Corporate Growth or Decline.... Your Choice
Increase Employee Retention…
Decrease Employee Turnover

In today’s highly competitive marketplace, the difference between continued growth or progressive decline may depend on your ability to attract and retain the best people by incorporating an employee retention program into the overall business strategy to decrease turnover rates.

Business Executives are becoming more dependent on each employee to achieve maximum productivity while expecting them to meet or exceed the customer’s requirements. During this increased dependency they are also finding a decrease in company loyalty, and a dwindling number of qualified applicants to fill new positions or replace those who are leaving. Here are some sobering statistics to consider when you are thinking of hiring new employees:

• 20% of American adults are functionally illiterate and another 34% are only marginally literate.
• 50% of American adults are unable to read an eighth grade level book.
• In Texas, estimates run as high as 1 in 3 adults cannot read, write or perform basic skills well enough to be fully productive on the job.
• The United States ranks 49th among 156 United Nation member countries in its rate of literacy, and we are still dropping.
• The cost of illiteracy to businesses and taxpayers is $20 billion per year and rising.

Combine that with an unemployment rate in Dallas that is hovering around 3.7% and it is easy to understand why qualified candidates are difficult to find and why it is essential for an organization to establish a strategy for an employee retention training program, to assist in reducing employee turnover.

Now you my want to ask yourself a few questions regarding your current environment.

1. Does your organization strive to anticipate the future or are you constantly reacting to crisis?
2. Are you acquiring and disseminating tribal knowledge or losing it with every employee who leaves?
3. Do your employees embrace change or resist it with every fiber in their bodies?
4. Is there an underlying trust in your organization, or is everyone looking out for number 1?
5. Are there clearly stated organizational values, and does the employee’s values align with the organizational values?
6. Do your employees understand their role in accomplishing the organizational goals?
7. Is there a clear understanding of the competency requirements for each job group, and are those competencies integrated in the hiring, training, career planning, succession planning and performance appraisal systems?
8. Do you regularly recognize your employees for their contributions?
9. Is your organization a fun place to work?
10. Do applicants eagerly accept your job offers, and is your employee turnover rate 10% or less?

The more questions you answered no, the higher the probability your current working environment will not attract and retain the best people.

Implementing an employee retention program into the hiring and continued training process within the organization should assist in managing and decreasing employee turnover rates.

The following are some strategies to develop an environment that will decrease employee turnover and increase retention rates.

• Develop an organizational purpose that includes the following, a clear vision for the future that everyone can easily understand and see with clarity; adopt some core corporate values that employees can believe in and align with; and generate a mission statement that succinctly says what business you are in.
• Develop a system of plans that roll down from the strategic plan so that every individual understands the importance of their role in accomplishing the corporate vision.
• Value diversity within your organization. Just don’t accept diversity but understand how that diversity will provide the catalyst for future growth.
• Develop comprehensive leadership development programs
• Find ways to improve performance management
• Recognize each employee for their contributions on a regular basis, and support their desire to improve.
• Inform them on a regular basis on how the organization is doing, and what the future looks like.
• Dedicate resources for employees continued personal development. Let them strive to be the best they can possibly be.
• Make them the owners of their processes and recognize them for continuous improvement to those processes.
• Establish objective measurement systems and monitor performance based upon those measurement systems.
• Ensure that all systems are integrated and aligned so as to satisfy the customers’ requirements. That is both the internal and external customers.
• Allow for a balanced work and personal life.
• Have fun.

Each strategy listed is a challenge within itself. None of these things are easy to accomplish, but when the future health of your organization’s program hangs in the balance....you make the choice.