Employee Retention: Easy Ways!!!
I really like the great quote by Alexander: “There is nothing impossible to him who will try.”
Employee retention is one of the ‘global headaches’ for many organizations as well as recruiters. Hiring without any expansion shows the ineffectiveness of talent acquisition. There are many internal and external factors that adversely affect employee retention.
During my tenure with my last company, I noticed many employees were leaving the organization rapidly. Finally, I realized that we can reduce attrition significantly if we sincerely focus on the following:
I. Regular employee engagement activities
II. A transparent performance management system
III. Re-evaluate benefits, rewards, and recognition policy
IV. Employee-friendly work environment
V. Employee satisfaction survey on a regular basis
VI. Presence of employee help desk/Employee Relationship Dept.
VII. Employee career development program
VIII. Regular training
IX. Education assistance program
X. Supporting & promoting staff welfare schemes
XI. Change the attitude of autocratic managers
XII. Empowering employees
XIII. Conduct an effective exit interview
1. Regular Employee Engagement Activities
It is very important to maintain the momentum of employee engagement throughout an employee's life cycle. From start to end, they should be boosted through regular engagement activities. There are many ways to engage your employees. Some involve costs, while others are cost-free. Let me mention some of them.
Effective communication leads to workers who look more favorably towards their companies. The most important thing is to communicate clearly with your employees regarding the latest updates, changes in policy, etc., on a regular basis. An employee connect program would be a better option for effectively engaging new joiners (please refer to https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/engag...spock-articles).
Let’s celebrate their big days and festivals. It provides breaks from the monotony and stresses of everyday routine. Office celebrations offer an opportunity for employees to bond and socialize. Common interests are thus discovered, and employees get to know each other much better. Through this, we can improve employee morale and boost team spirit.
Fun at the workplace: Let’s have some quiz programs through the intranet and give some gifts to the winners.
Picnics/organizational trips to some places on a yearly basis.
Employee performer/GEM of the month celebration (will mention in detail on Rewards & Recognition program).
2. A Transparent Performance Management System
In the early 1990s, performance management systems were not very common in all organizations. Now, the scenario has changed, and management is very keen to implement PMS to achieve business strategy. Before introducing PMS, ensure that it is transparent and not according to the traditional way of assessing an employee. There must be clear-cut goals, and employees should be involved in goal-setting objectives. They should be kept informed of our expectations. Goals should be specific and reliable. Regular feedback and performance reviews will always help them grow and achieve the aligned organizational target. Through a transparent PMS, we can improve the morale and loyalty of employees.
3. Re-evaluate Benefits, Rewards, and Recognition Policy
Salary benchmarking will also play a vital role in employee retention. Potential employees are more informed than ever about the salaries paid for the same position at multiple companies. To compete for talent, you must be aware of what the market is paying for certain skills and develop fair and reasonable salary ranges in your company.
All employees will be rewarded based on the performance given by individuals in the financial year. Through this, we can ensure motivation, engagement, excellence, and retention. The increment amount/% will vary every year based on the company’s performance in the financial year, and all employees will be appraised once a year in April.
Rewards can be monetary and non-monetary.
Non-monetary rewards are the awards/appreciation letters that the employee receives for their performance.
Monetary rewards are the salary increments/incentives the employee receives.
Incentives will be disbursed to some specific employees on a monthly/quarterly basis, depending on their target vs. achievement.
The higher the rating, the higher the percentage of increment the employee receives.
4. Employee-Friendly Work Environment
Make them feel as comfortable and friendly as possible since they spend 70% of their life in your organization. Build a stress-free zone at your office by evading too many restrictions and allowing flexibility in working hours.
I can see that many “Big Bosses” spend much time on CCTV monitoring instead of making business strategies. In Ireland, the covert monitoring of employees using CCTV is completely illegal, and employers using this tactic could face serious disciplinary action. The only time an employer could justify the use of CCTV to monitor staff would be under exceptional circumstances “of a serious nature.”
While framing any rules and regulations, ensure that everything is employee-friendly. Keep in mind that human psychology always has a tendency to defend against restrictions.
5. Employee Satisfaction Survey on a Regular Basis
There are many advantages to getting feedback from your employees. Research shows that satisfied, motivated employees will create higher customer satisfaction and, in turn, positively influence organizational performance.
Regular pulse checks of employee satisfaction and engagement are critical. Take feedback from your employees to improve operational efficiency. Your employees can be good judges of your actions. Conduct a confidential employee survey and collect overall feedback about employee satisfaction, organizational culture, employee engagement, and salary.
6. Presence of Employee Help Desk/Employee Relationship Dept.
HR is the bridge between the employer and employee, making the role of the HR department very important. There can be small issues at our workplace with seniors, colleagues, juniors within the department, or dealing with customers, etc. If not addressed at the right time, these can grow into big problems. These problems can also escalate in the absence of people in a department who might listen to their problems at the workplace when they are not comfortable sharing them with their boss or colleagues.
Frame an Employee Relationship Dept or Employee Help Desk that will listen, help, counsel, and advise them accordingly whenever they have any genuine problems. This will definitely help to decrease attrition.
7. Career Development Program
Providing constructive career development opportunities to employees will lead to many benefits for the organization. There should be a clear career path policy within the organization, which will help build the self-confidence of employees to stay long in the organization. An attractive fast-track promotion channel will also reduce attrition. Let’s retain the right talent and strengthen the succession pipeline. A lot of hidden talents are always there in any organization. You can utilize their skills and expertise through internal promotion/transfer or posting. Most importantly, you should communicate all this to the employees at regular intervals.
8. Regular Training
Training and development are vital in any organization that aims at progressing. Nowadays, all organizations have to invest more in training and capability building. A recent survey indicates that 40% of employees who receive poor job training leave their positions within the first year. Incorporating training and professional development can promote greater job satisfaction, which may lead to employee loyalty and higher productivity. Employees must be provided with regular coaching and guidance in such a manner as to boost their confidence. There should be regular motivation, leadership, and product training irrespective of all roles.
9. Education Assistance Program
Most new-generation banking and financial companies (ICICI & South Indian Bank just started) have invented in-house talent cultivation systems through their own institutes. If we do not have such infrastructure, we may give educational support to our employees as aid to upskill and make them future-ready. It will ensure retention for a period of about 3-4 years. We can ask those who opted for the scheme to serve the organization for at least 3/4 years. It can be a partial scholarship/reimbursement program.
10. Supporting & Promoting Staff Welfare Schemes
Staff welfare is perceptibly a cost involved and increases your company’s operational cost. Let’s make them aware of the various welfare schemes we are providing. Employee flows will never be an ending process. So it’s very essential that every employee should know about the staff welfare schemes that you have provided. Organizations spend a lot in terms of staff welfare measures. So it’s HR's duty to promote and educate your staff welfare schemes to your employees in a useful manner.
11. Change the Attitude of Autocratic Managers
“People Don’t Leave Companies…They Leave Leaders.” As the thought indicates, most employees leave the organization due to the poor leadership qualities of their superiors. HR should identify the gap between these two and make them comfortable in a diplomatic way. We need to enhance the capability of a team leader and make them fit for leading a team. If necessary, change their attitude towards employees and the way of speaking and acting, etc., with counseling. Make them understand the importance of establishing a safe place where employees can voice their opinions without fear of how their honesty will affect their position.
12. Empowering Employees
So many companies are built on top-down communication from management. Give employees structured ways to express their thoughts, feelings, and observations. Micromanagement activities will always lead to emotions like irritation and stress for the employee. Give them flexibility, encourage their failures, and respect their boundaries. While you want to push your employees to embrace new experiences, you don’t want to shove them so far out of their comfort zone that it becomes a negative experience.
13. Conduct an Effective Exit Interview
Regret to inform you that my past organization had high attrition. Later, we observed that the exit interviews were not conducted properly. All they did was just a formality. We should thoroughly try to find out the exact reason while conducting exit interviews. Through this, we can retain at least 18% of employees (as per survey/studies).
All the above-mentioned inclines are correlated with each other in one way or another. Success depends upon the action. It is easy to frame a policy, but the execution level will decide the final result. So why are you waiting…let’s do this and make your company one of the best places to work forever!!!
Please share your valuable feedback to [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons].
Regards
From India, Delhi
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2I really like the great quote by Alexander: “There is nothing impossible to him who will try.”
Employee retention is one of the ‘global headaches’ for many organizations as well as recruiters. Hiring without any expansion shows the ineffectiveness of talent acquisition. There are many internal and external factors that adversely affect employee retention.
During my tenure with my last company, I noticed many employees were leaving the organization rapidly. Finally, I realized that we can reduce attrition significantly if we sincerely focus on the following:
I. Regular employee engagement activities
II. A transparent performance management system
III. Re-evaluate benefits, rewards, and recognition policy
IV. Employee-friendly work environment
V. Employee satisfaction survey on a regular basis
VI. Presence of employee help desk/Employee Relationship Dept.
VII. Employee career development program
VIII. Regular training
IX. Education assistance program
X. Supporting & promoting staff welfare schemes
XI. Change the attitude of autocratic managers
XII. Empowering employees
XIII. Conduct an effective exit interview
1. Regular Employee Engagement Activities
It is very important to maintain the momentum of employee engagement throughout an employee's life cycle. From start to end, they should be boosted through regular engagement activities. There are many ways to engage your employees. Some involve costs, while others are cost-free. Let me mention some of them.
Effective communication leads to workers who look more favorably towards their companies. The most important thing is to communicate clearly with your employees regarding the latest updates, changes in policy, etc., on a regular basis. An employee connect program would be a better option for effectively engaging new joiners (please refer to https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/engag...spock-articles).
Let’s celebrate their big days and festivals. It provides breaks from the monotony and stresses of everyday routine. Office celebrations offer an opportunity for employees to bond and socialize. Common interests are thus discovered, and employees get to know each other much better. Through this, we can improve employee morale and boost team spirit.
Fun at the workplace: Let’s have some quiz programs through the intranet and give some gifts to the winners.
Picnics/organizational trips to some places on a yearly basis.
Employee performer/GEM of the month celebration (will mention in detail on Rewards & Recognition program).
2. A Transparent Performance Management System
In the early 1990s, performance management systems were not very common in all organizations. Now, the scenario has changed, and management is very keen to implement PMS to achieve business strategy. Before introducing PMS, ensure that it is transparent and not according to the traditional way of assessing an employee. There must be clear-cut goals, and employees should be involved in goal-setting objectives. They should be kept informed of our expectations. Goals should be specific and reliable. Regular feedback and performance reviews will always help them grow and achieve the aligned organizational target. Through a transparent PMS, we can improve the morale and loyalty of employees.
3. Re-evaluate Benefits, Rewards, and Recognition Policy
Salary benchmarking will also play a vital role in employee retention. Potential employees are more informed than ever about the salaries paid for the same position at multiple companies. To compete for talent, you must be aware of what the market is paying for certain skills and develop fair and reasonable salary ranges in your company.
All employees will be rewarded based on the performance given by individuals in the financial year. Through this, we can ensure motivation, engagement, excellence, and retention. The increment amount/% will vary every year based on the company’s performance in the financial year, and all employees will be appraised once a year in April.
Rewards can be monetary and non-monetary.
Non-monetary rewards are the awards/appreciation letters that the employee receives for their performance.
Monetary rewards are the salary increments/incentives the employee receives.
Incentives will be disbursed to some specific employees on a monthly/quarterly basis, depending on their target vs. achievement.
The higher the rating, the higher the percentage of increment the employee receives.
4. Employee-Friendly Work Environment
Make them feel as comfortable and friendly as possible since they spend 70% of their life in your organization. Build a stress-free zone at your office by evading too many restrictions and allowing flexibility in working hours.
I can see that many “Big Bosses” spend much time on CCTV monitoring instead of making business strategies. In Ireland, the covert monitoring of employees using CCTV is completely illegal, and employers using this tactic could face serious disciplinary action. The only time an employer could justify the use of CCTV to monitor staff would be under exceptional circumstances “of a serious nature.”
While framing any rules and regulations, ensure that everything is employee-friendly. Keep in mind that human psychology always has a tendency to defend against restrictions.
5. Employee Satisfaction Survey on a Regular Basis
There are many advantages to getting feedback from your employees. Research shows that satisfied, motivated employees will create higher customer satisfaction and, in turn, positively influence organizational performance.
Regular pulse checks of employee satisfaction and engagement are critical. Take feedback from your employees to improve operational efficiency. Your employees can be good judges of your actions. Conduct a confidential employee survey and collect overall feedback about employee satisfaction, organizational culture, employee engagement, and salary.
6. Presence of Employee Help Desk/Employee Relationship Dept.
HR is the bridge between the employer and employee, making the role of the HR department very important. There can be small issues at our workplace with seniors, colleagues, juniors within the department, or dealing with customers, etc. If not addressed at the right time, these can grow into big problems. These problems can also escalate in the absence of people in a department who might listen to their problems at the workplace when they are not comfortable sharing them with their boss or colleagues.
Frame an Employee Relationship Dept or Employee Help Desk that will listen, help, counsel, and advise them accordingly whenever they have any genuine problems. This will definitely help to decrease attrition.
7. Career Development Program
Providing constructive career development opportunities to employees will lead to many benefits for the organization. There should be a clear career path policy within the organization, which will help build the self-confidence of employees to stay long in the organization. An attractive fast-track promotion channel will also reduce attrition. Let’s retain the right talent and strengthen the succession pipeline. A lot of hidden talents are always there in any organization. You can utilize their skills and expertise through internal promotion/transfer or posting. Most importantly, you should communicate all this to the employees at regular intervals.
8. Regular Training
Training and development are vital in any organization that aims at progressing. Nowadays, all organizations have to invest more in training and capability building. A recent survey indicates that 40% of employees who receive poor job training leave their positions within the first year. Incorporating training and professional development can promote greater job satisfaction, which may lead to employee loyalty and higher productivity. Employees must be provided with regular coaching and guidance in such a manner as to boost their confidence. There should be regular motivation, leadership, and product training irrespective of all roles.
9. Education Assistance Program
Most new-generation banking and financial companies (ICICI & South Indian Bank just started) have invented in-house talent cultivation systems through their own institutes. If we do not have such infrastructure, we may give educational support to our employees as aid to upskill and make them future-ready. It will ensure retention for a period of about 3-4 years. We can ask those who opted for the scheme to serve the organization for at least 3/4 years. It can be a partial scholarship/reimbursement program.
10. Supporting & Promoting Staff Welfare Schemes
Staff welfare is perceptibly a cost involved and increases your company’s operational cost. Let’s make them aware of the various welfare schemes we are providing. Employee flows will never be an ending process. So it’s very essential that every employee should know about the staff welfare schemes that you have provided. Organizations spend a lot in terms of staff welfare measures. So it’s HR's duty to promote and educate your staff welfare schemes to your employees in a useful manner.
11. Change the Attitude of Autocratic Managers
“People Don’t Leave Companies…They Leave Leaders.” As the thought indicates, most employees leave the organization due to the poor leadership qualities of their superiors. HR should identify the gap between these two and make them comfortable in a diplomatic way. We need to enhance the capability of a team leader and make them fit for leading a team. If necessary, change their attitude towards employees and the way of speaking and acting, etc., with counseling. Make them understand the importance of establishing a safe place where employees can voice their opinions without fear of how their honesty will affect their position.
12. Empowering Employees
So many companies are built on top-down communication from management. Give employees structured ways to express their thoughts, feelings, and observations. Micromanagement activities will always lead to emotions like irritation and stress for the employee. Give them flexibility, encourage their failures, and respect their boundaries. While you want to push your employees to embrace new experiences, you don’t want to shove them so far out of their comfort zone that it becomes a negative experience.
13. Conduct an Effective Exit Interview
Regret to inform you that my past organization had high attrition. Later, we observed that the exit interviews were not conducted properly. All they did was just a formality. We should thoroughly try to find out the exact reason while conducting exit interviews. Through this, we can retain at least 18% of employees (as per survey/studies).
All the above-mentioned inclines are correlated with each other in one way or another. Success depends upon the action. It is easy to frame a policy, but the execution level will decide the final result. So why are you waiting…let’s do this and make your company one of the best places to work forever!!!
Please share your valuable feedback to [Email Removed For Privacy Reasons].
Regards
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Employee Retention: A Global Challenge
Employee retention is one of the 'global headaches' faced by many organizations and recruiters. Hiring without any expansion highlights the ineffectiveness of talent acquisition. There are many internal and external factors that adversely affect employee retention.
During my tenure with my last company, I observed a rapid turnover of employees. I realized that we can significantly reduce attrition if we sincerely address the following factors:
- Regular employee engagement activities
- A transparent performance management system
- Re-evaluating benefits, rewards, and recognition policies
- Creating an employee-friendly work environment
- Conducting regular employee satisfaction surveys
- Establishing an employee help desk or relationship department
- Implementing career development programs
- Providing regular training
- Offering education assistance programs
- Supporting and promoting staff welfare schemes
- Changing the attitude of autocratic managers
- Empowering employees
- Conducting effective exit interviews
Regards.
From India, Delhi
Acknowledge(0)Amend(0)
Employee retention is one of the 'global headaches' faced by many organizations and recruiters. Hiring without any expansion highlights the ineffectiveness of talent acquisition. There are many internal and external factors that adversely affect employee retention.
During my tenure with my last company, I observed a rapid turnover of employees. I realized that we can significantly reduce attrition if we sincerely address the following factors:
- Regular employee engagement activities
- A transparent performance management system
- Re-evaluating benefits, rewards, and recognition policies
- Creating an employee-friendly work environment
- Conducting regular employee satisfaction surveys
- Establishing an employee help desk or relationship department
- Implementing career development programs
- Providing regular training
- Offering education assistance programs
- Supporting and promoting staff welfare schemes
- Changing the attitude of autocratic managers
- Empowering employees
- Conducting effective exit interviews
Regards.
From India, Delhi
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Effective employee retention strategies-BPO. doc