By clearly defining objectives, your company can attract the ideal talent for each type of task.In a post-pandemic world, employers will need to reevaluate their workforce needs and ensure they have the right mix of employees to meet the new demands of the business landscape.
Employers should recognize the common themes that expose what people value, or dislike, most about a career. While an attractive salary may have been enough to keep people in a position despite a terrible boss in the past, that is no longer the case.
Unconditional flexibility is one of the most important reasons for employees to stay. In contrast, uncaring and uninspiring leaders were among the top reasons workers left their positions, along with a lack of professional development opportunities. Flexibility is also one of the most significant motivators for employees as the following image from McKinsey Quarterly shows:
McKinsey Quarterly ReportFor this, many companies create a semi-fictitious representation of their ideal candidates, called an Employee Persona.
What is an Employee Persona?
An employee persona is a model used to identify different personality types in the workplace. This can be helpful when recruiting, as it allows you to understand better the preferences and needs of every kind of employee.
You can choose to create a person in depth (with their personal needs and skills) or a more superficial one (based on their professional skills).
Still, the most important thing is clearly defining their objectives within your company to attract the ideal talent for each type of task.
6 Types of Employees Personas
Six types of Employee Personas often come up in the recruiting process. Each persona has different preferences and needs, so it's essential to know which type of employee you're dealing with when recruiting.
Let´s have a look at them:
1. The Innovator
This type of employee is always looking for new ways to do things and is always open to trying new ideas. They are often the first to adopt new technologies and always look for ways to improve efficiency.
Most innovators are young people and value flexibility in the workplace and the inclusion of technological processes that streamline work operations. They are motivated to work for themselves, so flexibility is non-negotiable.
Attracting this type of talent can be challenging, as companies must show them that they offer them the freedom they crave, a sense of purpose, and competitive financial compensation.
A great way to motivate them is through modularized work, giving them meaningful tasks that they can perform independently and using the most efficient and innovative resources.
2. The Idealist
Idealists are primarily young, ranging in age from 18 to 24, and most are students or part-time workers.
With few dependents, mortgages, or other obligations weighing them down, this group prioritizes flexibility, career advancement and opportunity, meaningful work, and a community of trustworthy and encouraging individuals. Compensation is far lower on their priority list.
3. The Traditionalist
The traditionalist often feels most comfortable with tried-and-true methods. They may resist change but typically understand how things have always been done.
Traditionalists are oriented towards growth in their careers, and they care a lot about work-life balance. However, they are willing to make job concessions only if it positively impacts their professional growth.
This type of Employee Persona is often attracted to full-time jobs at large corporations in exchange for competitive compensation and benefits, company status, job growth, and recognition.
Companies tend to like people with a traditional mindset, as they are easier to find and hire through common strategies. Unfortunately, today these types of people are less and less common.
4. The Analytical Thinker
This type of Employee Persona always looks for data to support their decisions. They are often very detail-oriented and strive to create logical and efficient systems.
Analytical Thinkers like having all the relevant facts before making any decisions. They value data, especially quantitative data; they tend to have a test-and-analyze mentality before leaning for or against a mechanism or feature.
A great way to motivate this type of employee is by giving them the time to be analytical; through projects and roles where decision-making is done carefully and thoughtfully.
5. The Problem-solver
They are often creative and resourceful and thrive in environments where they can use their skills to make a difference.
Problem solvers love job puzzles. They tend to work with low volumes of work, which allows them to concentrate better on solving mysteries.
This type of Employee Persona highly values managing their own time since they can take and drop projects until they solve their problems; they tend to be oriented to specific results and work for particular goals.
6. The Change-maker
The change-maker is always looking for ways to improve the status quo. They are unafraid of change and often thrive in environments where they can implement their vision.
Changemakers are curious explorers; they like to look for information from non-obvious sources, so they propose significant changes in old-fashioned or obsolete work methodologies.
This kind of persona is collaborative and involves people, clients, and everything that has to do with work to drive business growth. They like to try new mechanisms and are often aligned with the needs of the business to ensure that the changes work perfectly.
Change-makers are motivated to lead teams and to be allowed to establish changes in the direction of projects or methods; they seek to create value and are excited to solve big problems that make a difference.
Creating Personas to Reach Your Ideal Candidate
As with the Buyer Persona, there are many types of Employee Persona, and each one adapts to the role or profile they will fulfill in the company. The important thing when developing your candidate is to make sure that this profile can cover your business’s needs.
The more specific your definition of the Employee Persona can be, the better you will get to know them; As you get to know them better, you will learn how to attract them more appropriately and give them precise instructions based on their way of working, to achieve the expected results.
Feedback from candidates who reject or accept jobs is also a great tool to learn about their primary motivations (inside and outside the company), which will help you better profile the position and the benefits.
Now that you know how to identify Employee Personas, it's time to start creating job postings based on your ideal candidates, ambitions, and motivations.
