Create a Winning Employee Retention Strategy
Instead of conducting exit interviews when an employee has one foot out the door, Kaye suggests introducing “stay interviews.” After the first three months on the job, ask employees if the job is meeting their expectations and what new tasks they’d like to learn. Make it a routine to check in with them every three months to keep your pulse on their growth and satisfaction. These conversations may give you ideas to develop new policies, procedures and processes to make your business more employee-friendly.
Small tokens have great valueThe more small business owners make their employees feel connected to the business the better. “If employees don’t feel like a number and feel cared for, they will stay,” says Linda Finkle, CEO of the Incedo Group, a Potomac, MD-based organizational coaching and consulting company.
Acknowledging staffers when they work late, sending them
flowers or wine on Valentine’s Day, or shipping plaques to their homes
to honor them for their contributions to a major deal are small
gestures that make employees feel appreciated.
A combination of compassion and compensation can be a strong retention
driver. For example, Kevin Trapani, owner the Redwoods Group, a
Morrisville, NC insurance company, was losing 10 percent of his
workforce annually, mostly to larger businesses. To stem defection, he
offered $5,000 to employees with college-aged children who stayed with
the company at least two years. That’s equivalent to one year of
tuition at a North Carolina state school. Trapani demonstrated that he
cared for his employees and was trying to ease a real burden, and it
paid off. He has reduced his annual turnover rate to just 2 percent.
It’s no surprise that increasing employee longevity is key. The longer employees stay, the less likely they are to leave. A recent U.S. Small Business Administration report, “The Relationship Between Employee Turnover and Employee Compensation in Small Business,” noted that each additional year on the job reduces turnover by 81 percent
Management is still key
Perks aside, good
management is critical. Make sure managers are employee-focused and
concentrate on grooming and developing your staff, and they treat
employees well, Kaye suggests.
Perhaps the most important thing to remember is simple common courtesy. One of the primary reasons people leave their jobs is their dissatisfaction with their boss. “If their boss misuses, overuses or abuses them… employees will walk,” says Kaye. Next time you have an employee exodus, consider your management style - and never forget to follow the Golden Rule: Treat others as you wish to be treated yourself.
