The 3 must-know essentials for effective and
sustainable employee retention
Besides
costing considerable time and money, the loss of talented employees results in
immense damage to organisational knowledge and learning. How can you hold onto
valuable human capital?
You’ve gone to great lengths to attract and
hire the best, but you have to put the necessary effort in if you want to keep
them on-board for the long haul. As with many things in life, of course, this
is easier said than done. Drawing on SDP
Services‘ many years’ experience in the field of human capital
discovery and management, we’ve distilled 3 essentials that need attention if
you’re aiming at effective and sustainable employee retention.
Create a Culture that Promotes Real Value Creation
Words like “culture” are often vague, but
think about what makes Google a place where people are knocking the door down
to work for free? With pay taken out of the equation, the fundamental element
that’s left is the fact that the tech giant is doing great things and employees
feel as if they’re changing the world for the better. In other words, employees see that their work is
creating real value and not simply serving a (soulless) bottom
line. If you communicate and demonstrate how your services or products bring tangible value to people’s lives,
your employees will be engaged and their efforts rendered meaningful.
Go Out of Your Way to Appreciate and Motivate
Showing that you appreciate the dedication,
hard work and talent of your employees goes a very long way in motivating them
to achieve even more in the future. We all know intuitively that people want to be acknowledged for
good work, so make a public fuss when an employee has gone
above and beyond expectations. Formalised incentive schemes have proven
extremely effective in this regard, but you don’t have to splurge; even
gathering the company around (N.B.
this includes senior managers) and offering an applause and a
“thank-you” can be an incredibly powerful motivator. Your employee will feel
like a million bucks, and others will want to receive the same public
acknowledgement and distinction.
Become an Ally in Your Employees’ Efforts to Reach Their Full Potential
We all strive to actualise our latent
potential and are grateful to those who help us along
the way. Letting your employees know that you have more than a business
interest in their attainment of high levels of personal fulfilment inspires loyalty, trust and
appreciation. Try to promote from within, encourage managers to
build personal relationships with their staff in order to understand their
individual aspirations, let employees give their input with regards to training
or professional development programmes, conduct feedback sessions where
employees air their frustrations without fear of repercussion, outline possible
career trajectories, and reward employees with adequate compensation (and
bonuses or equity if applicable). Your message should be, “you are more than just an employee to
us and we want you to succeed”.
If
you’re able to implement these 3 essentials, your employees will feel that
their work is meaningful, that their contribution is recognised and
appreciated, and that their personal development is a true priority. In our
experience, get these right and, in your employees’ eyes, you’ll transform from
“typical employer” to “trusted long-term partner”.
Regards
Pralhad Jadhav
Senior Manager @ Knowledge
Repository
Khaitan & Co
