Employee retention is a critical issue in the workplace today as companies compete for talent in a tight economy. Retaining top employees has many benefits, for example:

• Top performers bring value to the company and the team they work with.

• Employees who are used to working well together enhance your company culture.

• You save money by not having to find replacements.

• Companies with the lowest turnover are desirable to potential candidates and will attract the top talent in your industry.

According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the benefits for companies that focus on employee retention are well worth the time and investment. A high retention rate leads to better productivity, increased performance, higher employee morale, and reduced turnover.

In other words – by focusing on employee retention, companies will retain motivated and talented employees who truly want to be a part of the company and are focused on contributing to the organization’s success.

The Hyatt Hotel Group is one of the companies with the lowest employee turnover. More than 14, 000 of Hyatt’s approximately 75, 000 US employees have worked at the company for more than ten years!

So what can you do to increase your employee retention rates and retain your top talent?

An employee retention program is a great way to help you protect your most valuable asset – your employees. Here are some employee retention program examples that will help you hold on to your valued workers:

• Measure your turnover rate.

Knowing where you stand compared to industry benchmarks should be your first step when creating an employee retention program. Using the appropriate tools and formulas can help you determine your employee turnover rate and compare it to the industry’s average. You can then improve or maintain your rates depending on whether your turnover is high or low.

• Conduct retention Interviews.

Unlike the usual assessments, where the discussion is about what the employee can do to improve, retention interviews uncover what the employer can do to secure the employee’s retention.

These interviews should be held annually for all employees and semi-annually for top performers who show signs of impending resignation or burnout. This will provide you with the necessary information to retain top-performing employees and address why they might be thinking about finding a new employer.

• Promote a healthy pro-retention company culture.

Evaluate your company’s culture with a diverse panel of employees to highlight the best parts about working for the company and point out the aspects that promote a healthy pro-retention workplace.

It may be uncomfortable, but it’s important to pay attention to your company culture’s “bad” aspects as well. Address these issues without delay and keep in mind that honesty will lead to improvement.

• Implement employee compensation strategies.

In the past, people were paid for their time, but today more companies pay for performance. To incorporate this trend, you can set performance goals for your team and offer bonuses and incentives (offering stock options is a good idea). You can also consider giving extra benefits like paid parental leave or corporate discounts when your employees exceed your expectations.

When employees know from the start they will be getting larger bonuses and benefits, they’ll not only stay longer, but it will incentivize them to think about their work in terms of years, not months.

An excellent example of this is Netflix, which offers its employees unlimited vacation time and up to a year of paid parental leave.

• Create a healthy and accommodating work environment.

Make sure your work environment attracts and nourishes your employees. Free lunches, gym memberships, and casual dress codes are great perks, and they don’t cost much.

Work-life balance is a major employee engagement factor in the modern workplace. Consider setting up a work-from-home policy, encourage employees to take time off, and offer flexible work schedules. These are all incentives that could help you keep your best employees.

• Train your managers.

“People leave managers, not companies” – Marcus Buckingham.

Managers should act as mentors and build healthy relationships with their teams. Good communication is the key to prevent misunderstandings and conflict at work. In the end, healthy employee-manager relationships create a friendly atmosphere in the office, leading to good company retention.

• Personal development and growth.

Benefits and perks are good, but what really matters to talented employees is personal development. Ask your employees what their personal goals are and find out what motivates them. Allow them to collaborate with different teams and suggest courses or seminars they might be interested in.

My Maid Service offers their employees customized career training and free classes at local community colleges. Consequently, their employee turnover rate for employees who have worked in the company for two years went from 300% to 0% within three years.

• Recognition.

Giving recognition to your employees for tasks well done makes them feel valued. A simple “Hey, great work on that project – keep up the good work!” will do wonders for an employee’s motivation.

Now that we’ve looked at some employee retention ideas in detail let’s look at companies with a high employee turnover and what the reasons are.

Here are some reasons why companies have high turnover rates:

• Competitors are offering more.

• Keep an eye out for what your competitors are offering beyond salaries and hourly rates. These benefits and perks, such as telecommuting and gym memberships, can lure your employees away and decrease your employee retention rate.
  

  Poor management.

• Issues like sexual harassment, lack of recognition, constant conflicts, or micromanagement can have people leaving within the first months of setting foot in the office. If employees dread coming to work or don’t feel appreciated, chances are they’ll look for another position.
  

  Hiring entry-level employees who don’t plan to stay long.

Call centers and fast-food restaurants are companies with high turnover rates. A good move would be to invest in employee training programs to help your newcomers get up to speed faster. This enables them to move up the ladder to a management role and sticking with the company longer.

Conclusion

Employee retention and staff turnover is a critical issue in the modern workplace. The employee retention program examples we discussed above will not only help you keep your top performers, but will also lead to better productivity, increased performance, and higher employee morale.

Coggno has a wide range of online training courses covering employee retention strategies.
You can have a look at our free courses here and our course catalog here.