Some of the questions I’m asked most often by my clients are “What are top candidates looking for these days?” and “How can we stay competitive in attracting great people in today’s job market? “ The truth is that wine industry candidates are looking for so much more than compensation and benefits when considering a career change.
The wine industry continues to grow, and the competition is heating up on hiring top talent. Many employers are forced to ‘up the ante’ when it comes to providing a full range of options to prospective employees. At Recruiting Associates Network we have found that candidates within the wine industry are looking for these top 5 criteria when pursuing new opportunities:
- Balance/Quality of Life: Do you offer telecommuting or work from home options? Is your vacation or PTO policy generous?
- Challenge and Growth/Career Path: Will there be an opportunity to grow within the company? Does the company promote from within?
- Superior Management Team: Are there leaders on board who can motivate and encourage the team? What is the tenure of the management team in place?
- Convenient Location/Travel: How much time will be spent on commuting? If travel is involved, what percentage of the time will I be away from home?
- Training and Development: Does the company pay for educational classes or degrees as they relate to job? Will there be opportunities for training on the product/service by the company?
Providing a holistic package for your employees not only helps you attract a higher caliber candidate, but also improves retention. It sends a message to the market place that this is the place to work, and in turn helps with future recruitments as your current employees will be more apt to refer other great people to your organization.
Furthermore, it can be the difference that makes that amazing candidate accept your offer when he/she compares it to others offers they are considering. It’s worth noting that it is not always the best paying employers who have the best retention rates, but rather the employers who realize that keeping their employees happy involves offering various benefits and perks that directly affects the quality of their employees work life.
The key is finding out what specific criteria is important to the individual and using this information to negotiate a well rounded package that meets the needs of both the employer and the candidate. If you’re working with a recruiting company, ask them for current industry data and trends that are affecting the job market as it relates to staying competitive and hiring top quality individuals. The ever-changing recruitment landscape requires a creative approach to maximizing your hiring potential.
A thorough evaluation and matching process covering a complete range of objective and subjective matching criteria increases the likelihood of the candidate accepting your offer. Our process at the Recruiting Associates Network has increased our clients’ acceptance rate to 90% from the 60% industry norm.
Remember, a great salary and benefits package will certainly pique a candidate’s interest. However, you must not forget the 5 points mentioned above. For more information about attracting top tier talent and industry norms, please contact Recruiting Associates Network.
by Margaret Baez, Recruiting Associates Network
Recruiting Associates Network is a key resource in local and national wine industry recruitment and a one stop recruitment solution for a wide variety of organizations. Our efforts are driven by the satisfaction of our candidates and clients alike and we believe the simple key to our success is delivering top notch talent to our customers and providing outstanding opportunities to our candidates.www.recruitingassociatesnetwork.com