How remote working can help attract and retain the best employees
It’s fair to say that the HR landscape has radically changed since the COVID-19 outbreak. One of the biggest shifts has been the transition of millions of Australian workers to remote working.
There’s much debate over whether remote working is a positive shift that should be continued after lockdown orders are lifted, and many questions have been raised.
What might be lost or gained by taking people out of the office permanently? Should business go back to how it operated before the pandemic? Or should home working en masse continue? Is there a workable hybrid solution or is this an impossible dream?
There’s a lot to consider, but one thing is for certain. Many employees who’ve had a taste of remote working will want it to continue, and this must be taken into account for your recruitment and retention strategies.
Turbo-charge your recruitment strategy
Every business must now decide on its long-term policy regarding remote working. That will mean deciding which specific roles could operate this way going forward.
HR must ensure that in the first instance, decisions are made on a role basis. After that, personal preference can be taken into account. This is important from a recruitment perspective, as you can then advertise a role that offers remote working.
Bear in mind that this can be an attractive consideration for potential applicants. It’s therefore a good idea to specifically advertise remote working when you describe the role. It could be the biggest reason why a talented individual applies in the first place.
And don’t forget, if you have roles that could feasibly be done remotely 100% of the time, this removes any geographical barriers that might otherwise have limited your recruitment pool. Your ideal candidate could be located hundreds of kilometres away from your office, but with remote working, distance is no obstacle.
If you’ve ever struggled to fill a role in the past, consider for a moment that access to unlimited potential candidates could really turbo-charge your recruitment strategy.
Keep employees happy (and show you’ve listened)
Don’t forget to review your long-term policy for remote working for your existing workforce too. For those that have been remote working successfully and wish to continue, this could be perceived as a significant benefit (and therefore a reason to stay loyal to your business).
It’s a great opportunity for the business leadership team to demonstrate that they’ve listened to the needs and wants of individuals, and that their thoughts are valued and responded to.
If you’re making flexible working, hybrid working or remote working a permanent option for your workforce, don’t forget to also consider those who do want to come back to the office. If the option of remote working isn’t perceived as a benefit by some, how will the company seek to provide an alternative benefit to them?
You might need to look at your overall benefits package too. Perks such as reduced cost of travel or subsidised local services such as gyms or coffee bars won’t be appropriate for everyone anymore. But the remote workers also won’t want to feel like they’re losing out either.
Contracted hours are another consideration. Remote workers can often take advantage of more flexible hours as long as they get their work done – so could a flexi-time option also be introduced for those who are on-site?
Ultimately, it’s all about fairness. So make sure you maximise opportunities for all. An employer that’s perceived as fair and equitable can only benefit when it comes to recruitment and retention.
How the right HR software can help
When creating a new recruitment and retention strategy, it’s important to include relevant data to support your decisions and recommendations. This is one of the many benefits of using HR software, as it allows you to extract data and workforce metrics at the click of a mouse. They can also help you conduct quick staff surveys, which is a particularly useful tool when you need to read the mood quickly.
For an informal conversation about whether cloud-based HR software is right for your business, talk to an Access HR software specialist today.
