When employees leave your company, a lot of financially unfavorable things happen. Your business suffers from loss of productivity, lower employee morale and even missed sales opportunities. Since the COVID-19 era, employee turnover has been a huge challenge for employers especially those with workers working remotely. The 2023 Workplace Learning Report published by LinkedIn indicated that about 93 percent of organizations are concerned
about employee retention. Indeed reducing turnover is one huge factor when trying to achieve business growth.
What is employee turnover?
Employee turnover is the total number of workers who leave the company within a certain period. Turnover can be voluntary or involuntary which means that even when employment is terminated against an employee’s will, the separation still adds up to the company’s turnover rate. In some studies, money, benefits, workload and time off are the main reasons for voluntary turnover.
Here are some ways employers can ensure that employees would hardly find any reason to search for greener pastures and leave their company behind.
How to lower your company’s turnover rate?
1. Hire the right talent
They say superior talent is actually eight times more productive. The right talents are high performers who are 400 percent more productive than average ones. As a business owner, you might have wished all your employees right now are the right talents there could possibly be. But how do you really find the right one?
Ask unique behavioral interview questions
Unexpected questions which are far from what’s asked in usual interviews reveal an applicant’s personality and outlook. You might want to know the candidate’s reaction or reflections on a sudden change in routines at work or challenges faced when handling tasks.
Find the best sourcing strategy
Some of the greatest talents could be around you. The right IT manager could be someone your employee knows. Referral programs for current employees are useful in broadening your reach. Online career sites are traditional platforms but are the best locations to find the right fit. You may also try social networking sites where people get an opportunity to display their expertise.
Improve your employee value proposition (and branding)
Skilled and experienced individuals are not just attracted by the compensation but also by offerings from the company which keep the employees engaged, committed, motivated and retained. Employee value proposition (EVP) simply stands for what the employee can get in exchange for what the employee could give. Moreover, your company’s reputation is also one deciding factor if competitive talents will consider joining your company or not.
Consider headhunters and recruitment firms
There will be vacancies you might have trouble filling out and the way forward is from headhunters, recruitment firms and staffing agencies. These organizations are specialists in finding the right talent because of their extensive pool and network.
2. Offer competitive salaries
A competitive salary is one of the major reasons why employees decided to accept the job offer in the first place. If workers feel that they are being compensated properly, they’re more motivated to stay and dedicate their time to work. At some point, those who are receiving additional benefits on top of the regular compensation are more likely to go the extra mile.
3. Recognize and reward employees
Recognizing and rewarding employees for exerting more effort and quality work beyond what’s required of them is reason enough to increase their job satisfaction. A good employee reward system is fair and clear. Your rewards system dont need to be expensive. Some low-cost ways to recognize best behaviors and attitudes at work include:
Saying thank you more often
A simple “thank you” during meetings or discreet notes show employees that their work is appreciated. A simple written note for those who are reporting in the office could mean a lot in a world of emails.
Feature best employees
Featuring the best employees of the week, month or quarter shows how the company values its workers. This will also inspire others to do more and better so they could take the spotlight next time.
Give small simple gifts
Again, employee appreciation dont need to be expensive. A free lunch, time off or affordable gift cards mean a lot for someone who has worked hard.
4. Offer a clear career path
For the right talent to accept a job offer and stay, there should be a clear path of what’s waiting for them ahead. Not only do you need to discuss tasks, job descriptions and expectations. As an employer, you have the obligation to show your employees an exciting road to career growth. Talents who feel stuck in their positions for years tend to look for better offers where they could progress professionally.
Managers could devise programs for training and development. Employees dont always need to master their skills. They also need every opportunity to learn and add to the things they are capable of doing. Employee growth and development will also be beneficial for the company considering how they could become more competitive and productive with newly acquired skill sets.
Job shadowing and mentoring are also ways by which you can encourage employees to believe they can do more.
5. Promote work-life balance
Employee turnover usually results from employee burnout. Some workers succumb to work stress and pressure especially when employers ask them to work after office hours and even on weekends. Although there will be times when these are unavoidable, employers should still consider their employees’ need to spend quality time with themselves and their loved ones.
Flexible work hours and work-from-home setup are two ways you can actually minimize the pressure at work. Managers can let employees focus on productivity rather than hours spent online or in the office. Some talents are better at working at their own pace and are thus more efficient and creative. Review which tasks can be done at home or remotely.
Conclusion
Employee retention is every company’s dream. Not only this will reduce their costs on hiring, training and onboarding. But retention can improve workforce stability and credibility. Should you suffer from a lack of workers or understaffing, human resource agencies like Zebra can help fill the gap and allow you to focus more on growth instead of spending time chasing talents.
