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​Tiny Steps, Greater Retention

Organizations spend dozens of hours seeking out the right candidates for open positions — crafting the perfect job postings, interviewing and vetting candidates, and ensuring that prospects are the right fit. But when an employee’s tenure is short, the organization is forced to start the process all over again. There are costs in terms of money, time and morale.

What are the steps that organizations can take to keep those hires, to reduce overall turnover and to keep teams together?

The Wall Street Journal recently published an article, “Employee Retention — How to Retain Employees,” that offers excellent suggestions.

Some of the tips recommended include:

  • Offer “the little things”: Snacks, an occasional meal, and concierge services like dry cleaning pickup or travel planning can not only boost morale, but help save employees time, promoting a better work-life balance.
  • Coaching/continuing education: Employees feel more satisfied when they believe the organization is invested in them and that there are growth opportunities. While this can mean room to move up the ladder, it can also inspire employee development opportunities and good coaching from managers.
  • Feeling part of the team: Making sure each employee understands his/her role and why it is critical to the organization’s success is vital. Happy employees are those who feel that the mission is important and that they are helping to support it.
  • “Stay interviews”: Often employees are asked why they are leaving. How often are they asked why they are staying? Make it a priority to find out why an employee joined the team in the first place, what they were looking for and what are the things are that are keeping them there.

    To read all the tips, visit The Wall Street Journal.

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