Hangin’ On To The Good Ones! « The Leadership Institute

Hangin’ On To The Good Ones!

April 1, 2009 · Leave a Comment

Employee-Retention3

Employee Retention (Part 2)

One of the smartest ways to achieve the maximum return possible on what you are investing in your most valuable resource is to understand your people well enough to be able to hang on to them while finding ways to maximize their ability to produce quality in the process.

Everyone knows that there are significant costs associated with recruiting, interviewing, hiring and ‘fast-starting’ a new employee. Assuming that you’ve selected properly, trained effectively, and that you’ve also set the new team member up to ‘win’ in their new position, it obviously doesn’t stop there; we have to consider what are our ‘long-term’ goals are for each particular individual.

Our thinking has to move beyond just keeping a good employee to the development of one who will become one of our organization’s future leaders, (whether we think they will or not – but we’ll address that in a separate article.)

In order to achieve the maximum return possible on what has been, and what will continue to be invested in the new team member over time, our paradigm must be correct and our demonstrated commitment must be to the ‘long-term’ success of the individual from two very important perspectives; theirs and the company’s.

The leader’s ultimate responsibility is to the long-term success of both. You might say that the leader’s challenge will be to facilitate a successful ‘marriage’ between the two; a marriage that will ‘last’ and will prove to be both enjoyable and fulfilling to both ‘marriage partners’.

Here are ten additional tips that can, and really should be, consistently applied in the leadership and management of the new individual that will ultimately contribute to the long-term success of the healthy ‘marriage’ referenced above; (By the way, these steps should really be applied with all your people, not just the new ones!)

Leadership

We discussed in a recent leadership development session the fact that the number one reason why people ‘choose’ to leave their jobs can be traced back to ineffective leadership on the part of their immediate supervisor. We referred to ’statistics’ that confirmed the fact that people have a tendency to leave managers and supervisors more often than they leave companies or jobs.

It’s certainly helpful when a manager or supervisor is perceived as being a ‘nice person’ and is well-liked by the people in his or her department, but what people really want and need is effective leadership on the part of someone they respect and someone they trust enough to follow. They need someone who they feel has something to impart when it comes to helping them achieve their full potential and to helping them achieve the success they desire on their job and also in their career overall.

When managers and supervisors make an employee feel respected, valued and also appreciated, the manager or supervisor is not only functioning more in a ‘leadership’ capacity but they are contributing to the ultimate retention of the employee. And in like manner, anything the supervisor does to make an employee feel under-valued will contribute to unwanted turnover.

Probably one of the most important functions that will lead to employee retention involves letting team members know in specific terms what ‘good’ looks like, and why it’s considered ‘good’. Some of the most common complaints that have come out of exit interviews and from ‘blind’ exit surveys we’ve conducted on behalf of clients, have included a lack of clarity regarding specific expectations, a lack of clarity regarding one’s earning potential, a lack of feedback regarding one’s performance, a lack of ‘follow through’ with regard to commitments made, canceling scheduled meetings, and a failure to create an environment that’s conducive to the employee’s achieving success; all of which reflect ineffective leadership on the part of their supervisor. We get into this in greater detail in our leadership sessions when we cover the 10 characteristics of the high-performance leader, typically in our January session.

Communication

On one hand we say that we want our employees to take ‘ownership’; that we want them to really care, and we ask for their ‘commitment’ to the ultimate success of the company; while on the other hand, we are not always as ‘open’ as we need to be, or as we really should be, to their open and honest input.

When a team member feels that their insight or suggestions are valued and they feel that they can speak their mind freely without fear of reprisal, they begin to feel more like an important and integral part of the organization which leads to better attitudes, increased commitment and employee retention.

One of the smartest things you can do is to promote an ‘open door policy’ in your company. Encourage your people to provide ‘feedback’ regarding decisions that need to be made or ways to improve upon products or services, or ways to improve upon internal processes.

It’s important that team members feel free to offer ideas, provide constructive criticism and that they be allowed to demonstrate their personal commitment to company improvement. If they are not allowed to do so, they end up having to internalize too much, or they find themselves constantly “in trouble”. That kind of stress leads to unwanted turnover.

Utilization of Talents & Abilities

One of the most valuable things you can do, (not only for your employees but for the health of your organization as well), is to get to know what talents and abilities exist in your organization that go beyond those that are required to perform normal job functions. People that are motivated by their genuine interest in the success of the company want to be able to invest ‘all’ of their talents and abilities on the job, and not just those few that relate to their own specific job description.

Get to know your people. Learn about what they enjoy doing and what they’re good at and then find ways to tap into those existing resources when you need something done in your organization. Why go outside the organization to get things done when you’re probably already paying for it anyway? Get to know your people and become aware of their real potential value to your company.

Let me give you a few examples; Instead of going outside the company when you decide that your existing brochure or marketing pieces need to be redesigned, why not find out who your resident ‘artists’ are, who your creative people are and get them involved in a new challenge. When it comes time to update your website, who in your organization enjoys working with computers and already knows and understands website design?

How many people could contribute far more than they currently are if they were only given the opportunity? Not only will it represent a stimulating challenge for them, potentially a pleasant departure from the norm, but it will allow you to increase the return you’re getting on what you’re already investing in that individual while positively impacting ‘retention’ in the process.

Favoritism vs. Fairness

Perception is everything! If your employees believe you to be ‘fair’ then they will remain flexible and committed. They may not necessarily agree with all your decisions but if they believe you to be fair, then they will be far more accepting of those important decisions they feel they might have made differently; especially if they feel their perspective was taken into consideration in the decision making process.

I have lost count of the number of times over the years I have heard employees make statements like, “One thing I can say about so-and-so is, while I may not agree with all their decisions, one thing I can say is that they’re fair.” The perception of fairness goes a long way toward earning one’s respect and toward engendering their loyalty toward their supervisor and their company. (By the way, to them, their supervisor is the company!)

There are few things that will lead to unwanted turnover faster than favoritism. It causes people to feel like it doesn’t really matter how much they care and/or how well they perform on the job; it’s who you know, rather than what you do, that determines who receives the perks and all the promotions when openings become available. The unfortunate end result is decreased morale and also reduced productivity. And, if it’s not caught quickly enough, attitudes can ‘deteriorate’, and quickly; they go from ‘optimism’ to “why bother”. Favoritism may exist ‘unintentionally’ on the part of only one or two managers in the organization, or it might even be systemic. Either way, it’s important that we keep a watchful eye, and make sure that we maintain a ‘level playing field’ for everyone at all levels in the organization.

Needed Resources

I’ve learned over the years in my dealings with client companies and their employees that when an individual is failing, it usually comes down to at least one or more of the following; It is usually related to a lack of training, temperament, talent or tools. Ideally, issues specific to temperament and talent should have been addressed during the initial hiring process, but in some cases those issues are missed and have to be addressed after the fact; (that’s part of the function of an effective leader).

In some cases, those employees can be moved to different parts of the organization and given different assignments. But in all cases, the easiest to address and solve, and the ones most affecting employee retention, are tools, time and training. Team members must have all the tools, time and training necessary to do their jobs well. If they don’t they will look for an employer who provides them with enough of each to be able to succeed in their position. The question you must ask yourself as a leader is, “Am I setting them up to succeed or fail?”

Challenges & Opportunities

Your best employees, those employees you really want to retain and develop for future leadership roles, they want opportunities to learn and grow. They want to acquire new skills, and they want to broaden their knowledge in their area or areas of expertise.

Without the opportunities to try new things and take on new challenges, they begin to feel they will stagnate. They need opportunities to be a part of challenging committees, attend stimulating seminars and to read and discuss interesting articles and books with others in the organization.

A career-oriented, valued employee must experience new challenges and opportunities for growth in order to be motivated to want to remain in the game.

Relationships

One of the most common things I’ve heard over the years that typically disappoints people the most about their jobs is the fact that their ‘perception’ is that the senior management is not really aware of their existence. One of the smartest things that a company president can do is to get to know who their employees are, and be able to call them by name when they see them around the office or in the field.

This holds true for ‘all’ senior management executives. Senior executives should take time to meet with new employees to learn about their talents and abilities, and a little something about their families. Taking an interest will yield impressive results.

Members of the executive team should make it a point to meet with ‘all’ employees periodically; short informal meetings that allow for employees to feel ‘connected’ and an important part of the ‘team’. When upper management knows who I am and calls me by name and asks me questions about how I’m doing, and maybe how a particular member of my family might be doing, you can bet that my ’sense of belonging’ and my commitment to the success of the team will soar.

Implied Job Security

I’m sorry to say that I have seen this occur on far too many occasions; Under no circumstances, never ever threaten an employee’s job or their income! You might as well tell them to get out their resume’ and go to work on getting it revised and ready for action.

You may know in reality that business is off and that layoffs might be required if certain numbers aren’t hit within a certain time frame. It doesn’t make any difference. You never share this information with employees. It makes them nervous; no matter how you phrase the information; no matter how you try and explain the circumstances, all you do is create intense insecurity.

You might think that by sharing the information that it might somehow serve to motivate them into action. Trust me; it will not. It will only backfire on you. I am not advocating that you mislead people; however, my encouragement is that you do ’think’ before you say anything that even indirectly makes people feel they need to start searching for another job.

Recognition & Reward

Recognition and reward is critical to the successful retention of good, quality people! In all the surveys we discuss in our leadership development sessions on ‘motivation’, full appreciation for work being done was number one on the lists. Recognition for a job well done and even for honest effort will go along way toward validating a person’s worth and to reinforcing good performance. There is no real accomplishment without celebration!

Team members must feel rewarded, recognized and appreciated. One of the least expensive and most effective means of recognition is to say ‘thank you’, and to let people know what you really like about their work and what you appreciate the most about their contribution.

Obviously, when you tie ‘monetary’ rewards, bonuses and ‘gifts’ that are specific to the individual, to your verbal expressions of appreciation, they become even more impacting and appreciated. Periodic raises that are tied directly to accomplishment and achievement go a long way toward helping to retain good people. In particular where ’sales people’ are concerned, the commissions and bonuses that are easily understood and calculated on a daily basis increase motivation and directly influence the retention of good sales people.

Summary

In summary, one of the most important things I’ve learned over the years in this business is that ‘work’ is about the money, but ‘loyalty’ is all about relationship and how people feel about themselves on the job and also how important they feel their contribution is to the success of the team (family), and whether or not they feel really appreciated.

Why not take a look at your organization. Are you really doing your best to retain your most valued people? Consider these additional suggestions. Ask yourself what you can do to make an ever ‘bigger’ difference in the lives of your people, and see how many ways it will come back to you. ‘Leadership’ really is ‘the bottom line’ in the people business – and the right kind of leadership will go a long way toward making it possible for you to hang on to your really good ones!

Again, we address these as well as many other important issues in our monthly leadership development sessions which are made available both in a public format and which are also customized and implemented for our client’s and implemented at their locations.

Give us a call and/or send an email note and we will be happy to provide you with information regarding the very cost-effective and results-oriented approach we take when it comes to turning good managers into highly effective leaders and developers of their most valuable resource – their people!

Be sure and ask about our complimentary introductory workshops!

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Jim Abbondante

Jim Abbondante presently lives in Lindale, Texas, just east of the Dallas, Fort Worth area, where he is President of the Leadership Institute. Jim has traveled extensively across the United States and Canada for the last 32 years as a successful entrepreneur, a corporate training consultant, a personal success coach and workshop facilitator with Owens Training of America, Zig Ziglar Corporation, Tom Hopkins International, the Leadership Institute, and also as a member of The Leadership Group.

The Leadership Institute is a well-established human resource development organization that – since 1990 – has been dedicated to providing companies with the information and tools necessary to be able to better understand and more effectively utilize their most important and valuable resource, their people.

We’ve specialized primarily in executive leadership skills, management development, relationship selling, career development for the professional sales executive, personal success coaching and employee assistance programs.

We have helped literally hundreds of companies achieve a much greater return on what they’re already investing in their people as the result of their involvement in our public and customized training processes and the various other services we provide.

You can learn more about our organization and our various programs and services by visiting our website at www.LeadershipInstituteUSA.com; Be sure and ask about scheduling a complimentary introductory leadership or sales development workshop for your team. We are also happy to conduct a complimentary training needs analysis for you at your location to help you determine your needs and to design a cost-effecting and results-oriented training agenda for your unique organization.

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