Building Sustainable Staffing Strategies in the Energy Sector

The Energy sector is a dynamic, established, immobile institution that is evolving quickly, all at the same time. But there is no denying the reality that the future of Energy will look different in the years to come. The key to longevity and future relevance hinges on an organization's ability to pivot, adapt and innovate. How can a company ensure they have the industry’s best talent resources to be competitive today and ensure the opportunity to continue to find success as the industry evolves? Working with an expert team to facilitate effective solutions to build a sustainable staffing strategy is key.

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Staffing Challenges In The Energy Sector 

According to the 2020 U.S. Energy & Employment Report, over 6.8 million Americans were employed in the Energy Industry in 2019. This includes traditional sectors like oil, gas, and coal and newer and emerging sectors like solar, wind, and biofuels. And from the same report staffing challenges were reported by nearly all as an ongoing concern.

“Just over 84 percent of employers across these sectors (84.4 percent) reported difficulty hiring qualified workers over the last 12 months, an increase of over 7 percentage points from 2018 and a total of 14 percentage points since 2017. Almost three-in-ten employers (29 percent) noted it was very difficult.” NASEO & EFI- 2020 U.S. Energy & Employment Report. National Association of State Energy Officials/ Energy Futures Initiative. 

Employers reported that inexperience, insufficient training, and inadequate technical skills were identified as the top reasons that companies are experiencing complex hiring challenges. The Energy Sector is in constant evolution.  It is clear that building a productive and sustainable workforce requires some targeted and effective strategies.

Workforce Sustainability

Positioning yourself to attract and retain a highly skilled, experienced, and productive workforce is essential for success. Here are some strategies your organization can employ to build a resilient and adaptable workforce:

1. Analyze your current workforce and operations: Identifying gaps in talent, weaknesses in productivity, and turnover rates can highlight challenges in your staffing methods. What skills do you need to fill out your organization’s capabilities? Is a full-time employee the best use of your payroll resources? Is your project flow interrupted with the integration of contract workers? Combine this insight with your mission, vision, and plans for growth to inform your strategies to develop staffing solutions that will build a robust workforce now that can carry your organization into the future. Don’t be shortsighted by hiring reactively or in a panic. A strong recruiting, hiring, and retention solution will ensure staffing is deliberate and intentional.
    
2. Curate your compensation: A sustainable workforce model includes attracting your industry’s top-level talent, fostering engagement to keep employees invested, and making space for new talent to integrate into your organization. To be competitive and positioned for future growth consider your compensation packages. Financial compensation should be on par with industry standards, but additional considerations like vacation pay, health benefits, professional development, and opportunities for advancement can make your organization more appealing to the best candidates now and establish your reputation as a preferred employer.
    
3. Create a strong culture: When building a team you absolutely need to consider skills, training, and experience. Ensuring you have the most accomplished personnel is important. But don’t neglect to consider the qualifications most vital to creating a cohesive and collaborative workforce. Employees who are adaptable, critical thinking, dependable, organized, motivated, tolerant, independent, persuasive, and persistent can bring more to your team dynamics and contribute to a positive workplace culture.
    
4. Focus on the people, not the profit: Cultivating a workplace where the focus is on the accomplishment and the recognition of the team or individual will naturally develop into an environment of success. When employees feel the importance of their role and that their contribution is seen and appreciated, they are more inclined to perform at their best. Focus your energies on employee engagement, encourage a healthy work-life balance, and reward performance to nurture individual and organizational achievement. 
    
5. Hire the best: A sustainable staffing plan in the Energy Sector requires targeting the industry’s top talent. The best employees will be highly skilled, forward-thinking, innovative, and adaptable. The best-recruiting strategy demands access to the best tools and technologies, proven industry networks, and a robust talent database. These resources can be difficult to access. Consider working with a talent acquisition agency with expertise in recruiting, screening, and placing a candidate who meets the specific needs of your organization.

Sustainable Staffing Strategies

Developing a strategy for a sustainable workforce for your Energy Sector organization can ensure productivity and workflow capacity today while laying the groundwork for adaptable, resilient, and reliable personnel resources for the future. Partnering with a staffing solutions provider like Wide Effect will bring the expertise of our proven processes for talent acquisition to you. A partnership with our expert team means you can leverage our staffing insights, industry knowledge, market analyses, extensive connections, vast talent database, and proven track record of successful placements. More than just hiring a new employee, we can provide innovative solutions that help you construct a workforce to build your manpower and your profitability. We are committed to the process from needs assessment to successful placement and beyond, ensuring that you have the skills and personalities your team needs to thrive and grow. Connect with our expert team and let us guide you with customized strategies to build a sustainable workforce for your organization.

FAQ's

 

How do I know if my staffing plan is sustainable? 

The team at Wide Effect can analyze your workforce for efficiency and efficacy, assess your plans for growth, and create a custom-designed staffing plan that will ensure you have sufficient labor resources now and a strategy to carry you forward.

How can I attract the most suitable employees to my team? 

Partnering with Wide Effect will give you access to the Energy Sector’s most reliable talent database. And with consideration to compensation, an appealing workplace culture, and an effective plan for building a sustainable workforce, your company will be sure to attract the industry’s most desirable employees.

Can you advise our existing recruiting team? 

Wide Effect is positioned to:

• Provide custom staffing solutions that inform your existing hiring team
• Integrate seamlessly into your organization to assist in developing and executing staffing strategies
• Completely assume recruiting and placement with our RPO solutions