Retaining top talent has long been a key goal for HR professionals. With the economy keeping external opportunities limited the past few years, this has limited these top employees from leaving. But somewhere in the back of our minds is the fear that when opportunities start to increase people will start to leave. As mentioned in the recent SumTotal White Paper, the study that showed that up to half of these top performers are already looking Implementing is a call to action. And implementing Retention programs at that time could be too late.
Now is the time to invest in developing your people. Make sure that managers have the skills, tools and information they need to develop their employees. Research has shown that people who feel they have received adequate training are far less likely to leave than those who feel they were simply thrown into the job to sink or swim (see Hequet 1993; Umiker 1994). Managers need to ask questions to find out whether people have had all the training, orientation and on-boarding they need. Even if they have what they need to get the job done, offer to help people receive additional training so that they know they’re growing professionally and keeping abreast of developments in their field, not stagnating. If people feel that they are learning and growing through being with your company, they are far more likely to stay. Taking the time and effort to invest in them will pay off. An integrated system makes this much easier to do than ever before.
