Is talent scarcity impacting your business?
It seems everyone is struggling with finding and retaining staff in the technology market today. The talent scarcity challenge is slowing down growth and delaying major projects across all industries, but technology, and especially cloud native projects, seem to be suffering the most.
There are a record number of jobs available. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, there were 11.4 Million Job openings at the end of April, with 244,000 of those in the area of Information Technology.
In this market it's incredibly difficult to find good people with the right skills, and when you do they have so many options that it's hard to keep them interested and onboard.
One of the promises we make at Mirantis is that we will provide cloud native experts to support you when and where you need them. To make that happen, we have been very successful in growing and retaining our support and engineering staff, as well as providing engineering support to our customers to help them with their cloud native projects.
To put the proverbial “money where our mouth is,” here are a few statistics from our own experiences. In the last year we have experienced approximately 7% attrition across a division of roughly 350 people, where despite our best efforts people have moved on to new roles elsewhere. In relation to this we have seen around 6% where staff have taken the opportunity to move to new roles within the company. The opportunity for staff to move internally has ensured that we keep the skills and tribal learning in the company and are able to leverage these great people in other capacities.
We often get asked by our customers how we find and retain such great people, and the honest answer is that we struggle with many of the same challenges that you do. That said we do have a few things that we do that have led to our success.
First off, we accept that we're not immune, but feel that it's about preparation. Here are some things we want to keep in mind:
You should have a strong growth or "build your own talent" plan.
Invest in grad programs to find and grow good people early
Make sure employees have access to proper mentorship programs and support
You need to be somewhat competitive in the market. You don't have to pay the best in the industry but you need to be relevant; it's just a reality.
Look at new emerging markets or new talent, and feed the “build your talent” machine
The rest is just basic good people management.
Create a good work environment
Give people room to grow (there is always a next step)
Let them explore new technologies all the time through education and a diversity of engagements
Keep them engaged and connected with goals
Ensure flexibility in the role (it’s all about give and take)
Creating a supportive environment and ensuring that staff who do leave the company exit on very positive terms means that they will act as good word of mouth advocates for working at Mirantis. We also see a significant number of people applying to come back and work for Mirantis again.
In summary, it’s about investing in your people early and continuing to invest in them, both in their technical skills and their personal growth. Then, help them feel connected and invested in the success of the company and the people they work with.
August 4, 2022
So many people have been leaving their jobs that the phenomenon has a name: The Great Resignation. It means that not only is it difficult to stand out and attract quality candidates, when you do get to hire them, it's difficult to keep them onboard.
Mirantis provides cloud native experts when and where you need them, so we've had to work hard to solve this problem. Join Mirantis Global Field CTO Shaun O'Meara and VP of Customer Success Willem du Plessis as they discuss the issues that make staffing difficult and ways to mitigate and solve these problems to attract and retain the talent you need to move your business forward.
If you would like to learn more about how we can help you and your cloud native initiatives, please contact us.
