Top 10 Employee Retention Tips

While some employee turnover is inevitable, turnover is expensive to any company. Business owners and managers immediately feel the pain when an employee tenders their resignation. Costs to the business include both hard and soft costs such as: loss of critical operational knowledge and experience, training costs for the new hire replacement, likely higher starting salary for the replacement employee, possible customer impact when a critical employee is lost, potential productivity impact on other employees until the lost employee is replaced, and more.

The Millennial Generation has caused a shift in how companies manage and retain employees. In 2014, Millennials made up 36% of the work force, projected to be 46% in the year 2020, and 75% of the workforce in 2030. And whether anyone believes it is easier or more difficult to manage employees these days, it doesn’t matter: you still must manage effectively.

Here are ten tips to help improve both employee retention and most likely improve the performance of your organization.

1. Embrace a coaching culture to attract Millennials.
2. Compete with improved or flexible benefits, and not just salary; although paying market salary is almost always the price of entry when hiring a new employee.
3. Hire carefully – but not fearfully. There is no such thing as the perfect job, and there is no such thing as the perfect employee. Have a clear understanding of the job responsibilities and the true career path when you hire to decrease the chance of an incorrect hire.
4. Consistent training is mandatory – especially if the Millennials you are courting are technical employees.
5. Know your culture, and hire with that culture in mind. A disruptive employee can be a cancer inside a company.
6. Listen to your employees – consider holding quarterly or semi-annual listening sessions to obtain your employee’s opinion as to what is running well, and what might need attention.
7. Selectively ask a few of your most valued employees what keeps them there, and what do they like most about their job. Use that information to influence how your team or company is managed to improve overall employee satisfaction.
8. Recognize your employee’s performance in a manner or style that is consistent with your company’s culture.
9. Consider implementing a flexible work schedule or work environment when possible. Embrace a goal oriented, tangible results approach whenever possible, and allow (within reason) employee flexibility to accomplish their goals.
10. Periodically revisit what works, and what is not working as well as desired. The best managed companies constantly reevaluate their performance and approach, looking for areas to improve.

I wish you great success navigating the always challenging task of managing and growing your business. If increasing your staff or upgrading the quality of your technical staff is on your strategic set of goals to accomplish, the VAR Staffing team and I welcome the opportunity to discuss your needs. Call me at 972-847-0566.