We talk a lot about the ways that a company can attract – and retain – top talent. From a great candidate experience to employer branding, there’s a seemingly endless list of ways to woo seekers.
There’s a chance, however, that we’re overthinking it. In reality, attracting top candidates might be as simple as offering them an awesome job.
But what makes a job awesome? It’s easier than you’d think. It’s not necessarily about far-flung locales or huge salaries – in reality, any job can achieve awesome status with a few tweaks.
Here are ten things that make a job awesome – and, in turn, attractive to top talent.
1. Flexibility
Considering a reported 43 per cent of employees would choose flex hours over a pay raise, it’s definitely a coveted perk. Allowing your team to work remotely, or simply being flexible to appointments and life in general – that’s a huge one for most people.
2. Communication
The best leaders talk to their employees. A lot. A major red flag for potential candidates is a company or employer that is notorious for bad communication. Whenever there is a change on the way or other important news, take the time to disseminate the information to your team clearly – you’ll be rewarded with happy employees.
3. Recognition and feedback
Never underestimate the power of recognizing a job well done. As we recently discussed, employee acknowledgement leads to employee engagement. Getting consistent feedback, both good and bad, makes your team feel like someone is noticing all the effort they make.
4. A challenge
Great employees want to work hard. Millennials in particular rank training and development programs as the third most attractive aspect of an employer. What does that say? Workers want to be challenged. Once a job stops feeling challenging, and an employee feels their job is easy (or worse, boring), they will soon be moving on. And if they don’t, they might not be the type of worker you want to keep anyway.
5. Amicable coworkers
Putting in the extra effort to find team members that mesh is worthwhile – it ensures that office culture is upbeat and happy, rather than pessimistic. This is also an important reason why its important for management to keep an eye out for the toxic employees that can bring down a whole team in one fell swoop.
6. Variety
There aren’t many people who enjoy doing the exact same thing day-in and day-out – and if you have employees that do, they might not be engaged. Varying the projects, assignments, duties, clients, or whatever other elements are applicable to that role, does wonders for keeping minds engaged, and people interested.
7. Money
Of course, money. We all work for a reason, and that’s so that we can afford to do the things that in life we care about the most. An awesome job pays fairly – ideally, slightly above industry average – with a salary that continues to grow with hard work.
8. Perks
Little perks make a big difference. And the best part is, there’s so many options to choose from: catered lunches, car allowances, iPad giveaways, tickets to events, employee discounts…the list goes on and on. These perks attract top talent, and keep them hooked long-term.
9. Creative freedom
A fulfilling job is an awesome job, and a fulfilling job means trust, decision-making power, and empowerment. Being able to make decisions without having to go through six levels of approvals – even if it’s just part of the time – has a major impact on employee engagement. After all, there’s nothing more soul-crushing than a micromanager.
10. Inspiring mentors
When you pick the brain of someone with an awesome job, they’ll inevitably talk about a person at work that they truly admire. Having a colleague or superior that inspires and encourages can be a huge perk at any job.
It’s easier than you think to offer an awesome job – and you don’t need to be a huge company to do it. Follow these ten things that make a job awesome and you’ll attract more candidates, every time.
See also:
4 (free!) ways to boost employee engagement
How you’re demoralizing your workers (without even knowing it)
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