Reducing Employee Attrition Rates

Reducing Employee Attrition

Employee attrition or churn is an ongoing concern for the vast majority of organisations worldwide. On average it costs business up to a third of an employee's salary to onboard new recruits, regardless of their experience. In fact, Contact Centre Agents in particular have a higher cost associated, taking up to 8 months to train, educate and coach effectively.

But unprecedented levels of turnover are a sign of the times, and organisations are paying the price. Employees are leaving for various personal and professional reasons, and each industry faces unique circumstances and varied attrition rates. But no matter the “why,” the bottom line is the same – addressing the pain point of employee turnover presents a serious challenge.?

** If you would like to compare or assess your own threat levels for current or future attrition then you are very welcome to join our LinkedIn Webinar Event this coming Wednesday 19th October by registering here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/439563274587

Below we discuss five of the main industry sectors suffering larger than average employee churn, and ways in which in the situation may be improved.

THE TECHNOLOGY SECTOR

Note - Managing a hybrid workforce?in the technology industry comes with its own set of complications. You’ll need to find new ways to forge connections to keep top talent engaged, and make your workforce stand out. To reduce turnover in tech, try the following.

• Keep employees in the loop by sharing company-wide blog posts from your leadership teams.
• Send out frequent pulse surveys to gauge employee morale and encourage feedback.
• Create employer-branded engagement platforms to facilitate two-way conversations between employees and leadership.
• Check that employees feel supported in having quality at-home equipment and desk set-ups and offer allowances where necessary.
• Reach remote employees on a human level with video updates and messages.

THE RETAIL SECTOR

Note - A big reason for turnover in retail is dealing with customers, which is unfortunately the nature of the beast. But you can adjust the way leadership?responds to and backs up your employees in the face of difficult situations.?

• Schedule employees for shorter shifts and offer longer (or shorter, more frequent) breaks to help them return to work feeling refreshed.
• Offer a free EAP so your team has a safe space to go should they ever need a little extra support.
• Provide access to on-demand videos and articles that support employees physical, financial and mental wellbeing.
• Introduce a wellbeing allowance that gives retail employees money to put towards the wellbeing initiatives they need and want.
• Boost team-wide morale with?peer-to-peer recognition?tools that promote a culture of thank you.

THE FINANCE & BANKING SECTOR

Note - Don’t try to prevent the inevitable ups and downs of the finance industry. Instead, focus on?improving your workplace?by doing the following.

• Offer ample vacation time and actively encourage employees to take the time they are given.
• Provide work-from-home opportunities for employees who don’t need to be on-site every day.
• Build belonging by offering company and employee sponsored groups or clubs (a messaging channel for runners to connect on their training, a book club that can meet during lunch to discuss recent reads, etc.)
• Find frequent and varied ways to keep employees in communication with their team and others (online bulletin boards, video posts from leaders, etc.)
• Make recognition and reward visible within and across groups.?
• Offer advancement opportunities by making succession planning a part of performance reviews and by visibly promoting from within.
• Provide?unique employee benefits?and make information about these benefits easy to find.

THE MANUFACTURING SECTOR

Note - Pay isn’t always the key to keeping people happy and reducing turnover. You can pay more in hopes that people will stay, but this isn’t guaranteed to work.

• Provide workers with an Employee Assistance Program (EAP) so they have a place to unload their day-to-day stress and receive valuable consultations.
• Help employees feel more valued at work through more frequent?rewards and recognition.
• Increase on-site visibility of senior leadership or work-from-home leaders so employees won’t feel isolated from higher-ups.
• Encourage mental health days to allow workers to rest, recuperate and stave off?employee burnout.
• Boost?employee wellbeing?in all forms (mental, physical, financial and emotional) with helpful tips and tricks to keep absenteeism at bay.
• Offer a mobile-friendly engagement app to reach frontline workers who may not have access to a desk every day, or at all.
• Create a positive work environment by automating safety procedures and saving time for your employees.?

THE HEALTHCARE SECTOR

Note - Healthcare workers deal with some of the most difficult situations of any industry. Be conscious of the continuous mental toll placed on workers. Help mitigate this toll with these tips:?

• Reduce shift length. If workers are routinely there for more than 10 hours, it may be time to make a change.?
• Offer mental health days and bring employee wellbeing opportunities to staff. Don’t expect them to go find wellbeing benefits themselves.
• Allow employees to use PTO or sick days with no questions asked. Trust them to manage their off days.
• Offer grief counselling and have leaders share how they are taking care of themselves.
• Proactively and transparently address challenges, but balance those challenges by sharing moments of pride and accomplishment to create a culture of support and recognition.
• Collect employee feedback on a regular basis to check in with your people and implement changes based on this feedback

What about Contact Centre Agent Churn specifically?

The above recommendations do not include any suggestions around new technologies, or processes as it goes without saying that building a technologically advanced digital workplace to better support your employees in their day-to-day roles will provide additional positivity, reinforcing retention and sustainability.

Nor do we discuss here the ways in which Contact Centre staff can feel more loyalty and identity within their Customer Service teams.

Further specific information and guidance around building high performing and sustainable Contact Centre teams is free and available upon request.

We invite you to contact us at www.techgiantworkplace.com for further advice in this critical area of operational excellence.

** If you would like to compare or assess your own threat levels for current or future attrition then you are very welcome to join our LinkedIn Webinar Event this coming Wednesday 19th October by registering here https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/439563274587

Note. We would like to thank and credit RewardGateway for their valued input and research into this area which has allowed TECHGIANT to provide you with this content.