Force For Good Business Works with Professional Service Firms to Strengthen Their Talent Acquisition and Retention Plans
Tips on how firms can improve hiring and retention practices to strengthen their firm from consulting expert Ian Crosno.
Carmel, CA, December 02, 2020 --(PR.com)-- How can professional service firms strengthen their talent acquisition and retention plans?
Talent Acquisition
The lifeblood of professional service firms is the consultants who are in the firm. Although other factors such as a brand and proprietary methodologies are also important, clients pay for talented people. So how can professional service firms attract the best talent, and even more critically important, ensure that their best people stay on board?
“A firm’s HR brand is just as important as its client-facing brand and marketing efforts,” says Ian Crosno, Principal Consultant at Force for Good Business.
Having an attractive website and a careers section is foundational and at this point. Increasingly, social media sites such as LinkedIn and Instagram are also becoming best practices and effective methods for communicating the services your firm provides. Beyond this, social media use also offers opportunities for firms to share examples of workplace culture and company values that make it unique.
“Top professional service firms start with the promise of strong career progression and growth opportunities. How are you communicating this? When people in your organization get promoted, share congratulations on social media. Demonstrate that your firm has a talent development program, and individuals have development plans enabling them to focus on work that they find most interesting as they grow,” said Crosno.
On top of project work and development, consultants want to enjoy working for a consulting company. “Show that you have an inclusive, collaborative company culture where everyone (at all levels) can work with autonomy and can get support from anyone in their firm, not just their immediate team.”
It goes further than the online environment. In practice, consultancies typically forget that after a candidate has applied, there is a risk that he or she may turn down the offer at the end of an application process.
“Getting this right requires a focus on the candidate experience,” says Longstreet. Quick (and useful) feedback, smooth interview processes, interviews outside of core working hours, and meeting team members are all factors that contribute to an improved candidate experience. “The decision to join a new company is not an easy one, and a positive experience throughout the application goes a long way in helping a candidate decide to join a firm.”
Talent Retention
Consulting firms invest significantly in developing their consultants, training them through the ranks until they’re leading engagements, and selling your business to clients. Firms are also getting an excellent return on the investment they made.
What can firms do to drive down their attrition? “A common reason consultants give for leaving as an industry is work/life balance and unclear career progression. Long hours, constant travel can count as much as your client-facing work, which means that many consultants burn out,” says Crosno.
“Onboarding and ongoing talent conversations are often overlooked and need to be carefully orchestrated between a consultant and their manager.”
Firms spend countless hours on their HR brand, marketing to top talent, and interviews only to find that the first few weeks once a new candidate begins work is a disaster of unpreparedness. “I’ve seen companies lose hearts and minds of top talent within the first week at their new firm simply because their managers don’t create an onboarding plan that ensures workplace logistics and introductory meetings are in place,” says Crosno.
Clear and achievable career progression is another of the key drivers and can also be why people leave. Crosno advises firms to work with their employees on these considerations. “If a consultant is looking to deepen specific expertise, ensure these areas are represented in their development plan, and consistently reviewed with their manager.”
Based on his discussions with hundreds of consultants, “bureaucracy” can also be cited as a factor in losing top talent. In most cases, “firms with bad internal processes are often the slowest to react to the shifting demands of their workforce and lose consultants.”
About Force For Good Business
Force For Good Business works with values-driven business leaders worldwide, solving complex problems with an underlying bend towards growth, analytics, and operational excellence. Our clients believe in the power of business as a force for good by establishing meaningful impact with customers, the workforce, our environment, and the communities where we operate.
#Forceforgoodbusiness #IanCrosno
Talent Acquisition
The lifeblood of professional service firms is the consultants who are in the firm. Although other factors such as a brand and proprietary methodologies are also important, clients pay for talented people. So how can professional service firms attract the best talent, and even more critically important, ensure that their best people stay on board?
“A firm’s HR brand is just as important as its client-facing brand and marketing efforts,” says Ian Crosno, Principal Consultant at Force for Good Business.
Having an attractive website and a careers section is foundational and at this point. Increasingly, social media sites such as LinkedIn and Instagram are also becoming best practices and effective methods for communicating the services your firm provides. Beyond this, social media use also offers opportunities for firms to share examples of workplace culture and company values that make it unique.
“Top professional service firms start with the promise of strong career progression and growth opportunities. How are you communicating this? When people in your organization get promoted, share congratulations on social media. Demonstrate that your firm has a talent development program, and individuals have development plans enabling them to focus on work that they find most interesting as they grow,” said Crosno.
On top of project work and development, consultants want to enjoy working for a consulting company. “Show that you have an inclusive, collaborative company culture where everyone (at all levels) can work with autonomy and can get support from anyone in their firm, not just their immediate team.”
It goes further than the online environment. In practice, consultancies typically forget that after a candidate has applied, there is a risk that he or she may turn down the offer at the end of an application process.
“Getting this right requires a focus on the candidate experience,” says Longstreet. Quick (and useful) feedback, smooth interview processes, interviews outside of core working hours, and meeting team members are all factors that contribute to an improved candidate experience. “The decision to join a new company is not an easy one, and a positive experience throughout the application goes a long way in helping a candidate decide to join a firm.”
Talent Retention
Consulting firms invest significantly in developing their consultants, training them through the ranks until they’re leading engagements, and selling your business to clients. Firms are also getting an excellent return on the investment they made.
What can firms do to drive down their attrition? “A common reason consultants give for leaving as an industry is work/life balance and unclear career progression. Long hours, constant travel can count as much as your client-facing work, which means that many consultants burn out,” says Crosno.
“Onboarding and ongoing talent conversations are often overlooked and need to be carefully orchestrated between a consultant and their manager.”
Firms spend countless hours on their HR brand, marketing to top talent, and interviews only to find that the first few weeks once a new candidate begins work is a disaster of unpreparedness. “I’ve seen companies lose hearts and minds of top talent within the first week at their new firm simply because their managers don’t create an onboarding plan that ensures workplace logistics and introductory meetings are in place,” says Crosno.
Clear and achievable career progression is another of the key drivers and can also be why people leave. Crosno advises firms to work with their employees on these considerations. “If a consultant is looking to deepen specific expertise, ensure these areas are represented in their development plan, and consistently reviewed with their manager.”
Based on his discussions with hundreds of consultants, “bureaucracy” can also be cited as a factor in losing top talent. In most cases, “firms with bad internal processes are often the slowest to react to the shifting demands of their workforce and lose consultants.”
About Force For Good Business
Force For Good Business works with values-driven business leaders worldwide, solving complex problems with an underlying bend towards growth, analytics, and operational excellence. Our clients believe in the power of business as a force for good by establishing meaningful impact with customers, the workforce, our environment, and the communities where we operate.
#Forceforgoodbusiness #IanCrosno
Contact
Force For Good Business
Ian Crosno
831-236-8988
www.forceforgoodbusiness.com
Ian Crosno
831-236-8988
www.forceforgoodbusiness.com
Contact
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