Companies are in a constant battle to snap up the best talent in the market. But bringing in bright minds with glamorous benefits is only the start. As an employer/ talent manager, you have to be on your toes constantly, engaging the new hires in a way that compels them to stay with you for as long as possible. But what’s the secret to that?
To be a talent magnet who can attract and retain employees, a company has to first become a place that deserves to have the top talents. Then, your compensation has to be better than your competitor’s offer for the same role. Apart from that, work culture plays a huge part in employee engagement, growth opportunities and retention of employees. Employees also tend to stick around longer when they feel appreciated and rewarded for great performance. Of late, work flexibility has also become a major area of concern for employees.
Why talent identification and retention is vital?
Now, you might be wondering why so much effort has to go into bringing in and retaining excellent employees, given that thousands of meritorious students graduate every year. Here are just a few instances where finding and retaining the top talent did wonders for the company.
According to Workforce Logiq, Best Buy, Merck, and Lockheed Martin came out on top for best employee retention in 2021. Due to this, these companies have shown excellent performance even in an economy made sluggish by the pandemic.
This is hardly surprising, as companies with high retention rates have been shown to have as much as 4 times higher profits. Another example of a successful company with an exceptional employee retention rate is Location Labs, which has never laid off an employee and has a whopping employee retention rate of 95 percent.
Now, how do you go about actually bringing in the best professionals that the industry has to offer?
5 proven ways to attract top talent to your organization
Here’s how you can make sure you attract employees who are best suited for your organization and have excellent skills.
Build up your company’s reputation
Companies with great product portfolios and a reputation for exceptional working conditions will be the ones talented professionals want to work in. Ideally, the company needs to have a well-crafted job description and a smooth hiring process that gives the employee a glimpse of what working in the company will be like.
Involve employees in the recruitment process
Your employees can be great brand ambassadors for your company. They should be encouraged to share details of job openings with bright acquaintances of theirs so that fresh talent can make its way into your company. Don’t forget to incentivize your employees for finding great hires, though. Ensure you reward them with time off, cash bonuses, or gift cards.
Maintain a remote workforce if possible
Around the world, remote work is becoming an increasingly popular trend. When you make it possible for your employees to be from anywhere around the world and work remotely, you open up the possibility of landing the best talent because you aren’t restricted by geographical location.
Offering employees the ability to work remotely will also have the effect of improving work-life balance, which increases the possibility that your company will attract exceptionally talented employees.
Hire through social media
Be active on social media, and make sure your company profile frequently posts about how the employees of the company are doing. For instance, you can congratulate an employee publicly on LinkedIn or share a photo of your team having a fun weekend getaway.
Also, you can get your employees to share the achievements of the company in the form of press releases or blogs or photos. All of this will bring attention to your company’s competencies and employee-friendly nature and compel top talent to apply.
Besides, you should make it a point to connect via social media with professionals who you may want working for you. You can be part of forums where experts in a particular field hang out and pursue candidates with interesting profiles and expert takes.
However, you need to keep in mind that all of this is wasted effort if you don’t retain employees. This is because the average employee exit costs the company 16-213 % of their original salary.
Develop an employee-focussed company culture
You must do everything in your capacity to attract employees who are the right fit for your company by turning the office into an enjoyable place to work. Provide team building activates, fun outings, and wellbeing programs that show employees how valued they are.
Your employees will also respond positively to initiatives, such as promotions and on-the-job training. Due to this, they will become evangelists for your company, promoting open positions to everyone who will listen.
5 ways to retain your best employees
Having your best employees stay requires consistent effort from your side. This is because 8 in 10 employees will seek a new job after just one bad day, according to a survey. You can either use some of the best employee retention tools to retain your employees. Or, you can directly follow the below mentioned top five ways to retain employees who are valuable to you. As you can see, all it takes is a little bit of understanding and the willingness to compensate your employees fairly.
Allow for great work-life balance
Iceland recently tested out a four-day workweek program, and according to researchers, it was a great success. It went a long way in making employees super productive and happier as per the research. While your company may not be ready to try out something of this scale, you can do plenty of other things to ensure your employees have a proper work-life balance.
The need of the hour is to come up with creative policies, such as flexible working arrangements that allow employees to be properly rested and in a state of wellbeing when they work. Ensuring this will not just create a happier workplace, but it will also make employees less likely to leave your company.
Don’t micromanage your employees
Another step you can take to ensure your employees are engaged and motivated is to avoid micromanagement. Employees want clear instructions, but they dislike someone peering over their shoulder at all times. Allow employees the freedom to try out new strategies, and let them know you have faith in their abilities.
Trying to micromanage, and enforcing petty rules will only end up frustrating employees and pushing them to leave.
Pay well above the industry average
In this era of cutthroat competition among companies to retain employees and prevent them from switching over to the competition, the importance of employee compensation can’t be overstated.
Companies with the highest productivity and morale are always the ones with the most competitive incentives and salaries. Apart from offering employees above-average salaries, companies have gone to the extent of providing stock options.
To incentivize staying with the company, you can also pay employees a retention bonus. For standing out from the competition, you can offer incentives, such as more paid time off, gym memberships, personal leaves, etc.
Create a great work environment
Studies indicate that a staggering 76% of employees feel they have a toxic boss. A toxic workplace, without doubt, can cost companies huge sums of money when you take into account lost productivity and employee turnover costs.
As a result, you need to prioritize creating a company culture where people interact with each other positively. However, a bad work culture may also result from overworked employees or bullying or harassment of any form.
As a company, you would do well to identify what’s making your employees uncomfortable and solve it promptly.
Let your employees know they’re valued
Provide your employees with constant encouragement, as it is not enough to pay them well to let them know they are valued. Organize constant award ceremonies commemorating your employees’ achievements, and make it a point to send out appreciatory emails and social media posts.
Crucially, you also need to conduct quarterly or monthly performance reviews that provide constructive criticism and outline how the employee can progress in his/ her career. This will greatly enhance the level of engagement they feel with the company and ensure they stay for the long term.
Conclusion
It is hard to find great employees. It is even harder to retain them. The key is to find employees who share your vision and keep them engaged with generous benefits and challenges that bring out their best constantly. Once you have learned to do that, you will find your company has become unstoppable.
