Signing bonuses. extensive benefits packages. Personal

benefits such as massage therapy services at work and theme park passes.

Southwest Florida employers are using these incentives and more as they search

for employees

We asked area business managers: How far do you have to go

to get good employees?

Jerry Thirion, managing director, LaPlaya Beach & Golf

Club, Naples:

It is unquestionably the single biggest problem that a hotel

general manager faces. We go to various lengths, depending on the position. We

use placement firms, newspaper advertising and networking—both employee

referrals and recommendations from other managers. We often take trips, such as

to the Culinary Institute in Hyde Park, N.Y., and to various Scandinavian and

Latin countries.

With our renovations, we added 120 employees in the past

year. We try to appeal by having a pleasurable place to work.

Laura Leslie, Southwest Florida group recruiting manager,

Enterprise Rent-A-Car:

It is tough to find the quality candidate. We usestyle="mso-spacerun: yes"> Monster.com, HotJobs.com, CareerBuilder.com

and SouthwestFloridaHelpWanted.com. We also pay $1,500 for employee referrals.

A lot of people come down here and want a job, but don’t

want to work a 50-hour workweek. In Southwest Florida, we hired 70 people last

year. This year’s goal is 100 people.

Jim Helms, human resources manager, Sony Electronics’

Customer Information Services Division, Fort Myers:

It hasn’t been difficult for us partly because of the Sony

reputation and our benefits package. We provide health insurance, life

insurance both for the employee and dependents as well as short- and long-term

disability insurance, a pension plan and a 401K plan.

We’ve promoted more than 430 people in the seven years we’ve

been here. That makes a very attractive environment.

Scott Stevens, vice president, Stevens Industries

International, a manufacturer of cabinetry, surfaces and casework, Naples:

It’s difficult. I’m interviewing right now for a technical

position and didn’t even get a dozen responses. But we put an ad in the paper

for an administrative assistant and received more than 100 responses, which was

extremely unusual.

When I put ads on the Internet, what I found is just a bunch

of tire-kickers. They’re not qualified or interested and they want all kinds of

moving expenses.