Ten Effective Ways To Reduce Employee Turnover

Nothing is more frustrating than having good people working for you and then moving on to another opportunity. All that time, money and training you invested in them goes to waste. So how do you reduce employee turnover without giving them everything they want?
Here are ten effective ways to reduce employee turnover that are proven to work.

1. Hire well

It may sound trite, but ensuring you hire the right people for the right role is the single best way to reduce employee turnover. We are all at our happiest when doing something that suits our ambitions and our skills. Being extra careful during the recruitment process can help. Read our piece 'Ten tips for hiring the right candidate for the job' for extra help.

2.Investor in people

Employees are expensive but they should make more money than they cost. Investing in training and opportunities can reduce employee turnover a lot. If the employees feel valued, they feel happy. Training doesn't have to be expensive, it could be something as simple as in-house training by your most experienced staff.

3. Keep thepackage current

Offering a competitive salary and benefits goes a long way to reducing employee turnover. We all know that money isn't everything, but it lessens the opportunity for competitors to poach staff. It also stops staff thinking they could get a better deal elsewhere.

4. It isn't all about the money

We all need money, but a top salary isn't all we work for. A friendly environment, good social aspects, added benefits such as medical, staff discounts, regular social activities and other such niceties all add to a happy workforce. They don't have to cost much either.

5. Regular reviews

Hold regular reviews where you and your staff sit down to discuss roles, responsibilities, changes, career paths and opportunities and everything to do with the business. They play a huge part in how happy staff are and as long as you back up all that talk with action, your staff retention should benefit as a result.

6. Stay involved

If you own the business, keeping in touch with staff is a huge morale boost. A quick thank you note, congratulatory email on a success,small gift to show appreciation or even spending an hour in the office talking to people all make a massive difference to how they feel about you and your business.

7. Set achievable goals and challenges

Most of us like to be challenged and many of us are goal oriented. Use it to your advantage. Not only does it keep staff happy, it can also drive innovation, improve productivity and give staff something to aim for. As a result, it will definitely reduce employee turnover.

8. Keep staff in the loop

Letting your people know what's going on, how the company is performing and any impactful news shows them you care. It also instils respect in both directions. If there are big changes ahead, reassuring staff that they are safe and that you have their interests at heart will go a long way too.

9. Give staff a say

If you hire well, you will have a pool of talent with a vision of how to improve processes, increase efficiency and make it a better workplace. Reward them by adopting themwhere practical and offering incentives for coming up with new ideas. Everyone, especially the business will benefit.

10. Transparency and accountability

Managing people is about setting fair rules and offeringfair reward. About being transparent in your decisions and about the direction the business travels. It's about managing expectation, motivation and handling the tough times. There is a lot to it, but get it right and you won't have to reduce employee turnover because there won't be any.