According to new research by the CIPD Good Work Index, over 6.5 million people in the UK are considering leaving their jobs in the next year. Employee turnover can lead to issues with productivity and efficiency within the company. It can also be an indicator of problematic areas within your company which you might need to pay attention to.
While 23% are looking to leave for a change in career, a larger percentage of workers are looking to move due to a range of workplace factors.
Here, we will explore changes your company can make to retain your employees.
Start off strong
The employment journey is a long one which starts with recruitment. Making sure you are recruiting the right people for the job can help with employee retention. Hiring the right person for a team can help create synergy and productivity within your company. However, hiring the wrong candidate can negatively affect the team – which could lead to resignations. If you are going to hire enthusiasm over experience, it is important to have a good training scheme in place to help your new recruits settle in. Nearly 59% of employees claimed to have received no training at all within their roles. By establishing a training scheme in each of your company’s teams, you can help new recruits get the most out of their job role quickly.
Choosing candidates with the right experience and enthusiasm for the role can help maintain retention. Using recruitment software can help your HR department effectively select candidates, comparing the abilities, experiences, and soft skills of each candidate across the board.
Starting off strong also includes having effective orientation and onboarding programs in place to welcome new recruits. The Society of Human Resource Management found that 69% of employees who experiences a good onboarding scheme were more likely to remain in their role for three years or more. Among other things, a good onboarding procedure is tailored to new recruits and their job descriptions, allows time for the recruit to meet their teammates, and is simple so that it doesn’t become overwhelming.
Development schemes
Development schemes are another way to encourage employee retention within your company. Allowing your employees to expand within their roles can help maintain worker morale, as well as satisfaction within their job role. CIPD found that 27% of workers want increased satisfaction within their jobs.
A strong culture of education within a company can lead retention rates to rise by 30–50%. Managing a strong development scheme can establish your company as an employee-conscious business. By encouraging personal and professional growth, your employees won’t see their role as a dead-end, but rather as something to progress in. 18% of employees planned to quit their job due to boredom, so providing development opportunities across a broad range of subjects and sectors can help reduce the issue of role stagnation leading to resignation.
Company culture
Another factor which can contribute towards increased employee retention is company culture. Not only can a good company culture help manage retention, but a high turnover of employees can also negatively impact company culture. Research conducted by Wiley Edge has found that 22% of long-term employees have left due to changing company culture, with the same percentage of organisations finding a rise in toxic culture within the workplace.
A good company culture depends on multiple things. Management must be approachable. Your workplace should also encourage teamwork, focusing on the involvement of all levels across the business. A good work culture takes care of your employees. Your company should prioritise employee well-being and establish healthy work practices. Another Wiley Edge survey found that younger employees were more likely to stay at a job if they worked with supportive management and colleagues (54%) and experienced a culture that matches company values (44%). So managing your workplace environment is important for the retention of employees. 46% of repondents also claimed they would consider remaining longer at their job if they had a socially active team, so encouraging communication and team bonding can actually help your company.
Work-life balance
Something which has grown more popular among workers in the last few years is a desire for a work-life balance. By managing flexible working hours and arrangements, you can increase your company’s employee retention rates. Employee burnout can lead to an increase in resignation rates as over one-third of employees have quit a job due to stress. And with 46% of employees claiming to have extreme stress levels due to their work, it is more important than ever to recognise signs of burnout in order to maintain employee retention.
Offering flexible working times and arrangements, including hybrid and remote working, can encourage staff to stay in their role. Not only does it help reduce stress, with 39% of employees claiming working flexibly helped their mental health, but it can also increase employee productivity. Airtasker found that by allowing flexible work arrangements, employees worked an average of 1.4 extra days per month.
High rates of employee turnover can be detrimental for any business as it increases onboarding and recruitment costs while reducing productivity across the company. Employee retention is crucial for the progression of your company, and the loss of skilled workers can result in productivity issues for the entire business. By focusing on your company culture, healthy work habits, and effective training and onboarding programmes, you can increase the likelihood of employee loyalty.