Page 143 - Retaining Top Employees

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Recruiting for Retention 131

an organization will seek to protect itself from rises in
the prices of materials it uses by producing the materials
itself (vertical integration). Then, over time, it becomes
clear that the organization simply cannot compete with
the benefits of scale that the larger manufacturers enjoy
and is in effect paying more for its materials than if it
purchased them on the open market.
• Overestimating core skills. An organization experiencing a
prolonged period of success may assume that it can work
its “magic” on other products or services and acquires
businesses in allegedly “related” industries. Then the new
businesses prove to be a bad match with the organiza-
tion’s core skills.
The Virgin Group
Do you have a depart-
Following the great success
ment, a division, or even
of Virgin Airlines,Richard
just a team of people in Branson (CEO of The Virgin Group)
this situation? concluded that Virgin obviously had
skills in the transportation industry in
• The activity is not
general—not just the airline business.
core to your busi-
As a result,Virgin spent many years
ness.
and many millions of pounds grappling
• Other organizations with the UK train network—which
are producing the turned out to be a very different
same product or business altogether and much less
service cheaper, responsive to the Virgin “magic.”
faster, or both.
• It has difficulties with employee retention.
If so, then trying solely to resolve the retention issues may
prove unfruitful and you may need to consider recommending
that your organization sell the unit and outsource the function.

Model 5: Pushing the Work Down to Your Customers
This is a final way to change your hiring model to reduce reten-
tion problems. Consider the interface between you and your
customer. Do you have retention difficulties at that point? Do
you find it difficult to train and keep good employees in cus-