Attracting young people to the LBM business

 

For many years, we have heard frustrated dealers lament… young people don’t want to work at lumber yards. Where are our future leaders going to come from as we move into retirement?

If you are one of those who find it difficult to hire young, energetic employees who are driven to grow and take positions of responsibility, read on!

Hiring people is a competition! Especially now, with low unemployment rates, young people can be selective when choosing which position to take, and with which company. If you want to hire these people, you have to put some time energy, and money into it, not much different than when you target a new customer to sell.

People between the ages of 18 and 38 are labeled with the term Millennials. They comprise 26% of the population, the largest segment. These are the people that will be the leaders ten to 40 years from now. They also are the most educated generation ever, with 23% having earned a bachelor’s degree, or higher. Let’s look at a few things that count in the minds of a prospective new Millenial employee:

There are many talented, hardworking young people out there that would be an asset to your business. To attract them to want an LBM career, try offering more of the things they care about.

This article was written by Tom Ford President & Partner at Impact 180 & Lumber Contacts Inc. Feel free to contact Tom at, [email protected] – Phone 508-742-3404.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Tom is a “lifer” in the LBM business, with strong executive management skills, good product knowledge, and can relate well to people at all levels. He has been involved in retail, contractor sales, light manufacturing, distribution centers and supply chain planning, wholesaling, tool rental, installed sales services, and the acquisition of off-price and closeout merchandise. As President and CEO, he managed both public and privately held businesses, ranging from over 700 million annually, to supervising store operations of all sizes from less than 1.0 million to over 50.0 million within a chain context.