The grass is greener on the other side. For workplace talent, it seems to be particularly true. A CareerBuilder Survey (sometime in early 2016 or late 2015) has found that over 21% of employees – at any given point in time – were looking at greener pastures and planning to quit their current positions. In the 18 to 34 age group, the figure was as high as 33%. If you are handling the HR division of a company, then nobody knows better than you that this isn’t good news. If for the simple reason that talent turnover can turn out to be a costly affair. Quite apart, of course, from the fact that it can take a big slice out of employee morale, worker productivity, and indeed, adversely affect the overall growth of the company as well. What makes matters worse (trickier, if you will) is that it can be virtually impossible to predict or figure out which of your guys are planning to leave ship. After all, satisfaction with one’s current job is no guarantee that the individual isn’t open to change, or isn’t exploring opportunities.
So how do you retain your stars and make sure company’s growth doesn’t suffer? Here’s a bunch of proven tactics.
Find out what makes your team tick
Unless you know the passions, interests and likes that drive your employees to work every morning, chances are you won’t do a good job of holding them back. The CareerBuilder survey revealed that areas that mattered most to jobseekers were, in descending order, job stability, affordable benefits, location, good boss and positive work culture. Interestingly, each of these mattered more than monetary compensation. But the big question remains. How do you figure how you are faring in each of these parameters? A confidential survey via questionnaires is a good way. An honest face-to-face meeting soliciting suggestions and ideas – where employees are assured of the objective neutrality of the exercise – can throw up important pointers as well.
Be generous with perks
Perks generate a sense of happiness. There’s no harm considering benefits that don’t pinch you too much, yet bring a smile on the face of your workers. The CareerBuilder Survey throws some suggestions like half-day Fridays, games and activities, gyms & massages, casual dressing…you get the drift.
Don’t ignore the power of Internal Hiring
A report by Linkedin says that it isn’t uncommon for HR managers to overlook Internal Hiring as a legitimate strategy in their recruiting. As a matter of fact, less than a third concur to leveraging it regularly as a tactic. The truth is that hiring from your own workforce – be it from across departments or via tapping ex-employees, is a great way to maintain a viable talent pipeline.
Value relationships with your workforce
Sure, professional boundaries need to be maintained, but that doesn’t mean you can’t lean over and “Hello!” your employees every once in a while. Asking them about what’s going on with the latest projects, finding out how things are over at (their) home, whether they are happy at work and discussing future goals can all make your employees feel valued. And stay.
Trust the team.
Nothing builds relationships like trust. And that means trusting your workers with new responsibilities, encouraging them to take risks, and giving them new learning opportunities. Research has proven that all of this keeps your employees ‘awake’, more fulfilled, and willing to stick around.
Hire wise.
The most obvious way to retain talent is, of course, to ensure you hire the most appropriate ones in the first place. Remember, an employee who is truly a great ‘fit’ for the role, will naturally be happy at work, cherish the culture and opportunities that are coming his or her way, and – all other conditions being equal – be amongst the last to consider leaving. So if it means investing more time, energy and money over finding someone who ticks all the boxes (be it educational, experience, attitude or cultural aspects), so be it. It’s worth it.
