Where is the staffing love…?

As the Black-Eyed Peas sang back in 2003; ‘where is the love, the love, the love?’. Well in my humble opinion (and who knows if that’s worth a whole lot) but I’ll tell you where that love is…it’s within unexpected human interactions.

Nothing makes you smile more than someone offering to help you and your suitcase up the stairs at the train station…or someone telling you they ‘really like your coat’…it’s those little nuggets of kindness that can make all the difference to your day.

As a nation and as a world to be frank, we have had a pretty challenging year. From Brexit dividing our great nation to *he who must not be named* (sorry to all you Trumpets out there) taking up the mantle across the pond. We as a human race need to sprinkle that love confetti as far and wide and as much as possible…now more than ever.

This is exactly the reason I work in the industry I do. With positive, friendly, knowledgeable, helpful and well trained humans. The best kind!

Brands work with us because they know our staff bring their product/idea/way of life…well…to life through these kinds of interactions.

I’m not going to pretend it’s always an easy process. There is a lot work that is done from initial selection of hundreds of applicants to the moment that individual steps out as a representative of Purity and our clients.

Here are our 10 top tips for getting the best out of our people…

1. ENGAGE – We are somewhat of a family at Purity – we like to engage our staff in multiple projects we’re working on, whether it be picking their brains about brands they may have more experience with or utilizing their unique and specialist talents. We’ve had Storytellers, Engravers and professional Cheerleaders represent us.

2. RESPECT – We are asking our staff to represent us in as positive a light as possible and we do the same. From the fundamentals (payroll always being on time and correct for example) to offering roles to individuals where their knowledge, experience and expertise are taken into full consideration.

3. INFORM – The more in-depth the brief the better some may say…but do staff read every detail of a 35-page brief?! We ensure all our information is clear and concise with enough background on the brand and activity that is easily digestible. We focus on key touch points; who, why, what, where and when.

4. MOTIVATE – Nothing is more motivating than being told you’re doing a fabulous job. When we receive positive feedback we pass that straight to the individual/team, it sounds obvious but it’s not done nearly enough.

5. BE HONEST – How many pencils, sharpeners and erasers must brand ambassadors go through from all the ‘pencilling into diaries’ they do?! Be honest with people – the client hasn’t made their mind up on who they deem will represent their brand best – do what you can and we’ll do what we can.

6. DETAILS – As I mentioned at the beginning of this post, it’s the small things that matter most to people. Checking in with a text, taking an interest in other things going on in people’s lives or just buying a cup of tea on a cold shift. Those are the things that are remembered and appreciated most.

7. INVEST – We are always asking our staff to do things for us, from sending over updated details to amending profiles and pushing appointments back to be available to work. We in turn invest in our team, rewarding loyalty with additional shifts, higher rates, and more responsibility

8. CARE – Being genuine and doing the best by people is what working in this industry is all about. Whether it’s clients or staff, showing you care in whatever way you can breeds loyalty and appreciation – on both sides of the coin!

9. DEVELOP – When booking staff into activations we are often aware that they will be learning new and useful skills as well as bringing their own to the table. Development can come from all angles, working together to ensure both parties get what they need out of the arrangement!

10. LISTEN – We can’t be right all the time, sometimes we make mistakes – we’re not robots, that’s the whole point! The important thing to remember is to listen to what our team is telling us. If a mechanic isn’t working, we listen to the staff who are using it live in the field and make the proper changes. Change for the better is always good!

Thanks for taking the time to read. Have a beautiful Christmas and a successful New Year.

Bailey Hill

Staffing Director – Purity Staffing.