10 tips for recruiting and retaining talent

From the urgent matter of who’s going to cover the upcoming weekends to beginning the recruitment process, a team member handing their notice in has the potential to create a stressful situation. But it doesn’t need to be that way. 

Here, Andrew Palmer, Knowledge Exchange Relationship Manager (East), outlines 10 top tips for recruiting team members.

1. When someone leaves, ask why and learn from this.
2. Think outside the box; a lot of people would love to work with animals but might not come across your advert in our trade press – try advertising to a wider audience.
3. Promote the regular hours and work-life balance, and be prepared to offer a flexible working pattern.
4. Make it clear if the role offers accommodation, use of a vehicle and any other perks, and sell the local area and amenities.
5. Consider using a recruitment agency to do the time-consuming parts of the process.
6. Potential new employees will do their homework. If you have a website or Facebook page, make sure it’s up to date.
7. First impressions count. Ensure you and your farm are presented well to prospective employees.
8. What are your staff facilities like? Make sure they’re clean, warm, tidy, modern and well-equipped.
9. Don’t be afraid to propose trial days before you make a final decision.
10. Be clear about the type of person you are looking to attract and how you want them to fit into the team.

Not only are these useful areas to focus on when recruiting new team members, many are also important for retaining staff. 

If you don't treat emplyees well, they may well find an employer who will, and it's often the little things that make the difference:

• Do you remember employees' birthdays?
• Can you offer a more flexible working pattern?
• Do staff have a clean, warm and comfortable area to take breaks in?
• Do you give staff opportunities for training and development?

A little effort goes a long way, and if you're not sure what your team value – ask them!