While finding high quality employees can be a challenge for employers in any field, it is particularly true for a green industry business because your staffing needs often fluctuate. It is not uncommon to need extra help during your busy season which means that your employee ranks grow exponentially.
Once those three or four months of your busy season pass, it can be difficult to justify keeping everyone you hired on the payroll for the rest of the year. Though this can make it a challenge to find qualified seasonal employees, it is possible to do so. There are people who are only interested in working for the short term. You just have to know where to find these seasonal employees.
College Internship Programs
Many colleges stipulate that their students complete a certain number of internship hours in order to meet the requirements for their degree program. The actual particulars vary among colleges as well as between the degrees offered. Some internships, fore example, require that students be unpaid while others are paid opportunities. The typical model, though, includes the requirement that the student work a preset number of weeks in order to obtain the college credits they need. While some college internships are full time, many require only part time hours of the student. Regardless, hiring college interns allows you to put them on special projects that could tap into their areas of expertise such as marketing your business.
How to Find College Interns
If you live within commuting distance of a college campus, make sure that you take part in any job hiring fairs the university sets up. Even if you are not located near a campus, you can still target students that are returning home for the summer. Putting fliers up in places where students might see them as well as highlighting this availability in your employment ads are other options as well.
Retirees Provide Options
In many cases, today's retirees are not simply ready to give up working altogether. These vibrant men and women often only want to scale back their work obligations. They want to trade in their business suits and high-powered positions for something that packs a bit more fun into their lives with a great deal less stress. Your green industry business could be the perfect fit for them.
Flexible Staffing Options With Retirees
While many retirees will probably not want to work full time hours all year long, there is likely to be a segment that will jump at the chance to do so for a few months of the years. Another alternative is to hire a small group of two or three seniors to work a few hours each day so that you have your typical 10 to 12 hour day covered during your busy season. Often personable and calming, retirees bring an enthusiasm and willingness to learn new things to your team. They can be the perfect way to balance out the inexperience of having college interns.
One of the top ways to find seasonal employees for your green industry business is to simply not wait until the last minute. By mapping out your plan for finding such help early -- before the crunch for employees hits -- you will be able to better find those employees who are a good fit. You will also avoid throwing your new employees into a situation that allows them to flounder because you do not have the time to train them in an adequate manner.
Employees are the heart of a green industry business, for more tips on hiring the best employees for your business, download our free eBook below!
