Late last month I had the opportunity to attend the International Economic Development Council (IEDC) Leadership Summit. It was wonderful to be in a room with my counterparts from around our state, but also across the globe. Frankly, it was wonderful just to be in a room with people! I learned a lot at the conference and look forward to sharing those insights in future CEO Messages, but I wanted to focus on one element that everyone is talking about, the labor force.
The good news? Well, the good news is that we are not alone in our need for more workers. Everyone is feeling the pinch and as a result there are many creative solutions being implemented, many of which we can learn from. The bad news? We are not alone in our need for more workers. This is a labor supply issue and there isn’t enough talent to go around. The “fix” is at least 18 years out as birth rate trends in the U.S. are indicating that we will be short workers for many years. It can be expected that employers will turn to automation more and future workers in everything from fast food restaurants to advanced manufacturing will be servicing and working with automated solutions born out of this labor demand.
Greater Grays Harbor, Inc. (GGHI), like many other employers is feeling the stress of the talent shortage and is happy to report we are filling our positions bit by bit. We approached our talent hunt differently than in previous cycles and there may be something other employers can learn from us.
- “Kids Today”
- A key strategy in creating a future workforce is investing in local youth by providing them an opportunity to work next to you. The ideal outcome is that they not only learn essential employability skills, but they also develop an affection and understanding for your community and the impact of your business. It’s hard for employers to take a chance on an employee that is a minor and there are some costs associated with it. In the case of GGHI we had to obtain a Minor Work Permit for about $45. Low cost and a relatively easy barrier to overcome. The result? We have local Hoquiam High School, senior Ellie Winkelman working in our office three days a week. Ellie is learning the software system that manages our membership database and is helping members access their benefits more easily. The great thing about Ellie’s generation is that she and her peers teach themselves nearly everything. I trust that with a little training from us Ellie can work independently and trouble-shoot many of the obstacles she might come across as she works with our software. You can learn more about Ellie in this month’s Harbor Insider (sign up here if you’re not already on the mailing list!).
- “Slow and Steady Wins the Race”
- When you are short workers there is the instinct to fill a position quickly. This approach will ideally minimize your immediate pain and return you to full operational capacity. However, the lack of workforce supply to meet the workforce demand makes moving quickly in hiring very challenging. An alternative path is to cultivate professional relationships with the talent you respect and have transparent conversations about what you both want and need in the employee/employer relationship. You might just get to an agreement about partnering together to achieve those goals. GGHI is happy to announce that we used this method to build a relationship with Stephanie Conway to fulfill our Director of Member Services position. Stephanie has deep roots in Grays Harbor County and has made a career in customer service and investor relations. She is a great fit for our organization, and we can’t wait to see what she’ll do for the businesses of Grays Harbor County. Next month’s Harbor Insider will feature a bit more about Stephanie and her role with the organization.