Winning the War for Talent
As published in the May/June 2007 Issue of The Boardroom Magazine
There are a number of challenges facing country clubs each year, not the least of which is recruiting permanent and seasonal staff. Attracting and retaining talented employees are critical components of a well-managed country club. Accomplishing this, however, is becoming increasingly difficult.
To ensure an enjoyable guest experience, it takes more than just “warm bodies” to do the job. You need to hire people who are qualified or have the ability and willingness to be trained. With a nationwide shortage of workers, and the knowledge that the workforce in general will shrink at an alarming rate over the next several years, country clubs in particular are looking for ways to face the inevitable “war for talent” that makes hiring qualified workers seem like a nearly impossible task.
According to David Sommers, general manager of Heritage Oaks Golf & Country Club in Sarasota, Florida, “The unemployment rate in this area is less than one percent, which makes hiring an experienced staff more difficult, especially for food and beverage servers. This can be an issue because members expect a certain level of service.”
Less is Not More: Projected job growth far outpaces projected workforce growth – even taking into account foreign workers – and a shortage of talent exists among the workers who are available. Consider these findings from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics:
Workforce Growth
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Projections indicate an estimated shortfall of about 10 million workers by 2010.
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There are 15 percent fewer Generation X-ers (born between 1965 and 1985) than the Baby Boomers they will replace.
Workforce Skills
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Occupations requiring post-secondary training or a college degree will increase to 42 percent by 2010.
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Currently, only 38 percent of the American labor force has a two-year college degree or higher.
CREATIVE RECRUITING SOLUTIONS
High School and College Students: To fill these gaps, some clubs are using high school seniors who are enrolled in work study programs and college students with more flexible schedules. If you can keep these students challenged and motivated enough, they may come back year after year until they graduate.
Offering a retention bonus that’s payable once an employee returns for the next season is also helpful. There’s even more incentive if the amount of the bonus goes up incrementally with each year that they return.
Retirees: They may enjoy the change of pace that a seasonal or part-time position that a country club offers. There are even some who would welcome the opportunity to work full time to get benefits such as health insurance. Clubs that hire retirees usually get dedicated workers with a lifetime of invaluable work experience, no matter what industry they were in before.
Employee Referral Programs: If you’re happy with your current staff, remember that they may have friends or family members who might be great employees as well. A monetary incentive to encourage the referrals sweetens the deal.
Although this may not help you recruit an entire staff, it certainly improves your club’s chances of getting a broader pool of candidates from which to choose.
Partnerships: Clubs that have partnered with comprehensive professional employer organizations (PEOs) can benefit from staffing services their PEO offers. The Country Club at Mirasol in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, partners with Oasis Outsourcing and has found its StaffSourcing division to be a great help in recruiting college students.
“Running ads, posting flyers and contacting colleges to advertise open positions are a time-consuming, recurring task. Oasis has a recruiting contact that helps us place ads in a local paper at a discounted rate, field phone calls, handle confidential position resume receipt and even administer skills testing,” says Susan Hoyt, Director of Human Resources for The Country Club at Mirasol.
Support Through Networking: It’s long been suggested that networking is a great way to make contacts to get jobs, but it can also be used as recruiting tool. Country club management can network with community organizations, churches, city and county programs, chamber groups and more to find job candidates.
Although hiring a permanent and seasonal staff will continue to be challenging for the foreseeable future, you can win the war for talent.
