Question: One of the biggest challenges we face as a community bank is recruiting staff. Why is this and how can we affectively address the issue?
Answer: This has been noted as a concern for many banks—not just community banks. It seems the mindset today is not about employees proving themselves to the company but, more about the company proving themselves to the employees. With the perks that are now available such as flexible hours and job rotation, many organizations are finding that people are shopping for employment opportunities that will fit their schedules, not the other way around.
Another key issue is finding qualified individuals. This is particularly true for community banks that are competing, not only against mega banks, but all the other service providers in the area. Highly qualified applicants are receiving employment offers including competitive pay and benefits that community banks simply can’t match.
Here are a few recruiting suggestions to consider in your quest to fill your bank’s open positions:
Highlight your positive work environment. Along with discussing benefits and pay, be sure to mention the perks of working for a smaller, more intimate bank including advancement opportunities and flexibility.
Ensure you have opportunities for both Baby Boomers, who will soon be retiring and Generation X—relative newbie’s to the work force. Many Baby Boomers will still want to work for the socialization and extra income, but not truly need a job—thus will be looking for more part-time and flexible schedules.
Generation X is looking for:
casual, friendly;
functional, efficient;
technologically up-to-date;
neat, clean, orderly;
collegial;
a place to learn; and
high level of freedom.
Consider your current employees for open positions. Many times it is more cost effective to train your current employees for advancement than to bring someone in from the outside. By keeping your current employees motivated you also lower the risk of losing them to greener pastures—leaving you with yet another open position to fill.
Perform a process improvement analysis of your organization to look for ways to improve workflow and uncover areas of efficiency you didn’t know were there. Perhaps you will find ways to reallocate your current resources and find that you don’t need to hire additional employees or fill your current vacancies.
Engage a third-party consultant when you need to hire senior level executives. A search firm will save you valuable time and money by helping you: formulate a targeted position description; locate exceptional talent; and provide you with a pre-screened line-up of qualified executive candidates.
Bottom Line: The war for talent is only going to get worse and make it difficult for many smaller organizations to compete with the going salary rates larger financial institutions are offering.
JMF Boilerplate
John M. Floyd & Associates (JMFA) is a leading vendor of overdraft privilege programs serving more than 2,000 financial institutions in 49 states and Central America. JMFA is also nationally recognized for training, account acquisition and earnings enhancement programs, as well as product, service, pricing and technology improvement consulting. To learn more about John M. Floyd and Associates and to receive a FREE Overdraft Privilege Analysis, please visit www.JMFA.com or call 800-809-2307.
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