Category: Employee Engagement

Five Tactics to Increase Employee Retention in the Workplace

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It is not only important to hire the best employees, but to keep them on the job. High retention rates make things flow smoothly in the workplace. Low retention rates, which can be caused by things like low employee morale or lack of recognition, hold your company back and can become very costly. These five tactics can help ensure higher retention rates within your workplace:

1. Challenge Your Workers

Give them productive work that pushes and challenges them – do not just give them busy work. If they feel like they are accomplishing something and helping the company every day, they will be less likely to leave.

2. Offer Benefits That They Can’t Get Elsewhere

Benefits can provide additional compensation that goes beyond wages alone, which could be more attractive to an employee than a higher hourly wage. For example, offer them stock in the company as part of an annual benefit bonus. This gives them something unique and valuable, and it also encourages them to work hard because they earn more if the company grows.

3. Create a Stress-Free Environment

There is a balance here because you do not want to spend time making work so fun and enjoyable that people are no longer productive. However, stress and overwork are two of the main reasons that people quit jobs. To reduce stress, allow employees to keep standard hours rather than making them stay late frequently, and have a bit of flexibility with deadlines. Also, spread the workload out among multiple individuals, and do not be afraid to delegate work yourself.

4. Help Your Employees Improve

There are many ways to do this, from job site seminars to paying for employees to take night classes at a local college, so they can receive advanced degrees. Help them better themselves. They will appreciate it, and they will be better employees because of it.

5. Embrace a Team Atmosphere

People want to be part of a team. It is a natural tendency. Show them that they are a valued part of your corporation – that they are needed and appreciated – and there is a much smaller chance that they will move on.

With these tactics, you can work towards higher retention rates within your organization. This can increase productivity and make all of your workers feel like they are part of a stable, secure working environment.

How High Employee Retention Rates Can Positively Impact Your Business

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High employee retention rates can be great for your business, especially in terms of recruitment purposes. Lower employee turnover rates can indicate to prospective candidates that your organization is a stable and satisfying place to work. High morale and huge cost savings are just a few of the benefits of maintaining high levels of employee retention. Here are some other ways that high retention rates can positively impact your company:

Increased Productivity

The longer employees stay with your company, the better they will be at their job. Under good management, their job knowledge and skill level will steadily increase over time. Having more tenured employees could lead to more sales, better service and increased productivity. Additionally, your staff may have a stronger understanding of your business and its customers. Kristen May, contributor at the Houston Chronicle, wrote that “Low turnover makes it easier for the company to focus its time and energy on the business at hand rather than adapting to new staff.[i]”

Cost Savings

Countless studies have attempted to measure the true cost of employee turnover. A recent study by Inc.com reveals that the true cost of employee turnover can be as much as 150 percent of their annual salary for higher level positions[ii]. With this in mind, one thing is certain: employee turnover is costly – the time and resources your company will save on recruiting and training new employees can be invested into keeping your existing employees happy.

Higher Customer Retention

While your customers likely chose your company for its high-quality products and services, they stay loyal because of personal interactions with your employees. Customers enjoy a stable staff that they can build relationships with. It can make them feel more comfortable about stopping by your store or calling customer service. In addition, employees that have been with a company longer will be more knowledgeable about your products and services. This can be a huge benefit to your customers.

High employee retention rates are good for your customers and your employees. While your customers benefit from the knowledge and expertise of more seasoned employees, your employees will benefit from deep bonds with their co-workers. Keeping your retention rates high can leave you with a happy, well-functioning company.

[i] http://smallbusiness.chron.com/causes-effects-high-low-staff-turnover-33939.html

[ii] http://www.inc.com/suzanne-lucas/why-employee-turnover-is-so-costly.html

Finding Balance: Deciding How Much Work to Give Your New Employees

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For new employees, the first days of a new job are critical. If they are welcomed by a huge backlog of work, it may leave them feeling overwhelmed and unsure about the position. Likewise, if a new hire is given too little work, they may quickly become bored with their job and feel useless. Knowing how to gradually ease employees into their new positions can leave them feeling excited and confident.

Here are three tips to help you find a balanced workload for new employees:

  1. Identify their strengths. You interviewed lots of applicants, but you chose just one. There was something about the applicant you chose that made you feel they could make a valuable contribution to your organization. Do not lose sight of those skills or qualities once they join your team. The first few tasks that you give them should focus on their strengths. This will give the new employee the confidence they need to take on more responsibilities.
  2. Set well-defined goals. Creating achievable, well-defined goals is a great way to ease your new employee into their workload. Take some time during their first post-orientation workday to explain what a full workload will look like. Not only does this let them know exactly what they should be working towards, but it also gives them a clear, quantifiable way to measure their progress. If you have the time and staffing to implement a self-paced training program, this can be a great way to train a new hire. For fast-paced environments where you need the employee fully integrated as quickly as possible, give them a set timeframe for learning new tasks.
  3. Communicate frequently. The best way to know how a new employee is managing their workload is to ask them. During their first few weeks or months on the job, try setting a few minutes aside at the end of each week for a one-on-one conference. Establishing this open stream of communication will make them feel comfortable coming to you when they feel overwhelmed.

Always remember that all new employees learn differently. Some new hires will learn their job very quickly and without much help while others may require a bit more structure and guidance. No matter where they fall on that spectrum, these simple steps can help you ease new hires into their positions.

How to Create an Attractive Corporate Culture

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When it comes to recruiting, having the right company culture is the key to drawing top tier talent. Even companies with high wages and great benefits can still experience high employee turnover if their company culture is lacking. Here are some tips on how to create a more attractive corporate culture:

Encourage Innovation

Few people enjoy being micromanaged. Many businesses find that allowing employees to be creative and take ownership of their work leads to increased performance. Communication is the key to inspiring employee ownership within your organization. At the beginning of a project or company initiative, encourage managers to sit down with employees and discuss their vision for the project. Once they have a clear understanding of what the expectations are, allow them the freedom to accomplish it in their own way.

Promote Fun

Creating a fun work environment is a great way to boost employee satisfaction. Company sponsored sporting events, family days and barbeques are great ways invest in morale-building activities. Another idea is to give your company break room an overhaul – consider adding a Ping-Pong table, pool table or designated nap area for your employees. Remember that the more your employees enjoy working for you, the more productive they will likely be.

Embrace Company Values

Employees enjoy being part of something larger than themselves. You can accomplish this by establishing and maintaining the priorities and values of your organization.

Celebrate Achievements

Do not let open enrollment and disciplinary meetings be the only interactions you have with employees. This is a quick way to lose some of your top talent. Take time to celebrate accomplishments of all sizes. For small accomplishments, take some space in the employee newsletter or on the interoffice board to congratulate employees for a job well done. Larger accomplishments may warrant a luncheon or a certificate. Regularly acknowledging and celebrating accomplishments is a good way to keep your employees striving towards their personal bests.

The way that your corporate culture is perceived has a huge impact on the type of talent that your organization will draw. These simple tips will allow you to create a company culture that draws and retains high-performing, happy employees.

Starting Off on the Right Foot: The Importance of Employee Orientation

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For many new employees, the first day at a new job can be as exciting and unnerving as the first day of school. Common concerns may include how well they will fit in, how quickly they will adapt to their new environment and how they will interact with an entirely new group of people. On this day, employers and human resources management are presented with an opportunity to make a strong first impression with an employee orientation.

The primary objective of a new employee orientation is to integrate employees into the company. Themes and topics discussed during an employee orientation may include:

  • A walkthrough of the facility
  • A presentation detailing the company culture and values
  • A brief overview of company policies
  • An introduction or presentation identifying executive staff
  • A brief history of the company and its goals

Although there is a lot of information that needs to be conveyed during the orientation, remember to make it fun and interactive. Try to incorporate a variety of presentation methods like PowerPoint presentations, videos and company-themed games like Jeopardy. Using various presentation methods is especially useful for presenting dry, rigid material as it allows you to retain their attention. The ultimate goal should be to ensure that each new employee feels valued, engaged and excited about this new opportunity.

To add structure to an employee orientation, consider making a checklist or outline. This will allow employees to stay actively involved during the presentation. Ending each section with a review or fun quiz is a great way to make the material more memorable. Do not forget to set aside some time to inform the new hires about company perks and benefits. Let them know when they become eligible for benefits and the best ways to take advantage of them.

Companies with new hire orientation programs frequently report higher levels of job satisfaction, stronger retention rates and a more motivated workforce. Taking the time to welcome new employees into an organization through an employee orientation sets a positive tone and is a great way to start off on the right foot.

Cost-Effective Strategies for Motivating Employees

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Many of the most popular tips for recruiting and retaining high-quality employees revolve around expensive incentives. While big-ticket items or several paid vacation days certainly can be effective, their expense may outweigh the benefits. Keep in mind that the average cost of employee turnover is $2,000, which means that motivating and retraining an existing employee should never exceed that amount. Here are some of the most cost-effective strategies for motivating employees.

Friendly Employee Competition

Rather than offering every employee a cash or high-value incentive for meeting a specific goal, consider hosting a friendly competition among employees within a certain department or office. Making the reward something like a paid vacation day could potentially be expensive, but making the “losers” of the competition take over the duties will help spare the business from any real expenses. The key to executing this strategy successfully is to make winning the contest achievable. That means awarding a prize to one in 10 employees rather than one in 100.

Instill a Sense of Job Security by Teaching New Skills

The most motivated employees are those who believe that they have a future with their company. Instilling job security is not as simple as just saying the words, but it can still be cost-effective. The best technique is to have managers or owners go out of their way to teach employees new skills. Actively investing time in the betterment of an employee signifies appreciation and value, which in turn can motivate employees to work hard for their business.

Make an Effort to Personally Speak With Employees

Human interaction is one of the simplest ways to motivate employees. This approach may not be new, and it may not be time-effective, but it can certainly be cost-effective. Small notes of appreciation, short conversations about a specific project recently completed or a company-wide, email praising effort can go a long way in keeping employees motivated and eager to succeed.

Motivating employees doesn’t have to be an expensive ordeal involving cash rewards or large incentives. Friendly competition, personal recognition and feelings of job security all motivate just as well as costly alternatives.

Keeping Quality Employees During Organizational Changes

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Organizational changes are a necessary part of any company. The needs and objectives of all businesses evolve over time, and with those changes come shifts in the number of employees needed, the types of employees needed and even the locations of said employees. When organizational changes take place, however, it can be difficult to retain the high-quality employees that are a part of your company. Many people assume that important titles and higher salaries are the biggest draw, but that is a common misconception. Money plays a factor, of course, but employees also appreciate an enjoyable work environment, flexibility in their daily schedules and a firm understanding of where they stand in the company.

Outline Their Position Clearly
The number one complaint that employees specify during and after major organizational changes is that they don’t understand where they fit in the new structure. When employees don’t see their value or their position in the structure, it can feel overwhelming. This is often when quality members of a company look elsewhere for more clearly defined roles. In order to keep employees, it is important to clearly outline their new position, as well as how it relates to others within the company.

Specify Clear Objectives and Long-Term Goals
Employees, just like all humans, want something to work towards. As soon as organizational changes are implemented, they should have specific objectives. These might be quotas for sales over the next 90 days, but they should also be long-term over the next two or even five years. This helps them feel like a more permanent part of the business.

Create Opportunities For Flexibility
One of the key ways to appease employees after an organizational change is to give them greater opportunities for schedule flexibility. It has been shown time and time again that employees who are able to work from home one or two days a week complete just as much work, but feel happier about the privilege. Flexible hours are another alternative that might work for your employees.

Keeping high-quality employees can be a struggle at all times, but it is especially challenging after organizational changes. These tips can ensure that you keep your most valued staff.

Business Casual Communication: The Art of Relating to Employees

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Learning to effectively communicate with staff is an essential step towards maintaining a successful business. In fact, a broad range of employee issues including performance, attendance, productivity and morality can all be tied back to communication. These five tips will help your company master the art of relating to employees:

Schedule biweekly check-ins. Having informal one-on-one conversations every other week with staff that report directly to you can be a great way to track their progress and get employee feedback. If an employee is experiencing an issue with a shift lead or coworker, you can identify the problem early and address it before it becomes a major issue. This is also a good time to communicate to the employee what is expected of them.

Have team meetings. Having weekly or daily team meetings is a great way to begin a shift. During this meeting, take some time to discuss the shift goals, operating plan or challenges for the day. This meeting should be brief, no longer than 10 or 15 minutes, and it should focus on communicating important events to employees, keeping them focused and motivating them for the shift ahead.

Hold Quarterly Q&A sessions. Once each quarter, consider holding a company-wide meeting where employees from all levels can openly ask questions. If employees seem reluctant to participate, try allowing them to submit questions anonymously prior to the meeting.

Email Often. While communicating in-person is a much more personable approach to relating to employees, email is another option that should be utilized. When working with a large number of employees, it can be challenging to plan meetings that each employee can attend. Sending electronic memos to staff and department leaders allows you to bypass this issue.

Be accessible. Streamline employee access to the human resources department by providing a single email address that they can send inquiries to. Once this process is established, let employees know that their opinions matter by providing a specific time frame for their response.

Creating a culture that is straightforward and transparent about all aspects of the business, including challenges and financial information, may boost employee moral and potentially reduce turnover.