Most of us would agree on the fact that talented staff is the most valuable asset for a company. This is why retaining the top and stellar employees truly matters for business especially a growing one. This is also the reason HR managers and entrepreneurs constantly tend to experiment with strategies to retain top talents. Yes, companies these days bestow their employees with a multitude of perks including coupons, free food, work from home, etc.
Now here comes the cache! Unfortunately, a good number of businesses are of the opinion that offering free stuff is the secret recipe for retaining employees, which is not true! Though free perks are amazing, great employees do not necessarily stick with a company because of the benefits alone. Also, most of the companies in the race to retain employees tend to neglect the essence of engaging their employees, which goes on to play a crucial role in job satisfaction and employee retention.
Here are a few handpicked and effective ways to keep your employees from jumping the ship. Follow these tips and you are sure to retain your talent pool for long.
- Make them feel like partners and not employees
Yes, providing your employees with more ownership and freedom in their roles would eventually lead them to perform at their optimum best greatly contributing to the company’s bottom line.
- Don’t neglect social engagement
HR managers ought to create and nurture a communication-friendly work environment. For instance, consider positioning the workstations in a way that your employees get to communicate freely with each other. Keep sending out birthday and anniversary wishes without fail. Also, nothing can make an employee feel home than a personalized gift besides boosting his morale.
- Cut the routine
This ought to be the top priority. Yes, HR managers ought to devise creative and novel ideas aimed to drive employee morale. Simply put, these ideas should cut the monotony. You never know that all it takes is a treat or two to improve workplace morale. How about surprising the staff with an unplanned cookie party. Long story short, management should make the employees feel that it cares for them and appreciate the efforts they put in.
- Foster a learning work environment
Allow your people to explore new opportunities. Let them learn something new like joining some cross-department project, trying another skill or leading a project.
- Encourage two-way communication
A business can win at employee engagement only when its workforce feels or have the freedom to put forth their ideas or viewpoints across the table. This can be during those one-on-one weekly meetings or through other official communication mediums such as company blogs, social media, intranet, etc. Not to forget, follow up is the key here irrespective of whether the management approves or disproves the feedback of employees.
- Offer workplace flexibility
Remember that a flexible workplace gives out positive vibes thus, helping the employees stay stress-free and content. For example, many employees these days seek for work-from-home or flexible office hours. In fact, millennials who happen to dominate the workforce ratio in almost every industry vertical are more likely to stick with a company that offers sound work-life balance and flexible work time is one way a business can get there. Further, breaking the old-school norms, a number of organizations these days have begun to offer extended leaves, free transportation, free snacks, gym facility, etc.
- Invest in workplace wellness
Providing healthcare programs goes a long way when it comes to retaining employees. Poor health is not only detrimental to the employees but is also lethal for business. In fact, most of the health-related issues are associated with stress, which is a leading cause of several devastating health problems like obesity, heart problems, etc.
- Treat them fair and reasonably
Foster an environment of equitable and fair treatment in the workplace. For example, if a new sales representative is assigned with the most commission-generating product/account or payout, then it is expected that other sales reps might feel cheated and left out. Also, if a newly hired employee gets promoted over his/her long-term accomplices and existing employees, feeling of bitterness will spread across the company.
- Think before you say!
Irrespective of the situations, never ever threaten an employee’s income or job. Even if the company is expecting a layoff, it is never advisable to foretell the same to your employees. Irrespective of how you phrase or convey this information, employees are bound to become nervous at the very hint of a layoff. So think before you say that might provoke your employees to update their resumes.
- Arm them right!
Time, tools and training ought to be your BFF. When an employee or a department fails at work, as for them whether the workflow or work system is the reason behind their failure? Employees ought to be equipped with all the necessary tools and means to carry out their job well. Failing to do so will simply force them to look out for employers who provide them with the necessary tools and technology.
Takeaway
Unfortunately, many companies fail to understand the fact that pay very little does with employee retention and a lot with workplace flexibility, open communication, and social engagement. Leveraging these tips would not only help a business nurture happy employees but would also curb employee attrition rates significantly.
Lastly, the senior management ought to ensure take some time out to meet and greet employees in order to learn about their abilities, skills, and talents. Meeting your employees on a regular basis is the key to make them feel valued and acknowledged. Understand, great employees not always stay for free coupons, as it takes a lot beyond that.
the discussion at the conference table
