How to Attract, Hire, and KEEP Amazing Staff
Finding staff right now can be really challenging. How do we find the right staff? It all starts with how we attract the right people to come to us.
In any position that we want to fill, we need to think about the intention of that position, the heart, and who is it that we want the person to be. If you are looking for a front desk person who is going to be the heartbeat of your studio, the first connection with families. You are envisioning this person to be that person to give them the warm fuzzies.
What are their attributes?
What is their personality?
What is it that they are bringing to the table, right? For you and your studio?
What are the values you’d like them to have?
What would make them the ideal candidate?
This is really about the heart. So it starts with thinking up and imagining who it is that you want to fill this position first. Now, give this position a title that reflects these feelings (for example: instead of Operations Manager, they are your Studio Concierge).
To attract the right candidates, we have to be clear about who we want to come to our studio.
Next: They have to go through the hiring process – the full hiring process. Do not skip steps, because when you skip is when problems arise down the road. Be slow What do I mean by that? I am slow to hire. I take my time. I am methodical about the hiring process. For us, they have to go through the process.
They have to apply through our application process. Then we're going to do a Zoom interview, a short Zoom interview to get eyes on them. This helps us see how they're showing up and how they present themself.
Then, before they move on to the next round, I give them a task and a due date. Usually, I tell them I would love for you to do the 5 Love Languages Assessment and I need it back to me within 48 hours, just copy and paste the results and send those to me in an email. Deadlines are important to me. If you cannot meet a deadline during your application process, That is an indicator that you will not meet deadlines down the road, whether it's cutting music, or getting me choreography.
The next step is what I call a working interview, where they come in and take on some of the tasks that they are being hired for. If it’s a teacher, we go into a classroom for a class. They can see how we teach and make sure it's a good fit for them.
If they did great during that working interview, then we do move on to another interview. We dive in a little deeper. This is me and one other person in my studio because I want others' perceptions on our new hire.
All this might sound like a lot of work, but believe me, it is so, so worth it to take the time to properly vet them as much as possible and mitigate the risk.
Once we've made the offer and they have accepted to have a really great onboarding and training process. Early on, set them up for success and make sure that what they do in their position aligns with your values and that everybody feels confident in their role before being left alone.
As a Studio Owner, you have to do your job as a leader to keep your staff for as long as they are meant to be part of your studio or part of your business. We as leaders, as the studio owner, have to come from a place where we are showing up as a coach and a mentor first to our staff. This is crucial to building loyalty. When you invest in coaching and mentoring your staff, not only will your staff retention rates increase, it will impact your student retention rates. Happy staff equals happy students - and parents!
