The 2014-15 Workforce Study, conducted by Vail Valley Economic Development (part of Vail Valley Partnership), shows business owners and managers continue to maintain good confidence about the economy in general and their own business health. The predictions for the upcoming year continue to generally show an optimistic outlook. The study of local businesses has been remarkably predictive of our local economy over the years and is reason for continued optimism for our economy.
That doesn’t mean we don’t have our challenges; respondents were asked to rate their company’s experience in finding the employees it needs, and 2014-15 saw a fourth yearly increase that shows more than half of the businesses have current vacancies. Those that say their experience finding employees was “terrible” or “poor” increased from 9% to 19%, while those that say finding suitable employees was “good” or “excellent” decreased from 54% to 42%.
The days of easy hiring seem to have peaked in 2010-11 at the height of the recession. In 2014-15, only 9% of businesses reported that they can fill positions in a week and 55% reported 2-4 weeks, a decline over the previous year. Those that indicated 2-3 months rose to 29% and those reporting 4 or months increased to 7%.
The problem isn’t only related to our seasonal workforce. Appropriate talent for technical, managerial or otherwise specialized positions often doesn’t exist within our local workforce. Because of this, many firms across Eagle County and the Vail Valley are forced to recruit and hire individuals from outside the area to fill these positions. Outside recruitment and hiring comes with a number of risks including: increased timelines to fill open positions, increased hiring costs and relocation expenses and long-term employee retention challenges.
Compounding these risks is the fact that professionals new to the area often bring along a “trailing spouse,” a husband, wife, or partner – thrilled to move to the mountains, but left without a career. Satisfying dual income needs can be difficult, particularly in our small trade area, but it is crucial to effective employee recruitment and retention.
These factors conspire to create a vicious cycle of lengthy job vacancies as evidenced by the workforce study results, thus escalating hiring costs and poor retention, all of which have negative impacts on Eagle County businesses.
It’s not all doom & gloom. Vail Valley Economic Development, in collaboration with High Country Human Resources Association has created MyPartner Career Network (MPCN) to directly address some of these challenges MyPartner Career Network makes it easier for local businesses to recruit and retain great employees by helping find employment, when needed, for spouses or partners of prospective employees to help their families better integrate into our community.
Employees may hesitate to relocate to the Vail Valley in-part because their partner might struggle to find suitable employment. Newly hired employees from outside the region are more likely to stay for the long haul when their spouse or partner can also find a satisfying career.
Vail Valley Partnership (VVP) and High Country Human Resources Association (HCHRA) members are eligible to participate in MyPartner Career Network. MPCN’s goal is to reduce time, cost and risks of hiring for Vail Valley companies. This program is free to VVP and HCHRA member-employers looking to hire for specialized positions that may be difficult to fill locally. To participate or learn more:
- VVP/HCHRA members must opt-in to participate: Contact Jeremy Rietmann at jrietmann@visitvailvalley.com or 970-477-4012 to sign up. Business contact information remains confidential.
- Complete the online form found on the program page at VailValleyMeansBusiness.com, and submit the resume of a spouse or partner of a new employee at your organization who will be relocating here or has relocated here in the past quarter.
- Vail Valley Partnership will deliver the resume to all VVP/HCHRA members who have opted-in to participate in the program.
- Participating businesses agree to provide a “priority review” of all resumes received through MyPartner Career Network and are strongly encouraged to make an introduction for the candidate to someone relevant within our community that might assist in their job search.
If your business finds it challenging to hire and retain quality employees for technical, managerial or otherwise specialized positions, MyPartner Career Network can help.
The MyPartner Career Network program page is found online at Vail Valley Economic Development’s website, VailValleyMeansBusiness.com. Click: About Us > Our Services > MyPartner Career Network. For quick access, please visit http://bit.ly/1GUQCja.