Linda Hanson’s Blog

There are few issues that business leaders face today that are more important than the effort to hire and retain good employees.  Business leaders talk about it all the time and consultants can prove it positively affects the bottom line. 

So, if business leaders are committed to hiring top employees and retaining them why are so many companies shedding such large numbers of employees?  Six months ago those same leaders were screaming about not being able to find good people.  Does that mean that companies have been hiring mediocre employees rather than spending time finding and retaining superior performers?   We all know that in a down economy the mediocre employees go first—or do they!  How does a company know who are the mediocre employees?    Maybe they are just in the wrong job or working for a poor leader. 

So, here’s the challenge.  If you are a CEO, a manager or an HR professional and you want retain valuable employees and find out who isn’t the right fit, use some tools like professional employee assessments and job benchmarking.  The worst that can happen is you will shed the right employees and reduce turnover when the economy turns around.   

Over the years, especially when the economy is in a downturn, I hear sales people say, “My customers want a lower price.”  If you are selling commodities that might be true, but in most industries when price becomes an issue, you need to increase your value.  If you have a salesperson who insists on giving a lower price, you need a new salesperson.  Yes, even when the economy is in a downturn.  Anyone can sell anything if the price is low enough.   Now is the time to develop a strategy with your sales people that won’t give away the store.