Optimising Your Seasonal Workforces
With profitability for Australian agribusinesses becoming increasingly difficult each year, the need to get the best from your seasonal workforce has never been greater.
How well your seasonal workforce performs can have a profound impact on the effectiveness and efficiency of the business. Primary production, harvest, grading, packing and processing systems all have a significant effect on yield, quality, production costs and ultimately, your profit.
Your Reputation in the Labour Market is Everything
With an abundance of employment options available in agriculture, experienced and high performing seasonal workers are spoiled for choice. To attract and retain the best possible candidates, employers need to ask themselves ‘what’s in it for the worker?’.
Motivated candidates are highly mobile and willing to move or travel large distances for the right role. They will positively advocate on your businesses behalf if they have a good experience. On the flipside, any of the issues listed above will see you earning a bad reputation that is almost impossible to lose and making it even more difficult to attract good workers.
Small Changes Deliver BIG Results
While businesses have no control over minimum hourly pay rates, you most certainly can influence almost every other factor that impacts the efficiency and effectiveness of your seasonal workforce.
By giving the right people the right training to do the right tasks; while supervising, treating and paying them appropriately, you will:
· Build your profile as an employer of choice
· Attract a high calibre of candidates
· Minimise turnover
· Maximise return for future seasons
· Significantly reduce administration, induction and training costs
· Achieve the lowest per unit or kilo labour costs
With these outcomes in mind, how much is it worth to your bottom line to make relatively minor improvements towards managing your seasonal workforce?
Our Seasonal Workforce Diagnostic can assist you in quickly gaining real insight on how well your business is managing its seasonal workforce.
Making the Most of Your Seasonal Workers
Implementing a systematic approach to managing seasonal workers can have a profound impact on the effectiveness, efficiency and productivity of your whole business. These improvements take time, expertise, persistence and the ongoing commitment of owners, leaders, middle managers and supervisors.
Working closely with our agribusiness clients, PSVC has developed eight key steps that deliver improved results when it comes to optimising your seasonal labour:
· Redesign
· Refine
· Advocate
· Advertise
· Train & Equip
· Supervise & Support
· Measure & Manage Performance
· Remunerate
Let's Optimise Your Seasonal Workforce
PSVC’s capability extends across a wide range of intensive agriculture operations. We are known for our practical approach to the design, recruitment, induction, training and performance management of large seasonal workforces.
From field operations and harvest to sophisticated packing and processing facilities, we are highly skilled in maximising the productivity of local, working holiday and pacific seasonal worker program teams.
For more information contact PSVC on 0407 567 250 or email: Simon@psvcadvisory.com.au
PSVC ADVISORY