employees in line, but it won’t impress potential hires.

The top talent will get the job done in the exact amount of time it takes to complete. In other words, does it really matter if the clock reads 3pm rather than 5pm when daily tasks are finished? It shouldn’t. While you could always find more busywork to fill in the gaps of a workday, you are more likely to build goodwill and a solid reputation with your employees if you treat them as skilled adults who understand their craft. Until your employees prove your wrong, they deserve the benefit of the doubt, without micromanagement.

Getting Started

A business is the sum of its parts, and it will only succeed and grow with capable and motivated employees. In the business world, human resources are changing quickly and it’s up to business owners to keep up. Companies that are stuck in their ways will struggle to grow as quickly as they’d like, and those that reinvent themselves will thrive.

Once you’ve attracted the more employees who are the right fit, effective training is crucial. Check out our blog post “Why Effective Training in Workplaces Matters” to see how you can bring your onboarding to the next level and improve engagement for your employees.