How to help reduce Employee Attrition!!

Being in Talent Acquisition for the last 12 plus years, I always wondered what made people leave an organization. I really work hard like other recruiters for months straight to find the right talent all in the end to see them leave in some cases much sooner than what we had bargained for. In simple words "attrition" is when people leave due to voluntary or involuntary reasons. Employee attrition is different across industries and the reasons for this departure can vary as well. But that's not what I am looking to cover today in my write-up. I am trying to cover some pointers which I think if followed diligently can help to reduce the same.

Hiring the right fit - A great place to get started will be when we start recruiting for a role. Hiring for cultural fit is very important. Using the behavioral interviewing techniques can go a long way to help when hiring rather than hiring on gut feel. Setting the right expectations with the applicant in relation to the open role is crucial as one off the major reasons for attrition as cited by employees is job mis-match - what I was told and what I am doing now does not match.

Appreciation & Recognition - Equally important is to appreciate and recognize with rewards(wherever possible) great and outstanding performances. Words of encouragement from one's manager or department head helps massively. Highlighting the same company wide or letting others know about the great work one's team members have done also helps motivate the employees. Everyone would like to have happy, loyal and motivated employees on the floor, isn't it?

Show Empathy - This is not uncommon as well when we see all of us working towards deadlines and deliverable's. The only thing that most of us hear or have learnt since we started our careers is "Client is king, Client comes first". At times what's missing is the empathy that an employee seeks for when they going through a turmoil in their personal lives. Add to that the lack of empathy shown towards them by their managers/management will only drive them towards looking out for an exit option. Having regular check-ins, conversation around their personal lives and not just work deliverable can help ease the discomfort that they may be facing at work.

"Clients do not come first. Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients." ~ Richard Branson

Transparent Communication - Two way communication is the key here. Good companies have their executive leaders communicate almost everything to their employees making sure that their voice reaches to the remotest of employees. Great companies for me are the ones that try and establish different touch-points with employees. Getting back the employee voice(Voice of the Employee) is also very critical. Exit interviews is old and trusted way to get feedback when one decides to throw in their towel, but equally important will be to have stayer interviews which is more proactive and allows the companies to identify what makes the employees stay back in the companies.

Flexible Work Arrangement - With the advent of technology in our lives entering at such a massive pace, it's not impossible to do one's work from anywhere on this planet, provided you have a laptop, internet with a good speed and phone to talk. Wherever/whenever possible being flexible on this work place arrangement can go a long way in helping to lower down the attrition. For someone leaving work at a certain time(to pick up their kid from school/day care) is more important that 20% raise that a competitor is willing to give, as it gives them more control over their lives and help them to take care off work life balance.

"money can't buy everything"

Learning & Development Opportunities - Some need this more than the others. Efforts should be made to not just impart training to employees when they new on the job but rather on a continuous basis. If on-site training's are not feasible due to cost being the constraining factor then having webinar based training tools available for your employees to self choose and upgrade their skills/knowledge also helps folks to stay motivated and feel good about themselves.

It is impossible to completely stop it from happening but trying to learn why and how it happens, and what all steps can be taken to minimize the same can help massively the companies to not only retain talent but also help improve growth of an organization.