3 strategies to upgrade your hiring process this winter

Winter season is notoriously busy in the mountains. Lifts are spinning, resorts are humming, and the towns are bustling. This is a great time for the companies and organizations that call the mountains home to recruit new talent to their workforces, but how can they compete in a competitive employment market? We’ve worked with hundreds of employers across towns like Vail, Aspen, Steamboat, Breckenridge, Jackson, Mammoth, and other notable mountain towns, and here’s what we’d recommend for companies looking to upgrade their hiring strategy this winter. 

Tell the story

We asked the job seekers in our community what in particular attracts them to one job over another, and what keeps them in a job instead of looking elsewhere. Good workplace culture came in as the number one reason.

They want to know what it feels like at work, what the core values of the leadership are, and how satisfied current staff is with their work lives.

Employers that tell their organization’s story, share its ethos and illustrate its culture in their recruiting efforts easily stand out from those that don’t. We love seeing photos of the team, of the work, or of the office in job postings. We enjoy it when it’s clear that the employer put time, effort, and energy into writing an About section on a job post. These things build affinity and recognition for the organization’s culture.

This affinity can be built throughout the brand’s social media and online channels too! Being consistent on LinkedIn or Instagram is an important way to cultivate awareness for the brand and its culture. Keeping the company name and its job openings in targeted channels such as the Mountain Careers Job Board is also an efficient way to maintain recognition with job seekers, even for those who are not readily in search of opportunities.

Current employees are also a company’s best ambassadors, so getting them involved makes the content relatable for anyone considering an opportunity with the company. In a time when branding is key to success, the better an employer tells its story, the stronger its position will be with potential candidates. 

Incentivize

There has been a major push in the recruitment landscape towards more accessible salary and compensation disclosure, and with good reasons. It’s hard to even consider an opportunity if it’s clear the numbers won’t work, but when the financial information is available upfront, that makes for a more constructive dialogue between candidates and employers since all expectations can be understood from the outset. With the Colorado Equal Pay act, employers in Colorado are now required to post wages. This has been a positive force for job seekers, especially for those at lower levels of the salary range who are finally seeing some competition with wages. Even for employers who are only able to offer $20 an hour to start, including a sign-on bonus or special perks (including housing) can help attract quality candidates nonetheless. It’s all about transparency, and transparency breeds understanding and excitement for what your company offers. If these can be established, candidates should have enough incentives to pursue roles that they may have skipped out on if there weren’t competitive pay, benefits and hiring bonuses incentivizing them to do so.

Focus on retention

It’s always easier to retain current employees than it is to recruit new ones, and often much more cost-effective too. Happy employees are productive employees. Are their basic needs of healthcare, housing, and saving for retirement met? Without these bare necessities, it is hard to attract let alone retain talented people.

If a company is too small to provide these benefits, then what else can you provide to excite the staff? How else does the company help its staff piece together their respective happiness puzzles? Our recent research found that more and more emphasis is being placed on wellness, mental health, and work-life balance than ever before. Employers that offer support for these things definitely have a leg up on the competition for top talent. After all, people come to the mountains for the unparalleled lifestyle that is possible. This is why ski passes, gear discounts, and powder days are coveted perks for mountain town professionals. All of these benefits add up to keeping employees happy, healthy, and hard-working and are key ingredients to the retention recipe.

Summary

Perhaps the most important aspect of deploying these 3 strategies is consistency. Employers cannot skimp on opportunities to tell their story, build incentives into their job descriptions, or retain their employees and turn them into advocates. Ensuring that job seekers know full well that these strategies are in play is crucial, and that’s where Mountain Careers comes in.

Posting jobs through our platform guarantees that thousands of talented professionals see what positions are available, what salaries and benefits are offered, and what companies are growing and building in coveted mountain communities. Our newsletter goes out several times each week, and the Job Board is the only job site of its kind solely dedicated to real career opportunities in the mountains. Job Listings start at just $79 per month, and we even offer advertising and custom content solutions. Are you ready to take your hiring process to new heights this winter? Learn more about how we can help here!