Top 10 Strategies to Retain the Best talent
Employees are considered as the most valuable assets for an organization as they don’t only represent an organization but also create its competitive advantage. Retention of employees is a fundamental strategy that requires proper planning and appropriate policies.
However, in the first place, it’s essential to understand the reason behind the high turnover rate.
Why Employees Leave Organization? There are a few top reasons:
• Pay Scale: Decent pay rate is the main motivating factor, so employees generally consider leaving an organization if they get comparatively higher pay somewhere else or if they are not satisfied with their current pay.
• Lack of Motivation: Motivation is a psychological factor that encourages employees to work for the achievement of desired goals. Employees should stay motivated at work, whether monetarily or non-monetarily.
• Lack of Proper Managerial skills: Unfortunately, managers who do not have proper managerial skills are not able to retain their best employees. It is necessary for a manager to deal with the issues that arise in a team and provide an appropriate solution.
• Fewer Growth Opportunities: Employees switch over to other companies when they don’t have any room for professional development
It is a very difficult task to retain employees but also very important because there are many organizations that are constantly looking for knowledgeable or highly skilled workers. Replacement of an employee usually costs 3 times the salary of an individual.
Why Retention is Important?
• Cost of Turnover: The cost of turnover means tangible or intangible costs associated with the replacement of employees. The cost of turnover also includes the cost of hiring and training new employees as well as intangible costs caused by the loss of productivity of knowledgeable employees.
• Loss of Organizational Knowledge: Employees take with them knowledge about the company’s project clients, training offered to them. An organization spends the chunk of its budget on the training of employees by expecting a good return in future.
• Skilled Employees: Retention of employees ensures skilled and knowledgeable employees remain in the company and help in the development of strong staff, which benefits an organization in the long run.
• Impact on Client service: Customers need reliable and consistent service. Long-term employees develop harmonic relationships with customers. That’s why the retention of employees has good impact on clients as well. It is very important for an organization to retain its employees. In order to do that, a organization should frame proper policies and strategies.
Strategies to Retain Employees
• Offer Competitive Packages: An organization can retain its employees by providing them competitive packages. Companies nowadays are looking for talented employees and a good pay scale can motivate them to remain in company.
• Better Communication: Cоmmunication between the vertical and horizontal level is really crucial. It is very important to address any issues that may arise in a team and to provide them with the proper solution.
• Employees’ Participation in Decision making: Employee’s participation in the company’s important decisions not only increases their morale but also they can provide some very good suggestions that could be helpful for the company.
• Provide Opportunity for Growth and Development: An Organization should offer training and development programs to employees so that they can grow and develop and feel satisfied in terms of growth.
• Feedback: Regular surveys should be conducted to know employees’ feedback regarding managers, team leaderѕ, supervisors or on other issues. those surveys can also help to know their satisfaction level.
• Bonus: Timely bonus like performance-based bonus, loyalty bonus are also helpful in increasing employee’s morale and their retentiоn in the organization.
• Positive Work Environment: Harmony in a relationship and positive work environment lead to employee satisfaction, which is even important than money.
• Trust Employee’s Abilities: Truѕting employees’ abilities can boost their confidence and motivation and help the organization to retain them for a longer period of time.
How to Control Turnover in Your Organizatiоn
A high turnover rate is a big headache for managers of most companies. In some industries, it is because of the complex nature of the task that the turnover rates are high; as the technology industry. In the other industries too, unless controlled, a high turnover rate can increase your HR-related costs. Therefore, reducing the turnover rate does not just bring down the HR costs, but also increases work satisfaction and employee morale. On the other hand, a high churn rate affects morale negatively and affects the performance of the remaining employees. Some of the key areas that managers must focus on to bring the desired change are the following:
Recruitment strategy: Having the right recruitment strategy solves half of your problem. If you hire the right people who easily fit into your organization and its culture, there would be no difficulty retaining such people for longer. So, having a smart recruitment strategy is absolutely essential. Hire the right people after deep analysis and interviewing.
Benefits and compensation: Your compensation strategy needs to be just as well designed. Ask your HR manager to research and find industry trends. Develop a compensation policy that is on par with industry standards. Employees always feel motivated by a good salary that comes with perks. They also like to work longer for such companies. Apart from the salary, it is always smart to add some benefits that keep employees satisfied.
Better work design and flexible schedules: Managers must focus on individual employees and their needs. Some may need a flexible schedule. Changing the work design also reduces the monotony in the work. Provide employees with the required level of flexibility. If you act in their favor, they will act in yours.
Employee engagement: Employees may feel like leaving the organization early if they are poorly engaged. The focus must be on creating a positive work environment that is both challenging and rewarding. Managers must create a rewarding experience for their employees by creating an environment that provides both learning and opportunities growth. If you wish to retain your best talent for long, do not forget to engage them.
Recognize and appreciate: Do not let chances of appreciation go. In several organizations, employees grow frustrated because they feel that their contribution is not being recognized or appreciated. This can be detrimental and can result in a high churn rate. So take time off to appreciate your employees and their contribution. Encourage them to carry on and appreciate their work whenever they accomplish something as per expectations. This keeps their motivation high and enables them to perform better for the company. In the long term, it translates into a higher retention rate. Even in the short term, employees are happier and satisfied with their jobs. It also provides them with job security and creates a positive image of the company internally.
Reduce stress and create a positive environment: Often when the work pressure is high, jobs become stressful for the employees and then the turnover rate grows high. Employees start leaving the organization because of work-related stress. To deal with this issue, managers must focus on things like job deѕign and flexible work schedules. Every employee must feel respected and included. An environment of inclusion and diversity also helps achieve low turnover rates. HR managers must create policies that make everyone feel included. Having anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies too improve employee morale and help retain people for long.
Give employees clear directions: Never leave employees confused over what they are expected to accomplish. Set clear goals for them and help them move in the right direction by providing guidance and support. When necessary use training programs to guide behavior and work. Setting clear goals helps employees know what they have to achieve and how they must proceed.
Performance management: Performance management is a critical area and without focusing on it you cannot expect your employees to remain too long with you. However, instead of considering it a once a year task, you must focus on round the year performance management. At least ongoing feedback is a must and it must not always be negative. Too much negative feedback hurts employee morale and causes dissatisfaction. Use both technology and personal support to groom your employees and help them perform better. If employees can feel that their career is moving along the right trajectory, they will stay satisfied. Managers muѕt review the performance management techniques employed by well-known companies if they want to manage their employees’ performance effectively.
Usually, hiring and training a new employee costs double that of retaining an old one. So, if you do not want to increase your HR costs, you can use the above-outlined strategies to reduce your turnover rate and increase employee satisfaction. Moreover, a high turnover rate can become a headache in the long term and can result in larger losses. So, keeping it minimized using the right mix of strategies is a good option.
Why the Retention of Employees is so Crucial Nowadays
Employees are considered as the most valuable assets for an organization or a firm because an organization is nothing more than a name without its employees. They don’t only represent an organization but also create its competitive advantage.
Employees, whether at a higher level like managers, or at a lower levels like clerks help an organization to achieve a good reputation and successfully stay on the market. They offer their skills, capabilities, language, speed, behavior, etc. which helps an organization in the execution of its strategies. So, it’s extremely crucial to have strong strategies and policies for workers’ retention.
However, a company can only retain its employees if it knows the reasons why they decide to leave the job.
Why Employees Leave Organization?
• Pay Scale: The first and the most important reason that encourages people to move out of an organization is the compensation for their work. Money is the main motivating factor, so employees generally leave an organization if they get comparatively higher pay somewhere else or if they are not satisfied with their current pay.
• Lack of Motivation: Motivation is a psychological factor that encourages employees to work for the achievement of desired goals. Employees should stay motivated at work, whether monetarily or non-monetarily. It is essential for anyone to have proper zeal to work.
• Lack of Managerial skills: Proper managerial skills is very important to retain employees. Managers who lack proper managerial skills are not able to retain their best employees. It is necessary for a manager to hear the problem of employees and provide an appropriate solution.
• Better Opportunity: In ѕuch a competitive environment everyone is constantly looking for new opportunities, and when they get them they switch ever to that more suitable job.
• Lack of Interest: People sometimes lack interest in their job or they get bored because of monotonous routine or job is not the same as described by the employer during the interview.
• Fewer Growth Opportunities: Employees switch over to other companies when they think they do not have any growth opportunities.
• Size of Organization: In very big organizations managers are unable to take care of all the employees and not able to communicate with each of them and listen to their problems.
So, there can be many more personal or professional reasons that encourage people to switch over to some other company. Like, employees are satisfied with the job but are unable to continue because of some personal issues, imbalanced routines, etc.
It is a very difficult task to retain employees but also very important because there are many organizations who are looking for knowledgeable people. The replacement of employees usually costs 3 times the salary of an individual. It is better to retain them.
Why Retention is Important?
• Cost of Turnover: The cost of turnover means tangible or intangible costs associated with the replacement of employees. The cost of turnover is quite high that includes the cost of hiring and training new employees, and intangible cost caused by the loss of productivity of knowledgeable employees.
• Loss of Organizational Knowledge: Employees take with them knowledge about the company’s projects, clients, training offered to them. An organization spends on the training of employees by expecting a good return in future. So, if employees leave the organization then this is a loss on investment for that organization.
• Skilled Employees: Retention of employees ensures skilled and knowledgeable employees remain in the company and help in the development of strong staff, which benefits an organization in the long run.
• Impact on Client service: Customers need reliable and consistent service vice. Long-term employees develop harmonic relationships with customers. That’s why the retention of employees has a good impact on clients.
It iѕ very importantly for an organization to retain its employees. In order to do that, an organization should frame proper policies and strategies.
Strategies to Retain Employees
• Offer Competitive Packages: An organization can retain its employees by providing them competitive packages. Companies nowadays are looking for talented employees and a good pay scale can motivate them to remain in the company.
• Communication: Cоmmunication between the vertical and horizontal levels is very important. It iѕ very important to listen to the problems of employees and to provide them with the proper solution.
• Delegate Authority and Responsibility: Generally, responsibilities are delegated but with that, it is also important to delegate at least some authority to employees. This definitely increases their motivation, and employees will feel valuable.
• Employee Participation in Deсision making: Employee’s participation in the company’s important decisions not only increases their morale, but also they can provide some very good suggestions that could be helpful for a company.
• Provide Opportunitу for Growth and Development: An Organization should offer training and development programs to employees so that they can grow and develop and feel satisfied in terms of growth.
• Feedback: Regular surveys should be conducted to know employees’ feedback regarding the manager, team leaders, supervisors or on other issues so that employees feel important and those surveys can also help to know their satisfaction level.
• Bonus: Timely bonuses like performance-based bonuses, loyalty bonuses are also helpful in increasing employee’s morale and their retention in the organization.
• Positive Work Environment: Harmony in a relationship and a positive work environment lead to employee satisfaction, which is even important than money.
• Trust Employees Ability: Truѕting employee’s ability can boost their morale and help organization retain them for a longer period of time.
7 tips for a great first impression on a job interview
The first minutes of a job interview are very important and can even determine your chances of getting a job. First impressions are crucial and will last long. Some studies show that most of the hiring managers decide within the first 30 seconds if the applicant would get hired. Every job applicant should know some powerful strategies how to make a memorable impact in the first minutes of an interview.
Here are some valuable tips on making lasting positive impact:
- Practice. Practice before an interview may help you feel more confident and prepared. Review the interview questions that employers most frequently ask and think about best possible answers. It might be helpful in reducing your anxiety before the interview and will help you to boost your confidence.
- It’s obvious that first impressions count! You can create warmer environment and more favourable attitude by smiling and having firm handshake. Proper eye contact and posture are also vital. Stand and sit up straight, and walk confidently into a room.
- Dress for success. Obviously, the dress code depends on the type of job you’re applying for, but being professionally dressed can help you get more positive first impression. It is also recommended to add some colour to your outfit, like a cute scarf, to make yourself stand out from gray and black crowd.
- Be enthusiastic! You’ve been invited for the interview because they believe you have necessary skills and qualifications to do the job. However, it’s totally up to you to assure the interviewer that you can do the job better that anyone else. Try to impress with your flexibility, passion for the job and willingness to take up responsibility at work. There’s no bigger turnoff when an interviewee is negative about a past employer, working conditions or just wants something to pay the bills.
- Be concise. It’s important for your interviewer not to lose focus during the interview. Career specialists recommend thinking in bullet points for every answer and give concise and well-structured responses.
- Do decent research about the company. First of all, you should know what is the skill set the company is looking for in the candidate. You can also find out information on the employer’s career page to get an idea of the type of employees their desire.The company’s culture, mission and values are vital to know. Job seekers should be able to confidently say they’re good fit for the company’s culture during any job interview. In fact, a Millennial Branding study says 43 percent of HR professionals believe cultural fit is the most important quality job seekers can have during the hiring process.
- Follow up with a memorable email. There maybe dozens of candidates who apply for jobs and attend interviews. A follow-up email would be a nice reminder of who you are. Not following up is one of the biggest pet peeves of a hiring manager, and you’ll be surprised how much it can help with scoring the job.