I recently learned that July, among other things, is National Ice Cream Month in the United States. As it has been unnaturally hot in the Pacific Northwest where I live, ice cream, especially for my children, has been a great treat to help get through the heat wave. Knowing that it was time to create this content, I decided to do a random search for “ice cream” and “hiring.” In doing so, I came across Getting the Best Employees – Hiring Tips for Your Ice Cream Shop. This article is a scoop of great content and tips.
- Be active in the community and taking names and numbers of good people even when you’re not looking for them. When I read this, I don’t only think of local community, but community as it applies to your professional communities. For example, taking names and numbers at a conference or in a training program. Recruiting is an organizational activity that can happen anywhere and anytime. Building relationships can yield unexpected results at unexpected times.
- Have general interview questions at the ready. When people are interested in working for your organization, even if there is not an opening straight away, it is good to learn about them. Asking what they are interested in, their availability, why they want to be part of your organization, allows the development of a pipeline should a position come open and a network to outreach to when hiring or looking for volunteers or donors.
- Create a fun place to work. I look at this as having a positive and inclusive culture. Make your organization a place where people want to be, and a place people talk about positively. In the article, they reference the “fun-loving fishmongers at Seattle’s Pike Place Fish Market.” I have been there and have seen the fish go flying – it is a great, the crowd loves it, everyone is smiling and laughing, and people talk about it (we are talking about it now). That is the goal of any organization – when people are happy and enjoy working at a place, that secret is impossible to keep.
- Training – one of the best things you can do for your team is invest in them. I have spoken of this before, but if you teach team members and cross train them, not only does that help with retention but also builds the workforce to grow the organization.
- Again, invest in team members. To quote the article, “I believe that the employees who are given more responsibility and more hours will be more likely to stay longer.” Team members want stability; they want to know they are valued; they want to know that by working this one job they don’t have to worry about their outside of work needs – paying for housing, food, the life necessities, and maybe a little fun.
- Pay people what they are worth. I took this out of order from the article, but it is critically important. It sounds simple, but far too often this does not happen. The thought is often, “what is the lowest salary I can offer to hire someone?” This mentality is backwards. Hiring is making an investment and the more you invest, the better the potential return. If you have a reputation of taking care of your team members, that is not a secret you can keep. People want to be appreciated, respected and when they are, they return that.
Ultimately, what makes an organization great is its people. That starts with hiring and recruiting. As the article concludes, “The ability to attract and hire top notch employees that have enthusiasm and energy can be a huge advantage over your competition.”
About the Author
Benjamin Freedman is the CEO of Weiser Innovations. Weiser is an innovative talent acquisition firm with deep roots in the nonprofit sector and partners with 501(c) Services to provide talent acquisition assistance to its 3,000 nonprofit clients. Contact us today for talent acquisition assistance.
