Technician recruiting is about a lot more than just posting on job boards. Shops and dealerships are often looking for a quick fix—as if posting on the right job board with the right job description is going to solve decades of issues that lead to the technician shortage.
If shops want to actually solve their problem of finding technicians, they need to dig deeper into their recruiting process and retention strategies. In this article, we will uncover five exercises to help improve your overall technician recruiting strategy from the ground up.
5 Exercises to Improve Your Technician Recruiting & Retention
Assess your website from the candidates’ perspective.
Even though your shop’s website is mostly used to attract customers, 77% of job seekers visit a company’s website before applying. Once candidates are on your website, It’s important to give them a clear path to learn more about your shop as an employer. This page should be easy to find from your homepage or main navigation.
Once the candidate gets to your employer or career page, they should be able to see all the details about what it’s like to work at your shop including information about compensation, benefits, work environment, career development, hiring process, and more.
Toyota of Seattle makes it very easy for technicians to know where to go when they get to their website. They include a “Technician Careers” link in the main navigation of the website that can be seen on every single page of their site. This link leads to their WrenchWay Top Shop page which gives all the information candidates need to know before they apply.
Assess your social media from the candidates’ perspective.
Similar to your website, candidates are checking out your social media pages before they apply. In fact, 79% of job seekers use social media when conducting their job search. This is why it is so important to incorporate social posts that speak to potential candidates and show them why your shop is a great place to work.
Social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn are great places to get the attention of technicians that aren’t actively looking for jobs (e.g., passive candidates). Research shows that 85% of employed people say they are open to switching jobs, but only 18% of businesses are increasing their focus on passive candidates.
However, it’s important to remember that because these candidates aren’t necessarily looking for a job, your “We’re hiring!” posts are not going to hit home with them. Instead, shops need to focus on showing off why they’re a great place to work. Social posts around employee recognition, team events, new equipment, or cool jobs are going to catch a passive candidate’s attention far more than a job ad.
Work with local schools.
No one can say that we need more young people entering the industry. The majority of shops want to help, but struggle to find the time or aren’t sure how they can help.
Given the instructor shortage and budget restraints that today’s educators are facing, there are more opportunities than ever for shops to step up and give more support to their local schools.
To get started, shops should look up local high schools and post secondary schools that offer tech ed or auto classes. Most schools list contact information for all their teachers on their website. When reaching out to instructors, have some specific ideas in mind for how you can help out. Whether it’s shop tours, tool/equipment donations, or internships, instructors will be grateful for your help (and you’ll be top of mind as an employer after graduation for their students.)
Listen to your team.
There is no better way to find out the good, the bad, and the ugly about working at your shop than to ask your employees. Not only can this help you identify what you should be highlighting as an employer in your social posts and job ads, but it also helps with knowing what improvements can be made in your shop to help retain the technicians you have.
When it comes to surveying your employees, there are a few best practices shops can follow to get the most out of their feedback:
- Keep it short.
- Keep it anonymous.
- Review the results and follow-up actions taken with your team.
Research a potential process improvement.
Your shop should always be looking for areas to improve as an employer and increase the satisfaction levels of your employees… especially in this competitive market! Use your employee survey results as a starting point to look at potential areas for improvement. Then, look into different ways to improve in that area.
For example, maybe technicians in your shop are struggling to keep their tools up-to-date or are even in some tool debt. Discuss with your team and research different ways you can help take some of that burden off their shoulders. Present your findings to the team. Even if you can’t implement any changes immediately, explain why and when you plan to revisit this idea. Transparency goes a long way with employees.
Need Technicians? Address the Underlying Issues
Effective technician recruiting requires a deeper approach that goes beyond simply posting job ads. By enhancing your online presence, engaging with potential candidates on social media, collaborating with local schools, actively listening to your team, and continuously seeking process improvements, shops and dealerships can build a more robust recruiting and retention strategy. Implementing these five exercises can help address the underlying issues contributing to your own technician shortage, ensuring a more sustainable and successful future for your shop.
Want More? Download the Worksheets For These Exercises
Ready to give these exercises a try? We’ve made it really easy by creating some worksheets and guides to help you walk through each exercise. We also recorded a webinar on this topic if you’d like to learn more first.
