Workplace Issues #9: Employee Turnover

Posted on August 20, 2006
Filed Under Workplace Issues | 2 Comments

This post is actually more a book review than an original post. According to the author, Employee Turnover is not an event but a process of disengagement - that happens much before the decision to leave occurs. Employees begin to disengage and think about leaving when one or more of the 4 fundamental needs are not being met. The needs being:

1. The need for trust
2. The need to have hope
3. The need to have a sense of worth
4. The need to feel competent

Several steps can unfold in an employee’s journey from disengagement to departure. Some of these steps can happen either during the time between an employee first had thoughts of quitting and the decision to leave or during the time between the employees decision to leave and the actual leaving. The first period provides a better chance, for managers, to act on the disengagement process and do something about it. Managers need to be proactive and must keep their antennae up and be alert to the 7 hidden reasons, listed below.

1. The job or workplace was not as expected
2. The mismatch between the job and the person
3. Too little coaching and feedback
4. Too few growth and advancement opportunities
5. Feeling devalued and unrecognized
6. Stress from overwork and Work-Life imbalance
7. Loss of trust and confidence on senior leaders

For organizations/managers that want to stop the brain-drain, the book is packed with sound advice and “tips” to tackle each of the 7 reasons. Definitely a good read.

Technorati Tags: Workplace Issues, Employee Turnover, Brain Drain, Disengagement

Hiring Practices #2

Posted on August 6, 2006
Filed Under Careers | 1 Comment

USA Today had carried an article titled "7 Steps to better hiring", aimed at small businesses. According to the article, the steps were

1. Write a Job description: This forces the company to redefine other jobs and help set pay ranges, plan interview questions and evaluate performance.
2. Gauge the market: To learn what other employers are paying, understand the full cost of a new employee etc.
3. Outsource: Validate if the job can be outsourced to specialized agencies or if the hiring process can be outsourced.
4. Spread the word: Avoid costs associated with agency fees and time delays, and do some networking.
5. Plan the interviews
6. ‘Sell’ your company: Promote the company against bigger corporations by stressing benefits that matter most.
7. Check resumes and references: Qualify the candidate before the interview process happens.

While the 7 steps may get you the qualified employee, keeping the new employee engaged and committed may be an onerous task. Good management practices can help keep employees motivated and boost revenues. Some of the preferred ways to doing so are:

1. Make sure there is a fit, in terms of company culture.
2. Stop micromanagement, and focus on accountability and results.
3. Promote transparency across the organization.
4. Leverage people strengths and reward often.
5. Make sure the hiring practices are people centric, and not just need based.

Companies have always had to compete for the best talent, and in the future, the competition will only get more fierce. To win the race, companies need to adopt some practices and re-visit the same every few years. This applies to companies of all sizes, although a bad hire may hurt a bigger organization lesser than that in a small organization.

ps. I had already written a post on the same subject here. I have updated the title to reflect the sequel.

Technorati Tags: Careers, Hiring Practices, Growing Leaders, Interview Process