There are a plethora of challenges facing further education at the minute, as well as wider workforce pressures and struggles with recruitment and retention in many other sectors. However, FE is primed to use this as an opportunity to seize control of the broader education landscape – but exactly how can this be achieved?
By modernising their recruitment and retention strategy, colleges and other further education institutions can help to attract and shape the skilled workforce of the future. Here are the top tips you should keep in mind to enhance your college’s hiring process - to not only recruit but also retain the very best staff.
Showcase your flexibility as an employer
FE, compared to other educational sectors, is well-placed to offer flexibility to its employees – a key benefit and an attractive prospect in a post-Covid world, where many value the freedom that an alternative working week can offer.
With so many colleges speaking highly of staff with industry experience, now is the time for FE to capitalise on this. In terms of practical implementation, this could mean a working week that’s split between time spent working in industry, and imparting expertise to learners within a lecturing environment. This could benefit educators and learners alike; students receive expert teaching, staff enjoy the flexibility of true dual-professionalism, and colleges will be in a better position to recruit lecturers to address the skills gap.
Use your data
Many colleges will have five-year strategic plans – however, with labour markets shifting and the unpredictability of funding streams, a shorter outlook could be more beneficial. Utilising an 18-month outlook, guided by local employment data, will help with curriculum forecasts and thus highlight any potential staffing gaps for your institution.
Collaborate externally
By using intelligence such as labour market data, this then offers FE institutions the opportunity to grow their collaborative practice. Colleges can determine if growing a certain provision is within their best interests, depending on student demand as well as employer demand for a specific skillset.
It can be a challenge for FE institutions to secure the depth of knowledge needed to develop a curriculum – especially considering that level 3 and 4 programmes are increasingly requiring highly-specific knowledge for certain modules.
FE institutions approaching strategic partnerships with external groups in a different manner could mean these specialised skillsets are more accessible – for example, going beyond sharing best practice towards sharing key staff instead. A visiting lecturer or expert on-call approach could be a more viable guarantor of quality skills in the short-term, helping to meet students’ learning needs.
Communicate internally
Making sure that all team members are aware of their role in the recruitment and retention strategy is key; such as ensuring HR teams grasp the college’s curriculum plan and are using technology optimally to attract key candidates.
Working together across all parts of a college – including HR, curriculum, and business management – means that FE can create cohesive, holistic and effective recruitment strategies.
Retreading the same ground in terms of hiring strategy won’t solve the ongoing lecturer shortage; FE institutions should seize control of the opportunity to do something different. The FE sector possesses the ingenuity and capacity to rise to current challenges - by utilising well-placed recruitment strategies that are embedded throughout an institution, colleges will be in a better position to enhance their hiring process for now and in future.
Get in touch to find out how FEjobs can support your college’s recruitment in a challenging market.
About the author
Dean Renphrey
After studying Journalism at University of Brighton, Dean has held a number of roles across 15+ years in marketing, PR and communications. Dean is passionate about the power of education and lifelong learning and recently completed his MBA after a decade in leadership roles in FE. Dean now works as Marketing Director at FEjobs, continuing to share his knowledge and help colleges use technology to drive change in their communities.