How do we keep our best talent onboard and attract the right workforce for the future? In a world where the war for talent is real and where the best organizations have realized that building an attractive workplace is not only good for people, but also business, the right retention strategy is paramount. Keep reading to find out more about our ultimate employee retention plan, with 8 actionable steps:
1. Create A Magnetic Working Culture
An employee retention plan template is not complete without a thorough vet of company culture. Culture includes a company’s standards, expectations, experience, and values that hold a team together. Areas that your organization should work on to create a magnetic culture include:
- Values: Company values ensure each employee is working towards the same goal and shares a bigger purpose. Take time to craft an employee handbook that outlines company values.
- Engagement: Improving engagement levels helps employees derive satisfaction and a sense of fulfillment from their jobs.
- Leverage Employee Strengths: Employees who play to their strengths every day are 15% less likely to quit, and are 8% more productive. Focus on a strengths-based leadership model, which has been proven to identify and amplify employee strengths whilst also dealing with weaknesses constructively.
2. Nurture Talent Development
Talent development helps employees to find their energy and focus on bringing their best selves to the workplace. From a retention lens, nurturing talent development ensures that employees will be more likely to be engaged in the workplace leading to more focus, innovation, and longer life-cycles within the organization.
3. Use Data to Understand Your Employee Needs
Employers who take a data-driven approach to understand their employees’ needs are more likely to improve retention. The right data helps determine who has the highest turnover risk, why people are leaving, and what actions can be put in place to prevent this. To help discover demographic trends, conduct surveys that segment employees by categories such as gender, ethnicity, race, job function, etc. to better understand how work experiences and retention rates differ across employee populations.
4. Develop Tailored Retention Programs
Develop a highly customized retention program, and be sure to include elements such as:
- Measuring your turnover rate against industry benchmarks.
- Offering flexible work schedules, setting up a work from home policy, and encouraging a culture in which employees take time off.
- Fostering recognition: Simple praise will do wonders for your employees’ motivation. Use Slack (or other communication tools) to announce great results and give public credit to team members’ achievements.
5. Invest in Personal Development and Growth
Organizations that foster personal development and growth reap the benefits of stronger retention rates. Development signals that your organization values its employees and is actively interested in their success. Consider offering courses or professional business coaching for longer-lasting growth and development.
6. Prioritize Work-Life Balance and Encourage Employees to Explore Hobbies
When following an employee retention plan template, don’t make it all about work! Lead by example and actively encourage work-life balance in the workplace. Encourage activities such as a ‘’blackout period each day’’, in which employees do not need to show up for anyone, and can concentrate on taking time for themselves. Also follow up to make sure employees are taking vacation time, personal days, etc. - and make a conscious effort to do this yourself and lead by example. Another piece of the retention puzzle is interestingly found in the exploration of hobbies outside of the workplace. Encourage employees to nurture their hobbies. The result? A workforce that is more energized, focused, and has a better zest for life.
7. Develop Employee Professional Skills
Skills like leadership, communication, collaboration, networking, and time management are crucial for career success. Nurturing these skills can lead to higher retention rates as employees will feel appreciated and invested in. Consider offering professional business coaching for longer-lasting growth and development.
8. Be Flexible: Offer Hybrid Or Remote Work Opportunities Where Possible
By offering hybrid or remote work opportunities, your organization will have the upper hand when it comes to retaining employees. Companies that trust their teams to deliver, without necessarily needing a physical presence- will enjoy higher retention rates than those with an inflexible approach.
Conclusion
Effective retention is not a one-and-done effort. It requires time, a focused strategy, a deep understanding of employee needs and wants, and effective implementation from start to finish. We hope you have enjoyed reading about our top 8 retention steps and hope you will be inspired to implement them into your organization’s retention framework!
