Improve Your Employee Retention With These Seven Tips
There are many reasons why employees may choose not to stick around long. So, what can you do to help new employees feel happy and appreciated? Here are some tips that can help you slow workplace turnover.
- Salary does matter. Although salary isn’t always the most important factor in retention, paying less than the job is worth means turnover will be inevitable, as good employees are lured away by higher pay elsewhere. Be realistic about what the job entails when determining salary.
- Widen your circle of introductions. While it’s standard to introduce new employees to team members, don’t stop there. The more people in the office you can introduce new employees to, the greater the chance they will develop workplace friendships—and those bonds can be a powerful force for retention.
- Empower new employees. Emphasize their value to the organization—they should view themselves not as a number, but as an integral player whose presence matters. Meet with your new employees regularly and provide feedback. Give them objectives, encourage them to problem-solve, and help them see failure as a learning lesson—the occasional, and natural, result of innovation and taking on challenges.
- Encourage open communication. Let your employees know that you have an open-door policy; they should feel free to discuss problems with you without risk to their job. Make sure you back up these words with attitude and actions. Also, encourage employees to communicate with each other to solve their problems, before—or as an alternative to—lodging anonymous complaints or taking the problem to higher-ups.
- Offer continuous learning. Ongoing training makes employees more skilled at their jobs and more invested in the organization.
- Keep your equipment up to date. Ensure that employees have the right tools they need to perform their jobs effectively. Not only do these investments increase job satisfaction, but they also boost productivity.
- Conduct exit interviews. When employees do decide to leave, it should be standard practice to conduct an exit interview. This will give you ideas of steps to take to improve retention.
For more advice, read “Building a Culture for Employee Retention: What Matters Most.”
