Common Staffing Issues and How to Solve Them

All companies encounter high-pressure staffing complications at one moment or another—especially now as markets continue to evolve and grow in competition.

Ultimately, team loyalty is difficult to earn but is the answer to every successful business. The problem is, the rapid rise of remote work and new opportunities now allows employees to prove their skills and find the best fit possible, unlike ever before. To retain staff, enterprises require flexibility, and managers should staff strategically. After all, outdated hiring practices affect business operations and employees’ success, resulting in a high turnover rate.

So what do you do when there simply isn’t enough time to revise regularly changing hiring practices, screen candidates, submit an offer and train staff? Remember, all companies pay money to attract the right people. What most companies neglect is to invest in employee retention strategies. Precisely why we’ve put together this list of prevalent staffing issues and easy yet effective suggestions for solving them.

Staffing Challenges in Today’s Environment

Here's an eye-opening statistic! The average employee exit costs 33% of their annual salary. With a thriving market and a shortage of skilled workers, hiring and retaining quality employees can be a constant and expensive challenge. Thankfully, identifying these issues can help you permanently fill revolving positions once and for all.

Filling critical roles

Positions can quickly become vacant, and if it's a critical role in your company, it can take a severe toll on operations. Daily functions may halt and it can inevitably cause a backup in essential operations.

Being understaffed

At times understaffing might seem like an advantage from a managerial point of view, but in reality, it can have harsh side effects for you in the long term. Being understaffed affects numerous aspects of a business. Productivity suffers, stress levels increase, and there is typically a lack of business growth, among other spiraling effects.

Screening candidates

Screening candidates often includes reviewing their background, social media accounts, and potentially contacting previous employers. The issue is in-house recruiters often don't possess enough time or resources to properly screen candidates. As a result, companies hire poor employees, further adding to the turnover rate.

High turnover rates

Employees can leave without notice, causing your team to struggle to meet its objectives. Plus, pre-screening candidates and testing their skills to ensure your new hires are right for vacant roles takes significant time.

Workers who cash with the company culture

New hires must complement the company culture and integrate themselves seamlessly into your workspace. This consideration is often overlooked and a clash of cultures easily affects the employee's performance, causes tension with coworkers, and disrupts productivity.

Balancing the ebbs and flows of your business

Managers lacking the appropriate skills make employees 4x more likely to quit! TINYpulse research also states that employees who notice low levels of respect between colleagues are 26% more likely to quit. Plus, most industries have busy seasons and slow periods, making it difficult to reach optimal staffing levels.

Talent shortages

The 2020 Global Recruitment Insights and Data (GRID) site by Bullhorn states the top challenge cited by recruiters is talent shortages. 73% of recruiters say it's an issue. LinkedIn reports 87% of employees are open to new job opportunities. With a lot of top talent already employed, recruiters must search past candidates who are actively seeking new jobs and use cold outreach to find talented candidates who are already working.

Simple Staffing Solutions

Develop a long-term recruiting strategy

According to a recent study, 87% of human resources leaders state that employee retention is the number one priority for the next few years. However, filling a vacant position requires more than merely going through the motions and wishing for the best. It requires a long-term recruiting strategy.

Focus on institutions or organizations where you know attracts hard working employees, including schools or trade associations. Involve yourself with these communities by building relationships and attending functions.

Determine your needs

It's essential to determine your immediate needs before posting an open position. When you have a clear understanding of the position’s duties and requisite skills and experience, you can better identify prospects. Plus, it goes a long way for establishing the groundwork for your new hire’s success.

Offer incentives to employees

Employee referrals encompass approximately 25% of new hires. Consider incentive programs or rewarding your employees for providing a referral for an open position. Offering incentives beyond employees' base pay is an excellent way to create a fun and competitive environment to energize your employees (and improve retention rates).

Think through your interview process

When you interview potential hires, think through your process from beginning to end. Ensure you’ve addressed who should host the interview, what types of questions to ask, and whether multiple people be involved. Please keep in mind that you should seek the perspectives of peers to identify quality candidates.

Offer a competitive compensation package

Tax professionals can help you determine the industry norm for salaries and benefits and develop incentives to entice quality workers. What’s more? Tax experts can also verify your compliance with labor and employment laws (federal and state) and help you claim any available tax credits.

Make expectations crystal clear

TINYpulse data states that employees are 23% more likely to stay if managers clearly explain their roles and responsibilities. Make sure job listings clearly state the jobs expectations and reiterate these requirements during the interview process. Remember, disorganization from the start can only negatively impact employee morale, work ethic and job satisfaction.

Empower employees

Making employees feel valued is essential from their first day. Make the hiring process a successful one by introducing employees to the company’s culture and establishing a welcoming environment. Reward achievements or address things that aren’t working. Moreover, if your managers are turning staff more quickly than the industry standard, consider providing them with training.

Spotlight growth opportunities

No one wants to see their key employees leave. LinkedIn’s 2018 Workforce Learning Report exposed that 93% of employees would work at a company longer if it invested in their careers. Meanwhile, 70% of US employees say that they would leave their current position and opt for another opportunity at a company that invests in their professional development.

Create a healthy work-life balance

Employees who feel they have a decent work-life balance are 10% more likely to stay at their company. A study in the Employee Engagement Series conducted by Kronos found 95% of HR leaders admit employee burnout is sabotaging workforce retention. Remote operations and healthy work hours are factors employees require when deciding whether to stay at a company.

Ensure workplace diversity

67% of job seekers seriously consider inclusion and diversity when choosing their next workplace. Plus, with 3 in 5 workers experiencing workplace discrimination, it’s no wonder people prefer a work environment where diversity is supported.

You must offer the same opportunities to all of your employees — from equal pay to have a say in the decision-making process. Remember, inclusion starts with the hiring process. Ensure you remove any bias during recruitment to build a diverse team where everyone will feel like their voice is heard and respected.

Offer anonymous employee surveys

When employees believe their leadership can’t or won’t do anything to improve a problem, they may consider their employers ineffective. Employee surveys examine precisely what your team thinks about manager effectiveness. Keeping surveys anonymous guarantees honest answers you can improve around.

Expand your horizons

Organizations that support remote work have 25% lower employee turnover than companies that don't. Remote work is now a new normal, and according to recent studies, many would still like to keep working remotely in the future. That same study found that it takes 33% less time for distributed companies to hire a new employee.

Utilize temporary staff

Hiring temporary workers helps ensure you always have the right amount of employees, even during your busy seasons. Hiring temporary employees helps when employees are on vacation, new projects crop up, or the busy season hits. Working with part or full-time temporary staff can help prevent understaffing.

Employ a staffing agency

Staffing is a 174 billion dollar industry and one of B2B services' fastest-growing sectors. Staffing agencies verify references, screen resumes, shortlist candidates, schedule interviews, and place candidates who work on-site on the employer’s behalf. The best part? Applicants can work as employees of the staffing agency under the employer. This way, any risks of poor matches are on them. But before you begin exploring the best possible staffing agency sites, it’s essential to know the different services they provide.

Most companies focus on acquiring new recruits instead of nurturing current employees. However, continually locating and hiring new applicants is a tedious, complicated, and expensive process—especially now as businesses transition to remote strategies. Precisely why we suggest employing staffing agencies to coordinate you with a global pool of potential candidates. By utilizing a staffing firm and a hiring manager, you streamline operations and increase your connections outside your direct scope.

Ultimately, every industry is different. What are your biggest hiring pain points? Do you believe staffing agencies are worth the hype?