Identifying and attracting young talent in the workplace can be an extremely difficult task. Keeping those individuals can be even harder. This week Warwick Anderson - Director RT Edgar, talks about the importance of nurturing young talent in the workplace for career success.
One of the greatest challenges faced by organisations today is not only finding but retaining talented staff. Many businesses focus solely on nurturing talent for leadership positions, however it is clear that successful companies who hold on to high potential employees ensure they develop talent across all levels of their organisation.
The Toorak team at RT Edgar recently farewelled long-time employee and Weekend Receptionist, Erin Trantino. Erin worked in the Toorak office for over five years, a role she took fresh out of high school, and felt would strongly complement her studies in her Arts/Law degree at Latrobe University.
“I was looking for some good corporate office experience to prepare me for my career. I have always been interested in real estate, having spent many years as a child accompanying my father, who was an avid real estate investor, to Saturday morning inspections and auctions. I felt this role was a great fit for me,” says Erin.
“Identifying, engaging and nurturing young talent at all levels is extremely important for the longevity of our business,” says Warwick Anderson, Director.“It’s not just about finding and nurturing our future leaders, it’s about identifying high-potential employees throughout the business and working with them to grow their strengths and abilities. It’s also about knowing their long-term plan and keeping them for as long as we can.
“Erin was a great example of a high potential employee. We knew that real estate wasn’t her chosen career path, but she had an extremely positive approach to her work, was incredibly reliable, never called in sick and was extremely keen to learn. She wanted to be a part of the RT Edgar Team and she wanted the organisation to be successful,” Warwick says.
Warwick believes that two of the greatest tools leadership can offer employees is professional development training and time.
“Development opportunities show your staff that they are valued and that you believe they have a future with your organisation. At RT Edgar we strongly value a culture of development, but we know that that alone isn’t enough to retain great staff. We also know it’s extremely important for young professionals to work closely with those in leadership positions. We have found that the Mentor-Mentee relationship is usually an extremely beneficial experience not only for the Mentee but also for the Mentor,” he says Throughout her time with RT Edgar, Erin worked closely with a number of mentors, including Justine Kantanis, Operations Manager and the Brand and Marketing team.
“Working with the RT Edgar team has been instrumental to my personal and professional development,” says Erin. “The time that Justine and the team spent with me over the years was invaluable and I am extremely grateful to them all, and also the leadership team more broadly, for giving me the opportunity to work across all aspects of the business. They always offered me new opportunities to grow and develop my skills, all of which will be extremely valuable in my future career.”
With the end of her university degree looming, Erin has secured a trainee lawyer role at a well-known law firm in Melbourne’s CBD. And with well-defined career aspirations we have no doubt of Erin’s future successes.
“Like every business we know the disappointment of losing wonderful employees,” says Warwick “but we continue to work hard to ensure that those individuals stay with our business as long as they can, a relationship that is extremely beneficial to both us and them. We thank Erin for her hard work, professionalism and dedication to both her role and our office, and we wish her every success in her future career.”
As we begin a new era at the Toorak office, we welcome our new Weekend Receptionist Zoe and look forward to helping provide the opportunity to develop a range of skills required to assist in her future career success.
