If you're not taking care of your top talent the right way, there's a chance those employees are watching the grass on the other side and noticing how it's starting to look greener and greener. According to a 2017 Gallup poll, as of August 2016, over 3 million employees voluntarily left their jobs to search for something better. What can you do to ensure your most talented workers are committed to your company?
Foster a Workplace Culture That Cares
Looking out for your top talent means more than just offering a high salary and great benefits. It also means fostering a workplace culture in which people want to come to work. Relationships matter, whether those relationships are encouraged among co-workers or managers and employees. When you are in charge of other people, you don't want to use a top-down autocratic leadership style. This type of leadership engenders frustration and resentment. You want a relationship with your employees that promotes open communication and ideas. An open-door policy, that's put into action rather than words, can go a long way in helping employees feel welcomed and valued at work.
Top talent also wants continuous feedback from you about how they're doing, where they can make improvements, and new challenges they can tackle. This doesn't mean a performance review once a year, but regular conversations where these issues are discussed often. Challenge and support your employees by giving them new projects or tasks, and then making sure they have the support necessary to complete those tasks. Give them autonomy to learn. If they make mistakes, turn the mistake into an educational opportunity. No one wants to be in a stagnant job that goes nowhere or work for a micromanager.
Your top talent also need to be able to advance and be recognized. Whether if it's through employee recognition programs or promotional lines, offer your workers the chance to improve their standing within the company. Give them a voice so they can be heard. Let them know their feedback about your products, processes and company image is welcomed and appreciated. If your top talent comes up with a great sales idea, let co-workers, other supervisors and executives know by sending an email, issuing an internal memo, and then recognizing the idea on the company website or featuring the employee in a company newsletter. These methods cost nothing, but the goodwill generated is priceless.
Your top talent became that way because they're motivated, dedicated and knowledgeable about your company and industry. Don't overlook the special skills they bring to your business, because they just might take those special skills elsewhere. It's much more productive for your company to keep the talent you do have and cultivate it so everyone wins.
Photo courtesy of Stuart Miles at FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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