At a recent roundtable discussion hosted by Fry-Wagner and TeamKC, HR and recruiting professionals gathered to join in hot topic conversation and idea generation. The main takeaway? Find out how you can creatively provide more for your candidates and hires.

Perceptions of Kansas City
Locals know – KC is overflowing with opportunity in each of our vibrant communities. What are best practices for sharing these opportunities with your candidates?

It seems simple – fully submerge your candidates into the KC experience. Take the “wine ‘em & dine ‘em” approach to give your candidates a taste of the KC culture. Give them tickets to a Sprint Center event, show off downtown and feed them the best barbecue in the nation. What if your candidate isn’t in town long enough or at all? Try a custom gift box full of local maker goods from Made in KC. It’s easier to show a candidate than it is to tell them.

If you’re looking to give your candidate a more holistic view of the metro area, try a custom tour. Locale creates custom itineraries and driving tours based on a candidate’s individual interests. Visitors get to view the city through the lens of a local and ask questions in a no-pressure, recruiter free scenario. ­­­­­­­­­­

Make “custom” and “personal” part of your daily vocabulary. Recognizing that a “one-size-fits-all” approach won’t work is the first step in seeing real results. Cater each candidate experience to the individual. A C-Suite executive has different needs than a recent grad or a new mom in a new city. You get the idea. Both you and the candidate will benefit from a tailor-made experience.

Alternative Benefits
You’ve got the bases covered. The 401K, the medical, the dental, vacation days, sick days and so on, your company offers a solid foundation for your employees to stand on. Great, but how can you get creative? More and more often, employers are adding “alternative” benefits into the total rewards package. What are some of the best ideas?

Did you know that if you gave a GenZ candidate $500 they would save it rather than spend it? The incoming workforce is more concerned about debt than ever. Can we blame them? No, but we may be able to work with them. Consider offering student debt relief as part of a benefits package. It may even be a bigger draw than having a staff lounge with a pool table. Who knew?

Relieve stress at your company - get your workers out of the office. There are many ways to do this. Consider a company plan at a co-working space like Plexpod or WeWork. Employees can utilize the space to hold meetings or even just focus in on a project away from the buzz at the office. Another way to get them out – create a policy for working remotely. Give employees a certain amount of hours they are allotted to work from home or offsite at a location of their choice. Hard workers will appreciate the change of scenery.

Ever thought about an open vacation policy? Yes… unlimited vacation. It may sound crazy but companies are finding that employees aren’t abusing the system. At least not in the way that you would think… In fact, employers are finding that under an open vacation policy workers in some cases take even less  vacation than before. If you’re trying out the policy, encourage your employees to take vacation to avoid burnout.

On Boarding
The transition into a new job can be tough so it’s important to make the experience as human as possible. Some organizations are finding that implementing a buddy system can make an adjustment easier.

Pairing a new hire up with a buddy can change the game for the on boarding process. HR pros seem to agree – it’s important to have someone who can connect you to culture outside the office. Consider having a buddy take the new hire out for an excursion once every 30 days during the first few months of employment.  

Or, shake things up by keeping the first day out of the office. Grab coffee, take a tour or even give VTO a shot. “Volunteer Time Off” during the first day can be a philanthropic way to introduce employees to company culture and give them a chance to get to know their colleagues.

Different strategies work for different organizations but when it comes to recruiting and retaining the best and the brightest, one thing is clear: creativity and innovation will foster the best results.

To learn more about Fry-Wagner, contact David Gonzalez. To learn more about TeamKC and get involved, contact Jessica Palm.