10 Mar 2020Retaining skilled employees is essential for a business to be successful. Staff turnover can be both a costly and timely process and with the already existing skill shortage gap employers are struggling more and more to find skilled professionals to fill these roles. Prioritising the development of retention strategies is something employers will be shifting their focus towards in 2020 after studies reported the continuously increasing staff turnover rates in New Zealand. In 2018 the combined voluntary and involuntary staff turnover rate was 20.5%. This was a 9.2% increase of the 2017 results and the highest rate that has been recorded since 2008.
Recruitment
An effective way to retain your workforce is ensuring your recruitment process is accurate. Are you hiring the right person from the start? It is important you don’t rush the recruitment stage of hiring someone. You want to make sure their skills match the role and that they fit in well with the company culture. This will support your long-term retention goal from the beginning.
Employee Development & Progression
It is important that you offer the opportunity for your employees to progress in their role. Whether that is increasing their responsibilities in their current role or the chance to progress into a more senior role in the business. This gives the employee something to work towards and allows them to feel motivated to perform to a high standard. Conducting regular performance reviews is an important strategy for retention and gives you the opportunity as an employer to gage where the employee is at, what are their goals and what aspects of the business interest them in terms of career development.
Employee Benefits
Offering attractive employee benefits is an effective way to increase staff retention. Some of the main quality’s employees seek in a job is flexibility and a good work life balance. These are things that stretch beyond just salary benefits. Other benefits may include insurance packages, gym memberships, phone allowances and having a paid day off on your birthday. It is important for companies to develop their own benefits system to ensure your employees feel valued and engaged.
Workplace Culture
It is important for employers to create a safe and positive workplace culture for their employees. It is desired for workplaces these days to be social, collaborative, relaxed and modern. Introducing open space workplaces encourage conversation and higher levels of job satisfaction. All workplaces must also meet a certain health and safety standard. It is common for employees who feel unsafe or are not happy with their workplace culture to leave a company within a year.
For more advise on how to develop a strong retention strategy suited to your business get in touch with our HR advisors today.
*For the full New Zealand Staff Turnover Report: https://www.lawsonwilliams.co.nz/national-staff-turnover-survey-summary-report