Old timers need to think through what has “always worked” since that no longer works to fill the holes in staffing.
Much work and discussion have been done to solve the desperate lack of staffing pools. The solutions that have come out don’t seem to be working. Company leaders need to compete with the ‘side hustle’ and ‘influencer’ attraction for the same young staff they need that are seduced by the social media opportunities that appear here to stay. Company leaders need to focus on their core values and what makes them stand out above the competition, and that is not “because we are great, the best, and so on.” They should strive to create a culture of collaboration, innovation, and growth that employees can relate to. This is not easy, but we can discuss alternative means of working on this problem.
Ask yourself whether you would crawl around a hot dirty space in the frigid cold or scorching heat or stay home in your parent’s house and make trending videos. Neither of these scenarios is for everyone, but the idea is valid.
This blog article is related to another. Read more about this topic here.
Consider building meaningful relationships with team members by offering them more than just paycheck and benefits – such as mentorship opportunities, job enrichment, and career development. Finally, they should recognize and reward those who go above and beyond in their work, developing a true sense of belonging for their employees and making them feel valued and appreciated.
Only a small percentage of staff will stick out 5+ year careers in the HVAC business. Consider offering career incentives such as HVAC career development, nursing, aviation, and more. Young personalities don’t want to be trapped!
This perk can also provide staff access to resources, such as online education and training modules, or create opportunities to attend conferences or seminars relevant to their industry. I once worked for an HVAC school or two that went out of its way to prevent the instructors from attending worthwhile conferences to expand their horizons. The school probably considered the conferences as competitions.
By investing in their employees’ growth, companies can help ensure that their staff remains engaged and motivated and that their skills remain relevant in an ever-changing business landscape. By following these steps, companies can create a workplace culture where their employees feel valued, appreciated, and growing – leading to higher retention rates, greater productivity, and improved customer satisfaction.
Nothing is more demoralizing than to have a customer train your technician.
With a focus on meaningful relationships, career growth opportunities, recognition, and reward programs, companies can create a work culture that encourages employees to stay and grow with them long-term. This will benefit the company’s bottom line and its reputation within the industry. To maintain this competitive edge in the recruitment market, company leaders must continue to revise their strategies and adjust as needed.
We need HVAC employees – where can we find them?
Plenty of old-timer myths exist about how to do this. I’ll share some examples.
- Do a raid on someone else’s company. Suppose a technician or installer is willing to quit and move to your company for a few dollars and a newer truck. In that case, they will eventually quit your company and keep migrating. This is the way to go if you want to start a war of fictional online bad reviews or become the victim of a reverse raid on your company.
- Make beautiful ads to attract qualified technicians. A quick Google search confirms that the only ones that come out on top of this process are Google and the resume site that you paid to advertise on. We agree that these sites are great for producing candidates of some sort. Still, we must emulate what works where the desired employee candidate is hanging out. It is probably not a job board.
- Use a recruiter to find qualified candidates. Keep reading below. Don’t you think that recruiters will have the same problem you do?
An internet search of recruiting companies tells us wages are $18 to $36 per hour.
- At $36.00 per hour, a 160-hour month translates to:
- Wages: $5,760
- After 30% withholdings: $4,032 per month net
In too many cities, a family of 3 or 4 has to watch every dollar to make it; at $36.00 per hour. The problem is that a new employee looking to bust into the HVAC business will make ½ or less of that much money. Where is the career?
There are lots of circus announcers calling, “create a masterclass, sell it for $5.99, and I’ll teach you how to make $3,000,000 in your first year of working a few hours per day.”
Remember that with the rapid and substantial technological changes, the current technician might not be nearly up to date and not nearly as marketable as you might think. Without going off on a tangent, HVAC/R techs have long relied on YouTube videos and supply house seminars (with donuts and coffee, maybe a hotdog) for their information. Information is not the same as structured training.
Many industries use a metric called “recency of experience or training.” Being industry certified 10 years ago or attending a seminar on a topic are not remotely relevant skills to compete (and pay wages) for. It also probably demonstrates the “experienced” candidate is not interested in staying up to date. We’ve heard from the industry certifiers that they all require continuing education, so their certified technicians are “always up to speed.” The truth is that continuing education can’t be solved with hot dog seminars at suppliers or online events that can’t track attendance.
Below are just two examples of other industries of continuing education that succeed.
- Aircraft pilots sit next to someone and experience real scenarios relating to basic skills and the equipment they will operate. If they pass, they can continue working. If not, they need to move along to another industry.
- Medical persons at nearly every level sit in a classroom and pass competency exams to be credited for continuing education.
Emulating what’s working in the social media world might help our staffing problems in the HVAC/R industry.
Two example solutions that are working are the following:
- The airline industry struggles to find new pilots who will spend the better part of $100,000 of their own money to graduate and earn under $40,000 to start while under intense scrutiny that could end their career instantly.
To combat these constraints, airlines have instituted internal training systems that produce safe pilots eligible to work for the training airline upon graduation. The airline perks of free travel, free family travel, and extensive hotel discount programs keep the schools busy. The added attraction is that this could eventually lead to a highly respected career, travel fun, and respect of your peers. - The HVAC industry has built company-based training programs to mentor new employees from day one of the company’s culture they will work for. Online academics with hands-on training in the field are working well.Hands-on training on equipment in a lab that is unrecognizable from an existing system is not a solution.The HVAC/R industry has not traditionally offered significant perks other than the typical 401k, medical insurance, and x number of sick days per year. These perks do not offer any natural attraction to work in the industry for younger persons needed to fill the pool. True that older persons will find these benefits attractive, but that is not who can solve the staffing levels.
