We know that leaders are passionate about providing the best customer care. We also know that not being able to keep employees is both a massive detriment to that goal and just plain frustrating. In our management training program, Workforce Retention Bootcamp, we teach that one sure way to retain your staff for longer is to make the commitment to know them better. What’s keeping them up at night? How are they motivated? What backgrounds and life experiences are they coming from? Getting to know your employees will undoubtedly result in better company culture, lower turnover rates, and higher productivity over time.
Do you and your leadership team know your people? Do you recognize the daily struggles and priorities of today’s new front-line workforce? Are you in tune with THEIR reality?
Here are three ways to get started:
Tip #1 – Acknowledge your unique lens.
The tip starts with you. As a result of different upbringings and life experiences, we all see the world a bit differently. At the office, you and your staff will have varying perspectives on the same situation. Taking a moment to consider your lens and how that might differ from your employees’ lenses is a great first step to building relational credit. Then, find five minutes here and there to learn about your staff’s lenses. It’s amazing what a little bit of perspective and consideration will do.
Tip #2 – Know their stressors.
You know the “life” that happens for you outside of your office hours. Your staff also has stressors they deal with before and after work, and most likely, they aren’t the same ones you are experiencing. Differences in pay and schedule flexibility, for example, may make their lives difficult in unique ways. Are there policies, perks, and rewards that could be adjusted to better meet their needs? Get to know your team better by finding out what is keeping them up at night and be prepared to support in any way you can.
Tip #3 – Assess yourself and your team.
Do you really know yourself, behaviors, and communication style? Do you have an awareness of others’ personalities and motivators? If not, we recommend using assessments to learn about one another. Prioritize time and resources to assess your leaders and team to find out who they are and who you are. After gaining this understanding, you will be able to adjust to these different styles and structure your team in more effective ways. This is where you’ll find true upgrades in productivity, company culture, and less people quitting because your organization will be a place that people want to work.
To slow the revolving door of employee turnover, commit to knowing yourself and others better. Take advantage of even the spare minutes in the day to do so. If you are serious about making retention a priority, don’t hesitate to book a discover call today to learn if what we do for our clients would work for you!
Contact our Workforce Retention Specialist, Jess Ray at jess@magnetculture.