Are Women Business Owners Afraid to Hire Employees?
Small Business Owners Are Not Hiring
First, most small business owners are not planning to hire. Over the next 12 months, just 28 percent of women and 33 percent of men plan to hire employees,
while 63 percent of women and 56 percent of men plan to keep their staff levels the same.
Those who are hiring have varying reasons for doing so. Overall, men are slightly more likely to hire due to an increase in business (33 percent of men vs. 29 percent of women). But men are more likely to be forward-thinking in their hiring. For example, 23 percent of men vs. 15 percent of women are hiring to bring new or different skills to the business, and 17 percent of men vs. just 7 percent of women say they are hiring to adapt to a change in the business environment, such as mobile or digital.
Overall, men are at least 5 percentage points more likely than women to hire employees in order to adapt to a new business environment, particularly in roles involving mobile, social media, business development, financial, HR or marketing.
What makes these differences even more interesting is that men are more likely than women to say finding qualified employees is difficult (50 percent of men vs. 41 percent of women). Conversely more women say finding qualified candidates is easy (23 percent of women vs. 15 percent of men).
Important Lessons for Women Business Owners
Be Proactive, Not Reactive
If you see a change coming that affects your business, such as the growth of mobile marketing, consider hiring people who can get your business out in front of the trend instead of trailing behind.
Be Willing to Spend
Money talks. No matter how many surveys say that “soft” perks like flextime matter more, the reality is no one ever turned down a job because the salary was too high.
If you truly can’t afford competitive pay, at least consider offering performance-based bonuses or other financial incentives to attract and retain employees.
Build a Bench of Contractors
The memories of having to lay off employees during the recession are still fresh and painful to many entrepreneurs. If you dread hiring because you can’t bear the thought of layoffs, cover your bases by building a bench of talented freelancers and independent contractors who can help you capitalize on trends and beat your competition.
Read the full article at: smallbiztrends
Patty Block, President and Founder of The Block Group, established her company to advocate for women-owned businesses, helping them position their companies for strategic growth. Charting the course for impactful, sustainable, profitable businesses, the beacon is control: of your strategic direction, your money, your time, your staffing, and your ability to bring in business. The Block Group brings together the people, resources and ideas that build result
Growth for women-owned businesses.
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