Staff retention has always been difficult, even before 2020 threw the business world into chaos. Now, with businesses and individuals still being under severe pressure, it is an even more serious issue.
It should go without saying that the first step toward preventing turnover is being careful who you hire. If you hire employees with excellent qualifications and solid backgrounds, they are more likely to stay with you. This means you absolutely can’t afford to cut corners in your hiring process and do your due diligence well.
Use HR software and manual review to sort through applicant CVs. Perform DBS checks early on in the process to make sure the applicant is qualified for the positions. Conduct thorough interviews and test prospective employees before hiring them.
Unfortunately, getting a hold of good workers does not guarantee that you’d be able to keep them around. This is why you need to always mind the top employee reasons for turnover, and be ready to counter them.
Feeling Overworked and Unsupported
Putting undue pressure on employees is a sure-fire way to burn them out. Burnout is one of the top reasons for losing employees in these trying times.
This is why you need to avoid it at all costs. Collect feedback from your employees. Poll them on their work experience, and judge whether their workload is more than they could bear. Asking them to push harder on occasion may be OK, but be extremely careful not to overdo it.
Inadequate Pay and Perks
Employees considering their pay inadequate is another primary reason for quitting. If you get an inkling that workers may be dissatisfied with their pay, try to discuss matters with them. See if you can’t adjust their salary slightly, or promise them a raise in the near future.
Even if you can’t afford to give them a pay increase immediately, you can try to compensate with extra benefits. Giving workers something above and beyond their salary demonstrates a business’s goodwill. Gestures that show genuine care can do miracles for building employee loyalty. This, in turn, boosts employee retention dramatically.
Being Unqualified for the Job
Workers who are unqualified for the job they are doing are not likely to stick around for very long. “Fake it till you make it” is not a viable strategy, especially in this tense business climate.
To prevent people from leaving because they were not fit for the position, to begin with, make sure you don’t hire people negligently. Do your due diligence, run all the necessary background checks, interview applicants with care. And if you for some reason missed a step during hiring – make sure you perform it ASAP.
Insufficient Opportunities for Career Advancement
Being stuck in a spot with no way to progress is extremely dissatisfying, both for businesses and for their employees. This is why businesses need to provide meaningful learning and career growth opportunities.
Failing to do so quickly breeds apathy and discontent. If you let such an atmosphere set in your company, job hopping will soon become common. Prevent this by making sure you provide your employees with a career path and meaningful learning opportunities.
Dissatisfaction With Management
At the end of the day, it’s a manager’s personal charisma and organizational skills that keep things operational. Therefore, you need to make sure you hire good managers with checked credentials, who know what they’re doing.
Now more than ever, they need to be impartial, compassionate, and understanding. It’s also important to remember that management needs to benefit from learning and career advancement programs as well.
Untenable Commutes
Long commutes can be extremely frustrating for employees, as travel time can eat into their precious leisure hours. Traveling a long distance just to get to work isn’t free, either. Individually, those are vexing issues that can frustrate employees. When combined, they may just be enough to push a worker over the edge.
Prevent that from happening by organizing transport for employees, or taking care of some of their gas expenses. Agreeing on more flexible working hours or remote workdays may also be a good way to deal with the issue.
Miscellaneous Personal Reasons
There are many further reasons why employees may want to abandon ship. They may have concerns about the company’s direction or financial health. Boredom can also be a serious issue, especially for creative professionals. Dissatisfaction with the company’s office atmosphere and culture can also drive employees away.
There’s no one single way of dealing with all of these personal issues that an employee may take with some aspect of the business. However, the first step to do so is always to hear the employee out and see if something can’t be arranged. Give workers a way to air their grievances in a productive manner. Collect feedback – and act on it.
