How to Retain Good Employees Maria Yun, Managing Director

Transcription

1 How to Retain Good Employees Maria Yun, Managing Director Expert accounting, financial services & legal recruiters AFL Recruitment Pty Ltd Website: Phone: Mobile: Suite 1A, Level 2, 802 Pacific Highway, Gordon NSW 2072

2 Introduction As employers, we need to appreciate that employees are the backbone of our businesses. Indeed, the success of a business so much hinges on having high quality staff. It s hard enough going through the recruitment process to attract the right candidate in the first place let alone thinking about how you are going to keep them. Indeed, many of us employers fall into the trap of thinking that once we have made a successful hire, that s the end. However, if you are serious about maximizing the return on your financial and time investment in recruiting staff in the first place, you need to start thinking that a successful hire is in fact just the beginning of an ongoing long-term staff retention process.

3 Key issues to consider Having studied, observed and spoken to literally thousands of candidates and employers on the topic of employee loyalty/staff retention, I draw the following conclusions: 1. Staff retention is both an art and a science; 2. The majority of employers, whilst they know the importance of staff retention at a theoretical level, they fail to fully understand and appreciate that there is an art and a science to retaining staff, nor do they consciously, proactively and deliberately employ the right strategies. Rather, they engage in reactive and ad hoc measures to retain staff which in most instances is ineffective because by the time they act, it is too late (the employee has already decided to leave). 3. Internal factors such as organizational policies and an employer s actions and attitudes play a significant role in determining the stickability of its employees. Indeed some of the most common instances of job dissatisfaction which eventually result in employee turnover are caused by the following : organizational policies & procedures the daily attitude & behaviors of managers; and the role of managers in offsetting/neutralizing demotivating factors. With the aim of helping businesses retain their talented staff at a time where it is becoming increasing challenging to do so (especially in sectors experiencing labour shortage with high interemployer competition), below are some staff retention strategies that have proven to be successful. Not all of these may be relevant to your business and some may be more effective than others so feel free to experiment and find the best combination that is right for your staff and your business. OPEN COMMUNICATION CHANNELS Ensure that your staff can communication openly with management.

4 A) An open-door policy Create an environment which allows employees to voice their opinions, concerns and/or complaints without any fear of repercussion. Hold meetings where employees and managers can interact. Such meetings can be used to share ideas, grievances and resolve conflicts. B) Open feedback channels A small addition like a suggestion box in the office can help your employees speak up frankly. It is also important to have a parallel policy that ensures all complaints and queries will be responded to within a set period of time-say a few days. C) Prompt conflict resolution Sometimes, the best of employees quit because of ego-clashes and minor conflicts. This can be prevented if their problems are solved using the right conflict resolution strategy sooner rather than later. D) Conducting Stay interviews While almost all employees are interviewed before being employed and asked for feedback just prior to exiting, they are seldom asked for their suggestions while they are still in the job. Ask them what has made them stay in the organization for so long, what would make them leave, how well do they connect with the managers and teams, and what changes would they like to see. This information can then to be used to strengthen existing employee retention programs. PERKS Many organizations are now becoming more creative in the types of benefits they provide to employees. A) Non-cash rewards. Such rewards may include paying for educational courses, drycleaning services, gardening services, providing childcare facilities, cleaning services, life coaching and yoga/health/recreational classes and free holidays. Such benefits will go a long way in boosting motivation and morale levels of employees as well as help them connect with the organization at a personal level. B) Flexible work options. For example, job-sharing, tele-commuting, varying starting and finishing times are becoming increasingly popular. C) Flexible leave arrangements. Some common examples include allowing staff to purchase annual leave, birthdays off and extra study leave.

5 D) Employee share schemes. By acquiring shares, thereby effectively being part-owners of the enterprise for which they work, employees can share in the rewards of the fruits of their labour. MOTIVATE EMPLOYEES- Individuals have different levels of needs of achievement, affiliation and power that determine their behavior. Therefore, no single motivation strategy will work for all. The trick lies in recognizing individual differences and exploiting the same so as to get the best out of your employees and keep them motivated. A) Make work challenging People constantly need a challenge to drive them. When this challenge fades, like it does when a start-up s growth slows down, the job loses its initial lustre. The idea here is to present your employees with challenges that motivate them to put in their 100%. This does not mean that they have to work over-time or handle responsibilities outside their skills set. Instead, use some creativity and have them attempt their work in a slightly different way, or deal with customers in another market. B) Respect, Appreciation and Recognition. All humans have an innate desire to be respected, appreciated and recognized. Babies cry for it and grown men, die for it. a. Employees have to be respected for the contribution they make to the organization. Be a good listener, appreciate their ideas, and never ridicule or shame them, especially in front of others. b. At the time of exit, employees often complain that they felt like their seniors didn t even know they existed. This is why it is important for managers to interact with all their employees and explicitly recognize their talents, abilities, and hardwork. Seek to be the boss that catches his/her employees doing something good! Most employers are known to catch out their employees making a mistake. Every time an employee does something praiseworthy and it goes unnoticed, you are gradually contributing to their dissatisfaction which over time will lead them to seek employment with an employer that does appreciate them. Make it a habit of giving compliments where they are due (even for the little things) and saying thank you. c. The perception of fairness and equitable treatment while rewarding also plays a great role in retention of good employees. When a more experienced, better

6 qualified and hardworking employee finds an undeserving colleague making more money, s/he is likely to start looking for another job. C) Job Satisfaction According to Herzberg s two-factor theory, a manager needs to understand that job satisfaction and dissatisfaction are not the opposite ends of the same thing. While factors like salary, work conditions and company influence the level of dissatisfaction, satisfaction with one s job is determined by achievement, responsibility and growth. To maximize staff retention, a manager should regularly be assessing and monitoring job satisfaction level s (by obtaining feedback from staff) and do what is required to ensure the employee is deriving ongoing job satisfaction. For example the manager may need to create new opportunities for the employee to learn new things and grow, add more responsibilities and/or remove some existing responsibilities. EMPLOYEE INVOLVEMENT PROGRAM- This is a participative process that uses the entire capacity of employees and is designed to encourage increased commitment to the organization s success. There are various ways in which such a program can be implemented: o Participative Management - A process in which subordinates share a significant degree of decision-making power with their immediate superiors. o Representative Participation Workers participate in organizational decision making through a small group of representative employees. o Works Councils Groups of nominated or elected employees who must be consulted when management makes decisions involving employees o Quality Circle A work group of employees who meet regularly to discuss their quality problems, investigate causes, recommend solutions, and take corrective actions. CAREER DEVELOPMENT AND GROWTH The reason why many employees stick to one organization for years is because these offer scope for further personal growth and career development. A job which offers dim possibilities for growth will not attract long-term takers. Even though jobs of such nature are found in most companies, an employee s experience can be enriched by creating ample opportunities for promotion and by making them an integral part of the decision making process. This also highlights the need for training programs that help employees develop their skills.

7 SKILL AND TALENT UTILISATION An employee s job responsibilities must be in line with his/her skills set. Additional tasks that utilize an individual s unique talents and abilities can help them carve a special place for themselves in the company. This also helps them identify with the organization s goals at large. Thus, not only does this increase the output of your employees, it also helps an organization deal with high employee turnover. JOB SECURITY Job security is a factor that can work in two opposing ways. If your employees sense that are about to be laid off, they are bound to start updating their resumes and start looking for something new. Being too secure about their jobs, on the other hand, reduces productivity. Therefore, to achieve a balance between productivity and turnover, a manager must be able to constantly motivate her employees without sending a threatening signal. Conclusion An employer s actions (both positive and negative) play a vital role in determining durability of an employee. We have explored a number of tried, tested and proven strategies which have been (and are being) used by employers to retain staff. These include having open communication channels and encouraging participation in the business, providing additional non-salary perks, recognizing and appreciating staff and helping them to fully utilize their skills to maximize their potential (by allowing them to continue to grow, experience challenges and learn new things) and provide them with a sense of ongoing security.