Retaining top talent is the main focus for all leaders. While many feel that the most important aspects of a great retention strategy are great benefits, flexible hours, or all for remote work, it is not necessarily any of these. Yes, they are essential pieces to the retention puzzle, but they are not the complete package.

The standard feedback loop in most organizations is antiquated. Managers usually share constructive criticism or negative feedback promptly. However, positive feedback and recognition for a job well done is held until the yearly review. Appreciation, which is not the same as recognition is nearly absent. Honestly, this system was never adequate to begin with, but in today’s work environment, it can be detrimental to an organization in regards to retention.

What is the difference between recognition and appreciation?

Recognition is what we associate with yearly reviews. It is when the leader reviews a person’s past performance. The feedback, usually positive but may include improvement opportunities, often results in a raise or bonus. The emphasis on recognition is more about what a person has done in the past.

Appreciation focuses less on past performance and what a person has done and more the person as an individual. When showing appreciation, you are acknowledging their inherent value to the team and organization.

Many organizations have begun to integrate more frequent feedback loops to increase recognition and course-correct team members to help them realize their yearly goals. Managers are more open to scheduling regular one-on-one meetings with their staff and have even implemented peer recognition rituals. Frequent feedback is a significant first step.

The big missing piece is appreciation. Appreciation shows your team members that you see who they are as a person and hear what they have to say. It shows them that they are more than a number, more than a cog in the wheel of the organization. People not only want to know that they are doing a good job; they want to see value for what they put into their performance. That is the crucial distinction between recognition and appreciation that absent in the review process.

Showing appreciation is not tricky. A simple check-in with your team members, asking them how they are doing, not concerning a specific project, but how are they in and out of work. Ask them about what is challenging them in a good or bad way. Share with them what you value about them. It could be their calm demeanor when dealing with a challenging client, or how they are not afraid to learn a new skill so they can do their job better.

Toxic bosses are one of the most common reasons people leave companies. These managers tend to be viewed as self-oriented, stubborn, overly demanding, impulsive, and interruptive. In addition to impacting retention, working for a bad boss increases the chance of a heart attack by fifty percent. Sixty-five percent of managers admit that they need to work on their leadership skills. Great communication skills can help many issues between leaders and teams. Keep reading to learn how to lead with great communication.

Effective communication between leaders and teams is the key to a great working relationship. Leaders need to be coach, delegator, and public relations for their staff. Often managers can become distracted by their own workloads, leaving their team members feeling like they have been left behind. Left unchecked, leaders can stress and potentially turn in to a toxic boss.

Providing transparency is one of the most important things leaders can do to be a great communicator. Giving credit where credit is due and speaking highly of your team will show that you care about your staff. Along with transparency, a great leader will have confidence in their teams. They will guide them when needed, but not micromanage daily work and projects.

Trust and confidence is a two-way street and needs to be fostered on a regular basis. Conversations with your staff do not need to be work-related. Take the time to learn more about your team as individuals with interests outside of work. In turn, share some of your interests. It is important to be friendly, but not so friendly that it creates awkwardness or a division within your staff.

Communication breakdowns between leaders and teams can occur when staff does not feel as though they are being heard. The two most damaging words a leader can say to their teams are “not possible”. These two words can easily break the spirit of an employee, ruin relationships, or even challenge the employee to prove you wrong. Leaders should be the visionary conduit for their teams. They can allow employees to imagine what is possible and help focus on what it will take to implement their ideas.

Being a great communicator can make the difference in being viewed as a strong and approachable leader or a toxic boss. Maintaining transparency, having trust and confidence in your team, and allowing your team to come to you with new ideas or solutions to problems will allow you to lead with enhanced skills in communication.

Bad hires are a lot like buyer’s remorse.  At the time it seemed to be a really great investment.  Days, weeks, or even months later, regret sets in.  Both the organization and the employee can experience this regret.  The corrective action that takes place is the difference between a bump in the road and a complete disaster.  Read on to learn why creating a “refund” policy can benefit both you and the employee.

There is no such thing as a perfect hire.  Every person entering a new role requires time to acclimate to the position.  Some training is not only necessary, but an important part of the on-boarding process.  When all is said and done, as much as 46 percent of new hires fail in the first 18 months.   Fifty percent of hiring organizations and new hires regret their decision.  Holding on to a weak hires can become a disaster if not dealt with in a timely manner.

Unhappy new hires and even disgruntled employees can become a cancer in a company.  Identification and corrective action needs to occur as soon as possible to contain the issue.  These employees soak up time and resources when managers try, many times in vain, to train, retrain and coach them up to speed.  It is very likely that a bad hire or disgruntled employee will not get any better. 

Frustration amongst current team members is perhaps one of the worst effects of a bad hire.  Constantly having to help new hires or pick up the slack when the new hire fails or “checked out” disgruntled employee underperforms is an immediate turnoff to top talent.  The last thing any organization wants to do is drive away top-performers. 

There are three approaches to identify and release bad hires and dissatisfied employees.

•   Create a six-month “refund” policy – After six months the organization can offer a modest severance and good reference if the poor performing hire agrees to resign.  If this is accepted, the employee signs away their right to sue.  Some companies will allow the employee who refuses this deal to stay on for a defined period of time, up to one year. If at that time there is no improvement, the employee is released without severance or reference.

•   On-boarding – An extended on-boarding process that is highly structured is a great way to identify poor-performers.  New hires should be assigned a mentor to help facilitate the training process.  At the end of this initial training period, companies can take a page from Zappos and PAY under performers to resign.  Another approach used at Whole Foods is to have the team vote if the new hire is a strong enough member.  This approach works best when there are team-based performance incentives.

•   Encourage dissatisfied employees to move on – Dissatisfied employees can be just as harmful to an organization as a bad hire.  In fact, they can convert a good hire into a bad hire.  Negativity, absenteeism or general “checking out” of their work is something that needs to be addressed quickly.  It could be in the best interest of the organization to encourage the employee to move on, even if they are performing well.

There is no such thing as a perfect hiring process.  Sometimes candidates are misjudged during the interview process.  Making certain reference checks are performed to help detect possible issues is one of the best preventatives.  In the end, despite some of the best plans and preparation, bad hires still happen.  Having a process to work with them will be the difference between a learning opportunity and having a poor-performer in the organization for an extended period of time. 

There are great employees that come to work on time, get the work done, and are generally a joy to work with.  There are less-than-great employees who come in late or leave early, consistently miss deadlines and require lots of managerial oversight.  Determining the costs between these two types of employees can, and should, be done in order to make informed talent decisions.  Read on to learn how.

One of the biggest problems in talent management is managing poor-performing employees.  While one bad apple may not spoil the entire team, several bad apples can be disastrous. 

Knowing the true costs of employees is key to talent management.  It also helps with the organization’s overall productivity and revenue.

There are four easy steps in calculating an employee’s monetary worth.

1.      Determine the Average Employee Worth (AEW) – This number is calculated by dividing the total revenue of the department or organization by the total number of employees.  For example, a design team of 5 with a revenue of $600,000 equals an AEW of $120,000.

2.      Determine the Weak Performer Differential – Compare the AEW to each employee’s actual revenue.  This will create a best to worst ranking for each department.  It will also show how strong the strongest are versus how weak the weakest are in terms of performance. 

3.      Determine other costs – This includes other performance considerations such as absenteeism, missed deadlines, employee attitude, errors and theft.  These considerations may vary based on the job. 

4.      Determine if weak performers can be made into strong performers – Many times weak performers can improve quickly and easily through coaching, retraining, and frequent performance evaluations.  This strategy can be employed for 6-12 months to determine if the employee is improving.  Other times, weak performers are simply draining time, morale, and revenue from an organization.  The hard decision to release the employee will need to be made.

When an organization learns the true worth of their staff, everyone benefits.  Strong employees are validated through data.  Weaker employees can be encouraged to improve.  The weakest employees can be released if that is the best option for the organization. 

In our next article we will explore ways to manage those employees who are simply not working out.

A Swedish study showed a decrease in heart attacks in people with better bosses.  Becoming a better leader is not difficult, but takes dedication to continuous improvement.  Read on for five steps to increasing your leadership skills – It could save a life!

People are the foundation of all successful businesses.  Those people look to their leaders for direction and inspiration.  Unfortunately, not all leaders are created equal.  Effective management techniques can be taught in a classroom, but it is not until one is in the position of leading a team that those skills are put to use.  Translating book knowledge into real world experience is not easy, especially when you add the human factor of employees. 

Even the most tenured leaders need to spend time honing their craft.  The result is a happier, more engaged and trusting team.  Becoming a better boss will benefit everyone involved. 

There are five steps to increasing leadership skills.

1.     Treat others as you wish to be treated.  This basic moral is the mantra of all great leaders.  To gain respect, you need to give it.  Compliment team members in front of the group.  Focus on positives instead of complaining about negatives.  Solicit feedback from the team on solutions to problems.  Most importantly, don’t be a bully!  Nine out of ten people have dealt with a bully boss.  Over time others in and out of the group will begin to mirror this behavior, which will have a dramatic effect on the office culture.

2.     Don’t be afraid to break a sweat.  Too many managers hide away in their offices delegating behind closed doors.  Jumping in to help with a project proves to the team that they are not alone.  It also shows that they are not asked to do something that a manager would not do themselves.

3.     Get to know each person as an individual.  Show an interest in them personally and professionally.  What are their goals?  Passions?  Finding a mutual interest can help open up the lines of communication and gain trust.  Once a rapport is fostered, focus on their career.  Encourage new learning opportunities.  Let them know that they have a future at the organization.

4.     Provide useful feedback.  Insecure employees are less productive.  Sharing frequent feedback allows the team to know if they are on target, or need to regroup before proceeding.

5.     Invest in yourself.  Leaders can suffer from low morale and burnout if they do not practice what they preach.  Attending seminars, taking free or paid online classes or simply watching TED talks can help with both personal and professional development.

Great leaders make certain they are someone worth looking up to.  They do not have hidden agendas and continuously strive to better themselves.  In our next installment, we continue this discussion with a look at how trust impacts performance.

While many are cultivating their gardens at home, teams need to be cultivated at the office.  Discovering hidden talents in your staff or candidates is much like finding an unexpected daisy in your row of tomato plants. 

Recognizing talent in new and existing employees is an essential skill for managers at every level.  This is not just the ability to read between the lines on a resume.  It is the ability to recognize and draw out hidden skills and talents in your staff.  To effectively learn this skill, one must retrain how they view their staff and potential candidates. 

The conventional management thought process is the biggest barrier to discovering hidden talents.  Existing staff and new hires are typically pigeonholed from day one.  A person is hired for a specific job that possesses a specific skill set with specific tasks.  They might be part of a team with their role in that team also determined by their job description.  Since this has been determined since day one, management tends to only see this employee or the position in this manner.

To bring out the best in your talent, you need to spend time learning more about them.  Watch how they approach and work through a task.  See how they interact with others in the office.  Take note of how their workspace is set up and kept.  Looking beyond an employee in a job position and seeing them as a person, can shed new light.

Neale Donald Walsch said “Life begins at the end of your comfort zone.”  This is especially true when it comes to interacting with current and potential employees.  It is human nature to interact primarily with others that are most like you.  We tend to avoid prolonged interactions with people who we feel have radically different views.

By stepping out of your comfort zone and really seeing past your biases, you may find that those with differing views or traits have the most to offer.  Cultivating an appreciation for those who are different from you will help in all aspects of your professional and personal life.  This is not easy, but it is achievable if you learn to listen with an open mind.  You may be surprised to find that the employee or candidate that you avoided happens to be your best talent.

The attraction of like minds does not only go for one-on-one interactions.  Teams also seem to be comprised of several people who have the same work style or thought processes.  This can make for an effective team dynamic, but sometimes it’s good to mix things up.  Look for ways to bring people together who do not normally work together.  Introduce unlikely combinations of staff through an office social event or informal meeting.  Keeping it informal at first allows all involved a chance to get to know each other in a relaxed setting. 

Cultivating talent does not require a green thumb.  It requires you to slow down and really see your current staff and potential candidates.  By looking past perceived deficiencies and seeing only strengths, you can more effectively draw out hidden talents.  This way of managing will increase employee satisfaction and retention, while giving a whole new outlook on your team.

A Swedish study showed a decrease in heart attacks in people with better bosses.  Becoming a better leader is not difficult, but takes dedication to continuous improvement.  Read on for five steps to increasing your leadership skills – It could save a life!

People are the foundation of all successful businesses.  Those people look to their leaders for direction and inspiration.  Unfortunately, not all leaders are created equal.  Effective management techniques can be taught in a classroom, but it is not until one is in the position of leading a team that those skills are put to use.  Translating book knowledge into real world experience is not easy, especially when you add the human factor of employees. 

Even the most tenured leaders need to spend time honing their craft.  The result is a happier, more engaged and trusting team.  Becoming a better boss will benefit everyone involved. 

There are five steps to increasing leadership skills.

1.     Treat others as you wish to be treated.  This basic moral is the mantra of all great leaders.  To gain respect, you need to give it.  Compliment team members in front of the group.  Focus on positives instead of complaining about negatives.  Solicit feedback from the team on solutions to problems.  Most importantly, don’t be a bully!  Nine out of ten people have dealt with a bully boss.  Over time others in and out of the group will begin to mirror this behavior, which will have a dramatic effect on the office culture.

2.     Don’t be afraid to break a sweat.  Too many managers hide away in their offices delegating behind closed doors.  Jumping in to help with a project proves to the team that they are not alone.  It also shows that they are not asked to do something that a manager would not do themselves.

3.     Get to know each person as an individual.  Show an interest in them personally and professionally.  What are their goals?  Passions?  Finding a mutual interest can help open up the lines of communication and gain trust.  Once a rapport is fostered, focus on their career.  Encourage new learning opportunities.  Let them know that they have a future at the organization.

4.     Provide useful feedback.  Insecure employees are less productive.  Sharing frequent feedback allows the team to know if they are on target, or need to regroup before proceeding.

5.     Invest in yourself.  Leaders can suffer from low morale and burnout if they do not practice what they preach.  Attending seminars, taking free or paid online classes or simply watching TED talks can help with both personal and professional development.

Great leaders make certain they are someone worth looking up to.  They do not have hidden agendas and continuously strive to better themselves.  In our next installment, we continue this discussion with a look at how trust impacts performance.

Employee engagement is a company’s biggest asset.  Engaged employees are more productive, produce engaged customers, therefore increasing profits.  Engagement is not synonymous with satisfaction.  While an engaged employee can also be satisfied.  A satisfied employee is not always engaged.

Employees that are willing to go above and beyond their job description are engaged.  They are the ones who come in early and stay late to make certain a project is completed on time.  Satisfied employees are simply content with their work, environment and benefits.  They will consistently meet expectations, but do not exhibit passion for their work.  Transforming the satisfied to engaged can have a HUGE effect on retention. 

There are many factors that increase both satisfaction and engagement.  The most obvious is salary.  While a pay raise may increase satisfaction and possibly engagement.  Any boosts seen in productivity or attitude are temporary. 

There are two BIG ways to increase engagement without pay raises.  According to a 2013 Bless White study, 25 percent of employees felt that they would be more satisfied with their position if they had a better relationship with their manager.  Communication with team members is the most important factor to engagement.  Through frequent communication both with the team as a whole and individually, one can learn what motivates and fulfills their staff at work.

In the same study, five percent would also feel more engaged if they had more development and training opportunities.  Investing in the development of the team is really a reinvestment in the business.  These opportunities will allow staff to learn new skills, improve upon skills already learned and perhaps rekindle passions that have been lost in the day-to-day tasks.  New passions may also emerge.

Development does not always have to be in a classroom or conference setting.  Allowing for collaboration between team members or teams from different departments can be even more beneficial.  Collaboration allow for cross training, sharing of resources and serendipitous learning.

Development opportunities are wasted if the team member is not able to put those skills to use.  A newly engaged or re-engaged employee will quickly lose momentum if they are not able to utilize the new skills learned or implement new ideas.  It is important to keep lines of communication open, especially after training.  Checking in with the team after training will allow for an open discussion about the learning and possibly reshape the individual or team goals.

To convert the satisfied to engaged or keep the engaged from losing their spark, it is important to have continuous communication and allow for development both in and out of structured settings.  We will conclude this series by focusing on retention through re-recruiting.

Learning why an employee is leaving your organization for another is essential to any talent management program.  This week we discuss two of the main reasons why people leave.  While this may seem like common knowledge, it never hurts to review the basics.

Employee turnover rates are climbing and are projected to continue to do so over the next decade.  Much of this turnover is due to younger workers replacing those who are retiring.  Generation X (born between 1965 and 1980) and Generation Y (born between the early 1980’s and early 1990’s) tend to change jobs more frequently.  This trait poses a challenge to any organization’s retention efforts.     

The best defense is a good offense.  That offense is to understand why people are leaving.  There are a wide variety of specific reasons why employees resign.  The best way to determine specific reasons is through exit interviews conducted after the person has left their position.  Delaying the exit interview minimizes emotional responses, especially if the departure was due to a conflict.

In the majority of organizations, when reviewing exit interview data, there is usually an underlying theme of management. Data shows repeatedly that:  People don’t leave companies, they leave managers/supervisors and the overall work environment! 

The most common reasons that have to do with management include:

• Lack of training
• Poor supervision
• Conflicts with management and/or other team members
• Management/employee mismatch

Conflicts are one of the biggest catalysts for turnover.  It is also one that can be contained if acted upon quickly.  Many times it takes just one or two Difficult Employee types to decrease morale thus creating a negative work environment.  With upwards of 50 hours per week spent at work, atmosphere is everything. 

Salary is also a primary reason for turnover.  There is a “salary sweet-spot” of $80,000-100,000 that sees the least amount of turnover.  Those above and below this are more likely to leave due to salary.  Employees below the sweet-spot feel undervalued and will move on to a position that pays what they feel they are worth.  Those above the sweet-spot simply have more options, especially in high demand fields.

Employee turnover directly impacts an organization’s bottom line.  Issues with management and salary are only two of the most common reasons why employees move on.  Many times organizations realize there is a problem when it is too late.  In our next article we will reveal how to use predictive analytics in talent management.

Cultivating an environment that motivates a team is very difficult if you have no idea who’s on your team.  There are four very distinct types of employees in your organization.  Each has unique reasons for working and motivations.  Understanding these will allow you to create retention strategies that work.

It is estimated that the global rate of employee turnover will increase from 20.6% to 23.4% in the next five years.  It is important to understand why employees leave, how to predict who’s next, and what can be done to increase retention.  Over the next five articles we will address all of this and more.  Let’s begin with taking a look at different types of employees.

There are four primary types of employees present in today’s workplace.  Understanding their unique behaviors and motivation are key in cultivating an environment that is focused on engagement and retention.

The Payday Employee (50% of staff) – This person comes to work each day simply to collect a paycheck.  They will perform their duties and tasks to an acceptable level, but will not strive to go above and beyond.  Engagement can be difficult, but possible.  The key is to communicate the goals of the project and/or purpose of the work and how they correlate with the company’s mission.

The Difficult Employee (20% of staff) – This is the hard to manage person who can quickly destroy office morale.  They rarely meet expectations, but do perform well enough that terminating them is a challenge.  Engagement is extremely difficult.  The best tactic is to listen to their concerns and make them aware of their potential.

The Committed Employee (20% of staff) – This employee is a leader’s dream.  They come in early and stay late.  While they are very passionate about their work and the organization, they can become bored or burnt out quickly.  Providing a variety of tasks and opportunities for growth will help keep this team member engaged.

The Self-Interested Employee (10% of staff) –   This team member will often meet or exceed expectations, but is not engaged.  Their focus is on their personal agenda which shows in a lack of respect for colleagues.  They embody the term “does not work well with others”.  Pointing out how their individual performance is directly connected to the team’s results can help leverage their self-interest for the greater good.  Challenging them to help create a purpose-driven team can help combat respect issues.

By understanding the different types of employees in the workplace, organizations can begin to develop retention plans that will be speak to their individual motivations.  Watch for our next article where we discuss how to predict if an employee is going to resign.