Retention as the Economy Improves

“I found a better opportunity”
“My decision was based on compensation”
“I wanted to expand and learn new things”
“I am leaving for personal reasons”

I am sure you have heard many of these comments from past employees. However, are these real reasons people leave organizations?

After compiling eight years of data from exit interviews, organizational surveys and benchmark data, I have found two dominant themes of why people leave their organizations.

1. The financial health and stability of the company.
   
2. The health of the company culture including the work environment and the manager/employee relationship.

1) Financial Health and Stability
Many people leave their organization because of fear. The company is experiencing a downward spiral, losing customers and rumors of a possible sale, closure, bankruptcy and failure are everywhere. In today's economy, it is hard to find organizations that are not experiencing some challenges. However, the following are some strategies that you can use to help alleviate some of the organization's anxiety.

Put yourself in the employee's shoes
From the sideline, it may seem like things will never recover. Your employees want to protect themselves, their family and the company in that order. If you are a manager in this type of situation, you need to understand this. Empathize with your employees. Develop a plan to communicate the recovery strategies of the organization.

Get them involved
This is another way of saying, employee engagement. Use your employee's ideas, skills, motivations and talents to help your team implement your recovery strategy. If your employees feel that they are part of the solution, you will realize a significant increase in energy, productivity and retention.

2) Company Culture
Throughout my research, I found that a significant number, 71 percent, of the applicants interviewed stated that they left the organization because of the culture. In fact, many applicants pointed directly to their manager as the primary reason they were leaving. “I did not leave the company, I left my manager.”

As a manager myself, I realize that we are often used as a scapegoat and that our job responsibilities are often in-between organizational goals and employee relationships. However, managers influence such things as team communication, career success, employee development, and job stress as well as employee motivation. Here are some strategies that you can deploy to positively impact retention.

1. Managing new employees.
   An organization's orientation program is the most critical process that can dramatically improve employee retention. Most employees decide if they will stay with an organization within the first 90 days. Therefore, I have outlined five specific areas that a manager should address within the first three months.

   Company Knowledge:
   New employees are interested in understanding an organization's history, mission, values, vision and direction. Spend a considerable amount of time focusing on your company.

   Position Knowledge:
   Spend time reviewing the role and responsibilities of the new employee. As the manager, you need to describe your expectations as well as the expectations of the internal suppliers and internal customers. In addition, describe the tasks and activities associated with the role and specifically highlight the critical success factors that you will use during performance reviews and evaluations.

   Process Knowledge refers to understanding how things run within the organization. Do not expect an employee manual to cover everything. Help the new employee understand team norms and politics, organizational policies such as work hours and attendance and most importantly inter-team communication.

   Product / Services Knowledge:
   New employees should have a solid understanding of the products and services the company provides. Use the experts on your team to educate the new employee and highlight the reason customers buy from your firm.

   Personal Effectiveness:
   The last area of focus should be the development of the new employee. This section should address both the personal as well as professional development of the new employee including training and educational opportunities, personal growth and career advancement.

   By implementing this type of orientation program, you will realize a significant improvement in employee retention as well as your new employee's motivation, energy and commitment starting on the very first day of employment.

2. Retaining existing employees.
   People want to feel that they are a part of something and they are making a difference in the organization. You need to understand that communication is a critical component of retention. The following are simple strategies that you can use to manage and communicate with your team.

   Meeting Effectiveness
   Most organizations spend an enormous amount of time conducting meetings. However, when it comes to meetings most organizations confuse activity with progress. In addition, the direct and indirect costs associated with the meetings are substantial. Your meetings should include an objective as well as measurable goals associated with the activities discussed. Make sure you understand the different types of meetings and align each type with your objective. One of the best books that I have found on meeting effectiveness is Death by Meeting by Patrick Lencioni.

   Continuous Feedback
   Develop a culture of open communication and feedback. Spend time with each employee you support and allow them the opportunity to provide their thoughts and ideas as well. During these conversations discuss the following topics:

   Company: Highlight recent accomplishments and ask for suggestions.

   Team: Discuss the team's performance and ways to increase productivity.

   Manager: Use this time to receive feedback on your effectiveness as a leader.

   Individual: Discuss the person's positive strengths as well as areas of improvement.

Becoming an Employer of Choice
During the past three months, I have tried to provide you with simple strategies that can help your firm become an employer of choice. The first part of the three part series focused on leveraging the culture of your team to attract new employees. The second article focused on hiring smart and provided a recruiting process that will help you hire the best people. This article focused on strategies to increase employee retention. I hope that you found these articles useful and I wish you the best of luck in your journey to become a great place to work.