Small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are at the heart of Singapore’s economy. SMEs make up 99 per cent of our enterprises, employ two-thirds of our workforce, and account for nearly half of Singapore’s gross domestic product.
According to ASEAN SME Transformation Study, human resource issues such as manpower cost (89%) and the shortage of suitable talent (87%) were ranked among the top challenges faced by small businesses in Singapore.[1] With Millennials fast outnumbering all other generations at work; by 2020, they are expected to constitute 46% of the workforce – relying on traditional hiring practices won’t be helpful and small business owners must adapt their recruitment strategies to find, attract and hire Millennials.
For SMEs, the best bet is to go with the changing tide and leverage the fast-paced and technology-focused work values of Millennials to build an attractive employer brand, as Millennials want to see it.
Here are 5 powerful hiring solutions for SMEs to address the problems of recruiting Millennials.
1.Look For Unconventional Talent Pools
SMEs must develop a diverse hiring strategy that look beyond traditional talent pools. Seek candidates from different genders, nationalities, qualifications, backgrounds and experiences. Big data and predictive analytics play a crucial role in uncovering the alternative pool of talent that SMEs can tap into.
2.Adopt Digital Recruitment Tools
For Millennials, being tech-savvy is an understatement; they are causing digital disruption. Having grown amidst Facebook and Instagram, they are labelled as ‘digital natives’. Millennials use their Smartphone to search jobs on their social networks on Facebook, LinkedIn etc. Small business owners must go to places where the people they want will be like user groups, online communities, discussion forums, local events etc.
3.Focus On Candidate Experiences And Build Sustainable Communities
Future-focused SMEs are not limited by the current skill requirements in their recruitment efforts. They build active online communities through advanced technological tools like Facebook Live videos to demonstrate their company culture. Get potential candidates to connect with current employees, ask questions and seek feedback through online live Q&A sessions. By keeping them engaged, you can build a strong talent pipeline.
4.Make Jobs More Meaningful
Extremely passionate and ambitious individuals, Millennials seek meaning and purpose in their jobs rather than just salary. According to Deloitte’s Millennial Survey 2017, the vast majority of employees perceive a company’s focus on purpose and people to be just as important as its ability to generate profit. SMEs can showcase the social impact of their business and get Millennials excited about it. It should definitely be more than contributing to charities – take up social support projects in which employees can regularly volunteer.
5.Offer Interesting Career Development Opportunities
Unlike their previous generations, Millennials don’t have the patience to do their part first and then wait for employers to provide career progression opportunities. This is a generation that seeks instant gratification and if they don’t get it, they look somewhere else. It could be access to learning and development, accelerated career growth, put their creativity to use, work alongside leaders on key projects, handling newer markets etc. So, SMEs need to put it out there, loud and clear, what kind of career development opportunities they offer to this young generation.
The average cost-per-hire is $4,129, while the average time it takes to fill a given position is 42 days, according to the Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM’s) new Human Capital Benchmarking Report. Now, this is too expensive and time-consuming for SMEs and they just can’t afford it. So, why not revamp their hiring strategies to better align them to the expectations of millennial talent. Start with a simple and cost-effective solution of adopting new-age digital tools to find the right candidates.
Excite the potential millennial talent by putting everything together that highlights the benefits of joining your employer brand.
Get creative, get rolling!
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