The Best Strategies to Retain Your Talents

All businesses know the impact of losing one of their top performers. When an MVP from the company suddenly departures, it affects morale and may undermine employee engagement and work performance. How you react to an employee’s unexpected exit has a direct impact on your remaining workforce.

One of the best things to do is to focus on employee retention. Look at what your company is doing right and wrong. Analyze your current processes and be willing to tweak them to better meet your employee’s needs. Doing this will play a major part in increasing job satisfaction.

Here are some practical strategies that HR managers can use to foster employee engagement to retain top talent.

Revamp the onboarding process

First impressions are everything. Show that your company is invested in its employees by setting up new hires for success from the get-go. Effective onboarding should go well beyond teaching new employees about their job.

Explain the company culture to new hires and how they can thrive in it. Talk about the opportunities available to them so that they can contribute to moving the company one step closer to its goals. Set up 1-on-1 meetings with managers at each level.

Onboarding can be even more effective and educational by using an onboarding authoring tool. These no-code editors allow anyone to create beautiful and efficient onboarding and training programs that provide quizzes in-between stages to measure the employee understanding

After completing onboarding, new employees should not only feel confident in their job. They should head to their desk feeling like they matter and have an important role to play.

Be a champion for work-life balance

Work-life balance is more important than ever, especially in the face of a pandemic. The fact is that employees want (and need!) a life outside of work. No one dreams of waking up and spending 12+ hours in the office, leaving little time to enjoy life.

Companies need to do more than support work-life balance – they need to become champions for it. The fact is that work-life balance starts from the top. Management should commit to:

• Offering remote work
• Not contacting employees outside of work hours
• Encouraging employees to take time off

Prioritizing work-life balance will have a profound impact on talent retention and engagement.

Offer competitive compensation

One of the top reasons why employees quit their jobs is for a higher salary and a better compensation package. It’s crucial that companies pay their employees a competitive salary. Employees want to feel like they’re being fairly compensated for their hard work, time, and dedication.

Money aside, it’s also important for companies to offer a robust compensation package. Look at what competitors are offering and provide something better. This could mean increasing paid time off, improving health care benefits, or offering 401(k) matching.

Increasing wages and revamping your compensation package is sure to improve employee satisfaction

Invest in your employees

Salary is important, but it usually isn’t the sole source of satisfaction for employees. In fact, employees are often willing to overlook lower pay to be with a company that provides growth and learning opportunities.

Invest in your employees by supporting their professional and personal growth. Training opportunities, whether in-house or external, are a must for keeping your workforce happy and motivated.

Personal growth is crucial for each employee. One of the best ways to help employees grow is with developmental programs. Look at each employee’s role and pair them with courses and training that cover all of the top skills in their field. This is great for skill development as well as personal growth.

Aside from training opportunities, don’t skip out on shadowing and mentoring programs. These play a huge role in helping employees, especially newcomers, to pave their path to success.

Wellness offerings

Keeping your workforce mentally, physically, and financially healthy is good for business. The pandemic has prompted many employers to expand their wellness offerings to make employees feel supported while also encouraging them to prioritize their health and wellbeing.

Burnout and stress are very real, especially in the workplace. As an employer, you must do your part to keep your workforce healthy. This means offering programs and/or perks that incentivize employees to take care of themselves.

Free fitness classes, retirement planning services, and stress management programs are all great options to provide.

Provide routine feedback

Annual performance reviews are the go-to method for providing feedback to employees. However, research has found that a once-a-year review isn’t sufficient. In fact, companies that offer regular strengths-based feedback sessions decrease their turnover rate by almost 15%.

Continuous feedback is the best way to keep tabs on employees. Make it a point for managers to meet with employees once a month to discuss their short- and long-term goals. This is also a great time to help employees visualize their future with the company while talking through career advancement opportunities.

Be sure that feedback sessions are strengths-based. No one wants to be told all of the things they’re doing wrong. Highlight an employee’s strengths and achievements. Instead of criticizing, give suggestions for growing and improving.

Provide flexible work arrangements

The pandemic has made remote work and flexible work schedules a must-have for many employees. Research has found that 1 in 3 professionals working from home would find another job if they were told they had to return to the office full time.

With this drastic change in expectations, companies must offer flexible work arrangements, especially as we continue through the pandemic. Every employee has their own personal situation. Some may have childcare or schooling issues, while others simply feel safer (and more productive!) working from home.

Instead of requiring everyone to return to the office, be flexible. Work with employees on a case-by-case basis to come up with a solution that meets their needs. Flexible work arrangements should offer:

• Flextime
• Compressed workweek (ie. four 10s)
• Partial telecommuting

All of these options relieve stress, boost morale, and improve employee retention.

Communicate

The pandemic highlighted the importance of good workplace communication. Whether your workforce is on-site, remote, or a hybrid, create an environment that encourages employees to feel safe to speak their mind.

Employees should feel comfortable going to their managers with questions, concerns, and ideas at any time. Leaders must also do their part to provide timely, constructive communication across the team, whether members sit down the hall or across the country.

By encouraging managers to proactively connect with team members, it’s much easier to get a sense of their happiness and satisfaction with the job.

Be appreciative

When employees feel valued and appreciated, they’re less likely to seek employment elsewhere. Management at all levels should show employees that they’re appreciative for their hard work. Even the simplest gesture, such as a handwritten “thank you” or an email can have the biggest impact.

Showing appreciation makes people feel like they matter and have an important role. When employees are valued, their morale and productivity greatly benefit.

Acknowledge achievements

Not only should management show appreciation for what employees do, they should also acknowledge their achievements, both big and small. Whether a team finishes a major project ahead of the deadline or if an employee has been with the company for five years, mark the milestone together.

Acknowledging achievements shows employees that their work is not only impactful, but that it’s recognized.

Final thoughts

In today’s hiring climate, knowing how to retain your top talent is more important than ever. With a growing number of vacancies and not enough active job seekers to fill them, companies are doing whatever they can to attract new talent.

The strategies above are just a few ways to increase employee retention by prioritizing morale and job satisfaction. While it’s inevitable that some team members will decide to leave the company, you can do your part in making the decision a little tougher by prioritizing their happiness and wellbeing.