Team Building Brings Big Thrills
Every year, Gaughan Companies hosts an annual team building event for all of its employees. This year, we took a day during the week to go to Big Thrill Factory in Oakdale with the whole company.
After an address from the company president, Patrick Gaughan, the attendees ate lunch and gathered into smaller groups in order to connect one-on-one with their coworkers. Our staff is growing, and with many of them at locations throughout the Twin Cities, it is important for us to take the time for these team building activities.
We participated in activities like go karts, laser tag, a ropes course, indoor zip line, and other events, like the Gaughan Jeopardy game. The atmosphere was filled with good spirits and friendly competition!
We appreciate our employees and all that they do for our company and our community. We are blessed to have a wonderful group to work with!
Gaughan Team Meets Future Employees at Career Fair
This week, our team hosted a booth at the Dunwoody College of Technology Construction Sciences Career Fair. We were able to meet students from many different majors and converse with college faculty and staff.
We enjoy attending the Dunwoody Career Fair ever year. Hearing about the students’ future goals is so exciting! We are proud of everyone for working so hard toward those goals. We wish you all the luck on your future endeavors!
If you are interested in applying for a position at Gaughan Companies, visit our career page or contact a member of our Human Resources team.
Employee Attraction and Retention Tools
We all know someone who loves or hates their workplace. Every day, thousands of workers quit one job only to rush to another one for any number of reasons. Let’s take a look at what companies are doing to attract and retain talent.
Most people think of money when they consider a new job. Questions often pondered are, “Will this increase in salary improve my living conditions,” or maybe, “Will this new salary be enough to support a move to the neighborhood I’m eyeing?”
Although salary is a huge draw, there are many other things that companies are using to lure the best talent. After a prospective employee is decided upon, the company will consider where that future employee is currently living. If he or she isn’t within an hour’s drive of the office, it’s time to consider a relocation package.
A good relocation package will pay for a percentage of closing costs on both the old home and the new one. It will often pay for movers, and if the employee needs to report onsite before his or her family can arrive, then the company may also pay for temporary housing.
In addition to these items, a company needs to consider the overall health and well-being of the employee. Paid time off, offering good medical insurance, dental and vision, short and long term disability plans, profit sharing and 401K plans should be part of each company’s benefits package.
Some companies are large enough to include a workout area in their plaza. Others may staff this area with health and fitness promotion workers who can offer suggestions for diet and workout programs in order to improve the health of the employees.
After the employee is acclimated to the new job, a challenge lies in trying to keep the employee happy at work. A good company recognizes that their workers are human and that things come up, such as having a child get sick or repairs needing to be done at home.
Flex time or telecommuting is a nice plus. Some employees can’t always be at the office from 8-5. If management can offer a small flex work or telecommuting schedule, the employee can still see to his or her personal needs without having to call in or take a personal vacation day.
Having a great relationship with an immediate supervisor and manager is key to an employee’s happiness. A good company will empower an employee to make certain business decisions up to a point. If a supervisor needs to have the final word, then it’s important that this person be accessible whenever needed. It’s also important that the supervisor supports the employee when dealing with other in-house departments and the public.
In addition, the best companies go a step further and reward employees who put forth their best efforts. If an annual bonus is offered, it is often based on performance review. A good company will hold weekly one-on-ones between supervisor and employee so that the employee understands how well he or she is doing in the position.
Besides an annual bonus, a company that focuses on employee retention may also have programs such as internal recognition or employee recognition day. These companies also realize that if it’s possible to promote within, then they should do so. Otherwise, their employees may feel that they’ve been overlooked and will want to head for another place where they will feel appreciated.
Finally, continuous improvement is another effective employee retention tool. A company may offer to pay a part or the entirety of classes at the college level that will aid a worker in his or her job. The company will also offer in-house training and some will even give workers a chance to take classes on-site or intern in other departments for a few weeks.
Changing jobs or keeping the one you have is always challenging. Everyone wants to make sure that he or she is getting the most value in exchange for his or her efforts. The best companies will recognize and respond to this and will go out of their way to promote employee retention. As a result, their bottom line looks great and their workers are happy, which creates a positive workplace.
Gaughan Companies is committed to building strong communities and creating good relationships within those communities. That includes our workplace. Our core values are honesty / integrity, priority focused / accountable, positive / solution-based, strong communication, and hardworking.
-Patrick Gaughan
