As many people will tell you, there’s a knack for creating and maintaining a happy workplace.
A positive and welcoming atmosphere is a main step towards creating an efficient workforce, but it goes beyond strengthening your output.
Staff turnover is something every business owner should want to minimise, not only to make life easier for themselves but also for their team.
If you’re wondering how to retain staff and create a good working culture, here’s some useful advice.
Retaining staff
If you find yourself with employees leaving on a semi-regular basis, your first step should be to look into why this is happening.
In 2021, a record number of employees voluntarily quit their jobs en masse. Dubbed the Great Resignation, thousands of workers chose to leave their current occupations to find roles with higher pay and a better work-life balance.
Due to the lifting of lockdown restrictions and the shift towards hybrid working patterns, the Great Resignation shows that people are more willing to leave a job if they are dissatisfied.
Creating and maintaining a good working culture is key to keeping your valued employees. Besides, having to hire staff constantly can be expensive and time-consuming.
We’ve previously written about ways you can attract new staff, but once you’ve gotten them through the door, what can you do to keep them?
Creating a great culture
Your team will feel happy in their role if they feel supported, trusted, and appreciated. There are many ways to achieve this.
Transparency
Everyone knows how challenging the economy is at the moment, and some of your employees might be worried about job security.
As a business owner, you can manage this by providing your team insight into how the business is running. This could be in the form of quarterly or monthly updates and reports – providing a level of honesty and transparency between you and your team. Hopefully, this will allay any fears of layoffs or redundancies.
Providing feedback
Giving feedback on your team’s work can greatly increase engagement and positivity.
At times, this might take the form of constructive criticism, but recognising and addressing it shows that you’re there to collaborate rather than dictate.
If you come across a shining example of someone’s great work, share it with the team and celebrate their achievement. Recognising good work goes a long way towards job satisfaction.
You could also reward staff for their efforts – some types of small gifts (known as ‘trivial benefits’) can also be tax-free, making them an effective way to celebrate your team’s efforts.
Feedback goes both ways, too, so ask your team if there’s anything they’d like to see from you (and encourage managers and team leaders to do the same). Establishing a culture of open communication, and making sure your employees feel listened to, is key to retaining staff.
Develop your team
Employees aren’t likely to stay at a company if they feel like they’re stagnating. If someone finds themselves stuck in the same role for many years, they might decide to search for a higher position at another business.
To minimise this risk, consider starting workplace development schemes. These could include on-the-job training, external courses, or even offering learning and development resources.
Again, open lines of communication throughout your organisation will help to create these opportunities. Mentoring and social learning can be great ways for staff to develop, but for businesses that have recently moved to remote or hybrid working, this might not happen as naturally as it used to.
Make sure you review the learning and development available to your team in light of your current working practices, and think about what gaps you might need to fill.
Get in touch
Retaining staff and creating a good working culture is paramount for your company’s success. Not only will this give you a stronger reputation, but it’ll also provide job satisfaction for your team.
Get in touch to discuss your staff retention.
