Every business owner or chief executive needs to know why good employees quit and how to reduce turnover rates if they are looking at cost-saving measures for their businesses. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the number of quits has exceeded the number of layoffs. As of December 2019, there were 3.5 million workers who quit compared to 1.9 million layoffs. The job market is becoming tighter as more businesses are scrambling for the fewer available professionals.
Professionals are quitting their jobs not only because of a bad boss but also because of lower job satisfaction. Good employees quit because they either want better remunerations, better working conditions, or career advancement. Some others quit because they want more purposeful work. There are many reasons why good employees quit but there may be a few things you can do to decrease how often it occurs.
The cost of losing a good employee
The cost of losing a good worker is rising, owing to the tight labor market. The cost of hiring will vary depending on your location, type of position, and time it takes to fill the position. You also have to include the money lost from the time required to train a new hire to meet the minimum requirements of the job.
As a manager, business owner, or HR personnel, you have to be proactive if you want to mitigate costs for your business. Larger organizations are investing in third-party professionals to help them identify when they are at risk of losing employees. These organizations are actively engaging with their employees to improve their employee satisfaction levels. They sometimes reassign their employees to more suitable jobs within the organization and also, they are searching within before recruiting new people.
All Chief executives, managers, and business owners need to focus on investing in their greatest asset - the workforce. It requires creating the policies and programs that would create the right environment for your employees to operate at the highest levels. It also includes training your workforce to be confident and to be effective communicators. Without these, your programs would fall short of achieving the desired outcome.
What You Can Do To Stop Some Good Employees From Quitting
Send Out Personalized Notes
If you are a small business owner, you can start by sending a personalized note or card of appreciation to your staff. Don't be vague in what you write. Include specific examples of what they have done to help your business.
Show How What You Do Helps Your Clients
Many professionals not only want to earn a living, but they also want to make a difference. They want to do things with a purpose. Show how your business meets the need of your clientele and the community at large. Connect with the heart of your employees. It should not be only about making money, but also meeting a need.
Improve Your Team Communication
Give your staff a voice. Your employees need to know that their opinion matters. Your staff needs to know they can freely and safely express opinions, ideas, differences, and objections. There is mutual benefit to allowing an environment that promotes free discussion. Your staff feels a sense of belonging and is more likely to stay thereby, reducing the cost of recruiting and onboarding a new hire.
You get to hear new ideas and innovations that could be very valuable to your business. The information you get from listening to your team, asking questions, and following through to get solutions can be a game-changer for your business.
What you would also hear is any dissatisfaction they feel that may lead to them quitting. You may be able to decrease the rate of employee turnovers, decrease the cost of recruiting as well as onboarding by improving communication with your staff.
Invest In coaching and staff training
According to Gallup, only 33 percent of employees are engaged at work. Many other surveys show similar results. Organizations that focus on investing in their workforce save a lot of money, and indirectly they have increased their earning potential. In the same Gallup report, one of the suggestions given was to switch from a culture of “employee satisfaction” — which only measures things like how much workers like their perks and benefits — to a “coaching culture.”
Confident employees find it easier to engage and go for what they want. Skip Prichard communicates this effectively " Employee confidence happens when people feel engaged, but also confident enough to act on that engagement, and this needs them not just to have the skills, but also to have the belief in their abilities."
Trying to save money by not investing in a program that would boost the confidence of your workforce can cost you more than you are saving. It's time to reconsider how you prioritize your investment.
Don't allow your good employees quit!
Don't overlook your greatest asset as a business owner or chief executive, your workers! When you invest in your workers, they feel valued, and they show it by becoming more productive and less likely to quit.
You can't stop everyone from quitting, but you can stop a few if you focus on improving employee confidence and communication skills, as well as work culture. Don't allow your good employees to quit. Be proactive and start initiating workplace changes for your business.