Retaining quality staff is an issue that all businesses struggle with at some point. Even the best leaders have been faced with the struggle of retaining top talent. The loss of staff is becoming normalised, with many hiring managers desensitised to the negative impact it has on a company.

High staff turnover is problematic for a number of reasons – each staff member lost is costing the company huge sums of money; it has a negative impact on employee morale; and it decreases employee productivity and efficiency over time.

Unfortunately, there is no cure all solution to staff turnover. It’s a multifaceted issue that needs to be addressed in a number of ways and over time.   The good news is, we have some ideas.

First, let’s look at the way staff turnover effects businesses.

From a monetary perspective, the cost is steep indeed. A study conducted in 2015 by Price Waterhouse Coopers found that of 11 developed countries, Australia had the highest staff turnover within the first 12 months of employment, costing the Australian economy an estimated $3.8 billion. The results showed that nearly one quarter of new employees left their job within the first 12 months. This number is staggering, especially when you consider the low margins that most Australian businesses are operating with. This rate of turnover is literally killing businesses.

There is good news, however – one of the contributing factors to this high turnover is Australia’s relatively low unemployment rate. Low unemployment creates an environment of candidate choice, i.e. employees have options. This makes it more important than ever to foster a workplace that attracts and retains quality staff. The question is, how?

The first step to retaining staff is knowing your employees and the type of candidates you want to attract. You need to know who your top performing staff are and what makes them a top performer. This becomes particularly important when you’re trying to fill a position internally. One of the most common mistakes we see from hiring managers is not know the job they’re hiring for and/or the skills required to be successful in this job. Management profession Talya Bauer from Portland University found three things made a big different to new staff retention, and the first was the clarity of the role. If the role you’re hiring for is not clear to your new hire, you’re increasing the potential for misunderstandings in the role and thus turnover. Employees need to know exactly what the is expected from them and what the role entails on a day to day basis and beyond. Read our guide on developing a clear job description here.

Once you’ve identified your key performers, their skills, and developed a clear job description, you should have a clear understanding of what you’re looking for in future employees and begin targeting their wants/needs in your staff attraction & retention strategies. When developing these strategies, it’s important to understand your employees’ motivations . It’s easy to assume that employees are motivated by money first and foremost, but in reality this is rarely the case.

Click here to read more on identifying employee motivations.

The second thing that Bauer identifies as crucial to new staff retention is confidence in their ability to do the job. This starts with clear onboarding & induction process when they start with the company. It’s estimated that up to 20% of employee turnover happens in the first 45 days, and that 69% of employees are more likely to stay with a company for 3+ years if they experience a great onboarding process.

Why does the onboarding process make such a difference?

We’ve all been there – you’ve left your old job, leaving behind a place you know, people you know, perhaps even close friends. The first day at a new job is nerve-wrecking, meeting everyone is overwhelming, and the fear of the unknown is terrifying. All this stress can be lessened by a great onboarding process, and that process isn’t limited to a new employee’s first day.

Prior to their start date, ensure that you have ready all the tools they will need. Ensure they have a working computer, their emails are setup, they have a direct line ready, a keycard etc. There’s little more off putting than realising your new employer is completely ill prepared for your first day!

Speaking of, the first day is when your new employee needs to connect with their new team & senior management. The little things count for a lot here – a small welcome gift with a handwritten card; hiring manager meeting them at reception personally; taking them & the team out for lunch; assigning them a buddy for their first week while they settle in, etc. Making a new employee feel welcome and part of the team on their first day will go a long way in keeping them onboard long term.

Ensuring that your new employee feels welcomed and prepared on their first day and in the coming weeks will make a huge difference in terms of their longevity. It’s important to develop a clear onboarding process, with hiring managers and senior staff as involved as possible.

Read more about great onboarding processes and how to implement them here.

This starts during the onboarding process and should continue throughout your employee’s tenure with the company.

Part of your onboarding plan & process should include training on basic things such as your using email program, how to claim expenses, using the CRM systems, lodging IT issues, etc. Avoid leaving your new employees confused or in the dark about company processes, as it only adds unnecessary stress.

Moreover, senior managers should invest in their employee’s professional development and seek opportunities for them to grow. If an employee reaches a point where they can no longer be trained or develop their skills, then they have reached an impasse that will likely result in them leaving the company. Understand your employees’ short and long term goals to determine how you can help achieve them. Training and development initiatives can take several forms and include everything from attending conferences, or industry events, or tuition reimbursement.

Investing in your employee’s development not only benefits the company from a retention perspective, but it also results in more skilled staff overall, which is never a bad thing!

Similarly, employee’s want the opportunity to advance their career and position, and if they can’t find that in your organisation, they will go elsewhere. Employers need to be able to offer their employees something to aim for, particularly for high performing staff, as they tend to be more ambitious generally.

According to research from Willis Towers Watson, a leading global advisory working on risk solutions for companies, more than 70% of employees of employees considered to be high-risk for retention are itching to leave due to lack of career progression opportunities in their current workplace. No one wants to work in a dead-end job, and if they can’t advance their career at your company, it’s a smart move for them to leave. It’s not a lack of loyalty or lack of appreciation – this is their career and they need to be smart about this in the same way you need to be smart about your business.

Offering your employees training & further educational opportunities is one way to avoid this, even if there are no immediate opportunities for advancement within the company.

“People work for money but go the extra mile for recognition, praise, and rewards”. This age old adage by Dale Carnegie still holds true, and should be considered in any employee retention strategy. Job satisfaction is comprised of many things, and it does differ from person to person, however there is no arguing that every employee wants to feel valued and respected.

This is where workplace recognition comes in. It’s crucial that companies recognise their employees when they go above and beyond, have a win, or even do something as simple as helping a colleague. Many companies and senior managers make the mistake of noticing failures and forgetting to recognise wins, creating an environment of shaming and negativity. This isn’t an environment in which high performing staff will want to stay. Recognising employees doesn’t mean throwing money at them either, it can be as simple as pulling them into a meeting to commend them on their efforts; offering them an early leave on a Friday; taking them out to a nice lunch; or buying them a drink at the next work function. Recognition comes in many forms, and it’s up to you how you choose to show it, just make sure you are doing it, or your staff won’t stick around for very long.

Company culture should be at the core of any staff retention plan. Everything mentioned in this post works toward fostering a culture and environment in which people want to work in. However, culture is deeper than just these things – it’s the heart and mind of an organisation. From the people you employee, to the way you motivate, to the attitude of your senior managers, all this and more makes up the company culture.

This is something that takes time & effort, and must be cultivated from the top down. If your senior staff aren’t invested in creating a positive company culture, you will struggle to create it at all. It’s crucial to hire senior staff who are going to care about the company and it’s employees, and who had to the positive environment you’re creating.

Moreover, foster an environment that is employee centric, sending a clear message that your employees are important. Nothing creates a great culture & environment like simply caring. It seems too simple to be true, but if a company is genuinely invested in the well-being of it’s employees, the employees will notice and appreciate it, and it will go a long way in keeping high performing staff.

Moreover, discourage an environment of gossip, closed doors, and covert conversations. A positive work environment should consist of transparency. This isn’t always possible, however being as honest and open with your staff will prevent an environment prone to gossip & rumours, which can quickly sew discord among staff.

Unfortunately there is no one quick fix to reducing staff turnover. It will take time & effort, and you will need to get to know your staff (the horror!). However, the benefits of implementing a staff retention strategy are invaluable. From decreasing company costs to creating happier, more productive staff, the value cannot be overstated.