How concerned are you about employee retention? If you are an HR professional, you should always be concerned about the retention of your high performing employees.
One consistent trend throughout the United States is the difficulty of finding people to fill job openings. No matter where I travel, I hear this lament from agency owners and managers.
In some areas of the country, there are price wars for service people fueled by the competition for good talent. Not only is it difficult to recruit skilled workers, but also to retain them. In the past, companies expected job loyalty. Today however, we hear stories of employees accepting other job offers only weeks after being hired. We have to wonder if people have changed or is it that employers are not able to satisfy employees. To win the battle for workforce share, companies must rethink their strategies to effectively recruit, motivate, and retain committed employees.
Today’s high performing employees are looking for more than compensation packages and benefits. With everything stated thus far in mind, here are some tips to help your retention rates remain positive:
- Employee compensation — It’s absolutely essential in this competitive labor market for companies to offer attractive compensation packages. That includes salaries, of course, but also bonuses, paid time off, health benefits, retirement plans and all the other perks that can distinguish one workplace from another. Every employee should have a full understanding of all the benefits they receive from your organization.
- Recognition and rewards systems — Every person wants to feel appreciated for what they do. Make it a habit to thank your direct reports when they go the extra mile, whether it’s with a sincere email, a gift card or an extra day off. Show your employees you appreciate them, and share how their hard work helps the organization. Some companies set up rewards systems that incentivize great ideas and innovation, but you can institute recognition programs even on a small team with a small budget.
- Work-life balance — What message is your company culture sending? If staff are expected to regularly work long hours and be at your beck and call, you’ll likely run into issues with employee retention. Burnout is real. A healthy work-life balance is essential and people need to know that management understands its importance. Encourage staff to take vacation time, and if late nights are necessary to wrap up a project, see if you can offer late arrivals or an extra day off to compensate and increase job satisfaction. Many companies offer telecommuting or flexible schedules to improve work-life balance for their employees.
- Promote appropriately — When your best people are doing the kind of work that makes a difference, recognize it. One great way is to give them a well-deserved promotion. This tells the rest of the company (and others outside) that you appreciate the extra effort they put forth to make the company more profitable and efficient.
- Designate employee committees to plan social functions or take the office on trips when agency goals are achieved. The key is to have a positive work environment where employees are recognized and rewarded for good performance, where there is good communication, and where everyone shares in the excitement of being part of a successful firm.
Bottom Line
SW HR Consulting has been helping companies to build their teams and values for over 10 years. Contact us to find out more about our unique hr outsourcing services and see how our expertise can benefit you.
