According to the Irish Senior Management Business Sentiment Survey in 2023, more than 80% of Irish SMEs find retaining staff a significant challenge, with eight out of ten spending more time on recruitment compared to 2019.
Ireland is almost at full employment with recent figures showing that only 4.3% of the population is out of work. With such a small pool to fish from, and given the specialised skillset that is needed to run a dealership, it makes it very difficult for Irish dealers to recruit talented and experienced staff.
Niamh O’ Brien, Director of Talent Management with BDO Ireland said “……many SMEs are starting to create EVPs (Employee Value Proposition) as part of their efforts to make sure their staff are aware of the benefits they offer.”
Including an EVP in your advertising campaign is like employees including their C.V with their job application. It can be worthwhile as it allows any possible new employees know what benefits you have to offer and how it compares against your competitors’ benefits. This helps in attracting and retaining the best talent you can get and also improves your dealership’s brand recognition.
Examples of job benefits would be: how many days annual leave will you give; what are the sick leave benefits; career development; training; overtime rates. An effective EVP can reduce your cost of recruiting by attracting and retaining employees who are a good fit for your business and are therefore more likely to stay.
Creating an EVP is like creating a Safety Statement but with less trouble. You may need different EVPs for different job rolls or departments such as sales reps, office administration or the workshop. It would be no harm to do some research on finding out what your target employees value most in their jobs. This may involve carrying out a survey. A good starting point would be to ask your existing employees what they value the most at work. Once you have gathered this information you can begin compiling your EVP.
Recruiting and retaining mechanics for the workshop is probably the biggest challenge dealers are facing at the moment. Informing the agricultural mechanical engineering colleges of your recruitment plan, including your EVP, would be a good starting point.
I am delighted to report that the theme for this years’ Service Dealer Conference and Awards is ‘Driving Success’. The Service Dealer Conference & Awards takes place on Thursday 28th November 2024, once again at the Crown Plaza, Stratford-Upon-Avon. For more information on how you can be a part of the event and to stay updated on conference news visit our website or follow us on social media @servicedealer
To conclude, I would like to offer my sympathies to the family of the late Seamus Weldon, who passed away last month. Seamus was the main John Deere Dealer for turf equipment in Munster and was based in Barleymount, just 11km outside of Killarney. I met Seamus many times at ATPI events, particularly in their Southwest regional golf outings and found him a true gentleman. You can read a more detailed tribute to Seamus in this edition of Service Dealer Ireland.
