employee retention and goodwill

[arindra]

We are a growing business ...have gone through some rough patches earlier , but things are getting on the sunnier side . With that in mind , what do you suggest for better employee retention , how do you make them love your company and their job ?
Staff , in general always think of whether they are doing the best job - be it they are worth better money or not . How does one make them love what they are doing ?

 

[LizK]

One of the most important things is to give people recognition, and do it in public. It must be sincere and can be as simple as a 'thank you' for a job well done. How about starting an 'employee forum' and allow them to get involved in the future of the business, making sure of course that you do take on some of their ideas and give them credit for it. Also, a staff newsletter works well, for the people, by the people.

Hope this helps,
Have a great Sunday!

 

[borobabe]

Simple things like employee of the month? Something for them to work towards, I used to love getting recognition for keeping to standards when I was an employee.

 

[Delboy]

when i was working for a large mutli national toy firm, i found the worst way of keeping staff moral up was employee of the month, as one person got it and of course everyone else dissagrees about it (this was in a store of over 30 people). For me the best thing was just having a well done from a manager or on occasion a Sales Incentive payment, when either a target was met or a record broken it doesnt have to be much £10 was all i recived after i sold 7 PC's in a single day! but it is enough to make you feel noticed! and i stayed for 5 years.

Ohhh another point, if a member of staff has an idea dont just shurk it off listen to them and try to implent it makes staff feel as if they have a responsibility in the store and they will defend it!

 

[arindra]

thanks Liz ... an employee newsletter seems little early but i can understand what you mean by recognition in public .
Sales incentives would work for marketing people , what about the ones in development / R&D ?

thanks Delboy , borobabe as well . We will have to be more attentive to ideas - i know . but that might be opening the door too much - how and when to control it ?

 

[Simon Hughes]

I always ask my candidates why they are seeking alternate employment. Some of the most common reasons are: bonus/commissions schemes changing, changes to job duties (without consultation), excessive commute, being overlooked for promotion, lack of information/resources which are necessary to do a proper job.

So, be consistent in how you reward your staff, always discuss changes to an employees remit, have full disclosure when appointing senior staff, be cautious when offering a job to people who have a long or difficult commute and provide the tools necessary to do the job.

And one last tip - have an induction programme for new employees. Please contact me if you would like to have a copy of one that I issue to my clients, you can adjust to your own needs.

 

[arindra]

thanks Simon ... good tips . Even though the matter of discussion is not imminent , but now we are moving nicely .. i plan to curb it as much in the beginning and ensure there are happier faces - which would probably enhance work quality .
can you elaborate on the point : have full disclosure when appointing senior staff ?

 

[Simon Hughes]

If you need to appoint someone to manage existing staff and bring someone in from outside (because you do not consider internal promotion an option), make sure that you fully discuss it with those that have been overlooked. They will not like it but if they understand it they may not elect to vote with their feet.

It is quite a common reason for people looking to move jobs.

 

[heriskmanagement]

Involve people in the business and try to make the problems/challenges of the business a team affair. A good degree of honesty about what you are trying to achieve will help set goals in their mind and the team ethic will follow.

 

[DAbusinessconsultant]

From a personal point of view if I dont love something, chances are I never will regardless of all the incentives thrown at me.

However, there are a few ways that would help me love where I work which will make me try my hardest.

Recognition is of course the easiest way to make me love where I work but having something like employee of the month can leave sour tastes in some peoples mouths and cause problems should the 'wrong' person get it. Having something like 'If we complete this job contract I will take you all paintballing' or for a meal or something along those lines.

Depending on your business have a target and if people reach it then they get a bottle of champange or something, nothing to flash but enough for people to say 'I hit this target and got ....' so that it sounds as if you value them.

Also get a box for ideas/ imporvements / feedback, something that gets employees ideas into the business circle and help employees have a say. Have bi monthly meetings to update the team and get everyone together.

 

[heriskmanagement]

I agree with the monthly meetings to update the team on all that is going on. I would tend to ask each person individually at the end if they have anything to contribute or bring up specifically. Obviously the boisterous members of the team will voice opinions thoughout, but this gives a chance to the quieter members to contribute too.

 

[Delboy]

oh another thing linking to what DAbuisinessconsultant said is if you promise to do something please do it,

i was once promised a trip to the toy fair as part of the buying team... but it got put off and changed and then they said oh we decided not to take you... all it did was make me sad... seeing as this was supposed to be a reward!

 

[arindra]

hi guys ,
thats some good points you put out . coming to think of it ... i can remember an instance where we promised one reward which was not delivered to the individual for reasons otherwise . i can understand how that probably fared .
Also about bringing in senior management from outside ... this is a true topic which we have been contemplating , as it is not always possible to promote from inside .
Not all senior developers or designers can grow up to be project managers - managerial tasks require specific qualities , which does not come only through experience of working with projects - which is quite obvious.

 

[Cathy]

I agree with many of the above - as a boss/manager it's all too easy to forget to praise people when they do something well and all too easy to moan/criticise when they do something wrong.

To stop myself from falling into that trap I wil often set myself a task of praising every member of staff during the course of a week. It needs to be specific and personal to them though. For example, we have a member of staff who is almost obsessively tidy and recently I said to her 'I do appreciate that at least once a week, when you're in, the place does get a really good tidy up'....that sort of thing.

I think that something else that is really important is cutting your employees some slack when you can. When I've had managers in the past I've always worked far harder for the ones who say 'oh why don't you go 15 minutes early today if you're done' than for the ones who say (and this is actually true!) 'well your paid hours don't include the time it takes you to drive from location A to location B (I had a job where I worked in one clinic from 9-10:30am and another from 10:45-12:30pm).

In other words if someone was 'fair' with me then I'm usually more than fair back.

 

[harvey25]

In would say that you need to think carefully about employee of the month. You may find that if there is an employee that has never received the award you may award it for something silly just so they do not feel left out. How about record breakers. When an individual or team record is broken you get something. Hand written, thank you cards are great, someone has taken the time to buy a card and write it to show their appreciation. Take you staff out for a drink once a month? Or a simple thank you for your hardwork email can work wonders.

 

[arindra]

we have had pizza saturdays , but drink is out ( because of culture differences ) .
employee awards are a dicey thing , as you guys pointed out in for and against .

 

[Davidi]

I like the idea of the bonus if the employee has worked a full week / month without any absence. I think also keep giving them new challenges if possible.

 

[RSQU]

Nothing motivates like money. But with a twist, make it look like you are rewarding them more but your actually getting more out of them.

Or pick the most popular one and fire them, they'll soon learn to tow the line and be loyal.

Excellent!!

 

[arindra]

RSQU ... i agree fear is a motivator , but I am currently asking only about "retention and goodwill" , not just increasing efficiency , which would probably be a by product .

 

[Deleted member 29196]

Incentives can be good but it's sometimes difficult to get it right without people feeling they are being bought. If someone nets you £500 of profit a £5 gift voucher could be seen as a bit of an insult.

If your company is growing it's important to make your staff feel as though they are on the journey to success with the company. If the company does good, so do they. You have to follow this through though and if the company does well, people actually need to get something in return. Hollow promises are bad for morale.

Respect from staff gained by the honesty and integrity of management is also important. Staff appreciate knowing the company is there to look after them.

Recognition - "Babies cry for it, soldiers die for it.". Make sure you recognise good perfomance and attitude to work. Again I find a sincere thank you and a handshake is far more valuable than a fiver poked into someone's top pocket ;-)

 

[officeangel]

... a few years ago and it was somewhat of a man-management minefield, but I found that the one that stood me in good stead was being consistent. If I said I would do something for the team, I did it, and if I couldn't I explained why, what had changed.

I had little spare funds for awards or bonuses, but I made the money I had go towards making the working environment as good as it could be on a daily basis. Biscuits in the tea room, cakes for birthdays, a day off on your birthday, a couple of team events (one at Christmas) ... and everyone was treated the same, regardless of age, status or how long they'd been with the firm. I put two desks in one corner, where people could go to make personal phone calls and use the net. I had regular one to one meetings with everyone, and team meetings. Promotions were announced to the team by me, as were new hires.

 

[Cornish Steve]

Read 'The Three Signs of a Miserable Job' by Patrick Lencioni. It's easy to read, and it makes the point very well.

Here are some of the things that stick in my mind, from that book and from general experience:

- Delegate. Give employees ownership of their role. Instead of them just following orders, let them decide how best to do their jobs. They'll take more pride in their work, will be more motivated, and will come up with good ideas for doing things better.

- Train. Equip your employees for success. Be sure they have the skills needed to succeed. There's nothing more frustrating than wanting to do a good job but no one has taken the time to train you in areas where you are deficient.

- Measure. Find ways to measure how well someone in doing so they are challenged to do better. Obviously, this depends on the type of work, but it might be the number of disputes resolved, the number of invoices sent out, the number of minutes it takes to clean an office, and so on. Reward the employee for improvements.

- Explain the relevance. How does the work your employees do fit into the company's overall success? Who are their customers? What impact do they have on those customers?

- Take an interest. Does your employee play in a football league? Go watch a game. Does your employee play darts? Set up a company darts team. Does your employee like dogs? Join them one afternoon when they walk their dog or award them a voucher from time to time to pamper their pet. Little things like this can make a world of difference.

 

[chrisogdenroofing]

i gave my staff bonuses once when we had a lot of work on, it worked fine to get through the work, but they expected it all the time after that, even though work went quiet.employees often dont see what cost you incurr behind the scenes and can start to resent you at times when you cut back on incentives. my advice is to let them know when theyve worked well but exersise caution with incentives. i find it better to organise days out such as go karting at christmas than to give cash incentives every week .a quartertly bonus might work better based upon results at least you can your financial shape better.

chris

 

[Chris Kaday]

Here is my top 10

1. Select well in the first place - if you have not had formal interview training get it
2. Don't take on job hoppers - why should they stay any longer with you than with previous companies
3. Make sure they are always learning something new - if you develop them they will stay
4. Acknowledge their contributions - say thank you and mean it - make it visible too
5. Don't just ask them to do things but explain why - context is very important
6. Listen don't lecture - if you ignore them they will ignore you and ultimately go. Why not involve them in the decision making - who knows their solutions might be better than yours
7. Make the environment fun, exciting and interesting. My business - telephone marketing really demanded that.
8. Challenge them and stretch them - if they don't like that then you have probably got the wrong people - see 1
9. Tell them regularly where the company is going and how it is doing against that plan so they know they are working for a company which is well led and has a clear goal which they can contribute to
10. Think of what they will say to their partner or friends about their week in your company on a Friday evening - a real insight. Many decisions to find another job are made then. You want them to say they had a great week so make sure it was.

If there is anything specific then pm me as I have employed 1000s of staff over the years and run customer retention research, exit interviews and implemented improvement programmes for major corporates.

Chris Kaday

 

[arindra]

thanks for the great points Chris ,
I have not yet thought of interview training ... does that help in identifying talent and unworthy candidates or provides " how to pressurize a new recruit " ?
"Tell them regularly where the company is going and how it is doing against that plan so they know they are working for a company which is well led and has a clear goal which they can contribute to"
- this is what i am trying to get into , but do you think in a general roundup meeting all kinds of employees would understand broader goals - or is that for the Team leads / department heads ?

 

[IainW]

I worked for one of the biggest finance companys in the city, we had the choice of a small pay rise or sign up to PRP (profit related pay) we were a hard working team that thought signing up to the PRP scheme would benefit is. Guess what? we didn't earn 1 penny, they kept telling us that we just missed our targets. The MD though, had new cars, decorators in his office and so on.

The MD before him used to pay us well and also have an OPEN bar in the local pub. We worked our *its off every day then went to the pub where the MD would join us, no greater incentive - or maybe i had a drink problem

 

[Deleted member 29196]

- this is what i am trying to get into , but do you think in a general roundup meeting all kinds of employees would understand broader goals - or is that for the Team leads / department heads ?

I always find it useful to remember that some employees are strict 9-5ers and don't really care too much for the company as long as they get paid. As long as they do a good days work that's fine by me. Not everyone responds well to motivation ;-)

 

[Chris Kaday]

Everyone who carries out interviews should be trained. Think of the crap interviews you have probably had in your past - I certainly have. No it is not about pressurizing recruits but listing the core competencies you require in the job and through great questioning identifying if they do indeed have them through seeking evidence not assuming. It is called competency based interviewing - check it out on the web - it is a revelation

Present to the whole group and if everyone does not understand I would say that is the way you are putting it across. There is really no substitute for the boss standing up and saying this is how it is. I used to do it with the whole company every Friday even when we got to 200 plus. Everyone got it from my management team to the guy who has started that day. Incidentally we also trained everyone for 2 hours every Friday afternoon no fail in addition to all the other training and induction etc - see staff development.
Chris Kaday

Thanks for the great points Chris ,
I have not yet thought of interview training ... does that help in identifying talent and unworthy candidates or provides " how to pressurize a new recruit " ?
"Tell them regularly where the company is going and how it is doing against that plan so they know they are working for a company which is well led and has a clear goal which they can contribute to"
- this is what i am trying to get into , but do you think in a general roundup meeting all kinds of employees would understand broader goals - or is that for the Team leads / department heads ?

 

[cjd]

Pay is the top reason why people leave a job. It's also the main reason people stay. (Obvious really).

The second most important reason people stay on - even if they could get slightly or even much more money elsewhere - is if they they like the people they are working with. Less obvious but worth thinking about.

 

[Chris Kaday]

Of course no one leaves a job for less pay but actually pay is not why people think of leaving in the first place. It is usually lack of recognition lack of devlopment, going nowhere, poor mangement, boring and so on. That pitches them into the job market and then they realise they could get more money elsewhere. I agree working with some great people certainly helps too.

Chris Kaday

Pay is the top reason why people leave a job. It's also the main reason people stay. (Obvious really).

The second most important reason people stay on - even if they could get slightly or even much more money elsewhere - is if they they like the people they are working with. Less obvious but worth thinking about.

 

[cjd]

I was quoting research, but I'm bugg3red if I can find it now.

 

[croydon]

pay them top market salary

 

[Simon Hughes]

CDJ and Croydon have mentioned pay as the most important element of retention. I do not think that it is.

I deal with so many job-seekers on a daily basis and I always strive to find out why they are looking for alternate employment. Occasionally it is pay related - and even then, it is usually aligned to changes in commission schemes rather than the absolute numbers.

No, the most common reasons are lack of management input, lack of resources, lack of promotion opportunities, lack of recognition, lack of consistency, lack of strategy but almost never, ever, because of money.

Of course, remuneration schemes need to be competitive and transparent where commission is involved but get the other - difficult - things right and staff will stay longer.

Lastly, with regards to interview training - I couldn't agree more, management interviewing skills are woefully inadequate and once improved, retention rates will improve. Please feel free to sign up for A Managers Guide to Recruitment and Selection on my website; it's free.

 

[croydon]

Some fair points Simon - i guess it also depends on what sector you're operating in.

 

[cjd]

CDJ and Croydon have mentioned pay as the most important element of retention. I do not think that it is.

It's not my opinion; like I say, I was quoting research. I was surprised too.

 

[The RM2 Partnership Ltd]

We are a company that specialise in employee share schemes designed to motivate and retain employees. If you would like to talk to a consultant for some free advice, please contact us on 0208 949 5522. You can also view our website at rm2.co.uk.