Employee retention strategies Essay

We will focus on different ideas, tips and strategies that can help companies cope up with the up-and-coming problem in the human resources industry. As much as we know that many current employees are getting out of their jobs voluntarily not because that they were fired by their superiors but because they want to meet their expectations and good opportunities with other companies locally or overseas. Despite the fact that the most mentioned reason for leaving is financial, other important aspect is a factor that motivates them to gave up their jobs to look for other jobs elsewhere (IOMA, 2005). According to Paul J.Sarvadi (Sarvadi, 2005), the reality behind why employees gave up their jobs lies not only to monetary issues but goes deeper into the human consciousness that their actions and characters concerning work will be appreciated and makes them feel secured and successful. He suggested that sound retention strategies should be focused to four key elements – performance, communication, loyalty and competitive advantage. Let us start on the first key element which is performance, most companies undergo evaluations and performance metrics that will likely sum up their overall accomplishment either annually, quarterly or monthly. It is important that it must not rely solely on quantitative evaluation or assessment but most of all the qualitative measurement should also be considered. The intense craving for an attention to speak their opinions and make it a part of the company’s objectives is a very significant factor that is fulfilling to human beings, when they felt that their actions, talents and capabilities are brought into play that makes a difference to the company or organization, a sense of belonging and the feeling of they are at home is beginning to develop. The subconscious of human beings is attached to the emotions that they feel that’s why they are happy when they are in the process of achieving a goal and making valuable contributions (Sarvadi, 2005). He added that communication process with employees is an essential part of developing a relationship with them. Not just a simple communication that involves deadlines, submissions and technical aspects but they must use a two-way transmission of ideas and opinions. It is better to hold regular meetings to properly channel all comments and suggestions, give feedbacks and share what the company has been going through the years, and listen to what they aspire and suggestions. Surveys are good indicators of assessing the performance of the company though not dependable, it can contribute insights from the employees on what is giving them motivation and morale. On the other hand, loyalty is a great tool in winning employee retention strategy, it is measured in terms of how committed and loyal the employee is, it is not an imposed requirement but an earned reaction to the trust, respect and commitment shown to the individuals in a company (Sarvadi, 2005). The success of an employee – growth and development, and their contributions to the company’s wellness is an essential part of commitment and loyalty and both should work together. The last element of Sarvadi’s strategy is competitive advantage, people in the workplace is expecting excitement, new adventures, and competitions. Winning and losing are the key words for competitive advantage, employees wanted to know unique competitive products in the marketplace and they wanted to be part of these exciting race. Everyone wants to be a champion, it is healthy to inform your employees about the competitive advantage of your company so as to keep them motivated to join the winning team. To attract and retain top performers, employers should focus on recognizing and rewarding employees frequently and taking them for granted is not an answer to a successful relationship, and most importantly, know what the enemy does according to Cheryl Cran, a human resources consultant, an art of war, a strategy to win the best performers, know and discover what the enemy offer and ensure that you can target and extend beyond the limits of the expectations of the employees (Cran). To save expenses from the personnel turnover and increase output and productivity as well, another top retention tips to retain key personnel are the following (Mason): 1. Deal fairly with employees like you deal with your most valuable clients. 2. Let your employees adore and care for your company. 3. Powerful retention strategies turn into powerful recruiting advantages. 4. Preservation and maintenance is much more successful when you put the right person into the right job. 5. Monetary reason is important but it is not the sole basis of people who stay with an organization. 6. Creation of committees for the employees can help expand retention strategies as well as developing an effective strategy. 7. Leadership must extremely devote in retention. 8. Different forms of expressing recognition and appreciation is a strong and powerful retention strategy. 9. Always keep in mind that the â€Å"Fun Factor† is very significant to many employees. 10. Be familiar with the drifts and developments in benefit packages. Give the best to tender the ones your employees want (Mason). In addition to the strategies above, in Ghana a capacity project has been carried out to health sectors that could also be beneficial to other employees. Five key stakeholders were interviewed for this topic. Other keys are additional duty hours allowance, car and housing loans, post graduate training opportunities, relaxed criteria for promotion, and flexible contracts, public-private partnership. To understand the strategies, the table below indicates the key retention strategies: Table 1. Key retention strategies (Perry, 2006) Incentive type Brief description Financial Incentive Initiate added duty allowance particularly for doctors (Perry, 2006). Non financial incentive Proposal for a car and housing loan under negotiation for professionals who are assigned in the rural community. (Perry, 2006). Career advancement opportunities Initiate and suggest schemes for more prospects for two year post graduate training program (Perry, 2006). Rest and recreation eligibility criteria for advancement (Perry, 2006). Creative contracting arrangements Give way to pharmacists in the public sector to perform duties for the private sector (Perry, 2006). Conclusion: The best and the brightest in a company as well as entry level employees should be carefully kept, managed and trained. The ultimate strategy that should be considered for employees is to consider the needs, wants, and personal aspirations like career development, recognition and reward and the objectives they want for the organizations. Rewards should be helpful to them like educational opportunities, car and housing incentives, health plan for the employee and their family and good bonuses. Emergency funds if necessary when problems like illness arise in one of the members of the family, and more vacation and/or sick leaves are also a rewarding remuneration to employees. Managers and supervisors who are good listeners to their employees are good signs of good relationship, it is like a father/mother – daughter/son relationship that is always there to listen, understand, and suggest what is best and what is worst, even the most personal things of the employee should also be taken in consideration. Manager’s role is a crucial aspect of retaining best employees because they will serve as a mentor that will guide the employees towards a positive direction. Availability, fair treatment, flexibility and open communication during tough times is a positive message and strong response to employees who are in dire need to seek help, as a result, a healthy environment and workplace is being developed and cultivated. After all, empowerment, sustainability, goal-oriented and development are the most important key words for the success of organizations and individuals. Reference: CRAN, C.Employee Retention Strategy: How to Attract and Retain Top Performers. HEATHFIELD, S. (2007) Keep Your Best: Retention Tips. IOMA (2005) Employee Retention Strategies Best Practices to Reduce Turnover and Cut Costs. LOSYK, B. Immigrant & Ethnic Workers – How to Recruit, Hire & Retain the Best LOSYK, B. Rotating Turnover: Ways of keeping the best and the brightest. MASON, L. J. Maintaining Key Personnel and Top Ten Retention Tips. MEYERS Employee retention: value and strategy. PERRY, S. (2006) An Introduction to Retention Strategy Review in Ghana SARVADI, P. J. (2005) Key Elements of a Winning Employee Retention Strategy.