Blog/News
KEEPING YOUR BEST EMPLOYEES, A PRACTICAL APPROACH
The need for every organisation to keep their best employees cannot be over-emphasised. Organisations all over the world have found a way to nurture and grow their best performers, realising that the employees, sustain the business ensuring that it thrives in these challenging times.
Right from recruitment, top-performing organisations design various programmes to support employee growth and to develop new leaders through well-structured succession planning programmes.
In spite of the above the rate of success for these programmes has been very poor. Indeed, research has proven that the employees largely referred to as ‘high performers’ have felt detached from most of the programmes designed by their employers to retain them. Even more alarming is the fact that a high percentage of these high performers are in the job market looking for new opportunities. This means that as time goes on organisations will end up losing large numbers of their top talents.
How do the organisations that keep their best workers over long periods do it, what distinguishes them from the ones that have very high attrition rates?
The key word is engagement. High-performing employees and talented employees must be engaged.
High Standards
High-performing employees set very high standards for themselves and expect their employers to replicate their standards, by treating them very well. Employers that get to keep their best performers engage them properly by providing them with a work environment that stimulates them, an environment that challenges them to soar higher, they also strive to recognise their contribution to the business and finally provide them with a clear path for career growth. Note that high-performing employees are very confident in their ability to find new opportunities and will leave if they don’t feel engaged by their employers. Employers need to set the right conditions for their best employees ensuring that company objectives and ambitions align with employee goals and aspirations.
Challenging Tasks
High performers expect to be trusted with highly challenging tasks. They expect their superiors to delegate challenging tasks to them and trust that they will deliver. High performers are not lazy and do not expect handouts, they crave challenges, and high-risk projects and thrive on being trusted with projects that have serious deadlines. These employees consider themselves assets and expect their organisations to utilise their skill sets.
Career Growth
High performers expect growth in their careers and will stay with organisations that give them clear career paths. They expect progression, and growth in their careers and will make a bid for any role that falls in line with their career ambitions. Skills can be stretched in different areas and high-performing employees will typically access internal opportunities that are congruent with their life interests. Organisations must take an interest in the development of their employees, employee growth, and performance must be properly measured and evaluated and a development plan set out to support them. This plan must be reviewed periodically for further development and reassignment.
Participation
High Performers expect to be made aware of overall corporate strategy and direction. An organisation must open up to its stars bring them in on the strategy and make an effort to get their input. Organisations must share their future strategies with their top performers and seek their support in realising these strategies. Employees expect to be updated through emails, expect to participate in meetings and for their employers to take a genuine interest in their contribution towards overall corporate goals.
An organisation’s most talented employees strive to have a meaningful effect on business strategy and are keen to be included in the planning process. They, therefore, feel disengaged when they are unchallenged, unrecognised, and unrewarded for their contribution.
The business environment must be designed to challenge and cultivate rising stars and to assure them that the future of the business is in their hands.
By Michael Kuma Avuglah
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