Only Second Job Employees

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Published: Tuesday, 04 October 2016 17:12

Written by David DeCiero

I have recently been thinking a lot about employees and the commitment that people have to their hobbies and to their jobs.  It strikes me that people are always more passionate about their hobbies, so it got me thinking about capturing that as an employer.  There has been plenty written about how to engage employees and ensure that they are passionate about their job, but what if we could capture a defining attribute of people that would ensure they will be committed to their role? 

I believe that the answer lies in hiring people where the role will be a second job for the employee. Now, naturally, this does limit the hours of operation for your business.  However, it is people who are willing to take a second job doing something that they like who have the passion you would be looking for.  This comes back to the idea about hobbies.  Some people want to learn more about a particular area and are willing to work in that area to learn.  However, it may not be lucrative enough as a full time job.  This allows you as an employer to tap into that desire for a job that you may not find in a  regular employee.  I believe that the alcohol industry is a great beneficiary of this.  People want to work in this industry to get a feel for what is happening and learn more about it.  The pay is secondary to them.  This is a win-win for the employer as they get a resource that is less expensive and one who wants to do the job and learn. 

So, how do you find these people?  The best place is through amateur associations or advertisements at your establishment.  Forget about classifieds as you are looking for people who are interested in the role as a hobby, not as a job.  Amateur associations (beer brewing clubs, winemaking clubs or loose groups of people who share these interests) is a crop of people who may want to get some more experience, or do things at a scale they are not able to do at home.  Find out (or host) these groups to identify people who may be a good fit for your company.  Additionally, posting the job in your establishment will attract candidates who are already in tune with your company.  They may not have the knowledge that a homebrewer may have, but will bring a desire to learn in the role. 

Before you dismiss this idea as crazy, think about how you got into the industry.  Cahnces are, it started as a side gig.  You brought your passion and intelligence to the role and continued in addition to your regular job becuase you really liked doing it.  Get those people to become your employees and tap into their passion.