Whether you’re a Human Resources professional or a small-business owner, you work hard selecting the right team for your company. That’s why it’s so painful to see a good employee go! Natural attrition will happen from things like relocation, staying home to parent, or returning to school full-time. But the turnover that hurts the most is employees who leave for work-related reasons: noncompetitive compensation, management issues, lack of advancement opportunities. Not only is this turnover expensive, but it also decreases morale and productivity, and what’s worse—turnover encourages turnover when people start believing the grass is greener.

So how can you nip employee turnover in the bud?

1. Hire smartly. Of course you choose your team carefully, but are you considering that cultural fit is just as important, if not more so, as job competence? (Perhaps not as much as you should be, considering two-thirds of you have lost an employee over a cultural mismatch!) Ideally you would find a candidate with high cultural fit and high competence, but if you can’t, high cultural fit and moderate competence is the way to go. You can always update an employee’s skills; you can’t update an employee’s personality. For help on hiring smartly, learn how to find a cultural fit in a new hire.
2. Offer a competitive salary and benefits package. “You get what you pay for,” and getting (and keeping) an excellent team is no exception. Are your offerings falling behind the competition? Remember that salaries are based on experience, supply and demand, and geography, so it’s important to be in tune with these variables in the market around you. This also goes for benefits. Of course, salary and benefits aren’t the only way to compensate an employee. . . .
3. Include non-monetary perks. It’s amazing what a few low-cost or no-cost options can do for culture and morale. Something as simple as casual Fridays can make employees feel happier at work. Consider the power that flex schedules, office shindigs, and even “bring your dog to work” days can have on employee satisfaction and retention.
4. Encourage professional development. Nobody wants to stagnate at work, especially when there’s something new to learn. On one end of the spectrum is a tuition reimbursement program, which supports employees who pursue college degrees and certifications. On the other end is in-house training on everything from software to soft skills. The key to all professional development is offering employees an opportunity to use their new skills. So if an employee gets a degree in Organizational Leadership, see what projects might need a leader.
5. Listen to what employees want. Have you ever asked employees what they want from your company? A great way to do this is through stay interviews. In a stay interview, managers learn what employees love about the company and why they choose to continue working there, and how employees could be kept happy or what might cause them to move on. When used regularly, the stay interview is a powerful, proactive retention tool. We can help you get started with 15 stay interview questions to better employee retention.

A business’s human resources are its most unique and important asset, and often its largest investment. But what if this critical investment isn’t yielding the healthiest return? A solid HR foundation will help your business make smart choices to find and keep top employees. The sturdiest HR foundation is based on best practices, fits your business’s size and culture, and is flexible enough to grow with you. With our recruitment and retention guidance, YES! Your Human Resources Solution will optimize your search for today’s hottest talent, and evaluate ways to keep top performers on board. Let YES! help steer your Human Resources strategies, so you can focus on driving business results!