When we asked what tech is doing to sustain recruitment and retention into the future the response was substantial. Here’s two views from the same company to illustrate the extent of on-going ideas and initiative.
Tom Nadeau – CTO and VP, Spirent Communications
Companies looking to retain talent must look beyond the obvious financial motivators but also cannot ignore the reality of the current economy.
Things are more expensive and employees are demanding corresponding adjustments, so making some reasonable accommodations can result in not just happier staff, but staff that want to remain with a company.
Despite some recent high-profile tech workforce reductions, the tech marketplace remains fairly robust for employees with in-demand skills.
What is perhaps different right now is that employers can afford to be more selective, but within reason. The temptation to overlook a talented ‘someone’ in search of the ‘perfect’ match can become the proverbial hunt for a needle in a haystack – as happened to me recently when overwhelmed with applicants.
Talented individuals are still in demand, so as an employer you must set deadlines and go with the best that you have because waiting might result in that talented someone taking another job offer.
Of course, retaining talent once they are in the door means ensuring you keep things interesting and challenging, especially in engineering-type roles.
In my experience, the challenge for engineers is to be challenged to build things that address challenges.
In fact, some of the most interesting work has come from lulls in the product development lifecycle that afforded engineers the space and time to think up new solutions.
For example, this was a significant motivator in the invention of network communication Tag Switching. When the original product the engineering team had been working on was discontinued, they switched focus and Tag Switching was born.
Creating a satisfying and rewarding work environment is critical. In today’s hybrid work environment, people are often located at different places geographically, as well as time zone-wise.
The challenge is creating a cohesive and productive team environment, while remaining flexible to the needs of the team members.
Employers that are curious as to how best to setup environments for teams to operate are the ones that have and will continue to win.
Those that are rigid and inflexible will simply see an exodus of talent.
Chrissie Hillyer – Academia Advisor and Global STEM Coordinator, Spirent Communications
Recruiting and retaining employees in the science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) sector is of course, a prominent issue worldwide.
We believe that supporting the next generation of engineers in their academic journeys starts from as young as elementary school, right through to post-PhD.
It’s increasingly important for employers to be able to mobilize a global network of employees prepared to volunteer their time and industry expertise to encourage, motivate and support students in STEM subjects throughout their educational pathway.
Early support in our STEM program, for example, covers a range of different activities, from career talks and guidance, to mentoring on a varied collection of extracurricular projects.
Once students graduate from college, our Academia program kicks in to support them through their journey at university. With an array of different opportunities, our academic partnerships with universities around the world are supported by our engineering industrial supervisors.
“This is because recruiting and retaining employees within the STEM industries does not just rely on enticing career work packages and incentives. It starts with supporting their educational needs even before they have started their career journeys.
“Our STEM and Academia programs are designed to create an easily accessible pathway into the telecommunications industry and ultimately to a company that’s prepared to invest in their future by providing the right support from the get-go to help them get to where they want to be.”
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