For most employers, recruiting new hires is easy. The problem comes when the same employees want to quit once they’ve worked for you only a few months or even weeks. If you struggle with employee retention, you aren’t alone. It’s a tough market for employers as well as employees, but there are things you can do to improve retention. Today, we’ll discuss why employees quit and how you can keep them from doing it.
Why Employees Quit
For every hundred employees, there are a hundred reasons to quit. According to the experts, though, the top reasons most people quit include:
- Lack of trust. Your employees will quit if they don’t feel you treat them as adults. Stringent penalties for being five minutes late, managers constantly looking over their shoulders, or surprise meetings where they’re quizzed on performance all make employees anxious and frustrated. Most people work hard to get their jobs, and they deserve to be trusted to do what you hired them for.
- Lack of vision. Walt Disney got the idea for Disneyland while watching his kids ride a carousel – he wanted to create a place where children and adults could have fun together. Disney had a gift for sharing his vision and getting others to believe in it. If your employees don’t know why they’re with you, they’ll leave.
- Lack of people skills. Employees want to know you’re listening. If you ask for suggestions in a meeting, take them to heart. Don’t interrupt when a worker talks to you. Remember names and faces, and ask friendly questions.
How to Retain Employees
Now that you know why people leave jobs, you might wonder how to keep them. Most business owners agree on a few key strategies, including:
- Know your numbers. How high is your turnover rate? What time of year do most employees leave? What departments have the highest and lowest turnover? These numbers will show you where you need to improve.
- Look for stressors. The workplace itself is stressful, but some jobs are more demanding than others. For example, doctors, police officers, teachers, and pastors are all particularly vulnerable to burnout. Find your company’s specific stressors. Are they confined to certain departments? Pinpoint the stress and invite employees to help you address it.
- Evaluate the hiring process. Who are you hiring and why? Many potential employees get discouraged because interviews focus on personality and “soft skills,” not the skills they need to do the job. Strike a balance between professional and personal.
