COVID-19 changed every aspect of our lives. From how we conduct business to the structure of our workplace, it’s forever altered. Although we’ve entered a new year, businesses continue to face numerous challenges when it comes to navigating the waters of remote employees. Retaining your top talent is a priority for any employer, regardless of the industry they’re in. You’re not wrong for prioritizing this. On average, the cost-per-hire is approximately $4,000. The hiring process requires plenty of patience, time, and money—these are precious resources that businesses cannot afford to waste.
Keeping top talent on your team is crucial to guaranteeing your business continues to flourish during the pandemic and beyond. Read on for important tips on how to retain your best employees.
Facilitate Growth Opportunities
Employees don’t want to remain stagnant in their positions. They want to grow and continue learning valuable skills in their field that’ll help them become better. Development opportunities help expand their knowledge and encourage them to be their very best. There are numerous resources you can provide employees with in order to help them grow, including educational courses, allocating time during the workday to learn, and financially supporting those who wish to continue their education. Aligning their educational goals with their job will allow them to gain new perspectives and further promote satisfaction in their career.
It’s important to meet with employees to discuss their future goals and find ways to continue assisting them. Additionally, employees need to see there’s room for upward mobility at your company. This is a feature that will set you apart from the competition and ensure top talent remains in your court. Begin by promoting within the company before opening leadership positions on external job posting sites. Allow top employees to use the full extent of their skills to lead projects, supervise others, and independently manage their work.
Invest in Quality Benefits
We’re not saying perks, such as fully stocked break rooms, company gyms, or happy hours, are not important to have, but when numerous employees are working from home, in-office perks become irrelevant. In addition to offering these benefits, include substantial worker’s compensation and packages to protect employees. Of course, you’ll want to take into account your company’s finances first. It’s okay if you can’t offer your employees everything. However, make sure what you can provide will help keep them happy and healthy.
As an employer, you’ll have to think thoroughly about what your employees want and need. With COVID-19 still prevalent in 2021, it’s important to offer both health and life insurance. These two are the most valuable benefits you can provide right now. Suggest various health care plans to employees so they can pick the one that fits their individual needs.
Recognize Achievements
One way to ensure you retain top talent is by recognizing their hard work and effort. There’s no denying the power of compliments. Employers who are recognized by supervisors or management generally perform better than those who aren’t. You can also open up a discussion board to allow employees to congratulate each other on milestones and accomplishments. A company newsletter is a great idea to publicly share these achievements with your team.
What are triumphs without a few rewards? You don’t have to compensate employees all the time, but free lunches, extra PTO, and gift cards will incentivize them to keep giving 100% of their effort.
Create a Safe and Positive Work Environment
Due to the global pandemic, it’s incredibly important to ensure your team is safe in the environment they work in. Otherwise, they’ll feel uncomfortable and not be as productive. This could also lead them to look for work elsewhere. In a survey of 17,000 employees across almost 20 industries, 70% of them responded they were “actively looking for new job opportunities” or were “always, often, or sometimes” thinking about it.
Fostering a healthy atmosphere for your employees is also the key to making sure they feel taken care of. It’s vital to provide employees with a secure and healthy work environment for the benefit of their well-being. After all, it’s your responsibility as an employer. Mitigate losses by maintaining and reinforcing safety at the workplace.
Open Communication and Transparency
It’s necessary to have an open-door policy at your workplace because employees should feel comfortable approaching management, including supervisors, board members, and the company CEO, for whatever reason. Establishing transparency ensures concerns are addressed from the moment they’re brought up. Additionally, employees should be able to confidently reach out to HR. No one wants to see their valid concerns brushed under the rug. Understand that some employees may feel uncomfortable coming forward with their experiences. It can be intimidating to openly discuss certain events. To help struggling employees, allow them to submit anonymous feedback. If you want to retain employees, make them feel valued, seen, and heard.
Offer Flexibility
In today’s day and age, employees require and expect a workplace to offer them flexibility. COVID-19 caused many businesses to begin working from home. Once the pandemic is over, it’s important to continue offering similar options to those who demonstrate their ability to work remotely effectively and efficiently. This doesn’t mean having 100% of your team telecommuting, but offering them the ability to work from home every once in a while will reduce burnout.
Additionally, giving employees a little more freedom with their schedules will keep them happy and satisfied. After all, not everyone wants to work nine to five. Some prefer working earlier, while others may want to start later in the morning. Employees will now have the ability to manage their work and life to make time for what matters most.
Final Thoughts
Your top talent is at the top for a reason. Understandably, you want to keep them on your team because of the value they bring to your company. As you continue to grow your business, consider how you can better serve your employees to retain the best of the best. Use the tips above to help you get started.
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