According to a recent Wall Street Journal (WSJ) podcast, job satisfaction remains high among Americans, but people want more “me” time for leisure, family, and health. “You see big, big changes, changes in attitudes, that tell us that work is just not as central to the lives of people as it used to be,” says Greg Ip, WSJ’s chief economic commentator. The jobs that are the hardest to fill “are often the ones that are required to be there in person,” he notes.
In general, decreased participation in the labor force has created a challenge for recruiting, hiring and retaining qualified employees.
An ‘older’ solution
Employers may face this challenge by thinking beyond traditional sources for filling jobs. The latest issue of the Harvard Business Review, for example, proposes a win-win solution: hiring older and retired workers. “Today, more and more older people want or need to work longer — and more organizations than ever need their help,” write authors Ken Dychtwald, Robert Morison, and Katy Terveer in the article “Redesigning Retirement.” (See https://hbr.org/2024/03/redesigning-retirement.)
The Staffing issue
In this, the annual “Staffing” issue of Optometric Management, we examine opportunities presented by a workforce comprised of people of all ages. While a multigenerational workforce may bring challenges, these can be resolved by leaders who create “workplaces where people across life and career stages feel valued and heard,” Megan W. Gerhardt, PhD, writes in “Managing a multigenerational workforce.” Dr. Gerhardt’s article provides action steps to encourage collaboration among all generations. Also included are real-world examples of these steps, courtesy of Chief Optometric Editor April Jasper, OD.
Recruiting for such a diverse workforce is not a one-size-fits all proposition, so author Trudi Charest offers 25. In “25 creative recruiting ideas,” Ms. Charest shares examples of steps to hire and retain qualified people, from employee referral programs (#6) to cultivating an online reputation (#14) to collaborative workspace design (#22).
We also invite you to share with us your hiring successes by emailing them to james.thomas@broadcastmed.com, and we wish you the best as you seek “hire” solutions. OM
