Benefits of Retaining Employees

As a business owner, you know it is essential to staff your business with the best and brightest. We all know that attracting and retaining talented employees is a crucial feat, not just for operational efficiency, but also for unlocking the benefits of retaining employees like increased productivity, lower turnover costs, and a stronger company culture. Analyzing processes is a good start, but truly strategic organizations go a step further and implement proactive measures to keep their top talent engaged and thriving.

Attracting and Retaining Talented Employees: Two Sides of the Same Coin

If you struggle with attracting and retaining talented employees, you are not alone. For so long businesses focused on recruitment but neglected to think about retainment. We understand that attracting and retaining are equally important. In fact, more often than not, the two inform each other. Talented workers are more attracted to a company that has the ability to retain its talent. High turnover rates will be a giant reg flag to highly qualified prospective employees. It can be a vicious cycle, or it can be a large benefit. 

If your business is attracting, but not retaining, talented employees within the organization, it may be a sign that your business is not as healthy as it could be – and missing out on the significant benefits of retaining employees like boosted productivity, improved morale, and reduced costs. To understand the specific issues, evaluate not just your hiring process, but also your employee experience. Are you fostering a culture of engagement, growth, and recognition? Addressing these elements can attract and retain top talent, ultimately contributing to a healthier and more successful business.

Attracting talent to the organization is crucial for the success of any business. Employees are the backbone of your business and without talent on the team, you can not reach your goals. And any business that can attract talented employees should be able to fulfill its end of the bargain by providing a stimulating, challenging, and rewarding work environment for its talented hires.

The advantages of attracting and retaining talented employees may seem obvious. Nonetheless, it is important that we dig into exactly what is at stake if your business is not able to find and keep your talent. 

If productivity is one of your major concerns as a business owner, then you are in good company. A myriad of business studies have been conducted on the matter and they show quite clearly that jobs that offer complex work projects and proportionate compensation that is commensurate with experience are often filled by highly talented and productive employees. In these cases, productivity really skyrockets.

Of course, we all want our productivity to skyrocket. That much is obvious! So how do we get from A to B? 

Here is where you really need to get critical about your business recruitment and retention initiatives. Sounds like a complex job for a talented employee, doesn’t it? 

Even Top Organizations Struggle

Many companies report issues with attracting talent to the organization. Without talented recruits, there are no talented employees to retain. You may be surprised to hear that even Fortune 500 companies report having issues with recruitment, an overwhelming majority, in fact! 

Did you know, job descriptions are one of the first ways companies lose out on attracting talented employees to the organization? Take a good look at your job descriptions before you post an opening. Pay special attention to the required and preferred qualifications you are listing. It is vital that you not list required qualifications if they are not absolutely essential for the job. Those qualifications can be listed under preferred to avoid losing out on talented employees who do not hold those specific qualities/skills but might be more than able to perform the job nonetheless (and learn!).

For example, consider the requirement for an advanced degree. If it’s not essential, remove it! Not only does it unnecessarily limit your applicant pool, but it also overlooks potentially qualified candidates who might thrive in the role. Remember, retaining employees who are the right fit for your company culture and team dynamics often holds more value than a specific academic credential. By ensuring your requirements are truly essential, you unlock the benefits of retaining employees who bring diverse perspectives, fresh ideas, and long-term commitment to your company.

If your company does not employ strategies for increasing diversity on your team (and retention will be a major part of this later on) you will want to seriously consider forming a committee to take on the hefty task of reviewing all of your job descriptions. A qualified Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity consultant can work with your company to ensure that you are on the right track when it comes to writing your job descriptions and job postings. Don’t let your company miss out on talented and highly productive workers by having antiquated hiring practices and procedures. 

As mentioned earlier, attracting and retaining talented employees are part and parcel of the same thing. Not all companies are the same just as not all employees are the same. There is, however, ample evidence to show us what employees are looking for in a job and what makes employees want to not only stay with a company but continue to work in a highly motivated and productive way to meet the goals of the company. Luckily, much of the work you do to revise your recruitment practices will lay the groundwork for your approach to retaining said employees.

If you think that, as the leader of your business, you could benefit from having a business coach with decades of management experience, then contact us today.