Many businesses fail to realise the amount of time it takes to get a new employee fully trained. It can take anywhere between 1 and 6 months to train a new member of staff. It can also take the same amount of time to find out if they are suitable for the job in the first place!
Businesses also have a high turnover of staff due to not having proper policies in place to encourage the best staff to stay on in the business.
Some of the best ways to increase staff retention are also the simplest to implement. A great idea is to increase their holiday entitlements and other benefits over time served. Just a simple thing like giving an extra day off (to a maximum of 5) for each year in service can make a great difference. Giving employees greater flexibility and more control over the hour they choose to work, based on their length of service is also beneficial.
Making annual bonuses routine and incorporating them in the wage structure also helps to stop staff leaving half way through the year.
Training all your best staff so that they can take on more responsible work and improve their people management skills so that they understand how to treat and motivate the staff below them is essential.
Training is so imperative especially with technology changing at breakneck speeds. This is a win win situation. You end up getting more productivity and your employees feel appreciated.
Talking to your staff maybe quarterly (or every 6 months) and discussing their job will quickly identify what is troubling them. The biggest problem I had in my previous business was that staff didn't get on with each other! By just moving them around either in a different office or changing their roll I was able to retain my most valuable members.
Any time you have to critisise the action of an employee, use the kiss, kick kiss formula. Start of by praising what you do like of them followed by the criticism (and how they could change for the better) and end with praise again.
Another common gripe in the work is being forced to work with outdated equipment, machinery and computers that keep breaking down or are far too slow. Your employee probably costs you a small fortune and yet some employers are not willing to spend a few hundred pounds in upgrading old technology that will actually help in achieving substantially more productivity.
What about their desks, chairs, filing cabinets, staplers and other small pieces of equipment that cost pennies to keep maintained and yet are routinely in poor working order. Routine maintenance of all the equipment is essential.
If your staffs do perform well in any task be sure to let them know. It amazes me how bosses will leap at the first chance to critisise but will not utilise the opportunity to praise. Praise them verbally and in writing, and remember to give out rewards now and again.
What do you do if 1 of your best member of staff leaves? There is a huge likelihood that they might not enjoy their new job. Make sure that they know that not only did you value them whilst they were working for you but also that the door is still open for them if they decide to come back and remember to keep in touch. Former employees, having found out that the grass is not greener on the other side are likely to be the most valuable members second time around and are much easier to integrate back in the workplace.
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