Business Education

Effective New Year Employee Retention Strategies Businesses can Use

When the new year arrives in earnest, some employers will be taken by surprise when a few employees announce they’re leaving their companies. The reasons for this are many, but there are some which are far more common than others. So, it’s critical for business owners and managers to know these motivations to address any shortfalls right away. Plus, how to proactively retain talent so productive individuals don’t leave.

Common Reasons Employees Leave Companies

There are a number of common reasons that employees leave companies, and understanding these reasons can be important for businesses looking to retain top talent and maintain a healthy and productive workforce. One major factor is the need for career advancement opportunities. Many employees are looking for opportunities to grow and advance within a company. If they feel like they are hitting a dead end or there are no clear paths for advancement, they may look elsewhere for opportunities that allow them to continue to grow and develop. Poor management is also a big reason. Employees want to work for leaders who are fair, supportive, and transparent. If they feel like they are being micromanaged, or if they are not receiving clear direction or support from their manager, they may start looking for a new job where they feel like they are valued and supported. Additionally, a poor work-life balance can play a role. A demanding or inflexible work schedule can be a major turn-off for employees, especially if it is causing them to feel burnt out or like they are unable to attend to other important aspects of their lives.

Maximizing employee retention is one of the best ways to make sure your small business thrives. Unfortunately, staying fully staffed can be challenging in today’s business environment. According to Bank of America’s 2022 Small Business Owner Report, 41% of small businesses say labor shortages are currently impacting their businesses. —Bank of America Small Business

Lack of recognition or appreciation is most definitely the cause of team members leaving companies. Employees want to feel like their hard work is being noticed and appreciated. If they feel they are being taken for granted or not receiving adequate recognition or praise, they may start looking for a company where their contributions are clearly more valued. Unsurprisingly, poor compensation and benefits are big ones. While salary is not the only factor that motivates employees, it is an important one. If employees feel like they are being underpaid or not receiving competitive benefits, they may start looking for a company that compensates them with higher pay and/or benefits. Last but not least, a negative company culture. A toxic or unhealthy company culture can be a major deterrent for employees. If they feel like they are not a good fit with the company’s values or culture, or if they are experiencing harassment or discrimination, they may decide to leave in search of a more positive work environment. So, it’s important for businesses to understand the common reasons that employees leave and to make an effort to address these issues in order to retain top talent and maintain a productive and satisfied workforce.

How Businesses can Retain their Employees

Retaining top employees is important for businesses of all sizes, as it can help to reduce costs associated with hiring and training new employees, as well as improve overall productivity and morale. Here are some strategies that businesses can use to encourage team members to stay:

Offer competitive compensation and benefits. Employees want to feel like they are being fairly compensated for their hard work. Offering competitive salaries, bonuses, and benefits can help to keep employees satisfied and motivated to stay with a company.
Foster a positive company culture. A positive company culture can be a major factor in employee retention. Creating a culture that is respectful and supportive can help employees feel more invested in their work and more likely to stay with a company.
Provide opportunities for career advancement. Employees want to feel like they are growing and developing within a company. Offering opportunities for advancement, such as training and development programs, can help to keep employees motivated and engaged.
Encourage work-life balance. A demanding or inflexible work schedule can be a major turn-off for employees. Encouraging a healthy work-life balance, such as through flexible scheduling, hybrid, or WFH options, can help to keep employees satisfied and less likely to look for new opportunities.
Show appreciation and recognition. Employees want to feel like their hard work is being noticed and appreciated. Regularly thanking and recognizing employees for their contributions can help to build a positive and supportive work environment that encourages employees to stay on board.
Foster open and transparent communication. Employees want to feel like they are in the loop and that their opinions are valued. Encouraging open and transparent communication, such as through regular check-ins and feedback sessions, can help employees feel more connected to the company and more likely to stay.

Overall, the key to retaining employees is to create a supportive and positive work environment that recognizes and values their contributions. By implementing these strategies, businesses can encourage team members to stay and foster a productive and satisfied workforce. How else can businesses prevent employees from leaving or proactively encourage them to stay? Please feel free to share your thoughts and experience so others can benefit! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

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Employee Collaboration is Facing Real Challenges, but Your Business Doesn’t have to Suffer

December 13, 2022 No Comments

A recent Harvard Business Review study found that nearly forty percent (39%) of employees report their coworkers don’t collaborate enough. There are several reasons for this, but whatever the causes, it’s very important to address this issue when it arises in order to get the most out of any team. If poor collaboration continues to persist, it will do real damage to a company – no matter how big or small. So, it’s critical to take action right away. Otherwise, it could very well unleash deleterious effects that just may be irreversible. The Consequences of Poor Employee Collaboration When employees are not collaborating effectively, it can lead to duplication of efforts, miscommunications, and confusion. This can result in employees spending more time trying to figure out what their coworkers are doing, rather than focusing on their own tasks. As a result, overall productivity can suffer. Employees who are not able to work well with others may become frustrated, leading to lower morale among the team. This can also create a toxic work environment, leading to high levels of absenteeism and turnover. It goes without saying that when your employees work together, they’ll be more effective. Not only can people accomplish more as a group, a collaborative atmosphere could motivate employees to do more. But if you feel like employees aren’t cooperating as well as they should, there could be a hidden problem brewing under the surface. —American Express Effective collaboration is crucial for innovation. When employees are not able to work well together, it can stifle creativity and prevent the development of new ideas. This can make it difficult for businesses to stay competitive in a rapidly changing marketplace. Poor collaboration can lead to mistakes, delays, and other issues that can impact the quality of the product or service that a business provides. This can lead to dissatisfaction among customers, who may take their business elsewhere. How to Encourage Better Workplace Collaboration among Employees Collaboration is crucial for success in today’s business world. When employees are able to work well together, it can lead to higher productivity, improved morale, and greater innovation. However, fostering collaboration among employees is not always easy. Here are a few tips for encouraging better workplace collaboration: Provide the right tools. In order for employees to collaborate effectively, they need the right tools. This may include project management software, group messaging platforms, and online collaboration tools. By providing the right tools, you can make it easier for employees to communicate and share ideas. Encourage open communication. Open communication is key for effective collaboration. Encourage employees to speak up and share their ideas, even if they are not sure if they are “right”. By creating an environment where it is okay to ask questions and share ideas, you can foster collaboration. Create a collaborative culture. Collaboration should be a core value of your business. Make sure that this value is reflected in your company culture, and encourage employees to work together to achieve common goals. Provide training and support. Collaboration is a skill that can be learned and developed. Consider providing training and support to help employees improve their collaboration skills. This may include workshops, mentoring programs, and other resources. Recognize and reward collaboration. Finally, don’t forget to recognize and reward collaboration. When employees work together to achieve a common goal, make sure to recognize their efforts. This can be as simple as a shout-out in a team meeting, or something more formal like a team-building event or award. By following these tips, you can encourage better workplace collaboration among your employees. This will help to improve productivity, morale, and innovation at your business. What else can businesses do to foster and improve employee collaboration? Please take a few minutes to share your own thoughts and experiences so others can benefit from your input! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.

Stop Enforcing These Dumb Office Rules That Make People Quit

September 6, 2017 No Comments

If you want success, you’ve got to stop doing certain things. And, these include enforcing dumb office rules. Let’s face it, there are a number of do’s and don’ts in the workplace we all seem to recognize as unnecessary. But, for some strange reason, we follow tradition — even when it’s doesn’t really make sense. Giving into the “ways it’s always been notion” simply hinders us in different ways. Okay, rules are fundamental in business but too many rules stifles your employees. 5 Most Hated Office Rules that Drive Employees Crazy Think about it this way — more freedom means more business. Put another way, the more rules applied, the less freedom your team members enjoy. That’s simply creates artificial barriers they must overcome. Which means, it’s a waste of time (and ultimately money) and that’s not going to propel your business forward. When there are less rules, there’s more enthusiasm. Fewer rules also means more creativity. Companies need to have rules—that’s a given—but they don’t have to be shortsighted and lazy attempts at creating order. When companies create ridiculous and demoralizing rules to halt the outlandish behavior of a few individuals, it’s a management problem. There’s no sense in alienating your entire workforce because you don’t know how to manage performance. It makes a bad situation that much worse. —Entrepreneur Now, there are reasonable rules. It might apply to workplace social media use. Or, about limiting overtime. But, there are probably at least a few rules that your employees hate. These cause unnecessary stress and can easily become too overwhelming. If rules are stringent enough, you might lose good talent. Obviously, you need to retain the best talent and attract more. But some rules will make that quite problematic to achieve. Here are five of the most hated office rules that drive employees crazy: Time off rules. We all get sick, tired, and have personal needs. So, if an employee doesn’t feel well, don’t make it a bigger burden by requiring a doctor’s note. And, be flexible. If an employee feels lying is the best way to take a personal day off, there’s something wrong. Treat your employees with respect and you’ll definitely reap the rewards. Approval rules. Try this thought experiment — every time you make a purchase decision or other kind of decision in your personal life, stop to consider how productive it would be to seek an approval. Now, there are reasonable limits but you should trust employees to do what’s in the best interest of the company. Performance rules. Performance evaluations aren’t necessarily the best use of time. In fact, there are plenty of good arguments they just drive people nuts. What’s more, these are often dreaded, boring routines. So, ask yourself if you really need performance rules to meet performance guidelines to reward someone during a performance evaluation. Internet use rules. Unless you’re dealing with super-secret information, there’s really little to no need for internet rules. Your team already knows what is and what isn’t acceptable. Give them the power to do the right thing and they’ll feel respected. On-site attendance rules. The office isn’t always the best place to get things done. Sometimes, working from home or outside the office is better. Requiring people to be in the office or on-site from this time until that time daily simply won’t produce the best results. What hated office rules have you eliminated? Which office rules do you find the most productive? Please share your thoughts and experiences by leaving a comment! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group. [shareaholic app=”follow_buttons” id=”26833294″]

I Want to Create a New Position for My Small Business – So How Do I Go about It?

September 9, 2022 No Comments

Entrepreneurs wear many, many hats. It is not at all unusual for a small business owner to perform several different roles. But, this Jack of all trades, master of none can’t go on in perpetuity. The longer it lasts, the less chance there is that the business can scale up. In order to grow a company, it’s necessary to have help and many business owners reach a point where it is unavoidable. So, they make a few hires but still continue to perform various functions until they realize that a new position will free them up to pursue their main goals. Hiring should Equal Growth It’s very common for small business owners to be nervous about their first hires. However, they eventually get past this and the team settles into a comfortable routine. This can easily result in a false sense of security and it’s not at all unusual for the owner to slip right back into or continue bad habits. If a heavy workload causes your employees to feel overwhelmed and frustrated, it may be time to add new positions to your department. Hiring an additional staff member or two can help you split tasks between employees more equitably and give employees the time they need to devote to their work. —Houston Chronicle Sure, someone has to perform those functions and the owner typically feels it is his or her responsibility. But, there comes a time when it’s clear that handing off at least some of those tasks to someone else would be very beneficial. What generally holds a business owner back is not having a clearly defined position, as they did with previous hires. Fortunately, there are some steps you can take to create a new employee position. How to Create a New Employee Position for a Small Business When it becomes obvious that you’re taking on too much, be it administrative tasks or something else, it’s time to seriously consider hiring someone to do that work for you. Here are some steps you can take in order to create a new employee position: Estimate its ROI. Before you start posting job openings, take some time to work out the most likely return on investment. Ask yourself if one or more of your current employees can assume these responsibilities. If not, then it is more likely you need to create a brand new position. Just work out a realistic scenario on how much this will add to expenses and what size return of investment you’ll get for this potential hire. Determine if it’s part or full time. Next, you’ll need to determine whether this is a part-time or full-time position. Go over your schedule and create a ballpark figure of how much time you spend on these tasks. This will give you a pretty good idea of the number of hours you’ll give over to a new employee. Plus, it will tell you how much time you gain back doing more important things. Compile a list of applicable skills. Now, you’ll need to create a list of applicable skills that a new employee would need to possess. This will also tell you if these responsibilities are truly interrelated or if they are a mixed bag. What’s more, it will point you in a more specific direction and help you to hone in on the right personality. Advertise the new position and interview potential candidates. Last but certainly not least, it’s time to fill the new position you’ve created. Write a job description that defines the role and your company’s expectations, then advertise it in trade publications, and on social media. What other suggestions do you have for an entrepreneur who is considering creating a new team member role? Please share your experiences and thoughts so others can benefit from your input! Interested in learning more about business? Then just visit Waters Business Consulting Group.