LOOK WHO'S TALKING
especially for employees who are not com- fortable with technology, despite making a huge investment in a training department and a training program with centralized training facilities and regional trainers be- fore the pandemic.
To adhere to the COVID-19 restrictions
and guidelines, Public Storage took to Zoom for some of its training efforts. Ac- cording to McLellan, all of the company’s call center staff and agents were trained via Zoom. Everyone was given a camera and Zoom account to make it work. And it was a successful business move; all of the call center staff works from home and Public Storage is in the process of making that shift a permanent one. The company is attempting to transition other forms of training to Zoom as well.
Even though Public Storage made the
work environment safer through technol- ogy, McLellan notes that staffing has been
Of course, incentives are important for attracting and retaining high caliber
a problem throughout the pandemic. Obviously, there has been the typi- cal amount of employee turnover, but there have also been staff members who could not work due to childcare and/or health issues. And operating on a skeleton crew, with no replacements on deck, has put undue pressure on ex- isting staff.
Unfortunately, the pandemic has
made it difficult to attract, interview, and train new employees as well, but not just for Public Storage, which re- cently bumped up the pay rates for new hires. Its employees also receive quar- terly bonuses as well as medical and dental benefits. In other industries, most notably the restaurant industry, some employers have begun offering sign-on bonuses to lure in urgent help.
personnel, but thankfully, McLellan,
who recalls a time when Tim Hortons was paying people $25 an hour to work in Calgary during the town’s oil boom, doesn’t think self-storage is in that kind of dire straits because most operators offer salaries above minimum, combined with various other incentives.
Perhaps the best means for attracting
new talent with tech skills is your web- site. McLellan states that if they are able to apply online, they likely have the abil- ity to learn to use the new technologies your facility has in place or plans to add down the line. Just be sure to tout your employee benefits alongside your cur- rent job openings!
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••• Erica Shatzer is the editor of Mini- Storage Messenger, Self-Storage Canada, and Self-Storage Now!
18
June 2021
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32
