11
O P I N I O N
Employee retention
It comes down to respect and providing for your employees. If you do these two things, your people will quickly become your biggest cheerleaders.
M any firms like to boast, “It’s the people that make our company,” but how often do we really check in with them one-on-one or recognize them for a job well done? The day-to-day grind of pushing out emails, visiting job sites, and getting invoices paid can quickly put us into a spiral of “just getting it done” without giving much thought to the well-being of our staff and colleagues.
Kim Fowler
When it comes to improving employee retention, consider the following: ❚ ❚ Check in often. Some people may not have the gumption to approach their superior with a question or concern on their own. But, if you are proactive in checking in with your staff on a regular basis, this provides an opportunity for them to open up. Use an approach that makes them feel comfortable, and make it known that their opinions matter. Tip: Conduct “stay” interviews. A “stay” interview is an informal discussion between an employee and their superior and/or HR to understand what the company could be doing better from the employee’s perspective. These interviews should be done separately, but in addition to a yearly performance review. ❚ ❚ Recognize your employees in front of their peers. It’s important that we recognize our
employees for their unique talents and contributions to the company. This recognition should not only be one-on-one, but also in front of their peers. Peer- to-peer recognition not only drives motivation, but builds a culture of camaraderie and support among teammates. Ideas for employee recognition: ❚ ❚ Recognize employees who go above and beyond via annual awards. ❚ ❚ Give bonuses for referrals, certifications and licensures, serving on an industry board, etc. ❚ ❚ Distribute firm-wide emails recognizing specific individuals for a job well done. ❚ ❚ Spotlight an employee via your internal newsletter.
See KIM FOWLER, page 12
THE ZWEIG LETTER AUGUST 31, 2020, ISSUE 1359
Made with FlippingBook Annual report