Why Employee Retention is Important
Retaining employees within the organisation has become a largely essential activity that Human Resources (HR) managers are constantly partaking within today. It could be seen that organisations are constantly aiming to ensure that they are looking after and watching out for top talent. Specifically, retaining employees is encompassed within the retention stage of the employee lifecycle whereby an organisation will effectively work to ensure they retain top talent at all costs.
Moreover, HR managers are constantly working within organisations to ensure that they are retaining employees through ensuring key metrics such as motivation and satisfaction levels are at an all-time high. This is just one of the many strategies that HR managers partake within to ensure employees are effectively being retained within an organisation. Likewise, bellow includes four detailed and key employee retention strategies HR managers may utilise to effectively retain employees within an organisation.
Utilise HRIS
The first strongest and most essential retention strategy that HR managers may utilise within their organisation is effectively using a Human Resource Information System (HRIS). A HRIS allows HR managers to effectively gain relevant information and statistics to make informed decisions towards retaining employees within the organisation. Moreover, through HRIS everything is automated effectively removing the need for paper and traditional retention strategies, simply it is all online and all completed in merely a matter of seconds when utilised effectively.
To learn more about the role of HRIS in the retention stage of the employee lifecycle and further to learn more on how to effectively retain your top performers click the following link for a free digital eBook.
Conduct Surveys
The second retention strategy to effectively retain employees within an organisation that HR managers will utilise is conducting surveys. Surveys are largely integral to effectively understand employee perspectives into various situations. They may highlight key behaviours, problems, needs and opinions that deserve to be looked into by the organisation. A survey effectively provides an employee with their own personal voice to express their opinions to a broad variety of situations.
Through effectively conducting surveys employees may feel an increase in their personal satisfaction level that HR managers are listening to them and taking action. In turn, surveys become critical to conduct frequently to measure key metrics and further gain employee insights. One such tool that HR managers may utilise to measure effectively retain an employee through surveys is the conducting of pulse surveys.
A pulse survey is a frequent and short series of questions asked to employees to gain insights on a fast-paced and regular schedule. This allows HR managers to receive information frequently allowing for quick decisions to be made to meet employee satisfaction levels and in turn retain key organisational employees.
Motivate Employees
The third critical retention strategy to easily retain employees within the organisation that HR managers would utilise constantly is effectively motivating employees. The retention strategy of motivating employees is essential to retain employees into the organisation as it ensures employees are both satisfied and engaged in the work they conduct within the organisation. In turn, a motivated employee is increasingly likely to be retained by the HR manager when effectively looked after.
To motivate an employee within an organisation HR manager must first assess what is the core motivator for the employee working within the organisation. This could effectively be attained through essential survey data collection as described in our previous retention strategy point. Moreover, once the organisation finds out what motivates the employee taking action is essential to retain the employee.
Another critical strategy to further motivate your employees and effectively retain them within the organisation is providing them with training and career development opportunities. An organisation that aims to increase employee skills and knowledge is effectively meeting the employee value proposition (EVP). Employees become increasingly satisfied and motivated to work when they have the tools to do so and see the long-term benefit of following through with activities. This is critical to retain the employee and in turn motivating your employees will become one of the most essential retention strategies.
Recognise and Reward
The fourth key retention strategy to effectively retain employees within the organisation that HR managers could effectively utilise is to recognise and reward employees. Through recognising and further rewarding an employee within the organisation HR managers are showing they are appreciating the work of their employees within the organisation. Although further through showing the opportunity of gaining recognition and rewards employees may become increasingly motivated and engaged to work further than before.
An example of recognition that a HR manager may effectively give to employees within the organisation is simply a message that shows appreciation for the work they have done. Moreover, recognising key events such as celebrating the anniversary of years an employee has worked in the organisation and further recognising the good work on their birthday is critical to satisfying employees and retaining employees through recognition activities.
An example of rewards that HR managers may utilise to effectively retain employees within the organisation is giving the employee a bonus for the work they have completed. This excites the employee as they may have the opportunity to attain this monetary bonus reward for the hard work they have completed within the organisation. Moreover, rewarding the employee with a special lunch outing may further be utilised to show the employee your organisational appreciation for the work they complete. In turn, through rewarding and recognising the employee HR managers will effectively retain the employee within the organisation.