How to Hold On to Your Staff
A high turnover of staff, even when a business is seemingly successful, indicates a core problem. It’s been calculated that at any time, a third of a workforce in an enterprise is considering their exit plan from the job that they’re in. This has an impact on your profit and loss as well as your time usage.
So, what causes high personnel turnover? It could be a number of issues:
The work atmosphere can have a huge bearing on staff retention. A toxic environment filled with negativity and disrespect is hardly going to enthuse and energise a workforce. It’s worth listening to how employees interact with one another and assess whether there is a prevailing lack of a sense of value.
At management and team leader levels, the procedures and company ethos might be stated unclearly or unprofessionally. Does everyone know what they are there for and why?
Team members need to know when the business is doing well, because one of the largest motivators for staff movement is in thinking that their workplace is in financial difficulties. Keep staff positively informed and they’ll be naturally inclined to work harder and meet goals.
Another reason that people move on is money. If employees feel that they are not being paid enough for their time and expertise, they will walk. Look at it this way: if company A offers a lower wage for performing the same role as company B, are you going to be loyal to company A? No. Nor will your employees.
To retain a full complement of staff, a company must ensure that they feel valued and integral to operations in the business, and not simply a number that is easily replaceable. Inspire loyalty and the job will become more than a salary.
Plus, it’s not enough for most employees to only be paid a basic wage; benefits and subsidies need to be considered too, and these could tip the balance in your favour.
These are common perks that are hoped for or expected by recruits:
- Business mobiles
- Business vehicle
- Childcare vouchers
- A crèche
- Health insurance
- Healthcare facilities
- Reduced gym membership
- A path to promotion and career development
A growing number of people look for flexibility in a role and a rigid outlook is often one that costs the employer, so it is an excellent idea to offer flexible working hours and work from home options. Work-life balance is often askew, so it helps to give employees a choice of working hours so that they can fulfil work and family or social obligations comfortably.
By offering opportunities to build friendships and a team spirit in social ways, you can make an impact on an employee’s readiness to leave their teammates behind. So, whether it’s a pub quiz, a team sports day, a fundraising challenge or any other team building experience, it should benefit everyone involved.
As the cost to a business of an employee leaving is anything between 75%-200% of their salary, isn’t it better to ensure you’re doing things right?