“A simple scan of this newspaper's classified ads serves as a thermometer to measure the growth in labor demand that drives economic growth. These sections not only have more pages, but there are also increasingly more ads in which the same company is seeking positions at different hierarchical levels and in different areas. According to the Argentine Federation of Temporary Employment Agencies (FAETT), the increase in the number of ads published in January (a month historically less active than others) suggests that labor demand will continue to rise” (La Voz del Interior, Sunday, March 11, 2007)
Once again, we face a challenge: in this job market, how do I retain the people who are most valuable to the organization?
We all know that economic progress is one of the drivers of turnover, but if we're paying market wages, the next question is, what other added value can I offer people to keep them choosing to work here?
Retaining key employees is critical to the health and growth of the business. Needless to say, the cost of losing them is reflected both financially and in other, more intangible aspects: the loss of that person's knowledge, invested time and training, insecurity among peers, etc.
Here are some specific tips that go along with remuneration:
1- Define clear expectations regarding daily work and expected results.
2- Improve the quality of supervision each employee receives (we cannot expect excellent performance from poor managers)
3- Give employees space to make decisions about their work and express their opinions.
4- Create mechanisms where people feel they are contributing their full potential and are not underestimated.
5- Provide ongoing opportunities for learning and professional growth (what a topic this is! We're not just talking about hierarchical growth. But that's a topic for another article).
6- Last but not least: Recognize and reward
There's not much to think about. But we have to get to work. And fast. Let's not forget that, as Helen Keller said, "The only thing worse than having no eyesight is having no vision."
We continue talking…
