Losing employees can be more costly to a business than anything else. You not only have to spend time and money looking for a replacement, you have to train that replacement as well. You may even have to pay that new employee a larger salary than the previous employee was making. You also lose knowledge when someone leaves a company which can turn into a decrease in productivity. It is important for businesses to know how to retain employees and reduce turnover.
Hire Smart
The first step to retaining employees and reducing turnover is to hire the right employee. Make sure the candidate will fit into your workplace culture and will be successful at the job. Ensure you are giving them the most accurate job description and allow them to shadow a member of the team for a few hours to get a feel of what the work environment is like. Making the right hire will save you money in the long run.
Compensate Well
Providing competitive wages and benefits is another way to retain your employees and reduce turnover. The happier an employee is with their pay the more likely they are to stay at a company. The same can be said about benefits. Offering not only the traditional benefits but nontraditional ones such as jeans days or flexibility to work from home can also help to retain employees.
Advancement Opportunities
Employees want to grow and advance their careers and if they feel that they can't achieve that at their current job they will start to look elsewhere. Allow employees opportunities to grow and learn more. Give them new responsibilities to keep their day to day jobs more exciting. More responsibility will also challenge them which is also an important aspect for employees to have.
Recognize
Recognizing accomplishments can be a simple but highly effective way to retain employees. If they feel like their work is being noticed and making a difference they are more likely to be engaged and happy with their jobs. Recognizing an employee can be as simple as a shout out in a team meeting, an email, or an announcement in the company newsletter. Thank you can go a long way so be sure to use it.
Reviews
Conducting annual reviews is a great way to discuss with your employee their successes from the previous year and talk about any future plans such as more responsibilities or promotions. You can also plan unofficial reviews with your employees. These can be just a 15-30 min discussion in your office to talk about what's working and what's not. It is important to make sure your employees know that your door is open.
Retaining your employees and reducing turnover is an extremely important topic among employers. Following these tips can help you to retain your best employees and reduce costs. What are some ways you retain employees and reduce turnover?