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Judy Rakowsky

Guide to Protecting Employees From Getting Poached by Competitors

Know who is at risk and work to keep them


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Competitors react to a shortage of highly trained and credentialed employees the old fashioned way: They poach them. It may not seem like a kosher way to recruit. But many experts recommend shopping for new hires among competitors, reasoning that often the best job candidates are already employed. That means you need an early warning system and a protection plan to keep your valuable employees. Three things you need to know about shielding your work force: 1. It helps to know where you are vulnerable. 2. There are tactical legal moves you can make to protect your company’s vital secrets. But they might not be foolproof. 3. Watch for changes in the marketplace that could leave your pay and benefits in the dust.

Action Steps
The best contacts and resources to help you get it done

Figure out who the targets are


If you don’t know which of your employees are most likely to be wooed by your competitors, engage an expert opinion.

I recommend: Engage a search firm, such as American Staffing, to identify the poaching targets on your staff and take a look at the profile of those employees. Or choose from a directory of search firms that might address your needs.

Watch your back


Sometimes the very recruiters you hire could be facilitating the placement of your employees with other companies.

I recommend: Make it clear in your agreement with the recruiter that they are not allowed to poach your employees at conferences or through cold calls after hours. Download a sample recruiter agreement at AllBusiness.com and modify it to suit your needs.

Block online poaching


Take steps to keep your employees from checking out recruiter Web sites or surfing for a new job on your time.

I recommend: Block access to recruiter Web sites and track Web sites to see who’s looking for a job. Add Internet blocking and filtering software to your company’s system.  

Block phone poaching


Recruiters also make cold calls after hours in an attempt to reel in employees after the reception desk is no longer staffed.

I recommend: Find recruiters who might poach your employees in the RecruitersDirectory.com. Download free call blocking software from FreeDownloadsCenter.com and put in the numbers of the poaching recruiters.

Post blind ads


Find out which of your employees are vulnerable to poaching by placing blind ads.

I recommend: Place ads tailored to the employees you want to keep on employment boards, such as Monster.com or CareerBuilder.com. If you get bites from your own staff, you’ll know where you are vulnerable.  

Consider the hammer


Non-competition agreements are standard in some fields, but if they are applied to low-level employees or drafted in an overly broad way they can be chopped down or nullified by the courts.

I recommend: If you require employees to sign away their right to work for competitors after they leave your company, check sample agreements available from Business Owner’s Toolkit against yours to make sure the restrictions will hold up to legal challenges.

Protect trade secrets


Even if your employees don’t take a job with a competitor, you can still get stung by the poaching process. If an employee simply agrees to be interviewed by a competitor, your company trade secrets could be vulnerable.

I recommend: Carefully draft non-disclosure agreements for your business, making sure that you consider how clearly you convey to your employees what matters are intended to be kept confidential.  

Reward retention


You can convey your interest in keeping valuable employees and their confidentiality in your shop without binding legal agreements.

I recommend: Communicate with your employees that you want to keep them on your team through nice notes on special stationary. Take a course in employee retention. Get additional tools at Employee Retention Headquarters.

Keep tabs on at-risk employees


Gather the background information you need to keep particularly valuable employees and act on it.

I recommend: Determine the track records of key employees. If you find one has a pattern of changing jobs every two years, offer incentives like free travel for good work after eighteen months or financial rewards before they jump ship.  

Tips & Tactics
Helpful advice for making the most of this Guide

  • Be proactive to protect your employees from recruiters and other competitors.
  • Do your homework to make sure you are keeping up with the benefits and pay that competitors are offering.
  • Groom leaders from within your company to develop loyalty.

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