The economy is tough and many employers are ignoring retention. Not thinking about what your employees want and need can damage your business and poke holes into your employee morale.
Did you know that unhappy employees are a very dangerous factor in determining your businesses success or failure? Study after study continually shows happy employees are more motivated, better for business, and more productive. If you’re not worried about morale, you’re not worried about employee retention. After all, unhappy employees are often the first ones out the door. When the economy takes an upturn and jobs reappear, you don’t want to see a mass exodus of talent leaving your organization.
Here are some tips to make sure your company doesn’t bleed valuable talent:
Motivate Employees
You know that saying about getting more flies with honey than with vinegar? Or the one about the carrot and the stick? Those old cliches can easily be applied to the workplace. Do you want your employees motivated by something positive or something negative? Positive motivation would seem to be the obvious answer, yet many workplaces still go negative. Use employee perks like summer Fridays and great benefits to keep employees punching in everyday. Employees afraid of reprimands or retribution won’t take risks for fear of failure. To use another old cliche: no risks, no rewards.
Reward Good Work
Dangling benefits like a carrot in front of employees isn’t enough though. You need to reward good work. Rewarding employees who go over and above the call of duty is easy and effective for building morale. This way you show the whole workforce the importance of putting in the extra effort. You also show employees that hardwork is not in vain, as good work is being recognized in a real way. There’s really no overstating the benefits of employee appreciation.
Keep the Challenges Coming
Employees who no longer feel challenged are most likely no longer turning in their best work. Challenges help individuals learn and grow. Sure challenges can drive us crazy, but they can also drive us to new heights we never thought we could accomplish. If employees aren’t being challenged anymore in their positions, they’re getting complacent. Make sure you’re workforce is always learning and growing in their roles. An unchallenged employee will likely be headed out the door when an opportunity for real professional development comes along.
Really Listen to Concerns
Does your office have an open door policy when it comes to employee questions and concerns? If you’re enthusiastically shaking your head yes, ask yourself a better question. Is your open door policy just lip service? Sure employers promise to listen to the concerns of employees, but for many this policy is just window dressing.
If your employees are presenting their issues and management is ignoring them, you have unhappy employees. Make sure to really listen to all the comments employees are making about the company and their working environment. If there’s something you can address, make sure to do so. Employees who feel they’re being heard are more likely to stick around.
Hire Right
The easiest way to keep employees in the fold is to hire the right employees to begin with! Online video technology makes the hiring process easier than ever for employers looking to hire candidates for fit. Stop judging candidates entirely by their CV and start factoring company culture and the office environment into the equation. A bad fit between a company and a hire pretty much guarantees poor retention. Hiring an employee who cannot just jump right in and do the job, but who will also enjoy the workplace is the best way to keep talent from fleeing.
What are some tips you have to retain top talent? Share them with us!
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