No company or industry is immune to losing employees here and there. But some seem to have made it a sort of mission to keep fresh meat cycling in and dissatisfied team members cycling out. If you haven’t worked at such an establishment, you probably know someone who has. And while these companies often recognize that there’s a problem, many don’t have a good handle on how to correct the issue.
According to a recent article by ERE’s Ira Wolfe, it’s common for this type of organization to fail to collect and analyze data about turnover, so any supposed solution is a gamble. The commonest reason for attrition is poor management. Wolfe writes, “Research has proven time and again that employees don’t quit companies, they leave supervisors.” Thus, management should be first under the microscope when employees are dropping like flies. At the heart of the problem could be personality conflicts or a lack of proper management training.
If high turnover is a problem in your organization – or in select departments within it – and past attempts to turn turnover around have failed, take a moment to review these eight questions.
First, about your managers:
- Is the person in question well trained in managing and motivating others?
- Is the problem greater under one manager than another?
- Is turnover higher on one shift or in one location than another?
- Are retention/turnover and employee engagement part of your management staff’s performance goals?
To explore other reasons for turnover:
- At what point are employees leaving? After three to five years or in a matter of months?
- Are your staff – particularly the younger set – provided enough opportunities to learn?
- Do your staff – particularly the more experienced set – offered enough opportunities to advance?
- Is your compensation package diverse and competitive?
It’s true that employees tend to change jobs more often these days than they did in years past, but it’s a good idea to make sure you’re not losing good employees for reasons you can easily correct.
Published by Conselium Executive Search, the global leader in compliance search.
