How Setting Short and Long-Term Goals Can Improve Employee Experience

Employee experience involves how and why things get done at work. This includes every touchpoint your employees have throughout their time working for your company.

A positive work environment, meaningful work, and supportive management contribute to a great employee experience. Trust in leadership and growth opportunities are important as well.

One way to elevate employee experience is through collaborative goal-setting. This provides your employees a say in what they work toward and the targets they aim for.

Collaborative goal setting encompasses the aspects mentioned above that contribute to an attractive employee experience. These are reasons why you should begin setting goals with your employees today.

Discover how collaborative goal-setting helps improve the employee experience.

Goal Setting Impacts Career Success

Helping your employees understand what they are working toward and why it matters impacts job satisfaction.

  • Having clear reasons to reach their goals gives your employees motivation, especially during difficult times.
  • Establishing the steps needed to reach their goals maps out which actions employees should take and when.
  • Setting milestones lets your employees know how successful they are in making progress toward their goals.
  • Celebrating your employees’ successes provides encouragement to continue moving forward.

Achievement of Short- and Long-Term Goals Improves Retention

Employees usually need to achieve a series of short-term goals in order to reach their long-term goals.

  • Short-term goals typically take 6 months to 3 years to attain.
  • Long-term goals typically take 3 to 5 years to achieve.
  • The more short-term goals your employees reach, the more encouraged they are to build on their successes.
  • The more long-term goals your employees reach, the more likely they are to remain with your organization.

Creation of SMART Goals Impacts Accomplishments

Work with your employees to develop specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, time-bound (SMART) goals.

  • Clarify exactly what each employee is working toward, so they know when they successfully reach it.
  • Include numbers or other hard data to measure success.
  • Make sure each goal can be obtained through the steps created and within the given timeframe.
  • Tie each goal to your company goals.
  • Ensure each goal can be achieved in the established time period.
  • Schedule regular check-ins with your employees to determine their progress. Talk about where they are at and where they should be.
  • Give praise when appropriate. Provide guidance to get back on track when necessary.

Looking for Accounting and Finance Talent?

Helping your employees set and attain short- and long-term goals enhances employee experience. When your employees understand the reasoning behind the targets they are working to reach, your employees are more likely to continue making progress toward their objectives. This helps increase engagement and retention rates.

If you are looking for accounting and finance talent, talk with Casey Accounting & Finance Resources. Reach out to find out more today.

What Can You Do to Overcome the Skills Gap in Tax Employees?

According to the 2016 American Staffing Association’s Skills Gap Index, one of the hardest positions to fill is that of a tax preparer. With baby boomers retiring and millennials not stepping into tax preparation roles, it’s increasingly challenging finding workers to fill those positions. Fortunately, there are steps companies can take to find qualified candidates. Here are three ways you can overcome the skills gap in tax employees.

Change Position Duties

Because these workers have specialized skills, let them focus more on completing tasks only they can perform and assigning additional responsibilities to other accountants. When tax preparers have more time to focus on areas they excel in, they’re more likely to want to work for your company, stay engaged in their tasks, produce higher quality output and remain with your organization longer.

Train Candidates

Focus more on attitude and aptitude than on experience when searching for candidates. This is especially important when considering recent graduates with little job experience. They’ll be eager to add to their skill sets, quick to adapt and more likely to work for less pay in exchange for on-the-job training. You may also cross-train or promote employees within your organization who express an interest in becoming tax preparers. Because your staff members already know their co-workers and have inside knowledge of your company, more time would be focused on training than on acclimating to your workplace. Your employees would be more productive in a shorter amount of time and begin benefitting your organization sooner.

Provide Increased Income

Research what the current salary range is in your area, then offer a bit more than average. Consider what skills and experience each candidate has to offer, how many employees you have to pay and what laws affect their income before deciding on final numbers. In addition, think about future bonuses and raises you may have to offer to stay competitive. Furthermore, consider the cost of benefits such as health insurance, retirement plans with company match and PTO. Think about perks such as a flexible schedule, working remotely and participating in an employee wellness program. All of these factors will affect how competitive your compensation package is.

Work With a Top Accounting Recruiter in Chicago

For help with filling your accounting roles, reach out to Casey Accounting & Finance Resources and partner with a top accounting recruiter in Chicago.

The Most Important Part of Your Job Negotiation

Job negotiations take much time and effort. You have to be prepared to ask for what you want and know what you won’t settle for. Because the process can be daunting, it’s important you have a plan in place before your interview. Here are four parts of your job negotiation you’ll want to focus on.

Research

Uncover all you can about the company and its typical salaries and benefits options for your department and role. Find facts and statistics you can use in your favor to build a case for getting what you want. Have set goals for receiving what you desire. Plan ways in which you may fill your needs and how you may respond to a counteroffer. Ensure you know which areas you’re set on and which are flexible. Showing you performed solid research increases your chances of receiving a more attractive offer.

Salary  

Go online to research the current range for your position in both your industry and geographic area. Talk with local recruiters to see what numbers they give you. When you’re ready to negotiate, start with the top number in your salary range. The interviewer will probably negotiate you down, so leave plenty of room to find an agreeable number. Justify your request by pointing out specific ways you increased revenue or decreased expenses for previous employers and how you may do the same for your new employer. Ensure you know what salary is too low to fit your needs. If that amount becomes the final offer, be willing to walk away.

Benefits

If you agree to a lower salary, try making up for the value with benefits and perks. For example, you may obtain health insurance, gain a matching contribution for your retirement plan or secure a signing bonus. You might be able to gain additional vacation days, have a flexible schedule, or work remotely. Perhaps you’ll obtain opportunities for growth and promotion, support for ongoing education or reimbursement for tuition.

Navigation

Because you have more power when the interviewer sees where you’re coming from, ensure you do all you can to help them understand your position. For example, give concrete reasons why you’re worth the salary you’re requesting, including quantifiable ways you helped prior employers and can do the same for your new employer. Show you sincerely want to work for the organization and that it’s worth the extra effort negotiating with you. Point out the options you have as leverage and under which conditions you’d be willing to leave those options and accept an offer. Understand the interviewer’s concerns, such as a salary cap, so you can agree on an offer that suits everyone’s interests.

Partner With a Top Finance Recruiter in Chicago

For help securing your next accounting or finance position, contact Casey Accounting & Finance Resources to work with a top finance recruiter in Chicago!

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Where Did All the Candidates Go? What to do In a Candidate-Driven Marketplace

Finding the right candidates for your company’s available positions can be difficult enough in a normal marketplace. But, when the marketplace is driven by candidates, the search can be downright challenging. In a candidate driven marketplace, you will find that the pool of qualified employees shrinks very quickly. When this happens, you need to have a plan in place to find an employee for your open job.

Here’s how to find and recruit the best employees in a candidate-driven job market.

Appeal to the Candidate’s Lifestyle

An excellent way to compete in a candidate-driven marketplace is to appeal to the lifestyle of the candidate. Aside from offering an excellent compensation package, offer an employee incentive program that rewards employees for their hard work and dedication to help them achieve their dreams. Also consider offering flexible scheduling so your employees are better able to balance their life outside of the office.

Become a Desired Employer

In order to compete in a candidate-driven marketplace, you will need to become a desired employer. This can be done by promising your employees a place that allows them the chance to build a long-term career. Do not become a company that is just a stop-over for employees as they move up the corporate ladder. Instead, become a company that encourages employees to stay the length of their careers, finishing up in top leadership positions.  Provide mentorship and training opportunities to develop your employees.

Focus on an Attractive Culture

The culture at your company needs to be as positive as possible if you want to compete for the best candidates in a candidate driven marketplace. Candidates from Generation Y want to work in an office setting that has a positive culture. They thrive off the atmosphere and want to have co-workers with whom they can get along with and have great interactions with while working together.  When you develop an attractive culture, you will be able to bring in some of the most talented candidates in the marketplace.

Look Outside the Box

When you are really struggling to find candidates in a candidate-driven marketplace, consider looking outside the box. Think about hiring entrepreneurs who might be looking to come back to a corporate setting, parents who took time off to raise children, or people who took time off to earn a second or third degree. They will be just as eager to succeed and will bring a wealth of knowledge to your company.

Find Out What Candidates REALLY Want

When interviewing candidates for open jobs, you need to find out what it is they are looking for in their career. Place emphasis on the career goals of the candidates and what their individual ambitions are. When you find this out, you can do your best to make their career dreams attainable.

In a candidate-driven marketplace, a company needs to put in an 110 percent effort in order to find qualified employees for open jobs. If your company uses the information from this post, then finding a strong candidate should not be an issue.

Casey Resources provides a number of services for clients and candidates to be successful in their job search. Contact a leading staffing firm in Chicago to learn more  today.