Want to Retain Your Best Employees? Keep Them Happy and Engaged at Work

According to economist David Birch, “the average college graduate will have 12 jobs by the time they are 50.” That equates to employees changing jobs every 2.5 years.

That’s a sobering statistic for IT managers. Turnover costs you time and money, not to mention the hassle of recruiting, interviewing and hiring. If job-hopping has become the new norm for employees, what can you do to keep your best team members happy and engaged? While some job moves may be out of your control, below are techniques and tactics you can use to increase employee retention and reduce the chance of your star employee flying the coup.

Understand Why Great Employees Leave
There are many reasons why employees leave. But two reasons you may not have given enough weight to include:

1. They feel unappreciated

According to a Yahoo! Small Business Advisor article, employees feel unappreciated when management:

• Never acknowledges the work done or says thank you
• Consistently criticizes work without any compliments to add motivation
• Praises other employees on a regular basis
• Yells at or otherwise mistreats the employee

2. The employee holds unrealistic expectations

Did you paint too rosy of a picture during the interviewing process? While you don’t want to scare away potential employees, it’s important to be up front about the job and the company to give a realistic 360-degree view of the position.

Improve Employee-Manager Relations
There’s a saying that goes, “employees don’t leave companies, they leave managers.” Ouch. Whether you know it or not, you play an integral role in creating and establishing healthy work relationships. A simple compliment—“thank you,” “nice work,” or “well done”—can go a long way.

According to the Globoforce Workforce Mood Tracker™, 78% of U.S. workers said being recognized for their good work motivates them in their job. In fact, Google (notorious for the perks they provide), came out with a surprising list of what employees valued most at work: “even-keeled bosses who made time for one-on-one meetings, who helped people puzzle through problems by asking questions, not dictating answers, and who took an interest in employees’ lives and careers.” 

Learn to Read the Signs
Most employees don’t leave on a whim. They usually make the decision to start searching for other opportunities, interviewing with other companies, and accepting another job after a great amount of internal debate.

Ways to tell if employees may have “checked out” or are thinking about leaving include:

• They are frequently late, absent or sick
• Production drops
• They seem more quiet than usual
• Less participation
• Their behavior changes significantly

Take Exit Interviews Seriously
Exit interviews can give incredible insight into uncovering recurring internal issues and problems. While you may be ready to dismiss the employee and move on with filling the position, you should take the exit interview process seriously.

An exit interview can be structured with a set of pre-determined interview questions, or it can be an informal conversation. Always work to preserve the relationship when an employee resigns. You never know if the employee may return or end up being a valuable recruiting and referral source in the future.

Additional Ideas for Improving Employee Retention

Further ideas for improving employee retention:

• Conduct regular anonymous employee or team surveys
• Ask for feedback on a consistent basis
• Have regular touch points with your best people
• Take action when other employees aren’t pulling their weight or aren’t cutting it; one bad apple in the barrel can ruin the whole team
• Foster employee and career development
• Give employees a reason to be loyal

Proactively planning different strategies for holding on to your best employees is an important responsibility. Taking the time to implement these tips, tactics and techniques will be a worthy investment for you, your company and your team.

You may not have a Starbucks in the lobby, provide childcare on site, or offer luxury retreats, but you do have something attractive to offer top job candidates. And it’s your responsibility to make sure they know that. The ability to woo and retain ‘A’ players is one of the toughest jobs for any manager today.

The competition for top talent is fierce. So when you find a potential employee whom you know will be a huge asset to your team, you want to do everything in your power to ensure their answer to your job offer is a resounding “yes.” Below are four steps you should follow to make sure you get your superstar on board.

Step 1: Start with an Effective, Appealing Job Description
Sure, you could hurry and jot down the basic position facts off the top of your head. Or, you can take the time to craft a well-written, thorough description. Get the input of a group or assemble your team to find out what attributes are most important, what behavioral attributes are necessary and what the job really entails.  Does this sound like a lot of effort? It is. But a boring, commonplace description will likely attract mediocre candidates. Taking the time to create a well-written, appealing job description will be a worthy time investment.

Step 2: Pay Attention to How You Talk Up the Company
Instead of reciting the dry historical background of your company, focus instead on what makes your organization interesting and likeable. What sets it apart from others in the industry? While you know to never fabricate stories or stretch the truth, by communicating your company’s value proposition and knowing how to play up its best attributes, you’ll leave no doubt in the candidate’s mind that “this organization is for me.”

Step 3: Keep in Constant Communication with Your Candidate(s)
Sometimes the hiring process can drag out longer than you anticipated due to elements outside your control. That happens. But do not let a great length of time lapse, or the best talent will lose interest and walk away. Create and set a method of regular communication to keep up the momentum and keep your candidate involved and invested.

Ideally, you should make an offer as soon as you’re sure you have a star candidate. If you don’t hear yes right away, stay persistent and proactive until you close the deal.

Step 4: Mind Your Manners
Although this step may seem self-explanatory, it’s worth a reminder to mind your manners: put your candidate at ease, return calls promptly, make calls personally instead of depending on an assistant, be frank and avoid playing games. Don’t forget to thank the candidate for their time. Remember, you’re wooing here, so put forth the extra effort.

Step 5: Get Beyond Compensation
While compensation is of course a significant consideration of the job offer, both parties know there’s more to it than that. What else can you bring to the table that sweetens the deal? Does the company have an excellent recognition and advancement program? Great health plan perks? A first-rate sabbatical or time off program? It’s critical you find out from the candidate what matters most to them during the interviewing process and reinforce what impressed and interested them.

As the Adler Group, a performance-based hiring organization so aptly states, “Don’t use Wal-Mart advertising techniques to attract Tiffany customers.” The same concept goes for Tiffany caliber candidates.

Top candidates are special. Treat them that way. By focusing on this goal and following the steps above, you’ll be well on your way to becoming an employer of choice for the best talent around.

Since the July 4^th weekend is upon us, we realize this is an opportune time to relax, catch up with family and friends, enjoy life and be thankful for everything our wonderful country offers.

This holiday weekend is also a good time to reflect about your professional career – where you are, where you want to go, and how you’re going to get there. If you’re an IT professional thinking about a career move, put down that novel you’re  reading on your iPad, Kindle or Nook  and take an hour to read Agile’s ebook: The IT Professional’s No-Nonsense Guide to Getting a Job in the New IT.  It’s a quick read and chock full of tips and advice on everything you need to know before you begin your job search. Download our free ebook now.

If you’re an IT executive or hiring manager wondering where all the top talent is and how you’re going to fill that open position you’ve been looking to fill for what seems like forever, we suggest taking 15 minutes this weekend to read our white paper “Four Winning Talent Strategies for the New IT”.  This paper provides practical approaches to hiring and retaining top IT talent. You can download our free white paper by clicking here.

We thought we’d end this week with these company org charts.  Perhaps they’re a bit exaggerated, but they’ll make you giggle.  If you had to create your company’s org chart, would it look similar to any of these?  Let’s hope not!

Here’s a news flash – finding top IT talent is becoming increasingly difficult as budgets loosen up and employers are desperate to fill positions requiring high demand skills.  The problem seems to be that there are more jobs (believe it or not) than qualified candidates (who are actively looking for a career change).

Finding top talent can be a bit challenging in today’s market, but that’s what IT recruitment agencies like Agile do (although we admittedly do it better and faster than other agencies).  But what we’re finding to be the real challenge now is when the candidate’s current employer makes a counter-offer to keep the top performer from leaving.

Recently, one of our candidate’s interviewing at a client company received a counter-offer from his current employer. The candidate was really impressed with our client, but he was just a little nervous to make a move and decided to stay put. The client was disappointed because the candidate was a perfect fit. The hiring manager at the client company was empathetic though, because he had been in a similar position earlier on in his career.  He decided to write the candidate a message to share his experience and offer a persuading argument as to why the candidate should reconsider.

The email goes something like this (names have been changed to ensure the privacy of all individuals and entities):

Seth,

I can’t say that I am not disappointed, but I do understand that everyone has their own circumstances and must do what’s in their own best interest.  I will say this, my circumstances were very similar to yours when I made the decision to leave my last company to be a part of Acme Enterprises. I was working for a very successful company, I was well respected, making a huge business impact, big salary plus bonuses, office with a view, great people, etc.  But there were several things that, regardless of my compensation and my environment, were not going to change. I was the biggest fish in the pond.  I had no peers, and no potential to really learn from others.  I found myself implementing the same technologies\techniques\patterns – occasionally introducing something new, but no peer validation that these were great decisions and implementations.

I can honestly say that I have learned more in the last 12-18 months through the process of designing this platform from the ground up than I have in the last 5-10 years working on legacy technology and enhancing existing platforms.  Another factor for me was the “Acme Enterprise” opportunity itself. At my previous company, I could begin to see the end of the runway from a technology roadmap perspective. I spent several years getting them on the right path and putting the right pieces in place which in my opinion covered about 75% of the “runway”.  The remaining 25% would be spent making minor tweaks, maybe integrating a few new technologies here and there.  I could see that final 25% dragging out for quite a while and I could see myself getting complacent – which can be very dangerous from a technology career standpoint.

Acme Enterprise, on the other hand, was a blank slate, with easily 6-10 years of runway.  We have been working on the core platform and client for about a year and a half and have only begun to scratch the surface.  As we present this to future customers, we learn more about the business potential and the opportunities, and the runway keeps increasing – which is very exciting!

The last factor for me was the core competency and the attitude of the team itself.  Every member of this team is a winner.  Each one of us has been successful in the past and this company will be no exception.

Sounds like you have made your final decision, but If there is anything else you would like to discuss before completely closing the door, let me know.  If this is the end of the road, I wish you the best.

What an impactful message. After the candidate read the email, he had a change of heart and decided to accept the company’s offer because he was so impressed, and could so relate to, what the hiring manager had written. The key point is how the hiring manager had the ability to see things from the candidate’s perspective. He then provided an honest and compelling story that resonated with the candidate – so much so, that it convinced him to reconsider and accept the client’s offer.

Long story short – if you want to hire top talent, you have to impress candidates. Sometimes that may require a deep understanding of where the candidate is coming from and what some of his concerns may be.  Once you are able to relate to the candidate, build a compelling case that will convince him why your opportunity is the better career choice.

This week, a UK survey “Employers hire on attitude over skills” found that 96% of employers would hire someone who did not have a complete set of skills but displayed the right attitude over an applicant with the perfect skills but who lacked the right mindset. The survey also claims that two-thirds of employers in the UK said that if they had to reduce workforce, they would fire someone with a perfect skill set over someone with deficient skills but sporting the right attitude.

We blogged about the importance of soft (interpersonal) skills for job seekers recently, and after reading the above survey findings, we wondered if IT employers in the U.S. feel differently than those in the UK.  Would 96% of IT hiring managers in this country really hire attitude over skills?

Consider this scenario.  You’re searching for a .Net Developer, but you haven’t had much luck finding a candidate that has all the skills that you believe are necessary.  An outside IT staffing firm presents you with two candidates. The first candidate is Charlie.  He is talented, and has the experience and all the skills you require. But then there’s that attitude. Charlie has a reputation in the industry for being difficult. The second candidate is Ashton. He’s not as polished as Charlie, doesn’t have quite the experience as the other candidate, and he lacks a few of the skills on your “must-have” list. But Ashton has been quite successful in his career. And he’s nice. And he has such a positive attitude.

So who would you hire?

Leadership Development Advisor, Beth Armknecht Miller believes that too often, leaders focus on the skills of an applicant rather than their attitude because it’s much easier to measure skills. She believes that if employers looked at the long term implications and costs of hiring someone who doesn’t have the right attitude, they would take the initiative and determine the most effective way to screen and interview for attitude. This is where good behavioral interviewing and personality assessments can be of tremendous value.

Miller recommends starting the process by taking a look at your company’s top performers, and determining what they do (behaviors) that makes them stand out from the rest of the team. Once this is determined, it’s important to document a recent event in which they displayed this behavior.

The next step is to create a scenario and ask the question, “What would you do in this situation?” It is critical that the scenario be something that links back to the position being filled. For instance, if the top performer is in sales but you are interviewing for a .Net Developer,  the behavior can be about follow-up and persistence, but the scenario should relate to a situation a .Net Developer would be involved with.

Here are a few examples:

• Tell me about the last time you broke the rules to serve a customer in need (judgment)
• Give an example of how you went beyond the call of duty to assist a co-worker (teamwork)
• Tell me a time that you’ve worked with an extremely difficult co-worker, and how you handled it? (adaptability)
• Tell me about a time you tried something new or took on additional responsibility when there was no guarantee for success. (willingness to take risks)

As for assessments, Miller states that there are many options available, but she cautions leaders not to solely rely on them; rather use them as part of a suite of tools and techniques during the hiring process. She also points out that there are legal ramifications of using assessments during the hiring process and recommends that before using any assessments, employers check with their attorney.

If crafted properly, behavioral questions can provide a glimpse into a candidate’s decision making process as well as their values. Miller believes that a great majority of employees fail in a company because their soft skills and values don’t match those of their manager and company. Having a well defined hiring process that includes meaningful behavioral questions can aid in the selection of top talent and help to increase retention rates.

Attitude should be a key criteria when considering candidates to bring on board. In the scenario above, some may argue that Charlie’s abilities are superior to Ashton. That may be a fair assessment.  Ashton may need to improve his skills, but with what appears to be a positive attitude, Ashton has done quite well with his career and with more experience (and good attitude) he should only get better.  Charlie, on the other hand, well just look where his attitude got him.