Have you ever been taken off-guard by one of your best employees quitting? Figuring out what went wrong can be a challenge alone without having to initiate the search for a permanent, and even sometimes temporary replacement. While you’re searching for the perfect replacement, it’s important to consider the impact the loss of the employee as well as the search for the new one itself can have on the culture of your team. It’s inevitable that other employees notice a top employee quitting, and it can even spark some to consider searching for a new job, or a better offer, which is why employee retention and job satisfaction are not only connected but also vital in maintaining your team. If you’re wondering how to keep your best employees from leaving, here are some tips to follow:
Onboarding: Your first chance to make a good impression and invest in your employees’ long-term satisfaction is in the job onboarding process. Onboarding should include learning about the job’s responsibilities and intricacies, learning and adapting to your company’s culture, understanding the goals employees need to achieve.
Fair compensation: Plain and simple, for your employees to want to continue working for you, you need to offer a competitive salary commensurate with their experience, including a significant benefits package and health insurance plan. Be sure your new employees have a full understanding of your offerings once you’ve offered them their new jobs.
Rewards and development: Your employees enjoy feeling like they’re doing good work. Be sure to recognize good work when it’s done with whatever kind of acknowledgment you deem worthy or have the budget for in your department. It’s also important to show your employees appreciation when they do good work so they can get an idea of how to advance at the company. When hiring and after that, be sure to check in with your employees about what their long and short-term goals are, so you can both come up with a plan for how to achieve them, and how they should be rewarded.
Work-life balance: Let’s face it, if your staff is expected to work long hours and always stay connected to their teammates and superiors at all times, you may have to deal with a high rate of employee turnover. Create an environment of trust with your employees by offering generous vacation time, or even partial time working from home if it’s possible. Many companies provide these flexible aspects of scheduling expectations, and you should consider adding them as well to retain your employees.
Connecting with staff: The employees who report to you should feel like they can come to you with questions, concerns, issues, and new ideas. Whether there’s no direct reason for check-in, or you’re acknowledging either a milestone or even a question from your employee, be sure to schedule regular check-in meetings with your employees to prevent any issues from piling up and causing tension.
A few last ideas: foster a sense of team pride by inspiring teamwork through collaboration and celebrate milestones and good company news together with parties or company outings. Experiment with these techniques and return to assessing which are best for your team, stay up on the latest, competitive salaries and benefits packages and how best to maintain positive employee relationships, and you’ll find that your employee satisfaction, and job retention, will soar.