You may have the resources and clout to hire the cream of the crop, but that’s just part of what makes a strong company. Despite the fact that it’s the people that make the organisation, the need for staff retention is often overlooked in the corporate world.
Sometimes it’s the intangibles that produce concrete results. Relationships with employees should be cherished, and looked upon as marathons rather than hasty 100 metre sprints. The idea is to keep your people coming into work with a bounce in their step and going about their day with purpose and meaning.
Here are our top staff retention strategies to help you keep your winners going the distance with you.
1. Pay attention to salary trends
A common push factor, but yet often overlooked is the lack of market awareness when it comes to salary adjustments. It is important to keep abreast of salary and bonus trends year after year, and the Robert Half Salary Guide provides a comprehensive report on hiring trends with salary range tables across the Finance & Accounting, Financial Services and Technology sector.
As long as budget allows, this problem is typically the easiest to fix as long as the conversation is kept open, and frank.
2. Hire to not fire
Human capital can be one of the best or worst investments a company makes. If top talent is not motivated and utilised in the best way possible, interest in the job could quickly wane and your employee could start looking again. Negativity is infectious, and unhappy employees could quickly spread ill-will about the office.
The hiring process can be a long one but it’s worth being thorough and sure that your new hire is the right fit for the company, taking into consideration the role, the company culture and the candidates’ personality.
3. Encourage growth
Invest in skill enhancement and make sure direct superiors are committed to helping with career progression. Encouraging more experienced staff to mentor juniors can be rewarding too.
Promote from within whenever possible – this is one of the most visible ways to demonstrate to employees that their contributions are valued, and will be rewarded with career progress.
4. Flexible benefits
No two employees are the same, so offering customisable benefits packages that each employee can tailor to their individual needs might be a welcome proposition to some.
Having an attractive benefits policy may help staff retention during years when raises or bonuses aren’t generous. Incentives should be well-thought out, meaningful and designed to create a positive impact on the lives of your employees.
5. Be all ears
It’s worthwhile to conduct surveys or informal feedback sessions to find out what keeps your employees coming back every day. Fostering a culture where open dialogue from all levels is welcome allows employees to feel that they are contributing to something big and meaningful.
When employees are emotionally invested, the likelihood of them staying tends to increase.
6. Time off is time well spent
Time is invaluable. Understaffing creates a stressed out workplace, forcing employees to clock overtime hours and give up precious time meant for leisure. Give your staff enough time off to be with loved ones or pursue personal interests. Happy and well-balanced people make up a harmonious and productive workplace.
Turbulence in the business economy is inevitable, but an employee who feels that the company has his or her interests at heart is one who will stay put when the going gets tough. Instilling and reinforcing a sense of trust and belonging in your people in good times will pay off when the tides change, as they often do.
Staff retention may be tricky, but it simply takes some effort, and more often than not, heart, to keep a winner on your team sticking around for the long haul.
