Keep Quality Employees

Many business owners and managers might agree with the statement “Good help is hard to find.” The interview, hiring and training processes can also be expensive and time-consuming. But once you’ve found and groomed a star employee, how do you make sure he or she remains on board? Behavior strategist and performance management coach Joe Takash offers the following tips for retaining top talent:

Find Motivating Factors. Ask your employee what motivates him to perform. Find out if he believes that his current path will lead him toward his career goals. Learn what your employee needs in order to move up, and find ways to help him.

Get Together. Set up regular one-on-one meetings with the staffer. Getting regular face time will make her feel respected and appreciated. This is also an opportunity to elicit thoughts and ideas that she may be
uncomfortable sharing during group meetings.

Pass the Baton. Owners and managers sometimes believe that they alone are capable of performing a specific function. A star employee or future leader needs challenges and added responsibility in order to take greater ownership over the business. This will also help him feel trusted, which in turn will help create a high-performance team.

Share the Knowledge. If you want an employee to excel, you must teach her how. Telling someone how to perform a function does not teach her. Be sure the employee thoroughly understands the scope of a specific project before you let her begin working on it.

Give Feedback. Often people misjudge lack of communication for negative feedback. Don’t keep
vital information to yourself. Keep your staff aware of the “goings-on” and you will foster high morale among your corporate culture.