Nine Tips to Help You Retain Your Best Employees

Employee retention is crucial for the long-term success of your organization. Retaining the best employees can have positive affects on customer satisfaction, sales, succession planning, and so much more. A recent article from thebalance.com highlighted nine tips on retaining your very best employees:

1. Let employees know clearly what is expected of them every day at work. Provide a specific framework for them to follow. Keep these expectations consistent. Changing expectations can lead to undue stress and insecurity.
2. Provide quality supervision to your employees. Many times when employees leave an organization, they are truly leaving managers and supervisors—not necessarily the company. When a supervisor makes an employee feel undervalued, the employee is more likely to leave. Employees often have several complaints about their supervisors: lack of clarity about expectations, lack of clarity about earning potential, lack of feedback about performance, failure to hold scheduled meetings, and failure to provide a framework to help the employee succeed.
3. Allow employees to be able to provide feedback. Employees should feel comfortable enough to speak. They can provide ideas for continued improvement. When people are not allowed to voice their opinions, they often keep quiet until they eventually leave.
4. Allow employees to utilize their talents and skills in the workplace. Take the time to tap into employees’ unique skills, talent, and experience. Allow employees to contribute beyond their specific job descriptions.
5. Treat employees fairly. News of how employees are treated spreads quickly. It can affect morale of all employees.
6. Provide the tools, time, and training for employees to succeed. Employees must have all the resources to do their jobs well. If they do not, they will move on to another employer who will provide these things to them.
7. Provide professional development for your employees. Employees prosper when given the opportunity to learn and grow. Provide new opportunities, challenges, and seminars for employees to grow within your organization.
8. Take time to meet employees. Some senior managers do not even know some employees exist. Take the time to meet employees and learn about their talents, abilities, and skills. Help employees feel welcomed and acknowledged.
9. Reward, recognize, and appreciate employees. Frequently thank your employees for a job well done. Raises and bonuses tied to accomplishments and achievement also help to retain employees.