With the evolving nature of the workplace, job-hopping has become a common practice among millennials. Retaining your best employees is no mean feat these days with a plethora of options available to them. For HR management the job doesn’t just end at recruiting the best talent, strategies must also be formulated to retain and engage employees. Retention strategies are developed from understanding the reasons why your top talent may be tempted to look at other options.
According to Gallup, “The cost of replacing an individual employee can range from one-half to two times the employee’s annual salary – and that’s a conservative estimate.”
Let’s look at the top 7 tips that you can implement to retain your top talent:
- Hire the right people
As an HR or Recruitment Manager, it is imperative that you hire the right people for the right job. Your job description should be comprehensive and to the point to attract the right applicants. The people responsible for hiring should assess the candidates for their skills and personality and substantiate if they are the right fit for the company and its culture. Look at their past experiences, knowledge, skillset and if it matches your requirements, to hire the right person for the job.
- Train your managers
It is a well-established fact that most often employees don’t quit jobs due to their job roles but because of their managers. Employees complain about lack of clarity of expectations, lack of feedback of performance, no appreciation etc. Develop an environment of mutual trust and respect that allows your best employees to thrive. Employees today do not appreciate the approach of micro-management and value a relationship that relies on trust and transparency. Allow employees the freedom and autonomy to be creative but also provide timely feedback for development.
- Provide opportunities for growth
Stagnancy in a job role or career can be demotivating for any employee and propel them to look for other viable options. If employees don’t see a future with the company they will look for better opportunities elsewhere. Create opportunities for the development of your employees like development programs, skill-based training, knowledge of the latest technologies to help them acquire new skills and make significant progress in their careers. Career development prospects are lucrative perks to any hardworking employee.
- Offer competitive salary and perks
Good competitive salary and perks that is equitable or better than your competitors can be a huge differentiating factor for your top-performing employees. Review your salary structure viz-a-viz your competitors to arrive at a fair figure of compensation. Offer healthcare benefits, wellness programs, flexible work policy and other benefits to retain your best talent. In the post-pandemic era, employees are valuing the option of remote working and are viewing this as an important retention perk. Evolve with the times to provide benefits for the modern workforce.
- Cultivate a great work environment
A positive work culture makes people feel included and celebrates diversity among employees. People like coming to work to an office that values their contribution and is serious about retaining top talent. Cultivate a great office culture by prioritizing communication and transparency, valuing employee contributions and celebrating their important milestones. It will take out the dread and monotony from a regular office routine and instigate employees to participate and look forward to work. Outstanding office culture can be a great factor when it comes to retaining your top talent.
- Create a system for feedback
Employees appreciate a platform to provide feedback and contribute ideas. Many organizations fail to recognize the importance of communicating regularly with employees and making them feel connected. Lack of feedback often leads to a lack of clarity that can impact employee performance in the long run. Allowing employees to freely discuss their ideas improves creativity and produces fresh new perspectives. Employees feel valued that their voice holds meaning and is appreciated by the organization. This process is a crucial step to retain your top performers.
- Advocate a strong work-life balance
Burnout at the workplace is cited as one of the biggest reasons for quitting a job. Your organization must strive at devising strategies that prioritize a healthy work-life balance. You need to acknowledge that your employees have a life outside of work that is equally or more important. With the increased adoption of remote work, employees now have the flexibility to get more things done without harming their daily routine. A healthy work-life balance promotes employee well-being, minimizes health risks and makes for happy employees. You can also provide paid time-off options to top-performing employees for maximized productivity and retention.
In this era of constant job-hopping, retaining your best employees requires some serious effort. You need to ensure that your organization is up for the task to keep your employees motivated and engaged. However, it is worth the effort as retaining key employees not only results in high output but also is cost-saving and a reputable move.