How to Retain Employees

The record resignations of 2021 and 2022 ( coined The Great Resignation) were no fluke, according to Tim Ryan, U.S. chair and senior partner at PwC. It’s not just about the economy. “Workers have power. A recession won’t change that, one executive says,” he said.

Top employees always have power, regardless of the economy, and businesses should always be focused on retention. 

Why Employees Leave

80 percent of exiting employees percent cite a lack of growth opportunities as a reason for quitting. This is especially true for Millennial and Gen Z workers who are deeply concerned about their quality of life, work, and wellness. These employees regularly take stock of their lives and reassess their futures. Why am I working? Why am I working for this company?

And remote work has opened a world of opportunities. If I can work remotely for any company, what are my options?

Can You Afford to Lose Your Best Workers?

Companies need to do some soul searching as well. Few businesses can afford to lose top employees. If you haven’t asked similar questions, you probably should. Why do people work here? Why would they want to work here? These questions don’t get asked in a hirer’s market. But they should be.

The answer isn’t apparent. What do employees value most in a job? Salary? Nope. Treadmill desks? Not even close.

Employees Want Growth and Meaning

94 percent of employees will stay with a company that invests in their growth, a LinkedIn survey found.

Research by happiness at work guru Shawn Achor found that 90 percent of employees would choose to earn less—an average of 23 percent less–for more meaningful work.

“Gen Z and Millennials say learning is the number one thing that makes them happy at work,” LinkedIn said. “The number one reason they’d leave their job is that they did not have the opportunity to learn and grow.”

“Companies are not investing in their talent,” said Nanette Miner, Ed.D., head of The Training Doctor. “That is why companies are finding hiring and retention so hard. They are not investing in professional development, and employees leave.” 

Retraining Offers a Win-Win

Employers looking to retain top performers should take note. We’ve all seen businesses boast about their rankings in local “great places to work” lists. But what about ranking companies based on whether they are great places to grow? That might be a more relevant scorecard for today’s rising workforce.

There’s an opportunity for a win-win here that may not be visible to the naked eye. While resignations are a threat to businesses, so is the looming skills gap—the difference between the skills workers have, and the skills businesses need. The World Economic Forum (WEF) estimates that automation will replace 85 million, and 97 new jobs requiring skills that don’t yet exist will be created—by 2025!

So, let’s get this straight:

• Employees want to learn and grow

• Employers need workers with new skills

It’s not too hard to connect the dots and suggest that employers invest in building new skills for their existing workers to a) improve employee satisfaction and retention and b) stay ahead of the skills change curve.

Become a Great Company to Be From

There’s an old saying in the training business.

The CFO asks, “What if we invest in training our employees and they leave?”

The CEO says, “What if we don’t, and they stay?”

Yes, some employees might learn new skills and take them elsewhere. But you’ll develop a steady pipeline of new employees that want the growth that you offer. Harvard management professor Susan J. Sucher wrote an article titled, “Worried About the Great Resignation? Be a Good Company to Come From.” When employees are ready to leave, she said, “there’s no point in standing in the way of their dreams.” Instead, “companies should focus on becoming great places to learn—and eventually leave.”

If your company is a great place to grow, others will want to join. “When your company is a badge of honor on someone’s resume when employees eventually want to leave, plenty of others will want to fill their place,” Sucher said. Being a great company to be from will give you the high ground in a turnover tsunami.

Create an Amazing Place to Grow

Quickskill surveys employees every day with this question: Was Quickskill an amazing place to grow today? That’s because the company believes that employee happiness is as important as customer satisfaction. You can’t have one without the others. Happy employees work hard, take the initiative, and invest in making the company better. Quickskill’s retention rate is around 90 percent, compared to 40-50 in the BPO industry. To learn more about the Quickskill employee experience, check out the Careers Stories page.