Wine and Grape Conference Why work for you?


Branding a business as a top employer can be just as important as branding a product.


By Susan McIver W


inery operators must sharpen their skills in employee recruitment and


management in order to be successful in the face of the increasing labour shortage, according to Cissy Pau.


Pau, the principal consultant with Vancouver-based Clear HR Consulting, told participants in a workshop at this year’s enology and viticulture conference that by 2020 the province will be short 61,000 workers.


“That means big competition to find good employees and keep them.” Based on her extensive experience, Pau provided a host of ideas and strategies to help wineries meet the challenge starting with the need to brand your business as an employer. “Why work for your winery? What makes your business different from others? Have a page on your website saying why you are a great employer,” Pau said.


While wineries are good at sales and market branding, they are often poor at communicating the advantages of working for them. The first step in the hiring process is to create a job description with clear statements about duties, education and experience requirements, interviews and performance reviews.


“A good description is a road map to success,” Pau said.


Determining the most suitable place to advertise is the second step. A carefully placed posting is more likely to attract suitable candidates than a blanket ad.


“Use the job posting to brand your company. Who are you? What kind of employee fits your company?” Pau said.


Pau recommends screening the 12 SUSAN MCIVER


Human resources consultant Cissy Pau says winery owners should sharpen their skills in employee recruitment and management to be successful.


resumes of prospective employees using a checklist.


This approach helps to ensure objectivity and minimize charges of discrimination.


It’s critical to be well prepared for interviews, to conduct them carefully and to evaluate candidates objectively.


“A common mistake is for employers to think about interview questions just before the candidate arrives or to take questions off the internet. Tailor questions to your specific needs,” Pau said. During the interview ask


behavioural-based questions such as how the person contributed to a team environment in a previous job. Another example is to have them describe the last time they were late for work. What happened? What did they do to make sure the situation did not occur again?


“If you ask a hypothetical question such as ‘How would you resolve a


British Columbia FRUIT GROWER • Fall 2014


conflict with a co-worker?’ you will get a hypothetical answer,” Pau said. Create a rating sheet to evaluate candidate responses in each area of interest and conduct thorough reference checks.


Make the final decision based on the resume, interview, references and then intuition.


“A big mistake is hiring solely on intuition. Decisions based on ‘he’s a good guy’ can lead to serious problems,” Pau said.


Always prepare a written offer for every position.


Include fundamental terms and conditions such as position, start date, pay rate, working hours and probationary period.


Don’t forget benefits, vacation entitlement and termination provisions.


Train employees on how you want the job done.


Follow this with on-going coaching


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