It may feel like hiring a new employee is an easy task, but training them to become a responsible and dedicated member of the organization is a huge effort. This is why companies need to strive to retain their employees right from the beginning.
The pandemic has made employers realise how crucial it is to have a dedicated workforce. Even before this unprecedented crisis, good employees leaving the organization was a major cause of distress for companies as it disrupts their workflow and requires a significant investment in getting new employees onboard.
But what makes employees quit? There are various reasons for this all of which need to be understood to ensure the employee does not feel like they want to leave the company. In this article, we are sharing top employee retention strategies tried and tested by industry professionals.
- Start from the beginning:
Do not wait until the exit interview to identify what went wrong. Hire candidates that will add value to your organization and reflect dedication to achieve your business goals. Not hiring responsibly can lead to employees feeling a misfit in the company culture and leaving their jobs in the first few months of joining.
Retention is not a one time effort, it has to be continued to ensure successful results. Once you have hired them, start nurturing your employees and helping them understand your company culture.
- Pay employees on time:
One of the major reasons for employee dissatisfaction is not receiving correct salaries on time. Employers need to ensure employees always get paid on time for their hard work to keep them motivated and engaged.
There could be mistakes in their compensation due to wrong tracking of billable hours or due to lack of proper time records. To prevent this, employers can make use of a billable hours tracker which gives accurate details about how long an employee worked on a particular task. This removes any confusion and ensures employee salary details are always accurate.
- Provide them opportunities to advance in their career paths:
One of the top retention strategies that are proven to have a major impact is providing employees with learning & development opportunities. When companies invest in helping their employees learn a new skill set, employees feel valued and are more likely to stay with a company longer. For instance, a company can offer its employees to take an online accounting course to get senior roles in the business. Such training is crucial because they must be certified in order to provide services legally.
This strategy does not only help the employees but also the company. It allows employees to do their job better and helps them become more capable of handling new opportunities. This in turn enhances their work productivity and leads to better business results.
- Provide automated solutions:
When employers treat employees like machines and expect them to manually perform exhausting work for hours at a stretch, it can get overwhelming. If can be substituted with the help of automated systems, do not burden your employees by telling them to do it manually.
Make use of automation to remove repetitive manual tasks that can be taken care of by softwares and tech tools. For instance, payroll processes can be automated with the help of payroll software which streamlines the entire process and does heavy calculations quickly.
- Train your managers to be team players:
Having horrible bosses is probably one of the most common reasons for employees leaving their jobs. Not having a supportive and understanding leader can make employees unhappy.
Companies must train their managers to ensure they understand the value of being a leader, rather than a dominating head. Managers who are team players experience loyalty from their team and are able to get the best results from them.
Conclusion:
Companies need to take conscious efforts to make their employees feel a part of the company. In addition, make sure to acknowledge their contributions and always appreciate their efforts.