Turnover is at an all-time high and many companies are now left wondering what to do.
What has been coined The Great Resignation started in 2021 and has shown no signs of slowing any time soon.
Spurred by the pandemic, turnover is at an all-time high, and many companies are left wondering what to do.
Employees have demonstrated that employers must be willing to listen and adapt to their needs – or risk losing them to a company that does.
How companies retained employees in the past may no longer work in today’s climate. If you’re struggling to retain employees in today’s day and age, we have 5 tips to help reduce employee turnover.
What Causes Employee Turnover?
Since the pandemic, more and more workers are prioritizing work-life balance and flexibility. These asks are growing in popularity amongst new and seasoned workers.
Other reasons for employee turnover include:
- Higher pay and better benefits
- Career advancement
- Ineffective management and/or leadership
- Better company culture fit
Start by Analyzing Existing Turnover
Workers’ priorities have shifted tremendously in the past couple of years, and employee retention depends on understanding why people are leaving in the first place.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution to employee turnover.
Implementing an effective plan starts by conducting an analysis of existing turnover. This goes beyond simply conducting exit interviews.
Analyzing turnover also means taking the pulse of current employees and how they’re feeling in the workplace.
Are they stressed? Overworked? Disengaged? Lonely? Only when you understand how employees are truly feeling can you offer innovative solutions that address their pain points.
How to Reduce Employee Turnover in 2021
Employee turnover is costly and hurts company morale. It can even cause a company to lose its competitive edge. Here are 5 tips that can help you retain talent at your company.
1. Hire the Right People
Reducing turnover starts before an employee even steps foot into the office.
Did you know that over 50% of employees leave within 90 days because the job description doesn’t accurately reflect the actual responsibilities of the job?
What this means for hiring managers is to ensure that job postings define the role and responsibilities clearly. Updating job postings regularly and being honest about the company culture is crucial.
Hiring managers can also help determine if a candidate is the right fit for the company by setting up peer interviews and allowing peers to take part in the hiring process.
Another make-or-break aspect of hiring new employees is the onboarding process. Organizations with a strong onboarding process increase new hire retention by 82%. So consider redesigning your onboarding process to make the right impression on new hires.
2. Offer Competitive Pay
While pay isn’t the only reason an employee may leave, it can certainly make it attractive for an employee to do so.
In order to stay ahead of the curve, you must offer competitive pay that is at or above the industry rate.
This involves monitoring industry trends and adjusting salaries when necessary.
In this competitive job market, offering annual reviews or pay raises may no longer cut it. Consider giving managers the flexibility to offer pay increases based on performance or when an employee gains new responsibilities or skills.
Being flexible and agile with compensation is key to retaining talent.
Lastly, correcting for pay imbalances due to racial and gender pay inequities can also help retain talent at the company.
3. Reward Employee Engagement
In large corporations, many people can feel as though their efforts are not being recognized or appreciated. Rewarding highly engaged employees is something that comes at a low cost, but can have a huge payoff.
Getting managers on board with recognition is the best way to spread appreciation. Select managers that pay attention to their employees, know what their employees are doing, and actively show appreciation.
Similarly, you can implement a system in which peers can recognize others for doing a great job.
4. Offer Clear Career Paths
Another big reason why employees leave is lack of career growth.
If an employee has been stagnant in their role for many years and they have n’t been given any opportunities to advance their career, they may seek that advancement elsewhere.
That’s why having clear career paths for new and existing employees is so important. You can encourage career development by:
- Offering a stipend for learning and development opportunities
- Implementing quarterly career path check-ins
- Prioritizing internal hiring so valued employees can move up in their careers
- Encouraging cross-department hiring to help retain top talent at the company
Allowing employees to transfer or fill a role internally is a strategy that is often overlooked. Hiring internally is less costly for the company, and employees who are allowed to gain new skills and progress in their careers are more engaged and less likely to leave.
5. Offer Flexible Schedules
Flexibility has been top of mind for many employees since the pandemic. More and more companies are recognizing that giving workers more work-life balance can improve overall happiness, productivity, and retention.
There are many ways to offer your employees flexibility so they can feel more in control of their schedules and work-life balance, such as:
- Unlimited PTO
- On-site daycare for non-remote workers
- A compressed workweek
- Part-time schedules / Evening shifts
- The ability to telecommute X amount of days a week
Consider what’s important to your employees so you can come up with innovative solutions.
For example, if many employees need to leave by 3 pm to pick up their kids from school, you could offer a shift that starts earlier and ends earlier. Or you can offer the ability to telecommute at the end of each day.
Next Steps
If you want to learn more about how to reduce employee turnover and increase retention, we are here to help. Give us a call today.
