Are you a business owner or manager concerned about the Great Resignation, where, since the spring of 2021, employees have been leaving their workplaces in droves? Do you wish it would suddenly transform into the Great Retention, instead?
Now is the time to affirm that your business is on the right track to help drive your employee job satisfaction — which will ultimately retain your highly valued talent. You first need to understand why employees might be seeking new employment.
Why Are Employees Leaving?
Exit interviews can supply you with valuable insight into why some employees are leaving, how they view your company, and also help you ascertain if your employee retention approach needs improving. The most cited reasons for leaving include:
- Boredom
- Lack of recognition
- Limited career advancement
- The desire to make a change
- Unhappiness with management
- A need for better work-life balance
- Dissatisfaction with the company culture
- Feeling overworked and/or unsupported
- A perks and benefits package that isn’t competitive
- More compelling job opportunities at other companies
- Concerns about the company’s direction or financial health
- Inadequate salary (Note: In Robert Half’s Job Optimism Survey, 65% of workers said a salary boost is the main reason they are seeking a new job.)
Employee Retention Approaches for Workplace Fulfillment
If you feel that your business might be at risk of losing top talent, it may be time for you to shore up your employee retention techniques. The team at Intraway has put together some deliberate actions that you can utilize to increase your ability to retain valued employees and help to boost job satisfaction.
1. Onboarding and Orientation
Each new employee should be set up for success from the beginning. During your onboarding process, new employees should learn about the job, the company culture, and how they can contribute to and thrive within the company.
2. Mentorship programs
A great addition to consider adding to your onboarding process is, a mentor. Mentoring is an awesome addition to partnering with new employees, particularly in a remote work atmosphere. Mentors can:
- Offer guidance
- Be a sounding board
- Welcome new hires into the company
New hires get to learn the ropes from experienced workers, and, in exchange, they provide a fresh new viewpoint to their mentors. Your existing staff can also benefit from mentor-mentee relationships.
3. Employee Compensation
Paying your employees a competitive wage is essential, so you should evaluate and adjust employee salaries regularly. If your business is unable to increase pay immediately, consider providing bonuses and other perks. Don’t forget about certain benefits like those related to health care, which can also help increase employees’ job satisfaction.
4. Perks
Professionals and potential new hires value perks. The most valued perks include:
- Flexible schedules
- Remote work options
- Boosting employee satisfaction
- An attractive recognition program.
- Make your workplace stand out
5. Wellness Programs
Keeping employees physically, mentally, and financially fit is simply good business practice. Consider stress management programs.
6. Communication
The shift to remote work has emphasized the significance of good communication within the workplace. Your direct workers, remote or on-site, should be comfortable reaching out to you with questions, ideas, and concerns. As a leader, make sure you’re doing your due diligence to promote constructive, timely, and positive communication throughout your entire team and proactively connect with them regularly.
7. Training and Development
Upskilling your employees is pivotal as today’s technology progressively changes how people work. When employees upskill, they acquire new competencies and abilities as the requirements of the business evolves. This also helps employees learn new skills by identifying areas for professional growth through continuous performance feedback. Invest in your employees by providing:
- Virtual training programs.
- Succession planning
- Tuition reimbursement
8. Rewards and Recognition
In today’s “anywhere workforce,” employers who show gratitude make a greater impact on employee satisfaction. Some businesses incentivize workers for innovation and good ideas by establishing a formal rewards system. Even with a limited budget, you can still institute compelling recognition programs.
9. Work-Life Balance
A healthy work-life balance is necessary for job satisfaction. Workers need to understand that their bosses understand that they have lives outside of their workplace — and know that maintaining balance when working remotely can be a tad bit more challenging.
- Take their accrued vacation time
- Encourage workers to set boundaries
- Compensation for longer hours necessary to reach deadlines
10. Flexible Work Options
A recent survey, by Robert Half, found that 50% of professionals who work remotely would seek other employment if required to return to their workplace full time. Consider offering the following options to help relieve employee stress and bolster retention:
- Flextime
- Partial telecommuting
- Permanently remote work schedule
Remember to re-evaluate these top three approaches regularly:
- Best practices for creating a pleasing workplace culture
- Create and foster strong manager-employee relationships
- Stay current on market standards for benefits and salary updates
Conclusion
Although some team members may eventually leave your company, implementing these ideas will likely make their decision a little harder. At Intraway, solving digital and telecommunications services challenges is our obsession.
With standard-based solutions, we recognize the forward movement in the telecommunications industry and provide open architecture, standards-based solutions, and active collaborations with the industry’s top leaders.
Great achievements are only accomplished by great teams! Join the Intraway team and keep growing!
