Staff Turnover Is Draining Your Company Your employees are your customers and the lifeblood of your business. Invest in their development so they'll keep putting their talent and training to work for you.
By Zech Newman Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
Reducing staff turnover keeps more money within your business and gives you fewer headaches. Running a company is easy when you have a full roster of excellent employees. Lose a few of your most experienced, rock-star workers, though, and you'll wonder why you ever wanted to own a business.
In my early years of entrepreneurship, I owned one pizza restaurant. My staff turnover was roughly the industry average, and I was sick of the time, energy and money this cycle cost me. It wasn't just the bottom line that suffered. Even more unacceptable than the lower profit numbers were the canceled family vacations.
Related: How to Survive When a Key Employee Leaves Your Company
I started turning things around by implementing a few key guidelines. In the 10 years since, I can't recall having an employment crisis, and I'm proud to claim a nucleus of employees who continue to deliver at a high level.
If you're struggling with turnover at your company, odds are you need to invest in one or more of these five areas.
1. Create a positive culture.
Culture self-audits. It weeds out those who don't fit the culture you've created and attracts those who do. Your culture is the baseline for your company because it cultivates an environment for success. Make sure you're actively working to create the environment you say you want to develop.
Related: How These Entrepreneurs Managed Team Dynamics as Their Companies Grew
2. Care for your team members.
Your employees have hopes and dreams for their lives as well as day-to-day disappointments and struggles. It's easy to get so focused on your company that you forget about the people who really make your business happen. Not all employees will want you involved in every facet of their personal lives, but I guarantee they all want a caring boss. Find ways to care for your team members better than any boss has in the past, and they will care for you and your business.
Related: How You Can Get to Know Millennial Employees, Build Relationships and Retain Talent
3. Toe the line.
As an entrepreneur, you have a vision for what you want to create and actively pursue what you see in your mind. Allowing actions that exist beyond this vision is every bit as deadly to your business as falling short in your active pursuits. Your company and the employees who help run it become a mix of what you create and what you allow -- and what you allow can be stronger than what you create. As your company grows and adds more employees, you will experience more conflicts with others' vision for your business.
4. Support your employees.
Are you giving your employees what they need to succeed? Proper equipment, training and a detailed job description are the minimum. Provide your staff the tools and the target. After all, success breeds even greater success. You shouldn't be afraid to obsess over what your employees need from you. Meet those needs. If you can't, at least give them the courtesy of letting them know why those resources aren't available at this very moment. This takes the frustration and guesswork off your employees' minds. If you want your staff members to stay for years, serve and support them.
Related: Why So Many Businesses Mess Up Employee Development
5. Pay your workers.
Money matters to your employees. They have responsibilities at home and their own aspirations and goals. When they perform, pay them well -- and increase their salaries as your business succeeds. You know you'll need to pay more than the industry standard to keep top talent. It's an investment in your company's most valuable asset, and it's still less expensive than the cost of turnover. You're better off paying higher wages than losing trained individuals who already understand your company.
Related: How to Set Salaries
Do these five things, and your staff will not only work hard for you, they'll fight for your company. Remember: Your employees are your customers and the lifeblood of your business. Reducing turnover is a sure way to help everyone reach the next level together.
