Outsidecareers.org – How to Use It

Written by Eric Petersen, CIC

Recruiting new employees is consistently one of the largest challenges that we hear tree care owners face while running their businesses. There are many reasons for this, but one of the main reasons, that people don’t want to talk about, is the lack of effort that individual businesses put into recruiting.

Why don’t tree care companies invest time and effort into recruiting? Well truthfully, recruiting is an activity that produces future gain and not immediate returns. With the tree care industry slowing down a bit post-pandemic, tree care owners and management have been even more focused on the short-term revenue producing activities they need to accomplish to keep the business running.

So how can you start to implement a better recruiting strategy with minimal effort? Use what’s already created for you! Visit outsidecareers.org right now to see all that is available for you to start promoting careers in arboriculture.

Outsidecareers.org has been assembled over a number of years to directly help tree care companies effectively recruit new employees to their company by highlighting all of the awesome things the tree care industry provides. Think back to when you first learned that you can make a lifelong career in arboriculture. Remember the fire that was lit inside you and how there are hundreds of thousands of people out there wanting a career like you have, but just don’t know it exists.

Outsidecareers.org can help you get the message out to those people and make your recruiting so much easier. Here are 5 ways to use the website to improve your recruiting efforts within your company.

1.                   Home Page Content – Every website should have the most important information available on the home page and this website does just that. There are flyers, documents and videos for you to use that drive home the message about the industry and the opportunities available. The home page is a great place to send prospective employees or centers of influence so they can familiarize themselves with the industry. Content like, What is an Arborist, 7 Reasons to Become an Arborist or an explanation of the common jobs within the industry all will help you illustrate the potential in the industry.

2.                   For Employers Page – Within the website there is an entire page dedicated specifically for employers. Inside this page, you will get access to documents on Digital Marketing Basics to help promote your business, sample postcards and flyers to use to prospective employees as well as a sample career path on the Your Adventure Begins Here document. Use these resources to target specific potential team members on a list gathered at career fair or from high school guidance counselor or local fraternal organization.

3.                   Post a Job Page – This is possibly could be the most powerful part of the website. An active directory of available jobs within the tree care industry. Getting your open position posted on here will be seen by people that are already familiar and interested in the industry. I know what you might be thinking, but Eric, this is a national website, I only draw new employees from my local area, why should I post an open position for my company here? My only response to this is “why not?” You never know where your next superstar will come from. Promote the unique qualities of the geographic area that your business is in and try to attract people that will fit well in your community. I think you’d be surprised how many people may move to your company if they just knew you existed and needed help.  

4.                   Promote Scholarships Page – There are many different scholarships available for students involved in arboriculture or urban forestry programs. By using this page, you can encourage current employees, prospective employees and future arborists to apply and gain further education. Being a source of information for those that want to expand their professional career is a great way to build trust and gain the opportunity for more employment referrals into the future. Plus these scholarships are already established and administered by industry organizations so all you have to do is promote them, nothing more!

5.                   Create an Apprenticeship Program – This page talks about the advantages of establishing an apprenticeship program within your company and how to start forming it. Apprenticeships have become a new trend within the tree care industry and while they can be complex, don’t have to be. Use this information to start creating an apprenticeship program within your company and watch it start to attract new professionals to your team.

If you’re still reading this article and not surfing outsidecareers.org, I encourage you to go there now and play around with it. I’m sure you will find even more value that what I’ve outlined above. For those that want additional guidance on how to best implement some of the ideas presented on the website, reach out to an ArboRisk team member today and enroll in our Hiring & Recruiting Thrive Package.