7 February The Secret To Employee Retention February 7, 2023 By sma Business Tips, Franchise business growth, hiring, motivation, time management, training 0 THE SECRET TO EMPLOYEE RETENTION February 7, 2023 | Business Tips, Franchise | hiring, business growth, training, motivation, time management By Kimberly Stevens, NPI, Inc.'s Marketing & Business Coach Any good business manager will be able to tell you that the key to real success is a strong team. It is difficult to find a good support system, so when you’ve finally secured reliable partners that perform their jobs well, there is a new challenge to overcome. Employee retention has become more difficult than ever in recent years. In 2021, the “Great Resignation” sent companies scrambling as they attempted to recover from record-high “quit” rates. Standards of workers have raised since then, and PEW researchers cite a laundry list of reasons that employees have decided to leave in a recent study. The secret to keeping your best employees on your team is simple: give them a reason to stay. Understand what your workers want, and show them that working for you is a great way to achieve those goals. Pay Your Employees More The most straight-forward technique to retain employees is to simply pay your workers more to reliably show that their value is recognized and their time is appreciated. This tip likely isn’t a surprise, but business owners should give this option serious consideration when it’s available. According to a survey performed by recruiting experts at Robert Half, an increase in salary is the number one reason (by a wide margin) why people search for new positions. In fact, 65% of the time, money is the top reason for job changes. Since this is such a common motivator, small business owners should expect to encounter this issue at some point in running their business. Before moving straight to alternatives, consider the value that the employee adds, and the potential cost in time and money that finding a replacement would result in. In businesses where workers develop relationships with clients, consider that losing a key team member could result in a substantial loss of business as well. Money is a strong motivator - be sure to consider what you can budget to help your business succeed. Limit Micromanagement People want to feel like they are capable and that they are contributing to an overall goal. One sure way to undercut that feeling of confidence is too much micromanagement. If your employees feel like they are working under a microscope, their work is sure to suffer, and they are much more likely to experience higher amounts of stress. Everyone has different management styles, but it is important to understand what your style tells your workers. Micromanagement can make your workers feel as though you don’t trust them, and it can limit their opportunities to prove their knowledge and ability to their peers (and to their boss). Consider affording your best employees extra room to work. The resulting increase in morale may result in improved work and mounting confidence within your team. Offer Them Growth Opportunities Outside of money, a great motivator for workers is a sense of personal growth. Early on, this is easy to achieve, as new employees are occupied with learning a new field and navigating a new workplace. Issues can arise as these employees fall into a rut and begin to feel as though they have reached their ceiling at a position. Good workers have a desire to excel, to challenge themselves, and to improve. As a good employer, it is your job to provide these new opportunities. Offer new training or new freedoms where your employees can learn a new strategy to elevate their skills. Additionally, you can bring them to conferences or to other meetings where they have opportunities to learn. At National Property Inspections, our corporate team hosts monthly training sessions for franchisees to elevate their home inspection skills and invest further into marketing. Ask your workers what they might want to learn more about or how you can help them achieve their goals. Follow these strategies to keep your amazing team together and maybe even elevate their performance moving into the future! If you are looking for more information on how to start a home inspection franchise with National Property Inspections, check out our free information packet here. About the Author Kimberly Stevens, Marketing & Business Coach The baby of eight children, Kimberly learned quickly to master the art of communication in order to be heard. She has been with NPI for more than 15 years and is passionate about getting to know our franchisees. Kimberly is a certified marketing and business coach, trainer and speaker, leading training seminars, one-to-one coaching and more. She's a high-energy, fiery red head and an eternal optimist. Her greatest joy is celebrating our franchisees’ victories! Comments are closed.