As economy starts to recover, keeping good staff becomes even more crucial, writes Margaret Harris

Last year will be remembered for unrelenting storms that battered the global economy. But the crisis taught companies many lessons - like how to find and retain their employees.

Nathi Kunene, head of personal financial adviser distribution at Metropolitan Life, said: "No one ever gave me a copy of A Daily Guide to Recession. The truth is that in 2009 we had to think on our feet. On the upside, though, most of us have emerged as stronger managers, because there is no substitute for experience."

For Kunene, staff training and development have been shown to be invaluable.

"The recession has taught me the true value of training and development. We, as an industry, are faced with increasing consumer awareness against the backdrop of a complex financial services industry.

"A strong trend among consumers last year was the desire for face-to-face advice. If you consider the fact that the world is moving rapidly towards Internet and virtual communication, this is an interesting phenomenon and highlights the importance of the intermediary."

Kunene said getting back to basics was "one of the best ways to survive and recover from a recession".

"Understanding what a customer needs, meeting this need by offering flexible solutions and giving sound financial advice all translate into quality business."

One of the anomalies thrown up by the recession was the continued skill shortage in the midst of widespread retrenchments.

Even as the economy shed jobs, many companies were looking for people to fill mainly technical positions.

According to the 2010 Grant Thornton International Business Report, the lack of skilled workers is limiting the growth of South African businesses.

According to Kevin Laithwaite and Karl Westvig of JobCrystal, the way in which employers have been looking for future employees is flawed.

Their approach, on the other hand, changes the way companies recruit by putting employers directly in touch with 60000 top-tier candidates.

"I am sure many companies would agree that traditional recruitment is seldom more than a crude game of snap, with employers wasting their time and money interviewing inappropriate candidates unsuitable for the organisation and position.

"What's more, they probably had to wait a number of weeks to get their hands on the CVs in the first place," said Laithwaite.

Samantha Crous, the general manager of research and marketing organisation CRF Institute, said finding good staff could become even harder as a post-recession rush takes hold.

"In a competitive labour market, the success of a brand lies more than ever in an organisation's ability to differentiate itself by establishing and promoting excellent HR strategies that can attract, retain and engage the right kind of talent." She said that as South Africa was on the brink of recovery, organisations would have to address ways to attract and keep talent.

"The most qualified job seekers have higher aspirations and will seek out the best organisations in terms of employer brand. Employers, especially in areas where skills are scarce, can't afford not to adopt positive human resources strategies and achieve visibility in the labour market."

Crous argued that companies that made an effort to create an empowered and transformed workforce - not just to meet targets, but to make a difference - understand what employees want.