Top Talent Retention

Introduction
Successful companies invest large amounts of resources in the process of hiring and developing its employees. (Lqbal, A. 2010). Yet despite this effort by successful companies, there are many people out there who aren’t happy or satisfied with their jobs, employers or roles within their organizations. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were over 3.6 million open positions on the last business day of 2012, with a quit rates ranging from 3 to 6% in 2012. What is the cause of such unhappiness within the work place, causing us to walk away from paying jobs, in an economy struggling to recover from a major economic recession? In this paper we will look at what employees find motivating in a work environment and how to drive engagement and company loyalty. Why employers need to deliver on their promise to invest in, and promote employees from within, what kind of quality’s employers should look for when interviewing for promotions, and why it would be beneficial for employers to build healthy working environments.
When New Generations Enter the Workforce As a child, I remember overhearing my grandparents discussing the teenage girl who lived down the street. She had a pink streak in her hair, walked around with headphones on her head, would blare the music in her car and had a nose piercing. My grandparents were mortified, and were just certain that “this younger generation will be the death of us”. As each new generation enters adulthood, we bring with us certain characteristics and qualities unique to our generation. This includes changes in communication styles, personal motivators, and life style priorities. These changes become especially apparent as each generation enters the workforce, and these changes need be acknowledged for the transition to be successful. (Montana, Patrick J., Petit, Frances, 2008). Although there are no exact dates for each generational category, a good estimation for these dates are the years:1965-1983 – which is called Generation X; 1984- 2002 - Generation Y or the Millennials; 2003- Current is Generation Z or the Digital Generation”*. Some will argue that Generation Y is the most demanding and entitled generation of workers to enter the work force yet, though a study preformed by Fordham University, indicates that the factors Generation Y considers most important in motivating them are very similar to generation X’s priorities in a work environment. (Montana, Patrick J., Petit, Frances, 2008) They do have one major difference however, which is a key aspect to understanding what is important in motivating to Generation Y in the workforce.
When Fordham University Schools of Business surveyed 200 MBA, Graduate and undergraduate students, ranking 25 factors most important in motivation them to do well in their job, Generation X answered as follows: 1. Respect for me as a person 2. Good pay 3. Chance for promotion 4. Opportunity to do interesting work 5. Feeling my job is important 6. Opportunity for self-development and improvement
Generations Y: 1. Respect for me as a person 2. Good pay 3. Getting along well with others on the job 4. Chance for promotion 5. Opportunity to do interesting work 6. Opportunity for self-development and improvement (Montana, Patrick J., Petit, Frances, 2008)
The difference between the two is ”Getting along well with others on the job”. If you cannot get along well with your boss, you will not be motivated or satisfied, and if you cannot get along well with your subordinates or peers you will be dissatisfied on the job. (Montana, Patrick J., Petit, Frances, 2008). This makes sense in an age of social media, where we date on line and are connected to our social circles at all times through Facebook or Twitter accounts. It would make sense that younger generations would rank “getting along with others” highly, as we are accustomed to being surrounded constantly by those we choose to be surrounded by. It is important that as younger generations enter our workforce, employers create an environment in which moral is just as important as productivity. While some would say that this it is “catering” to them, or that these young adults need to enter the “real world”, perhaps it’s time for employers to adapt to the “new real world”, which is filled with employees who have different motivators, to increase the engagement, loyalty and profits desired.
Cultures of Engagement Casey Cunningham, a sales, operations and human resources specialist, describes an environment or culture as “the unwritten rules that guide how people interact, react, problem solves and communicates within an organization”. (Cunningham, 2012). The issue of workplace culture is a fairly new issue, which employers often do not know how to approach. Most often employers focus on easier issues to address and define such as profitability and productivity, passing over the issues of culture and moral. (Cunningham, 2012). What is the point of investing in employee happiness? Kevin Kruse, a highly recognized business consultant and author explains the importance of employee moral nicely when he says, “truly engaged talent is emotionally invested in their role within a corporation. Employee engagement is the emotional commitment an employee has to the organization and it’s goals, resulting in more effective effort.” (Kruse, 2012). Because of this engagement, the employee cares more, thus delivers better service, is more productive and is often more loyal to their employer. Engagement ultimately reflects financially, as clients feel the high moral among the employees, they are more likely to contract with this company, and as team members stay longer, turnover costs are reduced.
Here are three examples of the financial impact of employee engagement:
Retention & Absenteeism: Unnamed Fortune 100 manufacturing company reduced turnover from 14.5% to 4.1%, while absenteeism dropped from 8% to 4.8%. (Kruse, Section 5: (Source: Employee Engagement: The Key To Realizing Competitive Advantage, Development Dimensions International)).
SALES
Fabick CAT improved “percent of industry net sales” by 300% and improved customer engagement scores by 8% (Kruse, Section 2 (Source: A Caterpillar Dealer Unearths Employee Engagement, Gallup Business Journal)).
SAFETY: Study of 23,910 business units compared top quartile and bottom quartile engagement scores and found that those in the bottom quartile averaged 62% more accidents. (Kruse, Section 4 (Source: Gallup Q12 Meta-Analysis, Gallup)).
While employee engagement results in financial profitability, in turn, when an employee leaves an organization, it has the potential to be extremely disruptive, interfering with operations, team dynamics and performance. (Lqbal, A. 2010).
Promotion Potential Organizations invest a vast amount of resources in the training and development of its employees and that investment is lost when an employee leaves. (Lqbal, A. 2010). When forming a highly productive team, retaining motivated individuals is an important factor for organizations to consider. Jeff Haden, an author and enrapture with over 30 years experience discusses what quality’s make a remarkable employee. A remarkable employee doesn’t just see you as “the boss”, but is able to see the goals you are reaching for too. You can work together, striving to achieve each-others goals. (Haden, 2012). Employees often vent their frustrations by talking badly about the boss. A remarkable employee will not join in the talk, but will portray the same respect they have for you in person and support you publicly when making a change in the work place. A remarkable employee does not necessarily cater to what you want to hear, but will tell you the truth of a situation, and while they will respectfully speak their mind, they will not undermine you in public, but will engage in any debate in private. (Haden, 2012) While it’s important to provide opportunities to those employees who display the necessary qualities, it is also important that employers be careful in selecting employees for promotion. While an employee may be excellent at his/her job, that does not mean they are ready to lead a team, as these two positions require different skill sets. (Daniels, 2002). A leader needs excellent social skills, the ability to relate, build moral and trust on a team, while a great performer is good at completing a task without direction. (Daniels, 2002) Promoting those who feel they are entitled, but are not ready, will often result in delayed project deadlines, poor execution, employee turnover and loss in revenue. While choosing the right person for the position will result in strong, motivated teams that will increase productivity. (Padmanabha, 2011),
Conclusion
The next generation is entering our work force whether we are ready or not. This generation is full of creative minds and eager hearts, which need to be developed to reach their full potential. A healthy culture requires a plan to engage remarkable talent and increase profitability, so it’s crucial that we invest in training, communicate the rewards of hard work and provide the opportunities for advancement promised to employees that meet the expectations for advancement. As company investors, owners or leaders we need to make an active choice to shape our companies futures. Not to be organizations leaning on “the good old days”, waiting for them to return, which we know from history will never happen. Rather, we need to embrace the changes required for motivating and communicating with this new generation of employees, building engagement and retention, and creating healthy cultures in our companies. (Sitkins, 2011)
References
Bureau of Labor Statistics, (2013) Job Openings and Labor Turnover Summary, Retrieved February 15, 13 http://www.bls.gov/news.release/jolts.nr0.htm

Cunningham, Casey. (2012). Cultures determine success. Mortgage Banking, 72(4), 105.

Daniels, Aubrey C, (2002) Bringing Out the Best in People, Retrieved February 9, 13, http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/printthis/47750.html

Haden, J (2012) 6 Qualities of Remarkably Loyal Employees, Retrieved January 23, 2013, from http://business.time.com/2012/09/11/6-qualities-of-remarkably-loyal-employees/

Iqbal, Adnan. (2010). Employee turnover: Causes, consequences and retention strategies in the Saudi organizations. The Business Review, Cambridge, 16(2), 275.

Kruse, Kevin, 2012, Why Employee Engagement? (These 28 Research Studies Prove the Benefits), Retrieved January, 29 2012, http://www.forbes.com/sites/kevinkruse/2012/09/04/why-employee-engagement/

1) (Kruse, Section 5: (Source: Employee Engagement: The Key To Realizing Competitive Advantage, Development Dimensions International)).

2) (Kruse, Section 2 (Source: A Caterpillar Dealer Unearths Employee Engagement, Gallup Business Journal)).

3) (Kruse, Section 4 (Source: Gallup Q12 Meta-Analysis, Gallup)).
Montana, Patrick J., Frances Petit, (2008), Retrieved January, 29 2013, http://journals.cluteonline.com/index.php/JBER/article/view/2459

Padmanabha, (2011). Risk of Hiring or Promoting Wrong People? Retrieved February 15, 13, http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Risk-Hiring-Promoting-Wrong-People-2598338.S.60571892

Sitkins, Roger. (2011). ARE YOU LEARNING OR LEANING? Rough Notes, 154(11), 10.

*(http://askville.amazon.com/cut-birth-dates-generations-baby-boomers-gen-Gen-generation/AnswerViewer.do?requestId=9298486).