How hard is it to understand that employees do want recognition, communication, and career coaching…but they want it from their boss? Yet we persist to believe one-size-fits-all programs are worthy substitutes for our managers performing their jobs. So there is no mystery why employee engagement has been stuck for 20 years.
In their weekly member newsletter yesterday, SHRM predicted a turnover “tsunami” once the pandemic ends, re-surfacing that employee retention is at major risk regardless of today’s unemployment rate.
The best and most comprehensive study on how U.S. companies are doing, specifically with retaining and advancing Black workers, was recently released. And the outcome says we have work to do.
Remember way back when, before the pandemic, when it was hard to find qualified candidates for most jobs? That was February 2020, exactly one year ago, when our unemployment rate hit its floor of 3.5%. Consider the off-setting turbulence that same market will face in 2021 if unemployment falls to 3.2% within a year.
The bottom line is PEPCO’s Baltic states’ turnover has decreased by 67%...and PEPCO has yet to leverage the full power of Stay Interviews as they have taken them to the Area Manager and Store Manager levels only. Kristina tells me the likely next step is to implement Stay Interviews to include all PEPCO employees.
The fight wasn’t fair because science was on my side when I played my “test the booth” game, one could even say I cheated. On one side was me, holding onto the correct answer as to why employees leave like a gambler with four aces, while on the other side was a salesperson trying to make a buck.
Never waste your time again asking an employee why she’s leaving. Never analyze a vendor’s data regarding why your employees leave. Never compile data into a report to tell your top team why your employees are quitting. Never report the top 5 reasons why employees quit ever again.
The correct answer is your CFO…your chief financial officer…even though Spiderman would make work more fun. Everyone on your top team including your CEO should look to your CFO to provide teeth for your engagement and retention efforts.
Doesn’t the thought of a new hire who sees work as a calling sound nearly the same as someone who is highly engaged in her work? And has her attention focused on improving her performance and learning more rather than looking for other jobs online?
There is a new bug going around and I’m afraid we are all going to catch it. The bug is you will lose several high-performing employees because they will choose to stay home to teach their school-aged children. Given the…