Principled Positions: What Start-Ups Reveal About Values-Based Jobs

There was a time when you could offer promising job candidates high salaries, corner offices and other materialistic perks and be guaranteed that they’d join your company. These days, many young professionals look for a corporate culture that rewards personal and workplace values over monetary gains.

Millennials generally want to make positive contributions to society and feel like their work is important to the world, not just to a corporation’s bottom line. Moreover, many yearn to be creative, avoiding rigid hierarchies in favor of environments where everyone can offer ideas.

The Influence of Start-Ups

Start-up companies frequently embrace such beliefs. It’s little wonder, then, that so many recent graduates flock to these establishments. Start-ups commonly give new employees major responsibilities and the authority to control funds.

Many of these businesses are starting to offer incentives that will attract talent in their job descriptions. For example, employers will offer paid time off for their employees to volunteer for their favorite charity. Or employers will give an in-kind contribution when employees donate to a cause.

The Strength of WBEs

Every day, women launch more than 1,000 businesses in the United States. Between 1997 and 2015, the total number of such companies went up 74 percent. As a result, about 46 percent of private American companies are now either half, mostly or completely owned by women.

What accounts for the staggering success of women’s business enterprises (WBEs)? Female executives tend to be excellent managers: confident, savvy and extremely knowledgeable about their industries. At the same time, they frequently assist one another, and sometimes they even help out their competitors.

In addition, women are often supremely efficient, knowing just how much time to give to various tasks. Perhaps they possess a special intuition because they’re used to juggling a great many responsibilities in their professional and personal lives.

Since many female business owners pursue bold goals while maintaining their integrity, they especially appeal to millennials.

Values in Your Office

No matter what business you’re in, your company can attract those who crave workplace values. Consider your job opening advertisements: In those ads, stress your overall mission and the specific ways your firm improves people’s lives.

To the greatest extent possible, give your employees decision-making power. Also, encourage staff members of all ages and experience levels to collaborate with one another, and always be transparent in terms of the corporate strategies you pursue. By making these moves, you might do more than entice millennials. You might find yourself falling in love with your work all over again.

Contact Madison Approach Staffing today for help with attracting talent and making your next great hire!

Madison Approach’s 80/20 Rule for Smarter Hiring Decisions

As the job market continues to tighten up, finding qualified and flexible new hires is more important than ever. Making hiring decisions can be stressful, especially as you try to weigh a candidate’s interpersonal qualities alongside his or her experience. Madison Approach encourages following the 80/20 rule when evaluating potential employees. Instead of looking for the perfect candidate who fulfills one hundred percent of your expectations, consider past experience and future potential. With the right management, a candidate who fulfills 80% of your most valued skills can be trained on-site to succeed in the field.

How to Write a Killer Job Posting to Reel In the Right Candidate

The Internet makes it easy to put a job posting in front of hundreds of thousands of jobs seekers, so it’s important that you take the time to craft yours so it stands out to the top talent. Don’t forget that your job posting is an advertisement for you, your company, and your open position!

Take Time with the Title

This is the first impression – don’t be afraid get creative. If you want a candidate to click on your posting, make it worth their while! Whether you are a fun start-up with room for growth, or a serious company looking for years of experience with an emphasis on professionalism, you need to get them to click! Your posting title doesn’t have to match the position title, so make it click-worthy. It is also important that the title is search friendly, so micro-target your future employees.

Be Specific, for Your Sake and Theirs

If you are vague about the duties entailed, you will be bombarded with resumes of candidates that are clearly unqualified.  By taking the time before posting the job to sit down and map out the responsibilities of your hire, you will be able to keep the excess resumes out of your inbox. This small step will give you more time to focus on finding the perfect hire.

Cut the Jargon, for Clarity’s Sake

It’s easy to forget that the terms and lingo used by your company are not a universal language. Have someone who does not work at your company read over your job posting to make sure it is clear. While you may think you are removing unqualified candidates, you may just be alienating those who have the skills with a language barrier.

Draw the Skills & Experience Line

By stating your required qualifications for the position, you will also weed out undesirable candidates. Your position may have space for training, but there are always points you won’t compromise on not matter his or her experience. Be clear and stand firm.

Make the Candidate Show & Tell

No matter the skill or experience level of a position, you can always find ways to challenge the applicants. Creative positions can ask for ad copy for a certain situation, sales reps can be asked how they deal with a difficult client, and social media marketers can be challenged to present their ideas for an imaginary campaign.

A well-written job posting can practically eliminate the need for a first round of interviews. This all hinges on you knowing exactly what you are looking for, being clear about your ideal candidate, and asking the right questions. While it may be easy for you to write a three-page job description, remember to take the time to cut it down to a readable length. The aim is to entice, not intimidate.

Madison Approach is Giving Back: How Will You Help?

Madison Approach Staffing Inc. is pleased to announce our upcoming philanthropic outreach program. We will be working with Westhab, a local community outreach organization that works to create affordable housing in Westchester County. Madison Approach is committed to contributing to the people and programs that help our community grow and thrive, and we are excited to be involved with Westhab’s Employment Training Center.

Westhab Employment Services

Westhab has been offering employment and training programs in Westchester County for nearly 20 years. These services are designed to help place individuals with limited academic skills and work experience in jobs that they enjoy and make them proud. With a client-centered approach, Westhab focuses not just on finding jobs for those in their shelters and transitional units, but also on employment readiness training and job retention counseling. Since 1996, Westhab Employment Services has placed over 2,000 clients into full-time jobs in the New York metro area.

Encouragement and Training

Hearing success stories like the one below from a Westhab client who was successfully placed in a job, inspires us to continue our support of such an important initiative.

“I was attending Job Readiness classes and meeting with [my counselor] often so I could better my job search efforts and obtain job leads. Without giving up, I continued to seek assistance from the Employment Counselor and I filled out many applications throughout the area including jobs that I had never considered before. I was attending counseling sessions with my Employment Counselor so I could try to get some insight on what steps to do next. I finally had an interview for AVIS Rental Car for a driver’s position. Soon after I was called to do a drug test and then followed a background check. I happily began work the following [week]. I am currently working full time and I truly enjoy my job.

My sincere thanks goes out to the Employment Office for all of their efforts and for encouraging me and believing in my abilities. It is very much appreciated.”

Successful Placement

A company that has successfully hired Westhab trained employees raved, “many applicants lack basic life skills, enthusiasm and customer service skills. As an agency, we are pleased with Westhab, Inc. candidates; their dependability, motivation and great patient care attributes.”

Madison Approach Staffing’s Commitment

We will be donating 10¢ per hour, per employee for every new job order placed in September, October and November to Westhab’s employment training center.

How You Can Help

Call our office today at (914) 428-4800 for a consultation about your specific staffing needs for the months of September, October or November. All new jobs during these three months will count for a 10¢ donation to Westhab for every hour the employee works.

Go Above and Beyond

When placing your order for new temporary staff you will have the option to double the donation by matching our 10¢.

We look forward to doing our part to help provide a brighter future for those in need in our Westchester community.

 

Call Madison Approach today to speak with one of our Staffing Coordinators, (914) 428-4800 or go to www.MadisonApproach.com to learn more.