Tips on Retaining Employees

•Your employees need more than monetary compensation to feel happy and satisfied at work. Workers who feel fulfilled are not only more productive, but they also stay with you longer. The cost of unwanted turnover can be 1.5 times the employee's annual salary and can harm both morale and production. By implementing the following tips, you can keep your employees satisfied and build lasting loyalty.

Start Smart

•You can reduce employee turnover if you begin by hiring the right person for the job. Choose someone with not only the correct skill set to fulfill the duties for the position, but also the right values and personality for your company culture.

Share Expectations

•Share your expectations of your employee's job duties and how their responsibilities support your company's mission and goals. Employees who understand the importance of their job work more effectively and feel more fulfilled.

Be Consistent

•After you establish your expectations, apply your policies consistently. Equality and fairness result in employee respect and better retention. Your pay system should be equitable as well and competitive for all employees.

Feedback

•Employees respond to regular and constructive feedback. Periodic evaluations give workers an opportunity to respond to any challenges and build on their successes. Workers who receive recognition for a job well done feel that their contributions are valued.

Growth Opportunities

•Offer your employees ways to grow beyond their current position. Develop the people in your organization as you grow your business by providing ongoing education and training, and by providing incentives, new opportunities or promotions. If you provide ongoing professional development, you demonstrate your organization's willingness to develop your people.

Empower

•As much as possible, empower your employees to make decisions that concern their job. Workers respond negatively when management makes a decision that impacts their job responsibilities without consulting them. By getting an employee's input, you send her the message that you trust her and her decision-making abilities. Work toward creating a more collaborative environment. Employees will feel like an integral part of the team if they are involved in the decision-making process.

Culture

•Create a we-are-in-this-together company culture. Motivate your staff members to support each other. Also, get to know your employees, their hobbies and outside interests. If your staff feels more like a family, then a staff member is less likely to seek other employment.