Which one skill must leaders have for engagement and retention?

Vendors who sell recognition services say over and over that employee recognition drives engagement and retention. But a voice in my head always says this in response: “Not if they don’t trust you”.

Building trust is the one skill leaders must have to improve employee engagement and retention. Compare your best boss to your worst boss and I’ll bet you trust your best boss and distrusted your worst boss. And that your best boss had shortcomings you easily accepted and your worst boss had strengths you couldn’t possibly see.

The best way I know for leaders to build trust is to conduct Stay Interviews. By asking how I can make working here better for you, employees react with words but with emotions, too, as they realize the person sitting across from them brings both authority and care.

Think about leaders on all levels in your organization. How many fail to build trust with their teams? Now imagine if they expressed genuine care for those who report to them. Would that improve their team’s engagement and retention?