How to keep your best staff (without resorting to kidnap!)
So, you’ve forked out for job ads, taken time out of your day for interviews and onboarding, and now you have a great team with the perfect mix of skills, experience, and personality. You’re all set for success! But how do you make sure you keep all this fabulous talent? Retaining employees long term can be tricky.
These tips should help your keep staff turnover low and employee morale high.
1. People don’t leave companies, people leave managers
We’ve all heard this old adage and although it’s a bit of an oversimplification, there’s definitely some truth to it. We could talk a lot here about strong leadership, being approachable and transparent (especially about negative stuff), setting a positive example, and treating your employees as individuals etc. But actually, it can be summed up far more simply: don’t be a d**k.
Make sure all managers are trained on how to manage people and that lines of feedback and communication are transparent and two-way. Give employees clear direction and purpose, make sure they’re rewarded and valued for their contributions and that they see how they fit into the bigger picture. If someone works hard every day but feels like an invisible cog in the machine, it’s a sure-fire way to get them to mentally check out.
2. Pay attention to your company culture
This one is pretty closely linked to point one because company culture is often dictated by the behaviour at the top. We’ve all heard stories of workplaces where the MD thought nothing of working every weekend and messaging people on Boxing Day and expected the same from their employees. Value your people as individuals and respect their opinions and their downtime. If they work hard for your company, it’s the least they deserve. Don’t foster a culture of silent offices, bad communication, weekend messages and working lunches. Time away from screens is just as important for everyone’s creativity and productivity. And if you can chuck in the occasional free pizza or team night out to boost morale and team bonding, even better. Happy teams are productive teams.
For a lot of companies, flexible working is a massive part of company culture. Allowing your teams to work the hours that work for them, in a location that’s convenient, is known to be a crucial factor in retention. It also builds trust. Companies that pressure their people to work in a specific place at a specific time are risking higher employee turnover.
3. Don’t neglect onboarding
It’s not uncommon for people who haven’t been effectively onboarded to resign within the first few months. As if it’s not overwhelming enough starting a new job and deciding how much of the real you to show your new colleagues, there’s also all the new names, departments, working processes and software to get your head around.
Make it easier for your newbies to settle in quickly by having a new starters manual that outlines everything they need to know. This could cover all sorts of things: their email address and set-up passwords, organisational charts, what working tools and software you use and how to access them, number of the IT helpdesk and so on. This is especially important if the person works remotely and can’t just lean across to the next desk to ask.
It’s also worth setting up a few introductory chats with key people around the business so your newbie can understand the wider business, who does what, and how their role fits in.
Don’t forget about the personal side of onboarding either. It’s such a simple thing to organise a team lunch (via video if need be) to help the newbie and their new colleagues get to know one another, but it can make a huge difference.
4. Provide clear career progression
An obvious one perhaps but so often overlooked. Managers should get to know each team member’s career aspirations and show them how it’s possible to achieve them with your company. Help them identify and set goals and review them regularly. And remember, not everyone is looking to move up the career ladder. For some, it’s more about new challenges or simply becoming the absolute best at the role they’re in through training or professional accreditation. If you don’t offer roles people want to grow into, they’ll go and find those opportunities somewhere else.
5. Pay people what they’re worth
This one ought to go without saying but… just in case. If you don’t pay people what they’re worth, they’ll go and find a company that will. Simple. The increase in cost of living is going to make money an even more important factor in overall job satisfaction. Ignore it at your peril. Benchmark roles against other companies in your industry to make sure the packages you offer are in line and review pay regularly.
Having a good benefits package is also part of this. Companies that only offer the absolute legal minimum when it comes to annual leave, pension contributions, paternity/maternity pay etc will soon find themselves losing out to the companies that are prepared to show their appreciation in real terms. Especially in light of how many companies are already offering more than just the basics. Subsidised gym memberships, mental health services, cycle to work schemes, birthday’s off, duvet days, private GP, free massages, money towards setting up a home office, and volunteering days are all becoming increasingly common and increasingly expected by job seekers.
If you’d like help with finding and keeping the right people for your business, chat to us today.
