Whether you view the current employment situation as the Great Resignation, the Great Renegotiation, or the Great Reshuffle, it’s tough to keep qualified employees. Because of that, many employers are looking for the best ways to retain their best team members.
Employers have a lot of options to consider — pay raises, bonuses, flexible schedules, remote work, new or increased benefits, additional training and opportunities for advancement, and more.
It’s never a bad idea to ask your employees what motivates them. Rather than exit interviews, consider “stay interviews.” During a stay interview, you ask your team what they look forward to when they come to work and what would make their jobs more satisfying.
There’s likely a mixture of tactics you can implement to keep your best people. From there, you can decide what works best for your organization or business and what you can and can’t afford.
Let’s take a look at some other popular ways to keep your best staff members and then a few that you might not have considered:
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Raises
- Increasing employees’ wages is usually the most common consideration. As inflation continues to increase, you have to make sure your employees aren’t struggling to keep up. But it’s likely inflation has affected your organization’s bottom line too. So, you have to find a balance between fair pay, meeting your other obligations, and turning a profit. (You can check out our recent blog for some tips to fight inflation.) Still, now is the time to do a deep dive into your pay rates to make sure your employees are receiving fair compensation.
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Bonuses
- Hiring, spot, retention, performance, and annual incentive bonuses are something you might want to consider to keep and attract great team members. If you do opt for some kind of bonus structure, be thoughtful and intentional about it. You may want to consider putting conditions on bonuses so that staff members don’t take the extra money and then leave shortly after anyway.
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Flexibility
- Whether it’s scheduling or working from different locations, consider allowing your staff the opportunity to work when and where they need to. This type of scheduling may not work for every organization. But if you can find a way to give your team more flexibility, it might entice them to stay.
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Recognition
- The past couple of years have been tough for everyone. We’ve all been doing our best to get through and meet our obligations. Often, employees have been going above and beyond too. Make sure they know that you appreciate everything they’ve done. The details of what that recognition might look like should be specific and fitting for your organization. Just make sure you’re doing it consistently and regularly.
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Tuition Reimbursement
- If your organization has a written policy that meets federal income tax guidelines, you can deduct as much as $5,250 in reimbursements for each employee every year. That can be a great way to not only keep the talent you have but attract high-quality workers too.
If you need other ideas to keep your business running smoothly, please let us know.