Assembling a top-notch crew in 2026

By Jenny Yu. 

A panel of industry experts highlights strategies for building and retaining a team you can depend on in today’s high-turnover landscape. 

In the first Coffee Conversations® of the year, sponsored by Southeast Staffing Agency, Megan Ellsworth was joined by an all-star team panel: Trent Cotney, partner at Adams and Reese; Jared Ribble, executive director for the Future Executive Institute at NRCA; and Teresa Ramirez, president of Southeast Staffing Agency, the webinar explored ways companies can meet the evolving needs of today’s workforce. 

Teresa kicked off the panel by addressing the impact of AI and social media platforms like Facebook, LinkedIn and Indeed on the industry job market. With the unfortunate frequency of fake applications, Teresa emphasized the importance of maintaining face-to-face interviews in the hiring process. “You need to see the people that are going to be working with you and see their reaction when you're asking questions,” Teresa said. “You need to be focused on getting good, reliable people; the best way is face-to-face.” 

To address labor shortages, companies are forced to be more creative with their hiring practices. To fill out a crew for a job, contractors are assembling hybrid teams. “There is definitely a business model movement toward having a combination of subcontract crews and in-house crews,” Jared shared. “You got to be able to find those great sub-crews and great W-2 workers, and you got to be able to retain both and know that they're going to be reliable.” 

After hiring a strong crop of workers, it’s important to be proactive about employee retention. One of the key reasons contractors choose to work with and ultimately stay with an employer, Trent identified, is safety. “A lot of the more seasoned crews want professional contractors that care about their workers and want to make sure it's a safe working environment,” Trent stated. “HR is implementing safety as part of the culture, part of the engagement, part of a long-term retention strategy. Investing in technical training and safety training keeps the crew happy and staying with you rather than looking forward somewhere else.” 

Listen to the podcast or Watch the webinar to learn more about the best practices for staffing, retention and all things HR!