Retaining Employees – why is it such a challenge?
One problem that affects all organizations worldwide is employee turnover. Every time an employee resigns from a company, they bring with them their expertise and knowledge. You may hire new employees to replace the ones you lost, but this presents a whole lot of challenges, for example providing training for inexperienced new hires. While it makes a difference in the long run, you want results now. Solve issues at the roots and establish a professional development plan as a way to retain your best employees.
The following are factors that impact employee retention and how you can address them:
Micromanagement. People typically see micromanagement as a negative thing, but many leaders still do it. A leader may not be conscious that they have become a micro-manager because sometimes it just happens. So, the goal is to recognize the signs of micromanagement and do something to stop them. One way to overcome micromanagement is to promote autonomy. Give employees space, freedom, and a sense of ownership to perform their best at work.
Lack of Trust. If a manager or executive often withholds information and only shares it at the last minute or unless absolutely necessary, it usually ends up in lack of trust among staff. A successful working relationship should have mutual trust. Otherwise, retaining employees will be a real challenge. A need-to-know basis in the workplace is demoralizing and inefficient.
One of the essential things you can give to your employees is information. This makes them feel that you trust them to make the right decisions regarding their job. When there is transparency, employees can perform their best at work. Access to available information can also spring initiatives and great ideas.
Poor Employee Selection. While finding valuable employees is not always easy, hiring employees that do not match your company values or culture does not likely end well. Choosing poorly-matched employees to fill certain positions are bad for everyone, including the company and the employee.
What you can do is perfect the selection and interview process. Consider using the sfia framework to establish the skills you are looking for. By doing this, you can easily remove unsuitable and unqualified candidates. When you define the job roles clearly, you will target the right people, which can significantly save your company money and time.
Lack of Recognition. Employee retention includes acknowledging employees for a job they have done well. An organization with a rich recognition culture tends to have a lower rate of employee turnover. In fact, recognition is one of the easiest ways to increase retention and you can achieve it at no cost. You will be surprised that even those employees who are well-compensated do not stick around the company if their hard work goes unrecognized.
The First Steps of Employee Retention
You may want to start with job security and greater stability. If employees know that they will become successful when they work with your organization, it contributes to their decision to stay. With this, you want to focus on company purpose, brand reputation, competency management, and growth strategy. Present the company value for the long-term, allowing the employee to envision their career trajectory when working at your company.
Also, rewarding loyalty and company work with an increase in income is one way of retaining employees. Define the salary ranges and structures right at the interview process. Include measurable steps that employees can take to reach specific goals. When the reward system and growth track is well-defined, people see this as an indication that there is opportunity existing in your organization.
There are many reasons why retaining employees can be a challenge to employers. But, there are solutions that can help avoid this problem. Assess the situation first and determine what causes the turnover. This is important because the last thing you want is to execute a solution without knowing the reason. So, look at your organization objectively, gauge the outcome of your solutions, and get to work on addressing your employee retention problems.
