Many companies use construction recruiting services to fill positions in this competitive industry, but is it necessary? How can employers find and retain top talent to support their business operations?
The construction sector is huge. Plus, it’s considered a major contributor to the country’s economy. According to the Associated General Contractors of America (AGC), there are over 7.8 million employees in this industry.
However, the construction sector is one of the most difficult to find and retain top talent. Companies struggle to fill positions and attract skilled workers. Also, the number of job openings is increasing.
The latest report from the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed there were 438 job openings in the construction industry in April 2023.
Fortunately, the following tips can help construction employers recruit and retain the best staff. Read on!
How to Recruit Employees in the Construction Industry
Finding top talent can be challenging whether your team is recruiting senior executives, experienced engineers, or project managers.
However, these strategies can help construction companies find the right talent.
Consider Referrals
Did you know that many great candidates come from referrals? If you already have top employees on your team, why not ask them for help to find professionals as talented and committed as them?
Encouraging your employees to refer people to your construction company can help you find candidates who perform at a high level.
Additionally, great employees recognize high-caliber candidates because they know what your firm needs, which can also streamline the recruiting process.
Construction firms seeking potential employees through referrals often use the following incentives:
- Cash bonus
- Gifts
- Extra days off
Use Social Media Platforms
Besides boosting your business’s reputation and profits, building a strong social media presence can help you to identify top candidates.
Millions of people use social media platforms every day. Therefore, sharing news, advertising open positions, and interacting with construction professionals can attract potential employees while helping companies gain recognition.
Searching “construction managers” on Twitter can bring up hundreds of tweets about that specific role, for example. Also, there’s LinkedIn, the world’s largest professional network, where you can use keywords to find top talent.
Social media platforms are also popular places for construction recruiters to search for candidates to fill positions. If you check the comments under the tweets about specific roles, you can also find great potential employees.
Hire Seasoned Construction Recruiters
As mentioned, most construction companies struggle when sourcing candidates for open positions. This process is always time-consuming and often involves investing in advertising.
However, traditional advertising strategies, including posting job adverts in newspapers and job boards, aren’t as effective as before.
In other words, using these conventional means of advertising requires time and money, but that doesn’t mean you’ll find the right talent.
Luckily, there’s a faster way to find high-caliber candidates for your team: hiring an experienced recruiter offering construction staffing solutions.
Seasoned recruiters know where to find skilled professionals and how to use the best headhunting strategies to attract the right candidates for your roles.
In the construction industry, experienced candidates rarely look for a new job. However, a recruiter can headhunt these “passive” candidates and sell a potential opportunity to grow your team.
Using a construction recruitment firm isn’t free, so you must also invest a reasonable sum in this option. However, it’s cheaper and requires less time than paying for advertising or looking for candidates the traditional way.
Should You Consider a Construction Executive Search Firm?
Does your company need a senior vice president? Are you looking for candidates to fill essential leadership positions? Construction executive search firms can give you a hand.
Using executive search firms in the construction industry also comes with a cost, but it’s worthwhile. You can identify the best talent while saving time. Also, it’s less expensive than hiring a candidate who is not up to standards.
These are other benefits of trusting executive search firms specializing in construction roles to find the right candidates:
- Rigorous, high-quality search process and comprehensive market analysis to detect the best executives
- Discreet reference checking to ensure confidentiality
- Persuasion of top-tier candidates with leadership competencies even without revealing the client’s name
- Assistance to help your company and board make the right decision when choosing an executive vice president or filling another key leadership position
How to Retain Employees in the Construction Industry
Did you already find the right candidates? Do you want to know how to retain them? Here are other tips for creating a positive working environment that encourages employees to stay.
Challenging Work
The best employees in a company will always go the extra mile to fulfill their duties to a high standard. However, most will also feel less enthusiastic if they believe their job isn’t challenging enough.
Ideally, a position should allow employees to develop new skills and boost their careers. Therefore, companies should schedule 1-2-1 meetings with their employees to identify and address deficiencies.
Company Culture
Real estate developers, treasurers, project managers, executive assistants, marketing associates, and project administrator. All employees spend a lot of time at work.
If your company has a great and positive culture, you’ll retain employees. However, that doesn’t mean you should give them weekly gifts or too much free time.
Instead, you should create enterprise values that make your company a great place to work. Employees who feel happy and engaged every day will want to stay longer.
Advancement Opportunities
Every position in your company should define a clear path for career advancement in order to increase employee retention.
If you set goals and offer growth opportunities to your staff, your employees won’t seek advancement potential outside but instead from within your company.
Additionally, offering these opportunities will motivate your employees to work harder, develop skills, and learn more to stay within your team.
Offer Fair Salaries
Most employees who leave a company are seeking a higher salary. In fact, low salaries are the second most common reason for quitting after a toxic company culture.
If you want to retain your employees, you must research the rates for each role in the construction industry and offer salaries within that range to remain competitive within the market.
While it may mean higher expenses, keeping salaries close to or above market rates will result in fewer employees planning to leave your company in search of construction jobs with bigger paychecks.
Final Thoughts
Finding and retaining world-class talent can greatly benefit your company since high-caliber employees are more productive, truly care about your company, and always go the extra mile to succeed.
Fortunately, you can boost your construction recruiting efforts with the tips mentioned above! Become a major employer and attract top talent to your company today.
For a free consultation on your construction hiring strategy, contact us at 212-971-0033 or info@questorg.com.
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