Another Perspective from Paul

Hello to our friends and readers from Paul Daniels and Paul Bieber. As Paul Bieber wrote last week, we will treat you to a new concept for USGlass blogs. Paul Bieber and I will discuss one topic from two different points of view from time to time. Mr. Bieber started the conversation last week, and you may want to review his point from last Tuesday. Neither one of us is correct or wrong; we are discussing with differing thoughts. Let us know which one of us you agree with.

This week’s question is: “What do you do when you have to increase your pay rates to attract new employees to your current workforce? Raise your current workforce payroll also? How much? Match the new rates or go higher?”

When faced with this situation, you need to consider a lot before leaping in with a solution. We would always hire for character and train for success in the past. This was because the corporate culture is an important asset that you don’t want to take for granted. When hiring experienced people, you need to remember that everyone’s experience is different. This can bring new ideas to the business and cause other issues. I always find it easier to train people than to retrain them.

When bringing in new people you don’t want to upset the current culture. Sometimes, increasing pay will not be enough to keep key employees in the organization. They too may decide to test the waters elsewhere, creating more problems than you are solving, even if you give them a pay raise. Another issue you want to stay clear of is a wage war with your local competitors. You may win the first round but end up the loser.

So what’s the answer? There is no right or wrong. You may want to think about implementing things before you start hiring additional staff. A good beginning is to list all the assets you bring to the table on top of wages and benefits. Be ready to emphasize things like the company’s longevity, how long you have been in business, and the average length of time your current employees have been with you. This will exhibit stability in your organization. Emphasize future growth. What can new people expect over the next five years? I always remember a quote from my past employer: “his responsibility was to continue to grow the company to give all of us a chance to grow.”

You may want to raise your current wages before hiring to show your staff that you are thinking about them first. I don’t necessarily agree, but in today’s market, many organizations get their current staff involved in the interview process by asking key people what they think of your candidates before you decide to hire or get them involved in the training process. You may also want to bring new people on board with a two-tier wage plan. Start them at the old rate for a 90 Day probation period and then raise them to the higher rate or bring the wage up retroactively to the hire date, showing your staff they too had to earn the position.

There is a lot of advice out there. It is easy to say let’s raise everyone’s salary but the key is to make sure that you think it through before changing your corporate culture.

Comments?