4 Strategies for Recruiting and Retaining Successful Employees The best employees are in it for the long run.
By Sherrie Campbell Edited by Dan Bova
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
With unemployment rates very low the competition for highly skilled loyal workers is more challenging now than ever before. Entrepreneurs must understand the critical importance of providing emotional and financial security to our employees as motivating forces to stay with our company.
1. Hiring
Hiring is the first step in judging a potential employee's longevity and staying power. It is important analyze their resume to see if they have had long-term successful employment runs with other companies. If their resume shows they have been jumping from one company to another over the years, this may not be a solid candidate to hire. When hiring new people, we must have the skills to identify the potential candidates who hold similar values and ethics and who are aimed toward personal growth, innovation, cooperation and teamwork. Identifying these traits in an interview isn't always foolproof, but it's a critical first step when trying to improve employee retention.
Related: Data Reveal the 7 Factors for Optimal Employee Retention
2. Pay well and train well.
Once we onboard new employees, we must make sure they enter into a corporate culture that has supportive leadership. We need to provide them with opportunities to grow and succeed. Employees want to be recognized for their skills, and that means a reasonable wage and benefits that make it worth it for them to say with our company. New employees need to know that providing for their families at levels that meet or exceed their needs will happen if they're employed by our company.
It doesn't take much to get loyalty and hard work out of our employees. We simply need to offer them the security and benefits that serve to protect and empower them. When our employees feel secure, they can focus more intently on performing in their role, which leads to their production going up.
Related: Employee Retention: Why it Remains a Daunting Task at Startups
3. Positive morale.
As employers, we must strive to create a culture of positivity, reciprocity, inclusivity and enthusiasm. We must truly care about the people who work for us, invest in them, use their ideas, lift them up, encourage their autonomy, give them our trust and be there to support and remove barriers when crises arise. High morale is most easily established through connection. Therefore, it is important to hold regular staff meetings, to offer surprise incentives and provide a safe and stable working environment where employees feel empowered to improve their skills. It is up to our leadership to make our employees, new and old, feel as if they are a part of an extended family. When our employees feel that love from us, it naturally creates a healthy and inspired work environment.
Related: Expert Tips For Efficient Employee Retention Strategy
4. Respectful treatment.
The number one reason employees leave jobs is not money; it's poor treatment by their immediate manager. And why wouldn't they? Most managers were high producers when they were an individual contributor. We need good managers in the upper branches of our corporate structure, so we hire or promote those who were good individual producers. However, not all individual contributors transition well into the team format that defines the management role where they largely have to focus on keeping their team members cooperative and cohesive. Our employees are more likely to stay with managers who have gone through managerial trainings and are adept in their skills at leading a team.
Bottom line, when we focus on employee strengths, it empowers and provides them a valid reason to stay with our company. People stay where they feel valued and where they can witness the fruits of their labor making a meaningful and measurable difference. We must listen to our employees, their ideas, their concerns and act upon them. Most recognition doesn't cost a thing, but our employees do deserve our time and attention. Time is the greatest investment we make in our employees. There is great value in putting down our cell phones to hear them out and acknowledge them face to face.
Sherrie Campbell's new book Success Equations: A Path to Living an Emotionally Wealthy Life is available for pre-order
