When you’re working hard to attract top talent to your company, it’s important to understand the various career and employment attributes that motivate these individuals to make a move.
In general, these talented professionals are exploring job changes to improve their lives. That improvement could concern their careers or their personal lives. Typically, it’s a combination of both.
No one likes to lose perks
One thing that is generally true across-the-board is that professionals do not want to go backward in vacation time. The company policy is irrelevant to them. They know the dues they have paid throughout their careers and feel they have earned a certain amount of flexibility with regards to being away from the office.
If they have earned three or four weeks (or more) of vacation time, it has become part of the lifestyle that they – and their families – have come to enjoy. They may have regular getaways at certain times of the year, trips to visit family and other important events that pull them away from work.
Many professionals will leave a job that doesn’t have flexibility for a position that gives them greater control over how they schedule their lives. Allowing more freedom and independence shows great respect to the employee, which is a valuable commodity and useful for building loyalty.
Create goodwill
You may find that your talented recruits end up not using all their vacation time. But, they appreciate the ability to take personal days when needed, to get away for doctors’ appointments and healthcare issues, and to stay at home with loved ones.
Do your best to accommodate the needs and desires of these candidates. Here are some ideas:
- Allow additional vacation time on an informal basis,
- Let employees take time off without pay,
- Recognize some vacations are “working” vacations and treat them as such, and
- Give employees comp time for the time they put in on weekends and in the evenings.
Certainly, some candidates can be hired without any special concessions. But, extending trust and flexibility on vacation time and personal days will often help you attract the top talent you need, and make them loyal, hard-working members of your team.