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5 top talent retention strategies
Talent retention can be challenging, but strategies like employee development and flexible work arrangements can keep employees from seeking other opportunities. Learn more.
A company's employees are one of its greatest strengths, and employees might go elsewhere if they are dissatisfied with their work experience.
Data such as turnover rates and feedback from exit interviews can give insight into the reasons for employee departures and prompt measures like giving employees flexibility with their work schedules and opportunities for development to help prevent worker departures before they happen.
Improving employee retention helps organizations in other ways as well, said Joe Mull, a leadership consultant based in Pittsburgh and author of Employalty. Managers will likely find it easier to lead because teams remain consistent, and companies avoid the costs of recruiting, onboarding, and training.
Learn more about the top strategies that HR leaders should pursue to improve talent retention.
1. Analyze employee turnover data
Employee turnover data can help drive talent retention strategies because it can point to the reasons for employee departures as well as the actions HR leaders must take to prevent more resignations.
Some common reasons for employee departures are low wages, heavy workloads and toxic work environments, Mull said.
Certain KPIs can give particularly valuable insight into the reasons for employee departures.
According to Grace Ewles, HR research and advisory services director at McLean & Company, an HR consulting firm located in London, Ontario, Canada, HR leaders should examine the following data:
- The company's turnover rate.
- The company's turnover rate in comparison to a "healthy" employee turnover rate.
- Employee departure patterns -- for example, if specific departments or groups are experiencing higher turnover.
2. Conduct stay interviews
Grace Ewles
Stay interviews can help prevent employees who might be flight risks from leaving the company.
Many companies conduct formal stay interviews on an annual or biannual basis, Ewles said.
"[The interviews] can be really helpful in identifying patterns and engagement," she said.
However, more informal conversations about employee engagement and workers' experiences can also happen naturally during coaching sessions and learning and development discussions, Ewles said.
3. Highlight employee development opportunities
Employees consistently share that they value development opportunities, and providing them with ways to advance their skills and careers can prevent workers from leaving.
Danny Nelms
"So many of the people that leave are saying, 'I didn't see an opportunity in my company, but I see it somewhere else,'" said Danny Nelms, CEO of Work Institute, a workforce research and advisory firm located in Franklin, Tenn.
These opportunities often already exist at employees' current companies, but leaders didn't share them with workers, Nelms said.
4. Rethink work arrangements
Employees will likely feel more valued if company leaders give them more flexibility with their work conditions.
"So much of the friction that we're seeing in the workplace right now around hybrid work schedules, working from home, and return-to-office mandates is that they are mandated," Mull said.
Company leaders could offer more scheduling flexibility. For example, leaders could allow employees to work 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. if desired instead of 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
In addition, employees' lack of free time outside of work often leads to high turnover, Mull said.
Employers must ensure they are helping employees pursue a good work-life balance.
5. Treat employees with respect
Joe Mull
Company leaders must view their employees as people and consider how they can make employees' work more convenient or comfortable.
Mull believes policies such as requiring grocery workers to stand while checking out items are disrespectful.
"These are dehumanizing policies, and they're often reserved for the lowest-wage earners among us," he said.
For example, the idea of an accountant only being able to use the bathroom at certain times seems outlandish, yet some companies require their workers to ask permission to use the bathroom, Mull said.
Workers will likely be happier if leaders demonstrate that they trust their workforce and care about their employee experience.
Carolyn Heinze is a Paris-based freelance writer. She covers several technology and business areas, including HR software and sustainability.
