Strategies for Retaining Top Talent in Your Company

We recently conducted a poll on LinkedIn, where we asked the question: Which outcome from your recruitment process are you most keen to improve? Both "Increase the Retention of Recruits" and "Reducing Time-to-Hire" received around 45% of responses each.

In this blog, we will explore five ways in which you can improve your employee retention, and will shortly be releasing another guide detailing how you can reduce your time-to-hire.

Employee retention is challenging in the current market. Organisations that are thriving have worked hard in retaining top talent having realised they needed to take action and have done so.

Create a Great On-Boarding Process

Whether your business has returned full-time to the office, decided to operate a permanent WFH model, has employees split their time between the office and home, or operates a work-from-anywhere policy, getting your on-boarding right is key.

Firstly, ensure your new employee has the technology in place for them to be able to do their job. For example, in the past, I have started a new position where on Day 1, I didn’t have a computer, email address, or phone number set up and ready to go. My first day was spent trying to speak with the IT Department to get this all set up.

If your employee is going to be based in your office, make sure they have a designated area where they can work. Again, I have been in a situation where I had to tidy an area myself. It really isn’t a great first impression for a new employee.

The first week is a daunting time for new employees. Many question during these early days whether or not they have made the right decision in joining your business. A great idea here is to set up either in-person or video meetings with some of the key people within your business. This gives new employees an understanding of the key stakeholders within the business. For example, I would suggest the following alongside meetings with both their direct line manager and others within their team: Managing Director, Heads of Finance, Head of HR, Marketing Director, Sales Director. Regardless of the role you have recruited into, these meetings will provide your new employee with a greater understanding and knowledge of the business. These can either be one-to-one or group sessions depending on the number of people you recruit into your business.

Be Competitive in the Market

This doesn’t mean paying more than you are able to and putting your company at financial risk.

It means taking the time to research what your competitors are doing. This could be in terms of salary, development opportunities, progression opportunities, working hours, WFH and flexible working, pension contributions, annual leave entitlement - the list is endless.

What can you improve? What can you additionally offer? What do your employees value? If you can get this right and present an improved package to your existing employees of things they value before they ask for it, this can have a fantastic boost to staff morale and will subsequently improve your employee retention. Some of this information can be tricky to locate in the public domain. A good recruitment partner will have their hand on the pulse of the market and should be able to support you in comparing your offering to others.

Provide Feedback

How do your employees know they’re doing a good job? How do your employees know they have areas for development?

Feedback is key, both for new employees and long-term servers within your business. Having regular review meetings with line managers and senior managers is a great tool to keep an open line of communication (especially if you are not all based in the same office). Setting (in partnership) objectives for the short, medium, and long term allows both employees and employers to work together to develop staff, while providing feedback on performance, attitude, etc.

Allow People to Develop (If They Want)

You have a top performer who is exceeding all of your expectations. Naturally, you don’t want to lose them from your business.

Talk to them. What do they want? Do they want to progress? Are they happy with their current responsibilities? Sometimes a promotion is “forced” upon someone who may not want the additional responsibilities. This can be as damaging (if not more so) than not providing progression opportunities for those that want it. At times, it’s simply not the right time to develop an individual within your business. It may be that there isn’t another opportunity suitable at the current time.

It is still essential you have these conversations. Can you put a plan in place to develop an individual ahead of another opportunity arising? Can you offer them a secondment? Can you create a role? This is such a key aspect of staff retention and one that is so frequently overlooked. Don’t be that business!

Acknowledge & Reward Achievements

One of my biggest frustrations within some businesses is where I see achievements going unnoticed.

Internal newsletters are a great tool to share good news from within the business and provide a foundation for successes and achievements to be recognised. You can share information on individual, team, department, and company achievements.

From an individual's perspective, seeing their personal accomplishments recognised can have an extremely positive boost and can act as a target for others to reach. From a team or departmental perspective, it can create a positive competitive environment, with teams keen to be recognised as the top performers. From an organisational perspective, sharing positive news, such as new contract wins, new starters, etc., is a great tool to provide reassurance to employees about the strategy and profitability of the organisation.

Do you believe your organisation is doing enough to retain its top talent?

• Yes
• No

Don't let employee turnover impact your business any longer. Take action now by contacting Green Orchard Recruitment. Invest in the future success of your business today!