Keeping a firm grip on every budget dollar continues to be crucial in the challenging business environment. Until recent glimmers of improvement in the economy become a reliable upward trend, employers continue to produce more with fewer staff.
Being part of a strong recovery will require three crucial accomplishments:
- Retention of superior performers to achieve current goals.
- Strategies for bringing out the best in everyone on the team.
- Selection of new talent as you ramp back up.
When your business is ready to grow, will your employee value proposition motivate star performers to join your staff and convince the ones you have now to stay on board? Will they be raving fans?
High turnover is equated to low stock value, with a proven connection (up or down) of 30%. Losing key staff now will cost you tens of thousands of dollars! It’s vital to create an employment experience that inspires talented employees to stay on board long after the downturn has passed, and you can manage this without breaking the bank.
If your staff is like many others, widespread job losses and other economic fallout have deeply affected their personal and professional lives in ways they can’t control. Now more than ever, leaders must clearly communicate the plan for moving the company from survival to growth mode in the post-recession economy. Staff needs to understand in very specific terms, how their individual actions in the coming months can lend traction to the company’s financial turnaround.
Guide employees to access new levels of performance in a supportive, energizing environment. It starts by maximizing productivity and minimizing potential loss of talent with the use of behavioral and values assessments. Validated assessment tools insure that you have each constituent in the right seat on the bus where they can make their best contribution to the bottom line.
Offer opportunities for professional development that move them through specific steps to the next level of effectiveness. In addition to boosting earnings, it gives employees a much-needed shot of optimism. Staff recognize that professional development offerings are a concrete ‘vote of confidence’ from the employer. With budgets for raises and bonuses curtailed, they are acutely aware that this is evidence of an employer’s will to provide professional advancement despite a down economy.
Human capital is the backbone of your employer brand. Inspire them to spread good word of mouth about the company by examining your employer brand appeal from their perspective. Access to superior performers outside your company will also require a strategy that appeals across generations including Gen X, Gen Y, Baby Boomer, Traditional, and Linksters. Leverage everyone’s communication style.
Take care of your people and they’ll take care of your customer. Taking care of your people is good for business. In the end, your customer will say they’d be out of their mind to do business with anyone but you.
Steve,
It will be very interesting to see which companies are able to keep those star performers that are likely to soon have a lot more opportunities as companies hire more and more employees.
I remember back in 1999-2000 when employees had a lot more opportunities and could much more easily leave a job if they weren’t happy. And then lately, employers usually have had many more candidates for each job.
Since it has been more difficult to get jobs the past few years, companies might have been able to get away with things like not giving raises, not managing employees as well, etc. But if unemployment keeps going down, this could quickly change. Employees are likely to remember how they were treated. And they may be more likely to leave if they don’t feel they were treated as well as they should have been these last few years.
Thanks Steve. This is true (maybe even more so) in “volunteer world” like churches. We’re planning a leadership dinner/fun time for the leaders and families in our church in May to accomplish what you’re talking about.
Interesting you say that Shane. I read a piece last week suggesting we should treat our employees like volunteers. Reason being, they’re experiencing employee turnover. Leaders are not sure if they should invest in their people if they’re going to leave. I’ll be writing about this soon. Thanks for your comment Shane.