Great talent is hard to come by. So, if you already have an all-star team, you must do everything in your power to make sure they stay.
Aside from attractive benefits and a good salary, you need to give them the right motivation to remain in the company.
Many studies on the labor force talk about the most common reason why employees leave, but only a few shed light on why they choose to stay. The thing is, the information employers get from knowing the cause of the departure assumes that job dissatisfaction correlates perfectly with it, but this is hardly the case.
In other words, the right question you should be asking is, “Why do employees stay?”
You see, when you look at what motivates people, you unearth the formula for reducing employee turnover. A study published in the Harvard Business Review revealed that it all revolves around the person’s inertia, or the tendency to remain unchanged until affected by an outside force.
In other words, employees stay if they remain content where they are.
As an employer, you should be looking at how you can help great talent feel satisfied (and stay that way) with the company. Although there are plenty of things you can do to accomplish this, personal growth should be the first on your list.
Here, you will learn seven ways that you can help your people achieve personal growth and strengthen their “inertia.”
- Show That You Trust Your Employees
Employees hone their skills through practice, but their confidence in doing the job will only develop if you show your trust in them.
As a company owner, it can be challenging to leave certain aspects of your business to other people. However, it is imperative that you get out of their way.
Instead of taking on all of it, share the responsibility with your team. This not only lessens your workload but also allows your employees to experience new things that could help them grow and feel greater ownership of the company’s success.
The key is to model the behaviour you expect.
- Offer Professional Training
When it comes to fostering personal growth, one of the most straightforward solutions is to provide training.
Setting your employees up for success begins by giving them access to all the tools and skills they would need to perform their job well. Make sure that you offer this on the very first day of employment.
Also, take note that this goes beyond creating a solid knowledge base of information. It also inculcates best practices in your team from the get-go.
If you do this, your new hire can grow with and within the work environment and experience a sense of belonging and worth for his new job.
- Come Up with a Growth Plan
Everything’s better with a plan, so make sure that you set up one for your team’s growth.
You can do this at the beginning of someone’s employment or the start of each year for existing employees. Work on building a plan with every member of the team.
It is important to work with the person involved to figure out the direction they want to pursue in their quest for personal growth. This could be anything – from reading a specific number of books per year, to learning all about recruitment, or even shadowing another team member performing a different role.
- Set Learning Goals
In school, periodic assessments are conducted to see how much children have learnt. Whether they know it or not, this determines the milestones that students achieved and confirm that they are moving forward in their education.
You can do the same for your employees.
You can set your own timeframe for this, but many companies implement a 90-day learning goal for their employees. The goal is to talk about what employees have achieved in the last 30 days, as well as the focus of growth for the upcoming 60 to 90 days.
Take note: Make sure that you open discussions for new ideas and strategies in achieving these goals.
- Improve Collaboration Within the Workplace
Cross-departmental training is another way you can develop growth in your employees. The great thing about this is that it can help connect various subcultures within the departments. It also encourages empathy among members of different teams.
Remember that most teams aren’t natural collaborators, so you need to have the right structure to help them connect. Otherwise, initiatives are at risk of failing.
Take, for instance, the marketing department’s efforts for brand enhancement using new content. If they fail to consult the customer service or sales teams to determine the pain points of their customers, it is less likely that the brand message will resonate with the target market.
- Develop Managers Into Effective Coaches
Managers serve to bridge the gap between the workforce and the management not only in terms of job distribution, but also within the work environment. Since managers serve as the mentor for employees under them, you should ensure that they become effective in playing their part by training to be effective coaches.
Workshops from third-party entities with systemic team coaching certificates can help accomplish this. Managers should also learn all about their direct report, particularly their strengths, weaknesses, motivations, and deterrents.
There are many methods you can use to teach them, but one of the most straightforward ways is to ask questions like:
- What can you consider as a win at work this week?
- What are the challenges you are currently facing?
- How will you describe the morale around you?
- How fulfilled are you in your current role?
- What can you suggest that I do to become a better manager or leader?
Intentional conversations that open with these questions should be facilitated regularly to foster deeper connections with people. Teach your managers how to incorporate this into their team-leading efforts to ensure that your employees have a psychologically safe environment where they can be honest and open about how they feel.
- Ask questions.
You’ve probably read books and blogs, watched videos, and talked to coaching experts in Dubai, but have you actively sought out your employees and asked them directly what they need? If you haven’t before, then you should start doing it now.
Make sure you solicit ideas on personal development regularly. This will allow you to understand your team members’ priorities and get some new ideas on ways to ensure their personal growth.
Remember: If personal development is important for your company, the people you work with should feel that they are free to discuss their needs and goals with their supervisors and the rest of the team.
Foster Personal Growth for Company Success
Employees serve as the life and blood of the company. While they may be distinct individuals, the personal growth of each team member is crucial to the overall success of the business.
AUTHOR BIO
Leila Rezaiguia is the Co-Founder and Managing Partner at Kompass Consultancy, an innovative global talent management consultancy headquartered in Dubai and with offices in Abu Dhabi and Sydney, that specialises in enabling individuals, organisations and educational institutions to achieve performance excellence and career success. Leila is a multi-lingual (English, Arabic and French) PCC Coach, Mentor Coach, Trainer, Facilitator and Business Mentor who is passionate about coaching, women in leadership, talent management and organisational development.