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Read time: 3.5 mins
In 2023, 70% of US workers plan to leave their jobs.
70%!
If you're a business owner, you know what a nightmare that is.
Loosing staff is frustrating, time-consuming, and downright expensive.
On the other hand, good retention means your business is more efficient and effective.
Plus, you don’t have to spend all your time hiring and training new people, hoping they’ll stick around.
Unfortunately, the statistics show staff retention is a problem, and it isn’t going away any time soon.
So, what do you do?
Many of our clients are asking the same question, so today we’re sharing our suggestions.
Time to get off the hiring hamster wheel, and keep great staff in your business.
Let’s get into it:
To understand the solution, let's look at what’s driving the problem.
There are two parts to this:
1. The Facts
A 2022 Employ survey showed that 75% of people's motivation to leave their jobs fell into 4 broad categories.
They wanted:
- More money (37.1%)
- The ability to work remotely (18.6%)
- Career advancement (13.4%)
- A change/new challenge (12.4%)
2. The Problem
Companies’ incentive programs are not aligned with what their people actually care about.
The "old way" assumes that employees primarily value job security and rewards linked to their length of service (e.g. bonuses and role titles).
However, studies indicate that many employees value other things.
Fulfillment.
Job satisfaction.
Flexibility.
(Check out this newsletter for more on this topic).
The new generation coming into the workforce don't care about shares or bonuses that will vest in 3-5 years.
They are much more short-term focused.
Key takeaway: People are planning to leave their jobs, and companies need to align their incentive strategies and culture with what their staff values.
So what do we recommend?
Addressing this challenge is complex and requires unique solutions and strategies tailored to your business.
However, here are our top three tips:
3 STRATEGIES FOR KEEPING GREAT STAFF IN YOUR BUSINESS
A) Have a roadmap for new starters
Create a plan outlining the first 18-36 months of a new employee's journey and how they will be recognised along the way.
This can include promotions, title changes, new responsibilities, and upskilling opportunities.
Keep your team engaged and challenged, not stagnant and bored.
B) Listen to your team
Finding good solutions means asking good questions.
Start asking questions to better understand what influences your employees to want to stay with the business and get an overall feel of job satisfaction and culture.
Find ways to ask your team about what they want and need through surveys, 1:1's, or other methods.
If you can ask the same questions over time, you can see patterns and act accordingly.
C) Don't underestimate the impact of your leaders
A study by DDI found that 57% of employees have left a company because of their manager.
At the helm of a business, you’re not always the direct manager, so you can’t always control every employee’s experience with their manager.
But you can influence it.
Most leaders rise through the ranks because of their success in their previous or technical-based roles.
If they aren’t trained to be great leaders, it’s hard to blame them for not inspiring their teams with the willingness to stay.
Focus on your company culture, invest in leadership training, and build a talent management system that enables managers to be better leaders.
For the action takers?
Want to increase retention in your business?
Email us for a quick chat on how we can upskill your leaders or design your employee roadmap.
Hope this helps!
Speak soon,
Lynne and Steve
TLDR
- Poor staff retention costs you money, service and time. It will become an even bigger problem in the future.
- Develop an employee roadmap for each team member to keep them motivated in the first 18-36 months.
- Focusing on the culture and talent of your business are the 2 superpowers for better retention and business outcomes.
Extra Resources:
- Here's the Yahoo Finance article on the huge percentage of US workers planning to leave their jobs in 2023.
- Employ's Quarterly Insights Report on employment; or get a summary from this LinkedIn article.
- Here's the data published by DDI on good employees leaving bad managers, and other reasons resignation rates are increasing: https://www.ddiworld.com/blog/why-good-employees-leave
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