Want to solve your people problems? Don’t wait for action from the Jobs Summit

The federal government is pinning much hope on its Jobs and Skills Summit to pave the way for addressing employment and productivity challenges being widely felt by business owners.

As SMEs grapple with a worker deficit, managing hybrid teams, and attracting and retaining talent in what has been dubbed the ‘Great Resignation’, the reality is these are complex issues for which the root causes and solutions will take time to untangle.

To optimise productivity and avoid missing opportunities for growth, businesses cannot afford to wait for the jobs summit, the Employment White Paper it will birth, or the inevitable politicking to play out and deliver outcomes. Tangible and practical plans are needed now for businesses to confidently face into the ongoing labour market headwinds.

How to position your business for sustainable productivity and growth

Unless your business model is built on bots, people are likely a critical input to your success. While the Jobs Summit seeks to tackle systemic economic factors impacting the workforce, what individual businesses have in their control is the ability to position themselves as an employer of choice and optimise the value their people bring.

A robust People Strategy sets a business apart from its competitors when it comes to attracting and deploying the best of talent available in what is a job-seeker’s market. It establishes a vision and plan to create an optimal experience for and enable impact by your people and typically comprises three core elements.

A fit for purpose operating model and structure

When developing a strategy to attract, engage, develop, and retain quality people in your business, a fundamental starting point is your business strategy. What is it you deliver (products and/or services), what are your goals, and how do you best organise your people to achieve this?

With knowledge of the market in which the business operates, and the demands and constraints at hand, business owners should critically review the operational and support functions that currently make up the business’ value chain. To what extent is the arrangement of these functions helping or hindering the delivery of products or services?  If the answer is erring on the negative side, it is probably time to review what functions are needed and how they can be organised differently to gain clarity on accountabilities and efficiency in delivering value.

Once you have taken stock of your operating model, a natural next step is to review the roles that exist in your business. It is important to consider what work needs to happen, as well as how roles are designed and how they are organised in teams to best enable your people to collaborate and perform effectively.  

Often business owners discover that redesigning a role or tweaking a team structure opens the door to more engaging and productive ways of getting work done in line with the business strategy.

Identify and address capability gaps

The fast-paced evolution of technology and other shifting forces in the external environment make it vital to consider what capabilities are needed to not only operate but grow and transform your business and retain a competitive advantage.  

What does good look like for the performance of each function and role in your business? What are the unique technical capabilities required of each role? What part does leadership play in bringing out the best in individuals and teams and what capabilities correspond with embedding leadership in the fabric of your business?

By defining and mapping technical and leadership capabilities, you establish a framework that guides the recruitment, selection, development, and performance management of your people. From this you can objectively identify any gaps between the capabilities needed and those possessed by your existing team members and target training and development to close these gaps.  

Enhanced capability will translate not only into optimal performance, but improved engagement of your people who will recognise the investment you are making in their growth.

Shape a culture to stand out from the crowd

The third and arguably most spoken about element of People Strategy is culture. When we talk about culture, we are referring to the environmental conditions that shape the way people experience working with others.

In a best case scenario, your business culture will engage and enable your people to perform at their best. Conversely, any skill or will that does exist will be stifled so that the bare minimum is contributed by very unhappy people. Unsurprisingly, the culture of a business usually correlates strongly with its performance.

Every business has a culture, but the strategic opportunity lies in intentionally identifying the cultural characteristics which will set your business apart from the rest. By defining a clear vision for ‘how it is to work here’, you have a platform from which to relentlessly and deliberately lead the way your people work together, and for this to become the point of difference in breeding loyalty and commitment to deliver beyond expectations day after day.

Whether in person or remotely, many of your people will spend more time with their work colleagues than they do with their own families. If you’re able to craft a culture that inspires, excites, and motivates them to do their best work, they will undoubtedly be keen to tell the world about it. Soon enough, you will have no problems attracting candidates for those once hard-to-fill roles, even in a tight labour market.

What might be possible if you act now?

As business owners we should rightfully be looking to peak industry bodies and government to collaborate and plan to solve for the persistent challenges impacting productivity and profitability. But solutions will inevitably take time to emerge and be implemented.

Don’t let your business fall victim to the prevailing labour market conditions. Invest time now to shore up your People Strategy and be confident that by the time the dust settles on the Jobs Summit’s Employment White Paper, you will be streets ahead when it comes to securing one of your key assets — your people.