EMPLOYEE RETENTION STRATEGY

 

WHAT IS EMPLOYEE RETENTION

The ability of an organization to reduce employee turnover, or the amount of employees who quit their jobs either freely or involuntarily, is known as employee retention. The performance and success of a corporation are directly impacted by staff retention rates.

By creating a nice work environment to encourage engagement, expressing gratitude to employees, offering competitive compensation and benefits, and promoting a healthy work-life balance, organizations may keep talented and productive staff while lowering staff turnover.

IMPORTANCE OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION

In order for employees to develop a sense of reliability and confidence among one another, employee retention is crucial to team development and cohesion in the workplace.

When talented employees leave an organization, one of the biggest losses is diminished production and loss of competitive advantage. A company's capacity to fulfill its objective may be harmed by high employee turnover rates due to disruptions in continuity, the loss of institutional knowledge, and the high costs of hiring new employees and providing them with training. Additionally, losing staff can weaken morale and encourage others to leave the company.

The impact on clients who discover they're dealing with a constant stream of different individuals is another adverse effect of turnover. Consumers are frequently alerted by high turnover that there is a problem with the company or brand.

BENEFITS OF EMPLOYEE RETENTION

In order to keep valued employees and retain a strong employer-employee relationship, one of the most crucial methods is to focus on employee engagement and experience. For a variety of factors, retaining personnel is always advantageous.

Better Process Efficiency

Longer-term employees have institutional knowledge they can depend on and are familiar with the firm's procedures, which increases job efficiency and speeds up the achievement of company objectives.

Increase Productivity

Experienced workers are frequently skilled at doing their responsibilities swiftly and effectively. On the other hand, bringing on fresh substitutes frequently results in workflow delays and unavoidable, expensive errors.

Higher Employee Morale

When employees feel like they belong in the company, they are more likely to have higher morale, take pride in their work, and so perform better. The opposite outcome may result from high turnover rates.

Reduced Staffing Cost

Organizations may incur large annual costs related to recruitment and training. The greatest approach to reduce those costs is to retain staff.

Improved Customer Experiences

Customers frequently appreciate businesses where they regularly interact with known, welcoming faces and form bonds with one or more employees. Positive customer perceptions can be increased through low turnover rates.

Increased Revenue & ROI

Multiple studies show direct correlations between increased revenues and lower employee turnover, higher employee morale and improved employee experiences.

REASONS FOR LOW EMPLOYEE RETENTION

Although the specific causes of low staff retention can vary, the following categories are usually present:

Personal Reasons

There are numerous reasons to leave a job that are unrelated to the employer, including moving for a spouse, dealing with family matters, changing careers, or experiencing health concerns.

Work-life balance

Employees may look for more adaptable or less demanding options due to issues with lengthy hours, strict work styles, or location.

Incompatibility

Turnover is frequently caused by incompatibilities between employers and employees, which are frequently the result of bad hiring practices and judgments.

Work Relationships

People may disagree or have conflicts with their supervisors, coworkers, or the organizational leadership.

Lack of Opportunity

Employees may depart for a company with higher mobility if they perceive a lack of workplace development, career opportunities, or opportunities to learn new experiences.

Financial Reasons

Employees are frequently strongly tempted to quit a company for one with better compensation and benefits.

HOW TO IMPROVE EMPLOYEE RETENTION

The actions listed below can be taken by an organization to improve staff retention.

Invest in Employees’ Careers

If employers supported employees' career growth, workers would remain with the company longer. Employees in the modern market are aware that in order to advance and stay competitive, they must maintain their skills updated.

Recognize Employees’ Contributions

Companies should encourage managers to acknowledge the contributions of their immediate employees. They can even go a step farther and recognize employees that go above and beyond on a divisional or corporate level.

Reassess Compensation

Any company's retention plan must include compensation as a key component. Despite of how valued they may feel, employees who feel underpaid for their labor are more inclined to consider leaving their current employer. It's critical to regularly review industry compensation norms and have a plan in place for financially rewarding high performers. Spot bonuses and consistent pay increases can greatly contribute to an employee feeling valued.

Prioritize Work-life Balance

Work-life balance is a real concept. However, if employees simply have more work than they can feasibly complete or if the company culture expects them to check their email well beyond business hours, remote work and flexible scheduling policies will be of little assistance in improving staff retention. If workloads become unmanageable, businesses should compare the cost of hiring new employees to the cost of increased loss of talent.

Create Career Development Paths

Devoted career pathing can assist boost employee engagement and convince staff that they have a bright future with the company. A learning and growth action plan is developed through the career pathing process, which involves managers and employees in identifying goals.

Support Employees’ Wellbeing

It's understandable that the majority of employees report feeling burned out given the rising cost of living, complicated personal lives, and political and economic concerns. The most effective strategies for preventing burnout include ensuring that employees have reasonable workloads, open lines of communication with management, and a supportive workplace environment. However, companies can also think about taking additional steps to support their employees' physical and mental health.

Focus on Team Building

Since less work is done face-to-face, it's crucial to actively encourage collaboration among staff members. Their contentment and loyalty are significantly influenced by their sense of belonging and community at work. Additionally, productive teams are more adept at cooperating and exchanging ideas.

REFERENCES

Baker, P. (2022). What is employee retention? - Definition from WhatIs.com. [online] SearchHRSoftware. Available at: https://www.techtarget.com/searchhrsoftware/definition/employee-retention.

Crail, C. (2022). 15 Effective Employee Retention Strategies In 2022 – Forbes Advisor. [online] www.forbes.com. Available at: https://www.forbes.com/advisor/business/employee-retention-strategies/.

Hastings, R. (2021). 6 Employee Retention Strategies for Your Company. [online] Emeritus - Online Certificate Courses | Diploma Programs. Available at: https://emeritus.org/blog/strategies-for-employee-retention/.

Holliday, M. (2021). How to Keep Top Talent. [online] Oracle NetSuite. Available at: https://www.netsuite.com/portal/resource/articles/human-resources/employee-retention.shtml.

Thanks for reading
Chamara Perera