Employee retention is critical to the long-term success of your business. Not only is consistency beneficial to your working environment, but your clients will also see it as a sign that your organization is in good health if they can build rapport with your representatives.
Holding on to your staff is also better for your bottom line, especially when you factor in the costs associated with a candidate search, not to mention the time it takes to train someone new. It might sound obvious, but you’d be surprised how many global organizations fail to retain their top staff.
So, to avoid your best employees moving on, you’ll need to make them feel valued and appreciated as a vital part of your team. Here are five tips for retaining your employees.
Be Clear About Your Expectations
Having clear-cut responsibilities will help your employees to manage their time more efficiently and will improve their confidence at work. If your employees don’t know what your expectations are of them, they will lack direction and feel insecure about their performance. Be clear about their day-to-day duties and responsibilities, and let them know your door is always open if there’s anything they are unsure about.
Provide Internal Security
Never use layoffs to threaten your staff into performing better – you can guarantee they will start updating their resumes immediately if they think their jobs are at stake. You may want to be honest with your team about potential redundancies, and it’s always best to give someone enough notice to find alternative employment if you know their days are numbered. Just don’t make idle threats or bully your staff into submission, as it will never, ever work in your favor.
Stay Up to Date With Training
Training is an essential part of employee growth and development, so make sure you’re organizing training courses for your employees, even if your budget is tight. By scheduling regular training, you’re letting your employees know that you value their work enough to want to invest in them.
As well as providing opportunities for career development, you also need to stay on top of health and safety training to comply with occupational health and safety law in your state. Make sure you choose an accredited education provider, such as ASSE (The American Society of Safety Engineers).
Welcome New Ideas
Employee engagement is vital for the success of your business, as it will encourage a collaborative, creative environment where staff members can thrive. Who doesn’t want to work for someone who takes their ideas on board and integrates them into the company?
Provide Opportunities for Growth
Although you’re paying your employees to work for you, you need to make sure they are getting something else out of it. Otherwise, what’s to stop them jumping ship and working for a competitor instead? Provide opportunities for career growth and make predictions about earning capacity. Ambitious team members are the bones of your business, so encourage them to flourish by giving them the tools to do so.
One of the fatal mistakes many businesses make is to underestimate the importance of employee retention. In short, if your team is happy then your customers are more likely to be satisfied, and this will directly affect your bottom line.
