Employee Retention
Employees have never felt so free to demand something else, somewhere else. This has created an environment of uncertainty for employers looking to retain motivated staff. We encourage businesses to take strategic and bold actions to ensure employees remain motivated, focused and appreciated. We change the game when it comes to retaining staff.
Employee retention strategies are as much about org structure, leadership and communication as they are about employee engagement and culture.
Quiet quitting. The great resignation. Even great companies are up against it. We’re in the midst of a wave of transient workplaces. With unemployment at an all-time low, employees have never felt so free to demand something else, somewhere else. But on the other side of the spectrum, this has created an environment of uncertainty for employers looking to retain motivated staff.
Working as an outsourced HR team or as consultants, we help companies understand their employee turnover and the employee experience; then we develop people-first strategies to re-engage and retain talent. But we also help strategise, capitalise and build understanding of the positives and opportunities that employees leaving a company could bring.
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Rethinking retention strategies
From both ends of the spectrum, employee retention strategies play a big role in both attracting and retaining key employees, which lends to the benefit of reducing staff turnover and minimising costs. These elements may seem small, but they all contribute to the overall functionality and success of a business.
We can also dig deeper into how you’re thinking about employee retention and people moving on from your company. Do you take it personally? Is it causing fear and anxiety? Are you effectively communicating changes to the wider team? It is impossible to stop anyone from ever leaving. Let’s reframe it. Conduct thorough exit interviews and learn from every team member’s experience.
Here at HumanX HR, we’re dedicated to supporting your team to find balance in the shifting landscape of the modern-day workplace. With expertise garnered from every corner of the human resources industry, we’re confident our support will boost the way you do business.
Our Approach To Employee Retention
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When you work with HumanX HR to handle retention strategies, you’ll find a lot of this comes naturally to our team. With a major focus on employee value proposition, we’re big believers that there’s no need to fortify the workplace fence to ‘keep people in’ – simply make them an offer they can’t refuse.
Improve, together
We’ll be by your side to improve the talent acquisition process and experience, which entails the attraction and selection of folk who are energised by good business. We put purpose first and make sure you’re confident to select people who are truly aligned with your organisation’s values every step of the way. HumanX HR will also help you to find the right pace for your team, giving you the boost your workplace needs to make better and bolder decisions without a hitch. We’re also big on brainstorming, and we’ll encourage your team to ask questions like they’re going out of fashion.
Reframe, retain
Another example of a strategy we might undertake with your team is to focus on leaders. Have you ever heard the saying ‘people don’t leave bad jobs – they leave bad leaders’? Fostering an inclusive and approachable team begins with your leaders – so we’ll give you a helping hand on that end, too. We’ll also help you navigate the new era of ‘quiet quitting’ – because there are no secrets in a successful team.
Employee retention strategies to keep and attract the best talent
The cost of recruitment and keeping the ball rolling is bigger than ever before – so why not make sure it’s all smooth sailing from here on out? According to SHRM's Employee Job Satisfaction and Engagement: The Doors of Opportunity are Open research report, most employees agree that the following five factors are integral to job satisfaction:
- Respectful treatment of all employees at all levels
- Compensation/pay
- Trust between employees and senior management
- Job security
- Opportunities to use their skills and abilities at work.
And while the importance of spending time addressing these factors is obvious, there’s a world of hidden benefits it triggers from a logistic point of view, too. An increase in employee satisfaction not only yields more motivated and loyal workers, but also boosts the overall performance, productivity and quality of the business as a whole. The reduction in both turnover and employee-related issues makes employee retention strategies more worth it than ever before – especially in this day and age. Our approach to improving employee retention is holistic, establishing an attractive, supporting workplace culture as a starting place.
Employee value propositions are valuable, but without a retention strategy that complements them, it’s nothing but smoke and mirrors. A bold retention strategy paves the path to success by making every member of your team a valued one.
Some of the best employee retention strategies include giving more positive feedback, fostering employee creativity, creating an environment based on respect, harnessing employee growth, and even encouraging employees to give feedback in return through performance management. You don't have to move to a 4-day workweek to promote work-life balance, any strategy that provides benefit to your team members by making them feel like an appreciated contributor - and not a cog - to your business is a successful one – and our team at HumanX HR will help you do just that.
Retention FAQs
What is employee retention?
Employee retention can be looked at as the number or percentage of employees who continue to work at an organisation during a set period of time, for example, per calendar year. Essentially, it’s the inverse of employee turnover.
Employee retention can also be looked at as the strategy or approach for keeping those employees on-board, engaged and delivering for the organisation.
When is the right time to consider working with an employee retention consultant?
There is no “right” or wrong time to consider working with HR experts or rethinking your employee retention strategy. Often, HumanX are contacted by organisations who have experienced a higher than average turnover or the business is being negatively impacted by issues associated with retention, for example, high recruitment costs and long searching periods, growing dissatisfaction or low morale amongst employees.
However, sometimes there can be a catalyst event that requires a company to seek help from employee retention consultants. This could be an investigation or a toxic manager that has caused conflict in the workplace. Also, it could be external pressures, including talent poaching by competitors or better employee value propositions available in the market.
Establishing and implementing an employee retention strategy will take time to get right. Naturally, it will also take time for the initiatives or changes to resonate with your teams. Therefore, it’s recommended that you consult HR experts as soon as possible to minimise employee departures and their negative impact on your company and your people.
What can an external HR specialist achieve here?
Working with our team of outsourced HR experts, we will first work to understand why employees are choosing to leave a company. There are advantages to working with external consultants at this point, as we do not enter a situation with the same context or preconceived beliefs and are able to identify motivators, trends and catalysts for individuals leaving. We also come with unique experience of other workplaces and the wider market which we can use to offer insight and build the foundations of a strategy. Finally, external teams may also leverage more honesty from employees in feedback or coaching sessions as there are no pre-established relationships or demands.
Next, we’re able to develop a strategy that prioritises or addresses the biggest reason for people leaving. Although improving employee retention may be the metric or ultimate goal, these projects tend to have a far more holistic approach, working to improve the overall workplace experience, strengthening the communication and relationships in the business, both peer-to-peer and company-to-employee. As your external HR team, HumanX will help your company implement integrated, meaningful changes to your business, but also help leaders understand the benefits and value-add of this approach.
How long does it take to improve employee retention?
Employee retention can start to improve as soon as your organisation can recognise why and communicate change.
However, to start drawing conclusions on the success of new initiatives and to start measuring employee retention, you will need to determine a time period. We’d never recommend measuring a time period less than 6 months because this may lead to inaccurate results and a belief that no further action is required. Alternatively, it can have the adverse effect and you may be measuring a time period in which individuals who had already decided to leave the company take action and depart, leading to inaccuracies again.
Working with employee retention experts means you’ll access experienced professionals that will help guide your business through this turbulent period. HumanX will also tailor the strategic approach and measuring period to your organisation, too.
What are the long term benefits of employee retention?
The benefits of employee retention are incredibly far reaching - from reduced recruitment costs, to higher overall productivity and profitability, as well as the improved likelihood of hitting growth targets and new business goals.
However, it’s worth bearing in mind that all employees will have a life cycle within a company. Similarly, employee retention can only be advantageous if those employees are the right fit for the organisation and are engaged by their work and the company values. As such, an employee retention strategy is often coupled with employee engagement work and improvements to workplace culture. Oftentimes, it can also come with role design and support with recruitment, to ensure you’re hiring the right people, to flll the most important skills gaps and setting them up for success with the right onboarding process.
Our Clients say it best
"I was impressed with HumanX's outsourced HR services. Their team was knowledgeable and tailored their approach to our needs, significantly improving our HR processes. Highly recommend for any business seeking expert HR support."
Do you recognise your company in any of these scenarios?
Our HR is too Toby-from-the-office
Everyone has strengths, both as professionals and as people. There are many situations in which using an external HR consultant is a more effective option.
Ultimately, HR can be a tricky position to hold in an organisation; striking the balance between employee-support and communicating the company’s message; empathy versus becoming an agony aunt; being the champion of culture whilst also being the person managing risk.
Bringing in HumanX to support your team means that everyone can play to their strengths. Our experts can create space for critical conversations, feedback honestly, without agenda, and help leaders make decisions based on real information. We can support Toby with performance management plans and work to achieve company goals together.
Our HR department needs support
Modern HR leaders require skills in project management, business strategy, commercial awareness, coaching, talent management, compliance and workplace relations, remuneration, learning and development, and of course recruitment.
Outsourced HR experts can support the internal team without the distractions of politics, everyday requests and growing to do lists. Able to operate as an independent squad with a single focus or integrate into the team and fly alongside the existing HR managers to lead and deliver on projects, new initiatives or help cope with capacity.
Need to get more out of the experts you already have
For business leaders who are craving space – both time and brain-space - a great HR team will understand that it is their job to enable people to do their best work. Choosing the right talent (or inviting the right talent to choose your business), designing a best-in-class learning and development program, and ensuring that your remuneration strategy is on point will help.
The gamechanger: coaching your leaders. This is the space where humans will grow, engage, and find their superpowers. Coaching is a skill in itself, it’s not every leader’s natural state. Great HR professionals have been equipped with coaching skills and understand that coaching is an ego-less journey that is critical to developing exceptional leaders. Structured coaching programs are a brilliant extra, but coaching in the workflow, and in day-to-day interactions between HR and leaders is a valuable must-have.
My team tells me that communication needs improvement
If your team is feeding back to you that communication in the organisation needs improvement, they’re trying to tell you (without risking their jobs) that your communication needs improvement. Whether this is your communication directly, or as a leadership team, or simply internal systems and processes are not effective at allowing the flow of information, we can help.
Bringing external HR experts into a situation like this is efficient; we are able to zoom out and diagnose issues and challenges - from communication that may be causing frustration and high employee turnover to the root cause of disengagement. Better than that, we will also work with your organisation to develop the HR function to resolve any concerns, improve processes and mature the company’s approach to your people.
Make your company stronger. Starting with your people.
HumanX HR is a human-first human resources agency that is at the top of the game when it comes to employee retention strategies. With an innate understanding of the complex modern workplace, their experts are armed with a wealth of knowledge that can give your business the boost it needs to succeed – no matter what comes out of the woodwork.
Explore all our services
Outsourced HR
HumanX is an award-winning HR Outsourcing agency based in Australia. We design HR Outsourced solutions based on trusted frameworks and class leading industry experience. A perfect blend of strategic and tactical HR solutions that will elevate the human experience in your workplace.
HR Consulting
With our HR agency, boost your internal capability and see better results in less time. Engage a consultant or team to drive and lead HR initiatives that lead to incredible company-wide results. We can develop or pick up HR projects that you just can’t get traction with or assist with a particular isolated problem.
HR Foundations
How can you expect to build a solid team without solid foundations? Here at HumanX, we know your eyes are set to the future with plans for growth and projects on the horizon, but you can’t get there if your people aren’t with you and you aren’t protected. Work with HumanX to develop functional processes, reliable boundaries and compliances that set your company up for future success and solid HR foundations.
Learning & Development
Learning & development (L&D) is essential for organisational performance, employee buy-in and staying competitive in the market. L&D helps promote productivity, innovation, and adaptability, leading to improved business outcomes, revenue & longevity. HumanX learning & development consultants can help you stay on top of change.
Workplace Investigations
We are a leading provider of independent, impartial and fair workplace investigation services to organisations dealing with allegations of inappropriate behaviour at work. Most internal teams do not have the experience, capacity or resources to properly investigate workplace complaints without any perceived bias. Outsourcing workplace investigations to an independent firm is a cost-effective and practical method that will help you ensure compliance with legal and regulatory frameworks.
Employee Relations
Your people are your power and your relationships are what connect you. Creating a strong framework for your employee relations can protect your business when you need it most – and when you least expect it. Our employee relations consultants are qualified and bring a human-centric approach to workplace investigations, mediations, disciplinary matters, terminations and other disputes.
