FREE ESSAY ON EMPLOYEE RETENTION

EMPLOYEE RETENTION

In 1999 employee turnover shot to its highest level in nearly two decades. On average, 1.2
% of the workforce left their jobs each month last year. This did not include departures
due to layoffs, downsizing, or departures of temporary staff. Job turnover is soaring for
a few reasons. One is definitely the strength of the economy. If companies need to find
workers they can raise salaries, which increases the likelihood that someone will leave a
job for one that pays more. Another reason is the loosening of bonds between employer and
employee. There are lower levels of loyalty in today's work environment. I believe money
and perks can be used to attract people to a company but to retain skilled workers, it
takes more then just tangible elements. In order to retain good employees, today's
workplace must make the proper adjustments to meet their demands. Good employees will not
continue to work for a jerk if they know they can find a good job elsewhere. Empowering
employees, career advancement opportunities, the right job fit, and a positive workplace
environment can foster loyalty and commitment. But, most importantly, is high-quality
leadership. 
First of all, employee ownership equals empowerment. Empowerment is getting employees to
do what needs to be done rather then being told what to do. A controlling manager is not
at the core of empowerment. "Efforts toward continuous improvement take hold only when
employees feel a sense of pride and ownership in their jobs. And pride and ownership are
the heart of empowerment efforts. Empowered individuals take initiative to find better
ways to accomplish their everyday tasks" (Eitington, 161). Empowering employees allows
them to be part of the decision making process. This leads to a better company image,
employee satisfaction, and decreases employee turnover. 
At Home Depot, headquartered in Atlanta, employees who are responsible for maintaining
product aisles in the company's stores, proudly and prominently display their names for
customers to see. A smart organization gives its employees a sense of ownership. This
doesn't have to be in financial terms, as shown with Home Depot. By giving employees an
integral role in the operation of their departments and business units, the company
fosters loyalty and commitment from employees. It also inspires them to do their best.
Giving employees enough freedom and power to carry out their tasks allows them to take
ownership of the results. When individuals believe that the work they are doing is
important and that their tasks are meaningful they will maintain commitment to the
company and will desire to grow with the company. 
Secondly, developing clear career advancement opportunities is an important step in
fostering a sense of loyalty, trust, and commitment. Career plans, rewards for
achievement, and encouraging further education are excellent ways to support employees. A
career plan will help the employee set their long- term goals. Career development plans
are agreements between employee and employer and they spell out exactly what one will
receive to develop their skills such as tuition, time-off, formal training, classes, etc.
Plans also include milestones for the achievement of learning goals. Rewards for
achievement whether monetary such as a raise in pay or nonfinancial such as a change in
title to reflect the level of work achieved are all-important to the fostering of loyalty
and fulfillment. Encouraging further education not only makes employees more valuable to
the company but it promotes a sense of well-being and satisfaction, which leads to
loyalty and commitment. 
Starbucks Coffee has more then 400 retail stores, 26 major airport locations, a thriving
mail order business, and direct sales to businesses such as Nordstrom, Barnes and Noble
bookstores, and Delta shuttle. They have sales growth of 65 percent each year. All
Starbucks employees, known internally as "partners", start their careers with twenty-four
hours of classroom training at one of the company's regional training centers. They study
retail skills, coffee brewing methods, customer service, pouring the "perfect" shot of
espresso, and much more. Courses are taught by district managers, specialists, and
training mangers that have all been through the courses already and have worked in a
retail store for at least two months. Employees are making careers at Starbucks instead
of dropping out. Starbucks offers their employees increased training and career
advancement and this is a key factor in employee retention. 
Thirdly, the right job fit is an important component in employee retention. Providing
opportunities to explore different positions within the company creates openness and
growth. A great example is a chemical company that I read about in a consulting magazine.
They place new scientists in the Research Assignments Program, which provides an
introduction to various company research positions. These new hires spend 12-16 months
exploring different research areas before they accept a specific position in a
laboratory. These new scientists complete three to four different projects at different
research laboratories. At the end of the program, each person transfers to a position
that is chosen based on the individual's preference and performance and the company's
current research priorities. This benefits new employees by giving them an opportunity to
learn more about the company and helps them to develop a company network with a variety
of managers and employees. A learning environment, such as this one, provides a chance to
learn on the job and this improves skills, knowledge, and performance. It also keeps the
employee's interest level high. The employee will be more eager to go to work if they
feel they will learn something new and improve themselves. Finding something that an
employee is interested in and allowing them to go further with it is the beginning of
employee loyalty. The best organizations provide employees with opportunities to learn
and better themselves. This enhances employee trust and loyalty follows. 
Also, corporate culture, company policies, and interpersonal relationships all work
together to create the workplace environment. Culture drives the organization and its
actions. Corporate culture speaks to the experience of work and what is meaningful to
members, including shared beliefs, values, rules, and rituals within an organization. 
Strive for a climate that stresses and rewards openness, freedom, exploration,
experimentation, the interaction of different individuals, team collaboration, and the
mutual partaking of creative experiences. Recognize that a closed system - one marked by
limited entry and exchange of ideas, and stifling of thinking, feeling, and imagining -
establishes roadblocks to needed creativity. (Eitington, 607).
A firm earns loyalty by creating a positive work environment that is stimulating and
emphasizes employee growth. Today, loyalty is sustained through an organizational culture
that encourages motivation, energy, and innovation. 
Employees value a workplace in which their input is encouraged and appreciated.
Emphasizing knowledge sharing and employee feedback is very important when looking to
retain skilled workers. An open door policy encourages employees at all levels to ask
questions, contribute ideas, and resolve issues. A sharing atmosphere gives everyone a
voice in creating the type of corporate culture they would like to work in. 
A company that values interpersonal relationships encourages managers to meet with their
employees. Meeting over lunch to answer questions and share information helps create a
tighter bond between employee and employer. The loosening of bonds between employer and
employee is one of the reasons for high employee turnover. One-on-one meetings encourage
employees to meet regularly with their managers and peers to discuss such topics as
project status and training and development plans. Regular business meetings are an
excellent way to get employee input, make improvements, and address concerns before they
become problems. 
Company and administrative policies can be a great source of frustration for employees,
especially if the policies are unclear or unnecessary. A company can decrease
dissatisfaction in this area by making sure their policies are fair and applied equally
to all. 
Employee empowerment, increased training and career opportunities, the right job fit, and
a positive workplace environment are all major factors for retaining good employees. Most
importantly, are the leaders who help create and enforce these. High-quality leadership
is very important - studies show that an employees direct supervisor has the greatest
influence on whether he or she finds a job satisfying.
Organizational Skills Associates (OSA), a management and organizational development
company based in Madison, WI, creates employee surveys to ask how people feel about their
supervisors, how they rate their work environment, availability of promotions and career
training, the level of information exchange, etc. Bob Morris, president of OSA, feels
that these factors are all part of overall job satisfaction. "Interestingly, the most
common sources of satisfaction have changed somewhat in recent years. 'It's no longer
tied to things like company loyalty', Morris says. 'You don't see much of that anymore.
People are loyal to other people. A lot of their satisfaction is tied up in the people -
colleagues, supervisors, and so on'" (Hochgraf). The satisfaction level of most employees
tend to improve when they are working with a supervisor that understands them and gives
them choices in their work environment. 
Bob Nelson, a management consultant, feels that to get the most from employees a manager
must create a supportive work environment. In such an environment, employees will feel
they can be creative and thus will take the initiative in their jobs. A manger can create
a supportive workplace using a number of techniques. One is making employees feel safe so
they will feel comfortable telling their supervisor bad news as well as good news. An
environment that is safe encourages employees to take chances and management will give
clear feedback on the results, good or bad. 
Opening the channels of communication is critical in the ultimate success of an
organization. When employees can communicate open and honestly with one another their
motivation will be greatly effected. 
Building and maintaining trust and respect is another way for managers to retain skilled
workers. Being willing to listen to an employee's feedback and ideas is very important
when trying to keep communication open. A manger needs to set goals to be achieved by the
employee: progress should be recognized and celebrated. 
First, people require jobs that are so organized that they have a clear, worthwhile goal.
They need to know that what they are doing is important and what success on their part
will look like. Second, workers require immediate feedback about their accomplishments.
They don't want to do a lot of wheel spinning and worrying about whether they are on the
right track or whether they hit the target. Successful performance in itself is a
tremendous empowerer. Third, employees want to know when a job is complete. They very
much need a sense of closure on their activities. (Eitington, 281)
A manger needs to recognize hard work and effort. This includes feedback because the
members of a team need to know what is expected of them, where they stand, and how they
are performing. Feedback needs to be honest and simple. Corrective feedback should be
handled properly, as should effective feedback - both are necessary to maintain open and
honest communication. 
Empowering employees by giving them ownership in the organization, developing career
opportunities, and fostering a positive work environment are all ways to mange and retain
skilled employees in today's work place. Employees are the greatest asset to any
organization and they need to be developed. Managers who truly manage their employees can
attract and retain good employees because they are able to build trust and commitment.
Building trust and commitment with employees encourages loyalty and commitment from them.

In today's work environment there is a need for a partnership between managers and
workers. Based on a need for a stronger employee/employer relationship, managers need to
energize, empower, support, and communicate. Good managers must create, not consume
energy in the workplace. Today's managers need to generate excitement, not just organize
people and analyze numbers. Managers must make things happen in the organization. This is
my recommendation for the work environment that I am currently involved in. The managers
within the organization are allowed very little freedom to make their own decisions and
are constantly waiting for upper management to tell them what to do. The employees view
managers as the "bearers of bad news" because they merely act as the go-between between
upper management and the employees. This discourages creativity in the work environment.
Managers do not feel a need to energize their employees and this creates a bitter work
environment. 
You may have noticed that I did not mention salary, dress code, benefit packages,
child-care, etc. when discussing retaining skilled workers. As previously discussed, I
believe that these can be used to attract employees to your company but they cannot be
used to foster company loyalty and commitment. The bond between the employer and the
employee must be strengthened. Leadership style is the most important and direct
influence on this. 
Bibliography
WORKS CITED
Eitington, Julius E. The Winning Manager. Houston, Texas: Gulf Publishing 
Co., 1997.
Family Practice Management (1999, October). Job Satisfaction: Putting 
Theory Into Practice. J. Michael Syptak, MD, David W. Marsland, 
MD, and Deborah Ulmer, PhD.: Authors. Retrieved September 10, 
2000 from the World Wide 
Web:http://aafp.org/fpm/991000fm/26.html.
Hochgraf, Lisa: Author. Boosting Job Satisfaction by Defining and Pursuing 
Worklife Happiness. Retrieved September 10, 2000 from the World 
Wide Web: http://www.findarticles.com.