Securing Excellence: Attracting Top Talent to Light Industrial Roles

It can be tough to fill light industrial roles these days. Older workers are retiring, and many younger people don’t see light industrial as a realistic long-term career path. Couple these issues with an ongoing tight labor market, and it’s no wonder you have some positions chronically unfilled. However, there are some active steps you can take to attract and retain top-tier talent and employees.

Offer Competitive Compensation and an Attractive Culture

Although it’s not enough on its own, competitive compensation is a fundamental building block. You’ll need to offer wages and benefits that are at least in line with the competition. If you can, you might even consider offering a little more. Also, consider implementing perks that don’t cost a lot of money, such as catered Friday lunches or a once-per-quarter offsite teambuilding activity. Many employees are attracted to a fun, clean, and vibrant culture. Recognition and employee involvement in some business decisions can dramatically improve culture.

Develop a Profile

Consider the top performers in your existing workforce. What are their unique talents and skills and how do they fit with your company’s staffing plans? How have they differentiated themselves from the rest? Use what you discover to build a profile of your ideal candidate. You may not get everything on your wish list, but it’s a great place to start.

Be Honest

Make sure potential light industrial employees know what they’re getting into. What’s the usual timeline for getting a first promotion? How much of their time will they spend performing heavy physical labor, such as unloading trucks? Even small details like how cold the air conditioning is inside the facility could make people more or less likely to stick around.

Start a Referral Program

Your current team members already know what the job entails, and they likely know other people who would be good at it. You can start to build a pipeline of talented prospects simply by rewarding your existing employees for providing referrals.

Work with a Staffing Agency

Even if you implement all of the steps above, you’ll still need to spend time and effort finding and recruiting potential new hires. When you partner with a staffing agency, we’ll do the heavy lifting. We already know where to source light industrial prospects and how to determine if they’re the right fit for a particular company. We’ll sit down with you to get to know your needs and expectations and then provide you with a short list of fully vetted candidates who are ready to hit the ground running.

Looking for new talent?

For nearly 30 years, Cardinal Staffing has been matching companies with candidates across Ohio and Michigan. We specialize in light industrial, administrative, and professional roles, and we know where to find the local talent you need. Learn more about the services we offer or request an employee today!