4 Keys to Retaining Key Employees

Retention of key employees is critical to any organization’s success, growth, and profit. Replacing valuable employees is time consuming, risky, and expensive. The first step in retention is knowing what your employees do for you. The second is knowing what they want. Do you know?

A friend recently resigned her position of five years to accept another. The new job fit her education; it was a logical step in her career. After her employer accepted her res­ig­na­tion, she was asked to help train her replace­ment. When the owner of the company reviewed her respon­si­bil­i­ties, he said, “I didn’t know you did all this.” It’s difficult to under­stand what a person needs if you don’t know what they do for your business. In this case, she did many unre­ward­ing activ­i­ties outside of her job respon­si­bil­i­ties. Her position wasn’t a good fit. When things no longer fit, we replace them.

I’ve observed leaders attempt­ing to motivate employees by giving them what the leader thinks should motivate them. How do you find out what your employees want? First, listen. Your employees may already be telling you what motivates them. An employee who struggles with a work schedule, due to family com­mit­ments, might be motivated by schedule flex­i­bil­ity. Someone who con­tin­u­ally seeks approval may be asking for more recog­ni­tion. Team members who present creative ideas and plans may want a little autonomy. Open your ears and your mind.

4 Keys to Keeping Great Employees

1. Ask your employees what they want. Complete a survey, hold a meeting, and/or chat one-on-one.  Do it more than once. You will not be able to accom­mo­date everyone or every­thing, but you may be surprised how many you can. Ask, listen, and act.

2. Know what your people do — every activity. Do the activ­i­ties fit the orga­ni­za­tion and the indi­vid­ual? Can they be adapted to fit? The best coaches make plans to fit their personnel rather than attempt­ing to make personnel fit the plan.

3. Listen to your people. They may share what they want and what motivates them.

4. Give your people what they need, whenever possible, and when their needs fit the vision of the organization.

These 4 steps will improve retention of key employees, and they’re not as time consuming or difficult as the alter­na­tive — hiring and training replacements.