24
Jul

Strategies For Future Success: 6 Ways To Keep Great Talent In Your Organisation (Part 3)

In our ‘Strategies For Future Success’ series, we’ve already shared tips on attracting top talent to your organization and ensuring great employee experience

Today, we advise on how to keep your most valuable business asset: your employees.

The real cost of losing a valuable employee

The cost of employees turnover is higher than you think. According to the Center of American Progress, losing an employee can cost a company as much as three times as an employee’s salary. Aside from the direct cost of replacing an employee, there are many hidden costs like:

  • Lost productivity
  • Decreased performance
  • Damaged reputation
  • Dissatisfied customers
  • Lowered morale

 

As the consequences of high turnover fall outside of profit margins, focusing on employee retention is a worthy investment.

Why employees really leave a business

Many employers still believe a better salary offer is the main reason employees change their job. However, Leigh Branham, author of “The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave” revealed that 89% of employers think employees leave for more money but in reality, only 12% do. Our research highlights, ineffective management, work overload or a lack of advancement opportunities are much closer to the real reasons why people decide to leave an organisation.

Here are some actionable ideas on how to improve staff retention.

1. Better employee retention starts with hiring the right way

It has been proven that strategic recruitment positively impacts employee retention rate. In our recent article ‘Strategies For Future Success: Ensuring The Best Match For The Role’ we discussed how to ensure the recruitment phase is a positive experience for your candidates – whether you hire internally or externally – it sets the tone for the future.

  • Attraction Attraction
  • Candidate Experience Candidate Experience
  • Retention Retention

How the industry works together on this

Properly managed process & consistent assessment

How the industry works together on this

2. Set a clear career path and framework

A lack of clarity over career progression is a major reason to leave. To combat this, companies have learned to understand what their employee’s ideal career path looks like:

  • What further responsibilities would they like to develop?
  • What areas of expertise would they like to gain more experience in?
  • What things would they like to achieve within the next 1 and 5 years?

 

Creating a career progression plan, which supports an employee’s goals, motivations and aspirations. Set a clear, time-efficient framework and make staff feel invested in. 

3. Create a supportive & transparent work environment 

According to DDI research, 57 percent of employees have left a job because of their manager at least once in their life. Another study shows that nearly 7 out of 10 employees consider leaving their current workplace as they don’t feel supported by management. Supportive, attentive and fair management is critical for employee retention.

Ensure that your managers are committed to open, transparent, and respectful communication. Encourage this behaviour across the organisation. Establish regular meetings, with more informal weekly dialogue in which employees can offer ideas and ask questions; and encourage “open-door policies” that allow employees to speak frankly with their managers. 

In order for a business to be successful, every member of the team must have confidence in the leadership team and feel valued. Otherwise, employees will be more likely to disengage.

4. Invest in training & development

More and more studies highlight a growing need for organizations to invest in their people through training and development. For example, according to the ‘Future of Work and Employee Learning’ report from Sitel Group, thirty-seven percent of current employees would leave their current job if they were not offered training to learn new skills.

Training & development is a win-win for both employer and employees. An employer benefits from a more efficient, engaged and productive workforce. Employees expand their expertise, leadership skills and grow their perspectives. Another important thing is to support the professional development of your employees by endorsing creative freedom. Giving your employees time to test out new ideas or ways of working could potentially lead to either new revenue streams or improved service.

5. Embrace mentorship programmes

Mentorships are one of the most powerful ways to harness your workforce to increase productivity, engage and retain top talent. Based on the Association for Talent Development study, mentorship programmes in the workplace increase the engagement and retention rate by as much as 50 percent.

Mentorship programmes not only foster development, collaboration and knowledge transfer but also demonstrate to your employees that you are actively investing in their careers. Young employees are craving mentorship opportunities at their companies, with 79% of millennials believing that mentoring is crucial to their career success.

Read our guideline on how to create a great mentorship programme.

6. Recognize your employees (and do it frequently)

A personalised recognition from a direct supervisor is often cited as a great motivator in the workplace. A sincere word from the right person at the right time can sometimes mean more to an employee than a raise, a formal reward, or a wall full of certificates or plaques. Surprisingly, many managers forget to do this regularly, despite it being simple to do and a key employee gripe. 

Great people create more value

Engaging workplace cultures are not created, they are cultivated by providing a strong sense of purpose, opportunities to grow, and meaningful recognition to tie it all together. In this way, your organization becomes an attractive place for new talent and happy home for the talent you already have. 

If you would like to discuss and share your experience on best talent acquisition strategies, contact us today.

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