7 Interesting Ways to Improve Employee Retention and Keep Your Team Happy

In a world where the job market is always changing and becoming increasingly competitive, holding on to your most valuable top talent can oftentimes seem like a tough task. New job opportunities are always around the corner and if you aren’t making your workers happy, the chances that another company coming along to steal them away with promises of more money and better benefits is likely. Keeping your valued employees happy can prove challenging but what many owners and employers don't realize is that these important employees are often the key to the success of their business. Our team at the Delaware County Chamber of Commerce is sharing 7 ways to improve employee retention while keeping your team happy.

Offer Training and Certifications
Employees want a skill upgrade and they want their employers to offer them such. Oftentimes, employers expect their employees to be a master of their craft—and while you should be to some extent, your employer should be willing to invest in you by helping to maintain your credentials. In a 2018 study conducted by LinkedIn, they found that 93% of employees would consider staying at a company longer if their employer invested in their career. With the numerous tools, resources and classes available to further one’s education, this should be a top priority of every business.   

Avoid Micromanaging
You hired a group of talented employees, so there’s no need to micromanage them. Allow your employees to dive into new things headfirst; give them room to develop and grow on their own. If they make a mistake along the way, treat it as a learning experience. If they succeed, they’ve acquired a new skill!   

Provide Guidance
While you want to avoid micromanaging your talented individuals, you do want to offer some guidance. Make sure your employees fully understand what is expected of them. Provide regular feedback on an employee's performance and offer encouragement and words of advice so they can accomplish their duties correctly.

Pay Well
Another thing that often gets swept under the rug until it’s a big deal is compensation. What many employers fail to realize is replacing an employee can oftentimes be a very large investment. A study conducted by Employee Benefit News found that after losing an employee, a company can spend up to a whopping 33% of their annual salary to replace them. Matching competitors’ salaries can be difficult, but sometimes a simple 10-20% increase can be the deciding factor of moving on or staying for an employee.

Conduct “Stay” Interviews
During an exit interview, it’s standard to ask your employee why they are leaving and what could have been done better. Instead of waiting for a valuable employee to leave to conduct this style interview, try conducting a “stay” interview monthly or even quarterly. Ask your employees to bring up anything that has been bothering them and any necessary changes they would like to see. This will help alleviate ill feelings and pent up frustrations that could result in them jumping ship.  

Recognition
According to data gathered by Tinypulse, 21.5% of employees have admitted to looking elsewhere for a job when they don’t feel recognized at their current place of employment. Make your employees feel appreciated! If they’ve gone above and beyond, have impressed you or succeeded at a new endeavor make sure to take note and pass some recognition their way. 

Offer Benefits
While we understand smaller startups can’t compete with the healthcare benefits of large corporations, it’s still possible to offer your employees some type of incentives. Try incorporating more work from home days if allowable as well as offering performance bonuses or extra personal days.  

Whether you’re looking to improve your employee retention statistics, or just want to boost morale and help keep your team happy, we hope these smart tips can bring your business of any size success! For all the latest and greatest business news and tools, make sure to check out our Delaware County Chamber of Commerce business blog--Bizz Buzz!

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