Digital Recruitment Strategy: Prioritising employee retention in 2022

When it comes to digital recruitment strategies, attracting new talent shouldn't be your only priority. The recruitment journey doesn't end when someone joins your team - as a manager or company owner, the next step is to nurture your talent.

This will not only mean they remain loyal, but they will also be happy in what they do. Now, more than ever, employee wellness is of great importance. The Covid-19 pandemic continues, with remote working more prevalent across the eCommerce industry. This means any employee retention strategies you had before will need to be adapted.

Why employee retention remains important in digital recruitment

Digital and eCommerce recruitment is a competitive space...trust us, we know! You could secure the dream employee, who really excels in what they do. But, this doesn't mean they won't be tempted by other opportunities.

According to our 2021 eCommerce salary survey & insights report, staff retention is predicted to be a big team challenge in the year ahead. While many management teams recognise this challenge, is there too much focus on new talent over the staff already in the company?

Ultimately, talent acquisition and employee retention go hand in hand. A potential candidate who sees a low staff turnover, alongside a focus on workplace happiness, will put that company at the top of their list.

Remote onboarding - the new norm?

Before the pandemic, you probably had your onboarding process set out. For the first day, having the newcomers desk ready and set up was a standard task. You might have thrown in some welcome gifts for good measure. What if the employee has to start remotely?

In a digital world, you can create a remote onboarding strategy that makes them feel right at home. Here are some things you can think about...

• A first day call: This is a given, however it's a good chance to talk to the new employee as a human. Start with how they are feeling about their first day and put them at ease. You can even ask them about their home office setup to reiterate that it's a relaxing conversation.
• Book in time with the team: It might feel lonely for a new starter, so make sure the entire team are involved in the welcome. Before the employee starts, get time in the diaries of the team. We recommend smaller groups throughout the week so that the newbie is consistently meeting new faces throughout the first week.
• Assign mentors: As a manager, you might feel it is your job to do all the mentoring and training. This isn't completely wrong, but you do have other team members to focus on. A great idea is to 'matchmake' the new employee with a team member who might have similar skillsets and interests. Assigning mentors means management teams are not doing everything and inadvertently not actually giving the new starter the time they need. 
• Send a welcome package: As mentioned above, welcome gifts were a common practice. It doesn't need to stop - send a welcome or wellness package to the new employee, making sure it arrives on the first day!
• Automation: You can also set up automated emails throughout the first week ahead of time. Each day could focus on a fun company fact or members of the team, just so you're letting the new employee feel they are now part of the family.

The first month of an employees journey is critical. If they don't feel welcome or that the role hasn't met their expectations, they will quickly consider switching to a new role.

Remote working and flexible hours

78% of our eCommerce salary survey respondents shared that they would be requesting more remote working in the year to come. That is not a number to ignore. As of January 2022, there are still some companies choosing to work solely from the office. Is this the best approach following months of working from home?

We did some of our own research and chose 50 job adverts for eCommerce & digital jobs at random - 72% of these offered remote or hybrid working. Furthermore, giving staff more flexibility on their hours is a huge incentive for them. The lockdowns, as tough as they were, gave people back the time that they would have spent commuting. It's likely they want to keep some of this freedom to pursue newly discovered hobbies or spend more time with loved ones.

For 2022, this absolutely has to be an incentive for employees. In fact, many people wouldn't even call it an incentive anymore - it's simply recognised as a way to show trust in your team and treat them as people outside the working environment. 

Mental health matters

Your staff are people first and employees second. It's as simple as that. We predict that there will be a big change in how candidates approach a role - how a role caters to well-being and mental health is going to be a huge trend. However, this should not be something covered in talent acquisition strategies and forgotten about once the employee is on board.

As a manager or CEO, you can only do so much. Furthermore, if an employee is working remotely, a Teams or Zoom call won't be enough to pick up on any emotional exhaustion cues. In our salary survey last year, 68% of respondents said a focus on employee wellness makes for a good company culture - a 24% increase from the previous year.

So, what can you do for staff wellbeing? Perhaps having an open forum where people can anonymously say what they struggle with will encourage people to talk. Another idea we have seen is management teams setting aside a block of time, where employees can book some time to talk about whatever they need to. There are also so many organisations, including a favourite of ours Sanctus, that offer external support and can really get staff to open up and tackle their hurdles. 

Helping your digital recruitment strategies in 2022

At Cranberry Panda, we are dedicated to helping clients attract and retain talent. We have a busy year ahead, though we always have time for a chat. What are your digital recruitment plans for 2022? Do you have some questions about remote interviews or onboarding? We can help - simply click below to get in touch with the team.