Resource Edge   

What Are Your Employees' New Year's Resolutions?

As we approach New Year, many of us take time out to reflect on the past and plan for the future. Often, we make resolutions, about giving up smoking, taking exercise, losing weight! What is worrying though, is that whilst we are sitting down to fried carp and potato salad on Christmas day, our team and work colleagues are also reflecting and planning. The number one New Year's resolution, according to About.com, is to find a better job. In fact, more of us take time out to look at our working lives and careers at this time of year than at any other time. Monster, the worlds leading career network, also confirms that its increase in traffic in January, the biggest all year, can be put down to those New Year resolutions.

Interestingly, Derrick Barton, CEO of the Centre for Talent Retention notes, "Whenever there's a major holiday, you're around family and friends. People ask how work is going. Sometimes people open up beyond the usual one or two word response because they're comfortable talking with a trusted person. This may get them thinking that perhaps they're lucky in their work, or that maybe they need to get out of a bad situation. When that mental 'click' is turned on, there is a strong correlation to actually leaving, particularly among top talent and people with skills that are in demand”.

So, now is the time to pay attention to make sure you don't lose your talented team and colleagues. Businesses need great people, as a great strategy can only be implemented by people!  Most companies operating in Europe are today talking about talent retention. It is getting increasingly hard to find the right people. The competition for above average and top performers is vicious and will only get worse as demographic realities begin to take effect. Coupled with the fact that people are becoming increasingly mobile, not needing to stay in their home town or home country.

So, watch out. Clever head-hunters use the Christmas period to reconnect with people and then typically follow up again in the New Year. Clever organizations, on the other hand, spend time in December and January reinforcing their relationships with top talent. This is the   natural time of the year for taking stock of achievements and looking ahead to goals for the coming year. Recognition needs to be more than a Christmas card or even a bonus. Employers should take time out to hear what is going well and tuning into the aspirations of their top performers.  This means, one to one conversations. Perceptive managers will sense whether an employee's commitment is strong or dropping. 

However, one worrying statistic, from the Centre for Talent Retention is that 80% of managers did not feel accountable for engaging and retaining employees. Worrying, as the true cost to the business of an average performer leaving is 1.5 times salary.  What to do? The surest path to getting managers actively involved in the retention of key people is to build it directly into their reward package. I have worked with Companies who reward managers who add to the companies talent pool (e.g. exporters of talent as opposed to importers) and for the quality of their performance management and feedback with employees. The old saying – “what gets measured and paid for gets done”!

To support management engagement, there must be complete clarity on who needs to be retained, why they need to be retained, where their skills and expertise is to be used and when they need to be ready to share those skills and that expertise. The challenge then is to devise ways and means to retain them. However, if you get it right, successful talent management inside an organization sets in motion a virtuous cycle. Through word of mouth it becomes known as a great place to work. People stay and people are attracted.

When we think of retention strategies, we often think of monetary compensation, such as salary, cars, stock options. “Cash” is the most obvious aspect of the employment deal, but of course not the complete deal itself,” Sumeet Sabharwal, MD, Navisite India. When you talk to employees it is the intangibles they also value, such as having a career roadmap, access to a senior mentor, a good boss and bonding with the organisation, its aims and values. Essentially, when employees are doing work which they like, with people they like, in a company they like, with opportunities for growth, they are less likely to leave. Maybe, we can enjoy the carp and potatoes after all at Christmas!

< Back