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It’s alright to have a small percentage of your staff calling it quits with you annually. It happens with most businesses, including the most successful ones. Employee turnover isn’t necessarily a bad thing. However, you should become concerned if a significant proportion of your workforce is leaving you each year. Such high turnover rates could make hiring replacements more expensive. It could also drive up training and onboarding costs and stall productivity, as new hires try to get a handle on their jobs. If you’re a business owner, you’ll know that a high employee turnover could cause you a lot of trouble. So you’ll want to keep this rate at a minimum (while ensuring that you’re retaining an excellent team). Here are six ways you can do just that.
Improve Your Hiring And Onboarding Processes
A high employee attrition rate could be a sign that your hiring or onboarding processes are broken; you may be employing people who are either not a fit for their designated roles, or for the organization as a whole. As a result, they may find working with you difficult or unrewarding and quit quite early on. Fixing this would require reviewing the way you bring on new staff. Clearly define job descriptions, and appraise candidates according to their practical skills and the extent to which they’ll fit in with your organization’s culture. Explain your company’s vision to them, and let them know how they can help to achieve their employer’s goals. With the hiring and onboarding processes properly amended, you’ll be able to hire and keep the right talent for your business.Offer Competitive Benefits
If your industry is like most others, there’ll be a high demand for quality talent. If you’re going to secure the services of really skilled workers, you will have to offer them good benefits. Your overall package, including salaries, working conditions, and compensations, should be at least comparable to what your competitors present. Admittedly, most small and emerging businesses wind up on the losing end in the battle for exceptional talent. That’s because they can’t outcompete the giants in their industry for quality hires. But this doesn’t always have to be the case. If your company has a clear path to growth, and if you can offer this to prospective employees, you may be able to convince them to join you. Make this part of a broader package, which will include the other factors we’ve already mentioned (fair pay and a positive culture).Create And Sustain A Positive Organizational Culture
A work environment that’s positive and upbeat is more likely to retain employees than one that’s not (other factors held constant). No one wants to spend a greater part of their waking hours in a workspace that’s dull or even toxic. Cultivating a culture that’s inspiring and forward-looking is key to retaining your best workers. A great organizational culture is sustained by the outlook and attitude of the staff. This is why you should hire people who are a fit for the sort of culture you want to create or preserve. But it also requires managers and senior executives who lead by example with their approach to work and other employees. So you have a role to play in building and driving the culture you wish to see.Sign up to the Connect Nigeria daily newsletter
Compliment Good Work
Make a point of praising excellent work when it’s done. Compliment members of your team who go over and beyond what’s required of them in doing their duties. This should motivate them to continue delivering outstanding outcomes more consistently. It’ll help them stay more invested in their roles. Also, when you speak positively of good work in public, it could drive other employees to put in the extra effort that’s needed to improve the quality of their work. All of this may accumulate over time, resulting in an overall increase in your organization’s productivity. Ultimately, your workers will devote themselves to their jobs, and may not readily consider leaving.Be Flexible
Most employees want a job that leaves them time for other aspects of their lives. They want to be able to retire for the day after spending long hours at work. And if their jobs allow them to strike a positive work-life balance, they’ll be better for it. Depending on the nature of their work, it may be a good idea to allow some flexibility for your employees’ work times and locations. For example, you could let them work a couple of days (or more) in a week remotely. Or you may allow them to resume later (say, 9 AM instead of 8 AM) with the guarantee that they’ll also close later than usual. Employees who have greater flexibility built into their work tend to be more satisfied with their jobs than those who aren’t as free. And higher satisfaction scores are a good predictor for lower employee turnover rates.Offer Your Workers A Path To Growth
A majority of workers want to feel that they’re growing in their roles (and attaining higher ones). They want to pick up new skills, sharpen existing ones, gain expertise, and experience the rewarding feeling that comes with surmounting new challenges. If they don’t have these things, they’ll begin to grow dissatisfied. That’s why you should have a clear growth path defined for your employees. Let them know that they can progress up the ladder of competence and managerial responsibilities for as long as they’re with you. This guarantee– when backed up by the evidence of daily work –will make your best staff willing to stay for longer.Final Words
You can’t totally eliminate employee turnover at your business. There will always be workers whose paths diverge from yours at some point. But it’s vital that you keep the departure rates at a manageable level. When you achieve this, you won’t have to incur the mounting costs of having to replace several employees at any given point in time. Featured Image Source: Hustler AllianceDid you find this article useful? Contact us: editor@connectnigeria.com