WITH employee turnover costs inflating everywhere and now exceeding profits in some industries, addressing the issue of employee retention is an urgent across-the-board business concern.
A recent US white paper found that by 2010, there could be as many as 10 million more jobs available in the country than there are employees.
Further, there is growing evidence of worker dissatisfaction, primarily as a result of layoffs, lack of career growth, and minimal pay increases over the past several years.
Additionally, some employers have become ruthless in order to survive over the past decade, creating aggressive cultures that may not be comfortable for many workers.
The Responding to the mega-billion-dollar retention crisis white paper, produced by The Ken Blanchard Companies, detailed 10 steps for building retention within organisations:
Show genuine interest and appreciation. Continue to be or become genuinely interested in each person whom you support and depend on.
Make work meaningful. Help people see the connection between what they do and what difference it makes, to the company, the internal or external customers, and society.
Ask courageous questions. Don’t shy away from asking why people stay and what it will take to retain them.
Grow competencies, situationally. Look for opportunities to put people into challenging situations where their skills and competencies will grow.
Meet one-on-one, routinely. Conduct regular, but brief one-on-one meetings between manager/leaders and direct reports. Begin by asking, “What’s on your mind?”– then listen and act.
Make retention everyone’s responsibility. Encourage all members of the work group to feel responsible for the retention of their peers and to be alert to problems that can be fixed.
Be a career builder. Talk to people about their long-term career aspirations and help them use or build the skills and competencies they need for the future.
Help people get an “A”. Give the gift of being clear about what an “A”level performance looks like.
Manage the meaning of change. Move toward people in uncertain times, including personal and organisational change. Be there and be open. Check in with people often.
Walk your talk. Be aware that people are always watching and assessing you and your actions as a leader.
