You might be able to attract good staff but can you keep them with you? Staff are one of the most costly and important investments to any business, the decision to hire is one of the most important decision you make, but many do not give it the attention it deserves. You need to pay the price in time, effort and money to hire the best people. Once you hire the best people it doesn't stop there, you need to do all you can to avoid losing them. The loss of one employee usually costs more than the initial annual salary - combine that with bad morale, extra time and energy used by other employees to try to keep up with the workload, extra costs in overtime, loss of business due to ineffciencies or intellectual property etc you may have a ticking time bomb on your hands. (More from Simon Boulton: The Anatomy Of A Great Manager)
As managers it is business critical to invest time in retaining your staff. Staff don't leave companies they leave managers, as a manager its your responsibility to retain your staff. Good management is essential for staff retention, try the following tips to help you retain your staff:
- Select the right people in the first place - Don't just wing it, make sure you have a hiring strategy in place or engage a specialist recruitment partner who can assist you with the process
- Offer an attractive, competitive, benefits package one that has the upside bonus potential based on the success of both employee and the company
- Communicate clear goals and expectations to your employees - The majority of employees want to be part of a compelling future, want to know what is most important at work and what excellence looks like.
- Be honest and open communications - Share information and numbers, let them in on what is going on. Keep employees informed they tend to feel a greater sense of worth. Don't be afraid to share bad news, instead be more strategic about how you can improve performance through transparency. (More from Simon Boulton: How To Navigate The Maze - Tips For Effective Leadership)
- Trust - Employees need to trust each other as well as their leadership team
- Be fair, be consistent and be nice - Your staff need to see that you treat everyone fairly, consistently and nicely, otherwise they will not stay. If they feel that they themselves are the victim of unfair treatment, they can and probably will take an unfair or constructive dismissal claim against you. However, even if they don't feel that they themselves are being treated badly, they are unlikely to view unfair treatment as acceptable in the workplace.
- Create a strong team environment - Strong employee engagement is dependent on how well employees get along. Interact with each other and participate in a team environment. "Those that play together stay together."
- Have fun, celebrate achievements - People want to enjoy their work. Make work more fun. People need to feel validated, leadership teams need to show they care.
- Community - Non work activities that foster relationships create employee engagement. (More from Simon Boulton: Working 9 To 5 - No Way To Make A Living)
- Delegation – Delegation is good for you because it expands your managerial span of control. It's good for your employees because it is a growth opportunity for them. It demonstrates your trust in them to do the job correctly and increases their ownership of the task.
- Say thank you - Take the opportunity to say thank you from time to time. You have to mean it though, don't just say it because your employees will know the difference. A little bit of appreciation goes a long way.
Final thought
Staff will never give their best unless they know that the manager has their best interests at heart. Most employers worry that their best employees will leave them and go to another company offering more money. However, although the increase in salary can be an important factor, you should always ask yourself what else your employee is hoping to get from their new employer that they aren't currently getting with you. We need to remember the golden rule - "treat people the way that we would want to be treated." Treating employees well will cost you less in the long run.
