VETERANS
Since the Iraq War many of our
Veterans have entered the job
market willing and eager for
good opportunities. Veterans are
extremely disciplined workers are
known to be great team players
and are reliable employees. There
is another major reason to hire
veterans, companies can also receive
a tax credit.
Work Opportunity Tax Credit
(WOTC) - This credit is also available
to certain tax-exempt organizations.
The Tax Credit provides incentives of
up to $5,600 for hiring unemployed
veterans, and the Wounded Warriors
Tax Credit doubles the existing Work
Opportunity Tax Credit for long-
term unemployed veterans with
service-connected disabilities, for up
to $9,600.
There are veteran job banks, career
centers for wounded veterans and
student organizations to help you
locate qualified Veterans in your
area. A simple search will reveal many
resources.
SENIOR COMEBACK
According to PEW Research Center,
19% of Americans age 65-plus are
working today. Seniors have always
been a viable labor source but many
baby boomers who were once set to
retire lost ground during the great
recession and have re-entered the
job market to shore up their golden
years. Combine this fact with the age
increase in social security benefits,
company retirement plans shrinking,
and skyrocketing health care costs
and you have the perfect storm.
When given the right opportunity
seniors can provide great value to any
organization.
MINING FOR TALENT
Other than traditional ads and
recruiter services there are some
other ways to snag good candidates.
Look for industry associations to
find talent, they often have free
job boards and can be an excellent
resource for networking. Trade
schools and universities have job
boards and cross-campus intranets
that readily post positions to the
entire student population. Consider
adopting a school, this can really
fill your employee funnel. When
you present to a class you create a
personal connection which drives
interest in your business.
94 ILHA
Take advantage of Social Networks
both paid and free. Fan out by having
your key employee’s repost the job
on their networks as well. Word of
mouth still tops the list as one of the
strongest methods to garner new
employees. “Our best new hires
come from referrals. When your
best associates feel they are a part of
your values and culture, they refer
friends,” states Stacy Pedersen,
Director of Human Resources from
the Eau Palm Beach.
LinkedIn is another great resource
which allows you to connect and
search by keyword for the skill set
you are looking for. Look for sites
where your candidates would most
likely be visiting. For example, if you
are looking for a marketing manager,
consider placing an ad on sites like the
American Marketing Association job
boards. Use hashtags and keywords
like bigger search sites do for
positioning.
By being creative and thinking beyond
traditional methods your company
will find a pool of diverse talent and
resources that can make any business
thrive.
About the author
Jodi Cross, President of Cross
Marketing, Inc. has more than 22 years
of experience as a marketing strategist
and brand developer. She ran global
marketing for over a decade for a
300-Million-dollar portfolio of 30 Hotels
in the US, Latin America, the Middle East
and the Caribbean. Cross is the Regional
Director for Palm Beach & the Treasure
Coast chapters of the Florida Restaurant
& Lodging Association. Cross also
established a CEO women’s mentoring
organization in South Florida and held
the position of Executive Director for
over 10 years.
Jodi is the author of a monthly column
called Crosstalk and a Travel Blog called
CT Takes off. She lives in Jupiter, Florida
and enjoys golf, travel, kayaking and
horseback riding.