Looking for Retention Tools

VanEngen

We're having some difficulty with retention (who isn't) and have decided to put a QI group together to see what we can do to make things a bit better.

Do any of you have suggestions for me? Books, articles, etc.

I'd appreciate anything that you could throw my way.

Thanks! Tammy Jo xpray

Don D

I have a few:
(1) Employee friendly policies, (2) Something really special and attractive in your benefits package, (3) Company picnics and hamburger days, (4) Well written and fair policies, distributed annually, (5) Take the doors of all the supervisor's offices, (6) Require each supervisor to spend at least 2 hours per day walking around talking to people, learning something about their people, spending warm and fuzzy time out in the real environment where the human heartaches are, (7) Clean up the employee break room and keep it sparkling, (8) take down all the cameras except those required for REAL security issues, (9) nail up some suggestion boxes, (10) Insist on a pay scale that's 32% higher than the local average for each occupation. And, lest I forget, (11) Fire any manager who refers to any employee or group of employees as 'those people'.

System

GREAT! I'm gonna get a whole BUNCH of new managers! I knew great good would come from being on this forum!

Rockie

What about people who still use the ever popular "subordinate" to refer to their employees. Still can figure out where THAT one came from!

sonny

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 03-14-03 AT 03:22PM (CST)[/font][p]re #9 Make sure someone checks those suggestions boxes and responds to their contents.

re# 11 Or those who refer to staff as MY staff/employees/people

Edit: Sorry this was supposed to fall in under Don's and refers to his excellent listing.

Don D

Omigosh! I said 'their people'. Sonny, do I need to get a cardboard box? I can't use subordinates either so I must struggle with 'direct reports' which sounds even more militaristic, almost like a roman candle...reports. Maybe associates, that's really PC, but makes me think of Wal-Mart. I may have unintentionally stepped in it with 'their people'.

Gillian

Get Love 'Em or Lose 'Em - Getting Good People to Stay by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan Evans. The publisher is Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc. I bought one for each of our deans, managers and supervisors. The SHRM bookstore has them I believe. The format is easy-read with a topic for each letter of the alphabet. My favorite chapter is J for Jerk - don't be one.

Dutch2

Taking a slightly different approach, I purchased the paperback book ZAPP for each of our Supervisors. Gave them a week to read it, on their own time, and had a special Supervisor meeting to discuss the book and what they had learned. Sorry, apparently all my supply of Zapp are currently loaned out, or I would give you more information on how to get the book. I went to the local mall book store and ordered them. Zapp takes you to a company where someone has invented a machine that enables you to see how other people view you and your abilities as a supervisor as well as that of others in your company. There are numerous special editions specific to different professions, such as education, medical, industry. This book had a very good impact on our Supervisor Team to enable them to see how their team members saw them as well as other areas of our company. It is an easy read and only takes a couple or three hours of dedicated reading to complete the book.

sonny

I would also recommend Zapp..great food for thought and fun!

Value Florida

We have a somewhat different approach to the "retention" problem. Over the years, we have concluded that retention of good employees is directly attributable to (1) the selection process for new hires and (2) paying a fair and equitable wage. All other bells and whistles are just window dressing that cost valuable dollars.

When we finally concluded that retention was dependent on the two factors noted above, our turnover was over 120% (that was three years ago). Last year our annual turnover was 59%, and March YTD 2003 it is tracking at a 42% annualized figure. That is awesome when you know we are part of an industry that routinely accepts 100+% employee turnover.

It may be interesting to note that we have not spent one cent on any kind of picnic, gift or similar so called retention tool over the past three years (we had spent the crown jewels in the past). It is all about the people selected to do the work and how they are compensated (and to some degree how they are treated as employees).

A very important footnote to our experience is that for each of the past three years our earnings have improved by double digits each year. Last year, the third year of our program, our earnings improvement was our best yet at over 20%.

We have concluded (and we think correctly so) that retention begins with the selection of the right people to do the job.

Value Florida

Don D

Congratulations! But, I can't imagine that nowhere in your formula is there anything related to how the employees perceive themselves to be treated as human beings. Whatever works. Again, congrats.

Gillian

Darn good. Obviously the selection process is working so well that you only hire people whose main concern in life is a wage they like and only "to some degree" how they are treated. Just goes to show that people who care a whole lot about how they are treated will be screened out in the beginning.

VanEngen

Thank you for the Book ideas.

Does anyone have any employee surveys that they would like to share?

Tammy Jo