RETAINING HIGH PERFORMANCE EMPLOYEES DURING THE GREAT RESIGNATION
Now more than ever, organizations are turning to external consulting groups for new solutions on retaining high performing employees during what experts are calling “The Great Resignation.” The Great Resignation began with the global pandemic when workers were forced to leave their offices and instead work from home. Since then, millions of people around the world have left their jobs, and according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, 4 million Americans quit during the summer of 2021. But why are millions of people leaving their current jobs? There are many different incentives to quit during today’s workforce climate, the most common being: finding a higher salary, not wanting to return to an in-person office, or simply not being happy with a role, management, or work-life balance.
The factors causing The Great Resignation are endless and the high level of turnover of good people costs businesses an incredible amount of money. In many cases, one instance of turnover is the equivalent of 150-200% of lost compensation to replace, train, and bring the new employee up to speed on business operations. This damages the long-term success and sustainability of the business and is why many employers are now prioritizing retaining high performing employees. However, companies need to be proactive not just now, but at all times in employee retention.
External consulting agencies provide real value to organizations facing unprecedented obstacles. Evaluating your current workforce and employees’ satisfaction is one step in the right direction to keep your company from falling victim to The Great Resignation. Keep reading to learn how PeopleWorks can help your business during this time.
Avoid These Retention Strategies
First, it’s important to note that while the Great Resignation has employers in a panic, that’s never an excuse to use forceful or threatening practices in an attempt to retain employees. Recently, a Wisconsin health-care provider requested a temporary restraining order to be placed on employees to prevent them from resigning their current jobs and accepting new jobs at a local competitor. The request was dismissed, and the employees were able begin their new jobs. This is an example of what not to do, and why working with a third-party consulting group like PeopleWorks is vital to retaining high performing employees. Bringing in a fresh set of eyes to evaluate your current culture and employee satisfaction rates gives you the fastest return on investment. This is because an unbiased perspective is the only way to accurately analyze your current operations and then provide the most effective solutions.
How can PeopleWorks International Help?
Instead of taking legal action, the Wisconsin health-care provider should have sought out a consulting agency. Then they would have been able to implement new strategies to increase employee engagement which would have prevented them from feeling the need to taking legal action in an attempt to retain their employees and damaging their reputation as an employer. As we know, employee engagement affects everything in a business from productivity, to customer satisfaction and profitability. With over a decade of experience, PeopleWorks has worked with top companies around the Nation and is equipped with some of the best strategies for companies who are currently facing a retention issue or looking to prevent it. Our job is to help your organization develop a consistent and strategic communication plan that targets your
Our process includes:
1. Measuring first (data drives where we go)
2. Helping each company develop a prioritized strategy
3. Coming up with an execution plan and cadence of accountability
4. Planning, doing, checking, and acting (PDCA): where we frequently review processes to get real time feedback and make adjustments as necessary
5. Finally, celebrate success!
Based on the challenges of the business and what they are trying to accomplish, we first help organizations complete a comprehensive overview through a number of assessments. These could include: employee satisfaction engagement surveys, 360 feedback, focus groups, pulse checks, culture alignment surveys, and more. We then analyze the data pulled from these assessments and gather even more data from a compensation analysis, market trends, competitor and other industry benchmarking, and finally, measure what’s most important to employees.
We have also seen a lot of success in retaining high performing employees by making clear investments in their advancement as professionals. Examples of this include: robust career development planning, cross-functional opportunities, leadership training and even a “stay interview” process, which replaces the standard exit interview.
Contact Us
If you are looking for assistance with navigating how to retain your employees, contact us today!