Tips for Retaining Your Best Talent

Good help is hard to find; and sometimes, it’s even harder to keep. While hiring is a huge part of the battle when it comes to building an excellent staff, figuring out ways to retain your best talent is every bit as important as you try to avoid turnover and develop a positive company culture.

What should you focus on to make sure the right people stick around? Here are our best tips for retaining your best talent.

Give positive reinforcement (and useful criticism).

Everyone likes for their hard work to be acknowledged and praised. Make sure that you are deliberate about recognizing and rewarding exceptional performance from your top talent. It will help them feel seen and appreciated, making them much more likely to want to stay with you.

At the same time, employees that care about making a difference in your company (otherwise known as the ones you want to keep around) will want to know when there’s something they need to change. Give constructive criticism when necessary so that your employees know that you care about their future success with your company.

Offer flexibility.

“Flexibility” is becoming a highly desirable perk. Employers that are too rigid in their rules and practices are likely to turn off employees, especially since they can probably find the flexibility they’re looking for elsewhere. Of course, being flexible doesn’t mean letting employees do whatever they want. Rather, it means offering wiggle room when it comes to vacation/sick days, telecommuting, or workday hours. Make a deliberate choice about what areas you want to be flexible in, and communicate them clearly to your staff. They’ll appreciate the perk, and it could go a long way toward getting them to stay put.

Get off to a good start.

First impressions are everything. When a new employee shows up for their first day, they want to see an organized, smooth-running company with a thorough and clear onboarding process. If you’re scrambling for paperwork or haven’t cleared off some desk space for your new staff member, it’s going to give them a bad impression, right off the bat. And if the onboarding process is bad enough, it may lead to a decision that your company isn’t right for them after all.

Practice Strong Communication.

It’s important that employees have open lines of communication to each other and to management. Otherwise, they’ll feel unable to accomplish their tasks effectively, and may experience some frustration with the whole organization. Keep communication channels open. Check in regularly with your employees, and allow them to express concerns or struggles as needed. Giving them a voice within the company will make them much more likely to stay.

Invest in Your Employees.

Are your employees using 10-year-old computers and sitting on chairs that are falling apart? Do they complain endlessly about the coffee machine that’s been broken for a month? These “quality of work life” things may seem small, but they can make a job at a company much more frustrating and tiresome. Invest in your employees’ happiness. Make sure they have up-to-date equipment and software. Make sure your office environment is pleasant and comfortable. Take care of problems or concerns quickly. This will show that you value your employees and care about their happiness within your company. Those investments can go a long way toward employee satisfaction.

Working towards better employee retention is an ongoing job, but it’s one that’s well worth the effort. Follow these tips to help you retain your best talent, and you’ll be able to build a staff that is just as happy with you as you are with them.

Looking for some additional staffing expertise and help? Contact EDI Staffing. We’d love to help you find and retain top talent for your various open positions. Get in touch today and see what our years of experience can do for you.