10 Strategies to Attract And Keep Top-Quality Staff

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, May, 2000 by Anne Graham

Along with virtually every other enterprise, magazines are being squeezed by a drum-tight labor market. Finding and keeping the best people--the most capable, productive and motivated--has never been more critical.

Association magazine staffs, often short-staffed and underpaid, can face special problems in competing for talent. Going head-to-head with consumer magazines, association magazine management usually finds that the salaries they can offer are somewhat lower. In addition, their magazine topics are likely to be less glamorous--even highly technical or downright mundane.

John Adams, managing editor at Textile Rental, the magazine of the Textile Rental Services Association of America, previously worked for consumer magazines. "Consumer books do have an initial recruiting edge," Adams says. "People who apply for positions at these types of magazines usually have some general interest in the topic, whether it's travel, clothing or cars. At associations, it's different. What are the odds of my stumbling on a topnotch editor with a passion for laundry?"

Despite built-in workforce issues, many association staffs have assembled outstanding publication teams, driven toward producing the highest quality magazines and providing indispensable value to readers. Ten basic strategies may help association magazine managements to make optimum hiring decisions--and then to keep the troops happy:

1. Invest time in the hiring process. Having the right people in place is the key to almost every association publishing goal. Because staffs are often small, hiring mistakes can be painful; so spending time on the front end pays dividends. Whenever possible, it's advisable to resist those "let's just get some-body in here" urges.

Few association magazines have a stack of resumes from wishful candidates on hand, so knowing where to look for good people can streamline the search. The standard classified ad can still produce results, but many resourceful managers are relying more and more on electronic job listings, association and publishing listservs, and contacts with journalism schools.

2. During interviews, it's important not only to evaluate skills, but also to assess how an individual might mesh with the association team. Social skills are important, of course; but sometimes "filling gaps" is also an issue. A potential new editor with knowledge of photography or a designer who can write an occasional caption may help to balance and enhance a small staff.

3. Expect to train mast new employees in the industry or topic represented by the association. Adams suggests that a good policy maybe to look for individuals with proven publishing-related skills and then indoctrinate them into the association field.

Should magazine managers find that experienced, polished candidates don't appear, it may be necessary to retreat a step further by snagging the best, brightest and most motivated from among the never-worked-on-a-magazine ranks. Training will be even more extensive, but molding a new employee can offer many benefits.

4. Stress the strong points. Evaluate any special appeal you might have to new employees and emphasize to applicants all the positive aspects of working in an association. For example, most associations provide excellent employee benefits. In fact, the benefits package often more than offsets the slightly higher salaries that maybe offered by consumer magazines.

The camaraderie Within many associations can also be appealing to many job seekers. In many instances, the familial spirit isn't limited to magazine staff or even to other association staff; it also extends to volunteer members.

For some candidates, the idea of a small staff with broad, diverse responsibilities can be engaging. The lines separating various aspects of publishing are not always so clearly drawn in association magazines, which means that individuals who wish to do so can usually learn and participate in more than one area.

Options such as flex time or telecommuting can also be attractive to many workers. Any association benefits and programs that help to keep employees' lives running smoothly should be underscored.

5. Pay as much as you can. An association magazine of excellence is a highly valued commodity--a point that should be made and regularly reinforced to top management. In some organizations, non-magazine management may not be fully aware of the level and types of skills required for publishing positions. Relevant salary surveys and research, reports on the impact of the job crunch and other data should be compiled to make the case and lobby for top wages.

6. Be honest about the work load when you talk with applicants. In most associations, the work to be done almost always seems never-ending. Time to "catch your breath" is virtually nonexistent, not only because staff resources are usually limited, but also because tasks and meetings spill over from other arms of the organization.

Magazine staffs handle the time demands in different ways, but new employees shouldn't expect a cake-walk when the opposite is much more likely to be true. In the long run, it's better not to hire someone who can never work evenings when you know that, on occasion, it's likely to be necessary.