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Understanding the Employer
Mindset:
What Service-Providers Need to Know
In sales, it’s called market
research; putting yourself in the shoes of consumers and getting well acquainted
with their likes and dislikes. After all, unless you know who your target market
is, how can you make them buy your product? While service provision is less
technical than merchandise commerce, the principle is the same. If you want to
‘sell’ your customers, you’ve got to get to know your employers. More
importantly, you’ve got to think the way they think!
Why go into
the employer mindset?
First, it can help you anticipate
employers’ needs. Employers like to deal with service providers who understand
their bottom line. Whether it’s profit, branding or sustainable development,
their needs factor into every decision they make. If you can prove you can solve
their problem, preferably even before they verbalize it, you have a greater
chance of hearing ‘yes.’
Second, getting into the employer mindset can
facilitate relationship-building with the employer community. You can deal with
employers as an outsider or you can prove that you’re ‘one of the boys (or
girls).’ If employers feel that you’re not foreign to the system, you have a
better chance of getting heard.
How can you get in the employer
mindset? Consider the following ways:
Research
Familiarize yourself with industries in general, and companies in
particular. Sectors vary in what’s important to them. For instance, there are
industries like software development that are heavily reliant on innovation. For
these employers, why not stress your customers’ creativity? Match your customer
profile with employer needs (or sponsor customer trainings on in-demand skills).
Information on products made, services provided, target markets, business
structure, vision-mission and competitive advantage among other things make for
qualified proposals.
Companies also get affected by changes in the
economy and business trends, such as the recent recession and outsourcing. You
want to know beforehand what you’re up against so that you can craft rebuttals
to potential objections. You can even update employers with trends they’re not
aware of yet!
Where can you find good research materials? Start with
business magazines and trade journals; many are available online. The best ones
include Fortune, BusinessWeek, Harvard Business Review, HR Magazine, Forbes and
The Economist. For news and analysis that’s particular to your state or town,
subscribe to local newspapers. You can also try corporate websites.
Ask Your Employer Community
Why take second hand
information? Go to the source! The great thing about being a service provider is
their are many opportunities to dialogue with employers. You talk to employers
every time you submit a proposal, start a new program or evaluate success. Why
not sneak in a question or two about what’s important to them?
If you
want to be more systematic, employ formal and informal survey methods. Develop a
list of questions to send through email, regular mail or to ask in person or
over the telephone. You may even organize a focused group discussion. Ask
employers how you can best serve them. By asking directly, you take the
guesswork out of matching services to your customer’s needs.
Be Active in the Community
Make sure employers see you not
just during times when you want something! Be visible and relevant. Establish a
solid network and actively weave your way through it. Your exposure will train
you to appreciate the way employers do things--- and get them to appreciate the
way you do things.
Consider joining groups such as the Society for Human
Resource Management (SHRM), the local Chamber of Commerce or even specialized
groups such as women in business, young professional organizations and minority
networking groups. Attend or join conferences, forums, focus groups, committees,
and even in social activities. If you have several individuals within your
organization, designate a person to participate in a specific group.
If
you can’t be active in person, at least join e-groups and mailing lists. This
can help you get updated on employer concerns and establish your presence within
their circle.
Conducting research, posing questions and being active in
the employer community may feel superfluous, even outside of your job
description as a workforce service provider. But it’s a natural investment to
effectively accomplishing the task of matching great communities with great
opportunities.
Would you like to reprint this article?
You may as long as you include this blurb in its entirety:
Lisa Jordan
is a disability and workforce development expert. Lisa uses her keen
ability to
identify challenges and develop solutions so
that workforce development professionals can increase their comfort level,
productivity and effectiveness when working with a diverse clientele.
Download Lisa’s White Paper on 5 Easy Disability Tips to Immediately Increase
Agency Accessibility by visiting
http://www.human-solutions.net.
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