With the current rise in costs, recruiting new staff can be an expensive process, which means companies cannot afford to go through a spate of resignations. Therefore, to build a business that is capable of constant growth and improvement, you need to nurture the employees that help run your company, as they all play a vital part in the company’s development. So, if you’re worried about losing your top talent, here are a few things to consider when looking to increase your employee retention.
1. Communication is key
Communication is a great place to start when looking at retention strategies. Employees, whether they work on-site or remotely, should feel they can come to you with questions, concerns, ideas, or even personal matters. As an employer, it is your responsibility to make sure you’re doing your part to help encourage constructive and positive communication across the entire team. As well, it is important that you make the effort to speak to each team member on a regular basis, in order to get a sense of their workload and job satisfaction. Therefore, by focusing more on communication, you’ll ensure that every member of staff feels valued and supported.
2. Offer benefits
A business that offers its employees benefits is far more likely to retain their staff, as company perks are a great way to boost morale. That doesn’t mean you need a big budget to spent on staff rewards or Christmas bonuses, as perks can come in all shapes and sizes. Instead, focus on the small stuff, for it’s the little things that go a long way. For example, you could provide free lunches for staff, offer flexible working hours, discounted gym memberships, or even trial shorter working weeks. Either way, you don’t need to break the bank to retain staff, just find ways to boost satisfaction in the workplace.
3. Pay as well as you can
Another area to be assessed when it comes to employee retention, is salary, for it is not uncommon for some businesses to underpay their staff. It is essential for companies to pay their employees a competitive salary, meaning you will need to evaluate and adjust salaries regularly. Even if your business can’t increase pay right now, you can always consider other forms of compensation, such as bonuses. Staff want to be rewarded for their time, efforts, and experience, so try to be as fair as possible when it comes to paying their wages.
4. Feedback
Don’t wait for annual review meetings to see how things are going with individual staff members. Employee satisfaction should be a priority, which means having regular review meetings to discuss short and long-term goals, well-being, workload etc. Try to create an open culture that values employee feedback, as it is important to celebrate wins, embrace failures, and encourage growth and progression.
5. Provide training opportunities
When providing feedback on performance, you can also help employees identify areas for professional growth. Up skilling your employees is an essential requirement, especially when technology continues to change how we work. Therefore, it is important to learn new skills in order to progress within a role. So rather than hire someone else, make it a priority to invest in your workers’ professional development, by providing more training opportunities. That way, staff will feel valued because the business has chosen to actively invest in them rather than hire someone.
6. Mental wellbeing
Looking after your employee’s mental wellbeing is a must. Although all workplaces are required to have health and safety regulations in place, staff wellbeing does not necessarily fall into the same category. Therefore, it is important to have some form of counselling or stress management programme in place to help staff who may be struggling with their mental health and wellbeing. Even if the budget doesn’t stretch as far as private counselling sessions, simply opening up a dialogue and creating a safe space where people are comfortable enough to speak out, can make all the difference. Not only will this allow staff to feel supported, but it will also increase performance levels due to a more positive mental attitude.