Talent Retention: Keeping the Grass Greener on Your Company's Side of the Fence

quotThey39re notquot I repliedFor faster opportunities to advance Yes For more money Absolutely For greater and continued assurance of autonomy Yep But not for a granola bar That points to something elseThe talent market that we find ourselves in has been brewing for more than two years For all of 2021 as business momentum picked up in most sectors I talked with clients about getting out in front and crafting a proactive talentretention strategyHere are six of my current recommendations for how you can be more competitive in attracting and retaining top talentPreserve autonomy People have gotten a taste of autonomy and it will not be forgotten anytime soon For the last two years many employees have had the opportunity to decide how they want to integrate their lives and their work They39re doing laundry while attending Zoom meetings they39re taking a sick child to the doctor and working later that evening There39s a lot of talk about employee flexibility but it39s the freedom to decide for oneself that39s more at issue So the question for leaders is where can you provide as much autonomy as possibleCreate belonging This is all about creating a sense of place and connection that helps to give our lives meaning and tells us that we39re a part of something amp8211 that we matter Communicating this to your team members is a crucial part of what I call strategic leadership One of the most effective methods for that communication is a twicemonthly email bulletin to your team that shares vision context including the challenges progress and successes Be sure to emphasize the contributions of team members to your company39s overarching missionSurvey your people To get a pulse on where team members need autonomy and where they really yearn to be part of connectedness again you have to ask Then you can craft a responsive strategy Rigid returntooffice policies are simply not effective The question to ask and answer is how can you draw your people in rather than push them outProvide inspiration Rather than being squishy clients are finding that inspiration is a bedrock for keeping talent meeting deadlines and driving business results If you have leaders in your organization that employees want to follow you39ll have greater productivity and a leg up on your competition This is not time for lackluster leadership employees simply have too much choice Be sure that your leaders have the support and development they need and you39ll better ensure that you hang onto your talentConduct Stay Interviews Like the surveys mentioned above these pinpoint what39s really going on among team members and are a key tool for talent retention and attraction They provide insight into why your best employees your superstars are sticking around And that proves to be invaluable when recruiting because you39re able to speak a language that matters to potential employeesHave meaningful careerpath conversations Leaders need to engage in meaningful discussions with their team members about their interests ambitions and curiosities Such conversations can no longer be left for annual reviews alone This helps create better paths and opportunities The allure of going to another employer is often rooted in the perception of greater opportunity to enhance one39s experience FasterLastly if you do lose someone to a competitor and you39d welcome their return consider the followingGet their truest take on why they39re leaving make it easy for them to tell youDon39t burn the bridge wish them wellStay in touch after they leaveLet them know about any new projects and exciting work that the organization is doing that might be of interest to them specificallyHave a really good sense of what39s important to them in the big picture such as family or ways they find meaning in their workKeep them apprised of new initiatives at your company that are in alignment with that big pictureThe talent market won39t always be this way But there are leaders and organizations using it to get betterAnd they willThis article was originally published in the JulAug issue of TFMSarah Levitt works with CEOs and senior executives entering bigger more visible roles She is the author of Magnificent Leadership and founder of the Magnificent Leadership Executive Forum Contact her at wwwsarahlevittcomClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

Talent Retention: Keeping the Grass Greener on Your Company's Side of the Fence

Publish date

Channel

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

More Videos:

SUBSCRIBE FOR FREE MEDIAVILLAGE CONTENT | BECOME A THOUGHT LEADERSHIP CONTRIBUTOR

Talent Retention: Keeping the Grass Greener on Your Company's Side of the Fence

Enjoying This Commentary? There's More to Love

TAGS:

FEMA and the Ad Council Encourage AANHPI Communities to Enhance Disaster Preparedness in New PSAs - Ad Council InSites

Cookies