Rising employee turnover has become a major pain point for employers around the world. According to a recent study by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), “employers must spend the equivalent of six months’ salary to find and train replacements for the challenges ahead.”
For employees who stay, turnover hurts morale and motivation. Finally, they are unable to keep up with the changing environment in the organization.
So, do you know how to retain your best employees? Don’t worry. In this post, I’m going to discuss nine effective employee retention strategies that can help you keep your top talent engaged and committed to your organization.
1. Bridging the communication gap
When companies grow quickly, communication gaps tend to occur. Communication gaps are when people feel their voices to be ignored or misunderstood. Communication gaps can be of different types and degrees.
These gaps can be particularly problematic at the executive level, potentially causing significant trouble for the company and its shareholders. As expectations increase, employees may find it challenging to share their ideas and suggestions, further widening the communication divide.
Therefore, a good company should strive to eliminate communication barriers and counter-solve this common business problem.
2. Avoid sudden changes
Change is essential for a company and if it yields a positive outcome, improves and increases efficiency, then it must be welcomed and unhindered. On the other hand, employees should learn to be adaptable because this business world is ever-changing. Therefore, if your business is not ready for immediate change, it may come as a shock.
But here’s the thing: sudden changes within a company are also unhealthy. It would be a good thing if the employer discusses the upcoming changes related to anything and starts the transition process within a predetermined time. Not only will it ease the stress of accepting the differences, but the employees will also be happy to accept the new changes .
Don’t frustrate your employees with sudden, unannounced changes; if they have a bad impression of you, they will leave you.
3. Incorporate an effective onboarding process
Onboarding is a critical step once a new candidate has made it through the interview process. It’s a make-or-break phase for the long-term success of your new hire.
According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), new employees who participate in a well-planned onboarding program are 70% more likely to stay with the company longer. On the other hand, about 23% of employees who leave a company say they would have stayed if they had clearer guidelines about responsibilities when they started.
In short, a smooth onboarding process is essential to reducing staff turnover. So, as you develop your employee retention strategy, don’t forget this advice.
Read More: 30 Employee Onboarding Gift Ideas That New Hires Would Be Thrilled To Receive
4. Micromanagement is never welcome
Henry Mintzberg, a Canadian business and management scholar and author, once said:
“Management is first and foremost a practice that combines art, science, and craft.”
However, if this kind of management turns into micromanagement, it will be very destructive to a company and its internal culture.
Employees working under insecure bosses are direct victims of micromanagement. A good company that wants to retain top talent never welcomes micromanagement.
Well, a company can quickly move away from a culture of micromanagement by applying the following techniques:
- Be a facilitator, not a taskmaster;
- Adopt an attitude that is not afraid to face failure;
- Allow your employees to take on more responsibilities;
- Trust your team;
- Ask employees how they want to be managed;
- Manage expectations, not tasks;
- Focus on cultural management.
Read More: 12 Examples Of Micromanagement At Work
5. Encourage employees in their areas of strength
Every employee has his or her own strengths and weaknesses. Areas of strength are those areas where an employee is naturally capable or trained enough to perform a particular task easily and perfectly. A good boss always encourages employees in their areas of strength because he believes it is easy and productive to help employees develop their strengths rather than improving their weaknesses.
When you encourage your employees in their areas of strength, it creates a bond between you and your employees. They feel appreciated and respected.
The strength of your employees can make your company more reliable as it provides the following benefits:
- When employers focus on their employees’ strengths, their well-being improves.
- It helps improve the lives of employees and company culture.
- When managers focus on each employee’s strengths, their engagement levels rise.
Read More: 16 Clear Signs You Are Respected At Work
6. Never play office politics
Office politics are a silent killer. There are all sorts of reasons why office politics won’t help your company. It could be your employees trying to control and achieve things beyond their authority, or an overbearing boss, or jealous coworkers, or too much gossip in the workplace.
Office politics is bound to happen. You can’t stop it, but you can make sure you’re able to navigate it without it getting out of control, so keep these four rules in mind:
- Uncover the root causes of office politics, measure their severity, and predict when they will occur.
- Seek help from a mentor and avoid small talk.
- Build on existing connections where you work.
- Slow down, respond, stop reacting.
7. Always offer a competitive base salary or hourly wage
Why do your employees want to work at your company? It’s simple. They want a salary or a good wage to pay the bills. Here’s the problem: If you don’t offer your employees a competitive base salary or hourly wage, your employees won’t stick around long, and your top talent will attract the attention of your competitors, who will pry your ideal employees away from your company.
Low wages are one of the main reasons for rapid turnover . It is the employer’s responsibility to keep employees happy in the workplace. You can keep them happy by providing equal opportunities for growth, but if they don’t have economic growth – it’s obvious that they will look for better opportunities elsewhere.
There is no doubt that salary is a great motivator for new and existing employees. It is the main reason why people enjoy coming to your company every day, giving their best and working hard to take your company to the next level.
According to a recent Glassdoor survey, “45% of people leave their jobs because of low pay.”
Therefore, if you want to improve employee retention in your company, be sure to offer them a competitive base salary or hourly wage, and they will accompany you on your journey to success and prosperity.
8. Celebrate employees’ victory
Celebrate employee wins, even if they are small. Employees love to feel appreciated, and when employers celebrate their wins, they feel like they are ready to give their best.
What motivates employees to have a good time in any company or workplace? Encouragement, appreciation and positive feedback from employers.
” Happy employees, happy workplace.”
In the United States, there is a day every year known as “Employee Appreciation Day” on the first Friday in March each year Celebrating your employees’ wins will increase engagement, collaboration, and creativity.
Read More: 50 Fun Employee Engagement Activities To Boost Productivity And Job Satisfaction
9. Create an environment that promotes constructive mental health
Poor mental health is a sign of a toxic work environment. Absenteeism, burnout and lack of motivation are signs of an unfit employee.
Don’t let your employees’ poor mental health undermine your internal environment. And don’t forget – their vulnerability is a sign of your inability to manage human capital.
If your company is a corporate in America, you should remind your employees to take advantage of EAP (Employee Assistance Program), an employee benefit program that started in the 1930s to curb industrial alcoholism and has helped millions of people. So, why shouldn’t you and your employees benefit from it? Business owners or employers should help their employees seek EAP for better mental health and overall well-being.
That’s why you need to create an environment that promotes constructive mental health. Here are five key ways to maintain a mentally healthy environment:
- Make your health your top priority.
- Be a mentor, not a boss.
- Discuss mental health issues in the workplace.
- Promote work-life balance.
By implementing these strategies correctly at the right time, you will definitely be able to retain your best employees, and they will not leave you when you are in trouble. Because you treat them and pay them well, they will feel motivated; your feedback allows them to learn new things, or even more.
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