Employee Retention

“Back in t’day” employee retention wasn’t really that well thought of as any importance, “we pay them, what more do they want, they work for us not the other way round, don’t want to work – they know where the door is” – most of us have heard someone grunt that right?  

Times have changed, and in my opinion for the better. Employers now recognise that people are one of their most valuable assets.  

High turnover costs a business a lot more in time and money on recruitment, training, etc., than it does to invest time in staff retention.  

Of course, you won’t always end up with a 100% retention rate – some people want different career progressions that your company simply cannot offer. There is no point begging those to stay as you are taking away their dreams to progress elsewhere – we must respect that some people want to change paths and there is no point holding someone back when they are not fully satisfied. As much as we love them, sometimes you’ve just got to let go!  

You also have unsuccessful probation periods where you must make the tough decision as to whether an employee is in fact the right fit for your business and visa versa. Although this stage is hard, especially if you aren’t thick skinned, as it is one of the most awful things (in my opinion) having to let people go at this stage and that dread look in their faces at probation review. It gets me every time! But it is important you make the right choice for both parties and that is the purpose of the probation period. There is no point dragging both parties down a long line to ultimately end up in the same position.  

There are many ways you can maintain staff retention, and it isn’t all down to the bottom-line figure. Just to list a few:  

• Of course, money is still on the list! Ensure your employees are paid genuinely for what they are worth – not what the government website tells you to pay (I mean above minimum wage not below – that’s illegal!)  
• A good working environment – nobody wants to be sat in a dingy office, with dull lightbulbs and no windows! It should be a bright happy environment! A bad working environment can seriously impact your employee’s morale! Just think how your mood differs on a rainy day to a sunny day…  
• Continued Personal Development – everyone can always continue to progress and better their abilities within their job role providing they are supplied the resources to do it! And there is also nothing better than keeping that brain ticking over by learning new skills.  
• Value and recognition – give them praise when they excel in a task! We very often forget to let employees know when we feel they have done a good job. Praise does a lot to someone’s motivation and morale. It goes a very long way!  
• Work-life balance – employees need a healthy work-life balance! It is essential for their wellbeing. Do you make sure that your employees aren’t burning out by missing lunchbreaks, that they are leaving on time, etc.?

At DMS Navigator we are proud to have many employees that have been with us for 5+ years!