Investing in your workforce isn’t a luxury anymore. It is now a necessity. With the 21st Century being so focused on work perks, unlimited vacations, and other unique benefits, it is necessary to compete in order to keep workforce turnaround low. A prime example of choosing to invest in your workforce was Howard Schultz’s choice with Starbucks. Early on in the company, he noticed that turnaround was at an all-time high. He recognized quickly that 2/3 of his workforce were part-time with no insurance. As a result, he quickly came up with the strategy to offer insurance to part-time workers, and although he saw profits drop in the short-term, they bounced back. Thus, his employee turnaround became less and less. This is a great example of how investing in your workforce in a substantial way can pay off in a substantial way. Check out 3 more ways to invest below!
1. Development planning is something you can do to invest in your workforce in a simple and easy way. Setting aside time to evaluate where your workers are in their careers, evaluating where they could be, and then taking the steps to help get them there is important. People desire to be noticed, move up in life and do what they enjoy. If you are consistently evaluating where you have people in your company and making sure people fit well, it will allow your workforce to excel. People often do best when they love what they are doing or are good at it, so put people in their lanes and invest in them by pointing them in the right direction.
2. Building rapport is a great and easy way to build into your team. If everyone sits at his or her desk or is out at the job site for 8+ hours out of every work day and nothing changes for months, there will be some who become frustrated by the lack of comradery. Change things up and build rapport through office outings, free lunches, always providing snacks and more. Go above and beyond in building up your workplace culture. Though this investment is financial in nature, you will certainly see the benefits over time. Plus, it will help keep your employees satisfied in their jobs.
3. Providing workload expectations is another way you can work to invest in your workforce. Though this is rarely a financial investment, it will be one that carries a fair amount of weight with your staff. By planning out your workload, managing it well, and knowing as much as possible ahead of time, you allow your workers to plan better in their lives and this leads to a better job experience overall. So the next project that comes up, be sure to be planning ahead and working to avoid workload frustrations. Your workforce will thank you for this easy and helpful investment.
Are you ready to invest in your workforce? Great! We think you’ll see big dividends in the long run!