How To Retain Good Employees
When managing employees, you need to know why each employee may want to leave the company. You can’t control external circumstances in an employee’s life as that is outside of your sphere. Creating a work environment that encourages communication will help retain good employees.
Employees leave a company for many reasons:
- Relationship with their manager: This is one of the top reasons employees leave a company. Review your relationship with your team members. Do they respect you or fear you or believe you don’t stand behind your words?
- Is the work challenging enough to hold their attention?
- Salaries: What are your compensation practices? Do you pay on the lower scale but are willing to train. Are you in the mid range or high end for the market? Compensation is an important issue but it doesn’t usually stand on its own as a reason for an employee leaving. It can, but dig deeper to see if there was another reason that motivated the employee to start looking.
- Recognition: This is in lined with communication. If you recognize an employee, you are communicating to them that they are valued. The more you communicate their value, the more they will feel they are strong contributing members of the team. A simple ‘thank you’ to a dinner on the company, all let the employee know they are appreciated. An appreciated employee will stay longer with a manager or company.
- Career advancement: Is there a clear message from the company and you that their careers are important and will support their development?
- Financial stability of the company: It’s important to communicate the financial well being of the company. Even if you have to freeze salary increases, communicate the reasons behind it and what you anticipate to accomplish with this short-term decision.
- Work environment: What is your culture like? Virtual companies have to work a little harder to create a strong culture. An environment that provides individual growth, communication between management and employee, and co-workers that enjoy their work, perform at their best and also have a fun side, is an ideal culture.
Retaining talent is one of the primary goals of a strong manager. I recommend that you review each person on your team to see where you are vulnerable in losing them. It means:
- you will have to get to know them,
- what motivates their level of performance,
- what excites them and
- what are their concerns
In managing employees, you will need to communicate clear expectations on performance and deliverables, open discussion around the employee’s concerns, and what are their career goals.
If you want to retain your strong performers, then you need to listen
and communicate on a regular basis.
Be well,
Pat
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