It is time to grow our own professionals!

It is impossible to keep this resource in stock or make do what you want. It is uneasy. It is off standard. However, the most important thing is that a company can hardly achieve its strategic aims without this resource. We are talking about personnel, their motivation and skills. 

Receiving candidates’ CVs from HR department, every time I make sure that at the market there are highly trained specialists with great theoretical training, relevant experience and required psychological characteristics. But whom would I entrust important part of work in our team? It is difficult to choose an ideal candidate among those who has already had an experience of working in other companies. Sometimes, at first, a person is an ideal for a vacant position; he/she has excellent characteristics and big ambitions. After the onboarding period, we see that the results of this candidate’s work are far from desirable ones. Sometimes, the reason is particular approaches, sometimes, it is other way of working in a team, and sometimes it is indisposition to self-improving. By the way, I had an experience once, when a new employee was unsuccessful as a head officer. He was able to show his worth, so after a while this person was promoted. Two factors were important here: a feeling of HR manager and persistence of candidate. We hope that self-motivation and loyalty of this employee (including productivity) will be at high level in future. Sometimes, an accidental office mistake can become a starting point when a level of trust and responsibility can be increased among staff. We have achieved this aim within our clusters.

However, in spite of all exceptions, they prove ones again that it is time to grow our own professionals, who will be responsible for leading directions within a company after a while. Our experience shows that a person “from outside” is more expensive, but his/her results are often lower. Many of these employees with no hesitation are looking for a new job again in spite all of circumstances at the previous job. Another situation is with the employees who has grown in the company. That is why, having analyzed the situation, we had introduced in Agricom Group a corporative system of traineeship for young specialist: graduates and senior students. This traineeship covers all current vacant positions within enterprises of the Group. Besides, specialists of HR department have regular meetings with students and the administration of the educational institutions. These meeting are a great way to share the information about further professional and carrier development in our company. Based on the questionnaire and interview the best young specialists have an opportunity to take a traineeship in Chernihiv and Bilokurakyno clusters or at the main office in Kyiv. Successful training gives a chance to get paid traineeship position, and to get paid job after a while.

Currently, this subject is very deep and important, especially before a new season. Everybody knows that at the hottest period there is a lack of employees.

Petro Melnyk, CEO of Agricom Group

Newspaper “Agromarket“, April 2016