Keeping Your Staff On Board
Employee retention is the measured ability of an organization to keep its people, or simply the ability to hang onto your employees. Since the start of the pandemic, the workforce has been constantly changing, making it harder and harder to retain people over time. There has been a tremendous exodus from the job market, referred to as “The Great Resignation,” the impact of which is still ongoing. The current market is now most favorable to job-seekers, with people more motivated to walk away than to stay, for reasons that include inadequate pay, few opportunities for job progression, poor work-life balance, a sense of being overworked and/or under supported, and better opportunities elsewhere, among a host of other factors. The time is now for employers to have a focused plan to retain valued workers.
Why Should Businesses Prioritize Employee Retention?
Continuity of Productivity
Long-term employees in an organization bring increased value to the business. They understand the responsibilities of their role and the core components of the company’s vision and objectives. When knowledgeable employees leave, they take with them their irreplaceable corporate historical knowledge. And while their role remains vacant the impact to ongoing projects can create a negative knock-on effect for the remaining colleagues, leading to delays and other undesirable consequences.
Reduced Business Costs
It is financially beneficial to an organization to retain their best employees. The cost of turnover extends beyond the recruiting, hiring, and training time required to replace someone, it includes the time taken away from attention to daily operations, duties, and productivity.
Employee/Team Morale: A team member’s departure can be a significant blow to employee morale, and leave a hole in the team dynamics. This may lead to frustration, resentment and burnout, and possibly influence others in their decision to stay or look for new opportunities.
How can you improve the chances of keeping employees on board? Here are some basic steps:
- Evaluate your existing retention practices, and compare them with those of your competitors. Traditional inducements such as competitive wages and fundamental benefits might help you recruit good candidates, but they are increasingly insufficient in today’s market to keep them long term. Incentives, bonuses, or rewards and recognition for outstanding performance to employees who do well are methods for demonstrating your appreciation for their efforts and the value they bring to your business. When workers feel appreciated for their work contributions by management, they are more likely to stay with the company.
- Create an inviting workplace. Evaluate your work environment, keeping in mind that your place of business is an employee’s second home. What can you do to enhance a positive workplace environment and boost employee morale? For example, many businesses provide complimentary beverages or low-cost lunch options to staff members. It’s the little things that make the difference.
- Offer professional training. Providing opportunities for training is another powerful incentive for staff retention. Employees can grow professionally by taking engaging seminars and courses where they can expand their knowledge and skillset.
- Prepare new hires for success. To best prepare new hires for success, your onboarding process should teach new hires about the corporate culture and how they may contribute to and succeed in it. Do not shortchange this important first action. The orientation you give new hires, whether in person or digitally, can set the tone for their tenure with your company.
At PPR, our skilled Talent Acquisition Team stays up to date on the most recent methods for promoting employee retention in the workplace. To increase retention, our staff puts great emphasis on matching businesses with employees. Contact PPR to speak with an expert about how to make sure your company is adhering to current retention trends and promoting excellence from employees.
Resources:
https://resources.workable.com/hr-terms/what-is-employee-retention
https://www.roberthalf.com/blog/management-tips/effective-employee-retention-strategies