Employee retention is a hot topic in the corporate world today. With so much competition for top talent, companies are scrambling to find ways to keep their employees happy and engaged. The cost of employee turnover can be astronomical, so it’s important to understand why employee retention matters and how to improve it. In this blog post, we will discuss the importance of employee retention and engagement and offer some tips on how to improve it in your organization.

The importance of employee retention

The cost of losing an employee and having to replace them can be quite high, especially if they are in a management or highly specialized role.

For example:

• According to BuiltIn, the average costs to replace an hourly employee is $1,500. For technical positions the cost could be 100% to 150% of the employee’s salary, and for C-suite positions the cost could be over 200% of an employee’s salary.
• Josh Bersin, a Global Industry Analyst, shares that it can take 1-2 years for a new hire to equal the productivity of the employee who left.

In addition, employee turnover can damage morale and disrupt productivity within your team. When employee morale is low, it can lead to a decrease in productivity and an increase in absenteeism. Finally, employee retention is important because it allows you to build a strong team of dedicated employees who are invested in the success of your company.

How can you improve employee retention in your organization?

The culture of a company is what distinguishes it from others, and it has an impact on everything from public image to employee engagement and retention. Employees who identify with a company’s ethics, mission, and other cultural elements can have a beneficial influence on the firm’s bottom line.

To improve culture, we need to get employees engaged. Aon Hewitt shares that a 5% increase in engagement creates a 3% rise in revenue growth the following year.

Recognition vs Reward

We also need to understand the difference between being rewarded and being recognized, as often these terms have often been interchanged. There is a difference between these two terms, so it is important to clarify:

Rewards are mostly tangible, usually consumed and have an economic value and are usually expected.

Recognition is intangible, experiential, holds emotional value, and is often a surprise.

When we create a culture where employees are recognized and rewarded, they feel that they are valued.

Valued Employees Thrive

When employees feel like they are part of a team and are valued for their contributions, they are more likely to not just stick around… but to thrive.

Serving employees needs should always be the number one priority. Richard Branson provided a reminder that, “Employees come first. If you take care of your employees, they will take care of the clients.”

Valued employees will often go the extra mile for the company, and that is priceless.

Employee Recognition

But how can you encourage employees and make sure they know they are truly valued? Give them the recognition that they need by showing them.

A Simple Thank You

Recognizing an employee’s effort by sharing a simple thank you, speaks volumes. Never delay in appreciating their hard work and effort. It’s often stated that recognition delayed is recognition denied. Work on observing and recognizing those opportunities can speak volumes to them that you see their daily contribution to improve the business and appreciate them for putting in the work.

Empower your employees to do the work needed in a way that works best for them.

Employees are often the one’s in the trenches, doing the work on a regular basis, and often have ideas on how to improve their efficiency. As a result, they usually know what may work best in specific situations and when given the opportunity they can learn and develop better ways to accomplish their tasks.

There is no greater motivation for your hardworking personnel to get the job done the way they want it than allowing them to do so.

In doing this, you’ll get two advantages as an employer:

• At first, your workers will have the time and freedom to make the greatest decisions in order to do the job efficiently.
• Second, since your workers will be in charge of their own work, they will take their responsibilities even more seriously than before.

Provide a means to give back to the community.

Isn’t it true that most individuals want to do their part for society or the environment? Wouldn’t it be wonderful if a company donates to a social or environmental cause in the name of its workers? They’d be ecstatic!

Employees often have a charity that they regularly donate to or volunteer at. Give them a method to contribute to their choice of charity. Take a look at Charity On Top as an option to make that happen. They’d be delighted at knowing that you value their opinion on where donations should be given as those charities are often close to their heart.

Public Recognition

You can also go public with your gratitude and recognition and take it to social media. Your staff is undoubtedly active on numerous social media sites. They would appreciate it if their accomplishments could be shared on these platforms.

There are many more ways to recognize your employees for all that they do, including non-workplace achievements. We know that this list is not exhaustive, and there are many other ways to recognize employees.

What other ways have you found that best recognize an employee or coworker? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

Employee Rewards

There are a lot of creative awards available, we’ve identified some common ones that you can start doing now to enhance your employees work experience, improving retention.

From swag to gift cards, to days off and more, rewards provide even more opportunities to appreciate your employees.

The Employee Welcome Kit

You want to create a positive connection with new employees right from the start. Nothing says ‘welcome aboard’ and delivers that moment of delight and appreciation like an employee welcome kit. There’s a lot to take in during the first few weeks at a new job, and a welcome kit alleviates some of that new employee pressure by letting them know that you’re there for them day one. By giving them a welcome kit, you’re rewarding them for starting their journey with your company.

Employee Gifts

The best gifts are ones that your staff will be able to use in their everyday life, not just at the office. Make your gift to them truly special and memorable with items that make it clear you put thought into it! From jackets to speakers, and so much more, we compiled a list of items to spark your imagination on what could be given as employee gifts when the time is right.

Employee Awards

Recognizing and awarding your employees for hard work is a necessity in the workplace. Everyone deserves to know they did a good job and get an award in front of their peers for their hard work. Not to mention, this will foster the growth of other employees to work hard as well, thus improving the company.

Building your culture of rewards and recognition

Keeping top talent engaged and feeling a part of your company is all about making them feel appreciated. From simple recognition acts that cost virtually nothing to implement to more meaningful rewards and welcome kits, where a modest investment can save needed budget dollars compared to the cost of recruiting new talent. It’s never too late to reap the rewards of a culture of recognition.

Start Now

Recognizing your employees’ worth goes hand in hand with rewarding them appropriately. That all boils down to creating a sense of trust and rapport within your staff.

Here are just a few of the easy ways you can use to build a new culture today:

• Send birthday and anniversary cards.
• Celebrate the victories, even the small ones.
• Give your employees space to grow and empower them to make decisions.
• Publicly recognize your employees’ accomplishments, even on social media. Be their biggest cheerleader.
• Give meaningful incentives that have a beneficial influence on your employee’s experience and their future working relationship with you.
• Start new employees with a welcome kit
• Reward employees with some swag, a gift to show appreciation.
• Give awards to employees that go that extra mile

Rewards and recognition are a powerful way to improve employee retention and reap the rewards of keeping your productive and experienced employees working on your team. Investments in rewards and recognition become insignificant compared to the cost of replacing employees and the lost productivity of onboarding. It is never too late to create a great work culture. Get started today!