5 Tips to retain Top Performers in your Company

Employee retention is crucial for any company. Replacing an employee costs their three salaries in general. The more the employee turnover, the more expensive it gets. Plus, there is a loss of productivity between the time that employees leave the company and when you find a replacement. Finding the right talent has always been difficult and often takes a long time. After the pandemic, there is a shortage of workers all over the world, and the talent market is becoming more and more competitive. This is why it becomes important to retain your employees and take special efforts to ensure that top talent does not leave your company.

?Losing your top performers affects the morale of the rest of your staff. It is essential to manage your workforce effectively to improve retention. Employees now value their needs and do not hesitate to leave their jobs if they do not get the type of work culture and benefits they seek. There are a lot more opportunities to earn money now apart from the standard 9-5 job. As people change professions to follow their passions and better care for their loved ones, this creates more demand for the top talent and less supply. It is critical to stay competitive and make sure that you always have cream talent in your organization so productivity does not get impacted. Here, we will discuss 5 tips to retain top performers in your company.

1.Benefits and compensation

Compensation packages?are important because they are the first thing that is considered when employees want to choose among the job offers. The talent market today is fiercely competitive due to changes we went through due to the COVID-19 lockdown. You must stay alert on the types of packages being offered to top talent in the job market based on their expertise and job role. This gives you an idea to design your compensation package for your employees. If you fail to keep up with it, you are likely to lose the top talent. At the same time, listen to what benefits employees really seek. In one survey, it was found that more than half of the people that took part, looked at the health benefits offered by the employer as a prime factor in deciding whether to join the company or not, along with their salary. There are other benefits, like retirement plans and stock options that are considered highly important when making a decision.

?When you are pitching the salary, do not forget to mention all the benefits that the employee will be receiving. The perks and benefits are like hidden pay cheques and hold significant importance. The types of benefits that employees seek vary from person to person, so make sure you explain your offer in detail. One of these can be their make or break factor. An even better way to do this is to find out what an individual is seeking and tailor the perks and benefits accordingly. Working in a hybrid or remote setup asks companies to think about the perks and benefits they are offering. Benefits such as evening snacks and game rooms, as well as an office gym, is no relevant for employees who work from home so it is essential to design it according to work model employee has.

2. Growth and Development

Salary and benefits are crucial, but there are other things that candidates seek. Your top talent is at the top because they constantly seek growth and development. They are the best at their job, but they always want to do better than they are doing. To retain these employees, you need to include professional development as one of the top priorities in your organization. A culture that is oriented towards learning and growth is positive and also helps you develop future leadership for your company. This is cost-effective and makes employees stay longer for the growth that the firms offer in their careers. Investing in the programmes that are for the training and development of your staff also shows them that you value their growth.

?You can encourage your employees to explore new opportunities inside your company. Give them an idea of what their career will look like if they stay with the organization long enough. There can be a mentorship programme where you pair a senior executive with your top talent so they can be that you value them. Being valued helps to gain a sense of loyalty from your top talent motivated while constantly learning. We all know the talent market values skills, and that inspires top talent seek opportunities where they can constantly learn new skills and keep themselves updated. Regularly organising trainings benefit them as well as improves productivity. Most employees state a lack of opportunities to learn and grow as among the top reasons for leaving their jobs, so ensure that does not happen at your organization. You can directly ask your top talent what type of training they believe they require for their development. It can be soft skills training or maybe technical, but asking them makes it more relevant to them and they feel more involved in the firm.

3. Recognition

Employees want to be appreciated for the efforts they put in for their work. Appreciation does not always have to be in monetary terms. Just recognizing their efforts or telling them that they did a good job can be a good start. It keeps them motivated to do a better. When recognition is given in the presence of others, it motivates the co-workers to do better. No one can keep working hard when there nobody to notice it. Recognition is among the top needs for employees to stay motivated and work for the company longer. When top employees do not feel appreciated enough, they tend to look for other job opportunities.

?When people go above and beyond what is expected of them, it is natural for them to expect to be rewarded. As an employer, you need to make sure that they know how much you value them. Appreciation or recognition is best given as soon as possible. You can have a monthly or weekly employee recognition programme to make sure that top talent in the company gets the appreciation and rewards that they deserve. A study shows that those employees that are regularly appreciated feel more valued and tend to stay longer in the organization.

4. Supportive Work Culture

Interpersonal relationships need to share a supportive?work culture. Positive work culture has numerous advantages. The connections at the office space give a sense of community. This gives employees a reason to stay or leave the company. Workplace friendships make it easier for employees to share ideas more freely. In a supportive work culture, the workflow stays seamless. Good coordination and attitude to aid each other solve problems faster. This helps top talent perform better and stay more effective at their jobs. A friendly environment acts as a support for a good performance. Arrange team-building activities to encourage good bonds among the employees. These activities can also be organised for virtual teams. Many employees never get to meet their colleagues face to face while working remotely. Team building helps to develop interpersonal bonds faster and improve retention. Otherwise, there is a lack of support, coordination, and blame games among employees, and top talent generally hates to work in such companies as the environment negatively affects their productivity.

5. Flexibility

Flexibility at work is one of the important factors in retaining top talent. The pandemic made people value their personal relationships more, and now employees seek a balance between the two. Top performers find it difficult to stick to the standard 9-5 and give their best in the fixed window. Most of them know at what time they are most productive during the day, and that is not the same for everyone. They like to put in effort when they feel most focused and do their best. Lack of flexibility is one of the top reasons for the great resignation we have faced recently. To retain top talent in the company, it is important to pay attention to the work they are doing rather than how many hours they spend doing it. Flexibility also increases the overall productivity significantly.

Summary

It is important to retain top talent in your organization, not just because replacing them is costly, but also because there is fierce competition in the job market. Employees need to take conscious steps to ensure top talent stays in the company. High performers seek to constantly learn and grow in their careers. Make sure that learning and development are among the priorities for the firm. We can’t ignore the compensation that employees receive. Benefits also need to be given, considering what employees prefer and what your competition is offering in the market along with the salary. Cultivate a supportive and friendly organizational culture and arrange team-building activities. This type of environment, as well as good working relationships, encourages people to stay longer and boosts productivity. No one can stick to a place where their efforts are not appreciated. Design an employee recognition strategy and appreciate and reward the efforts of top performers regularly. This makes people feel valued and develops a sense of loyalty towards your organization.