Easy Employee Retention Ideas for Small Business Owners
Hiring new employees is time-consuming and costly. If you already have a great team that you trust to get the job done, these simple ideas will help you retain your top talent.
1. Offer a flexible work arrangement
In today’s business climate, many employees can complete their work from any place with a computer and internet connection. If it’s an option, allow your team to work-from-home on a schedule that suits their lifestyle. For example, workers with children will appreciate the ability to work around school schedules.
If you aren’t sure how to make remote work a success for your team, here are some resources that can help:
- Is Work-From-Home Here to Stay?
- Adapt to Work-From-Home with These 6 Tips and Tricks
- Working From Home: 6 Sanity-Saving Tips
- How to Set Your Employees Up to Work From Home
2. Offer different types of working environments
When you read about remote work, you may think that every professional wants to work from home. This isn’t true, however — not all employees thrive in a home office environment.
Some people prefer a distraction-free zone, like a dedicated office. Luckily, you don’t need an expensive office lease to provide your team with a choice in where they work.
Instead, sign up for a virtual office membership where you can choose from a variety of office spaces. If some of your employees want to work from a professional office space, you can give them the option of using the virtual office space. It’s an affordable way to show that you care about providing a great working environment, which can help increase employee retention.
3. Offer profit sharing
Small businesses aren’t always in a position to compete with big salaries from larger companies. Through profit sharing, however, you can still offer attractive financial incentives.
When the company shares profits with its workers, employees will begin to care about the company and its success more. They’re part-owners, after all.
4. Provide a comprehensive training program
At Intelligent Office, we’re big believers in the power of a well-rounded training program. Comprehensive training is how our virtual assistants are able to provide top-notch support to small businesses like yours. We also encourage each of our members to spend time training their new virtual assistants on the ins-and-outs of their company and how it operates.
That’s because training gives employees the tools they need to do a great job. With the right training, there’s no confusion. Work-related stress is reduced through training, too.
While there’s value in having a team that can think on their feet and solve problems without help, don’t make the mistake of assuming your team doesn’t appreciate training and guidance.
5. Recognize a job well done
When an employee feels unappreciated at work, they’re often tempted to find a new employer who recognizes their contributions. The solution to this problem is as simple as praising team members who do a great job.
There are tons of ways to show employees the recognition they deserve — here’s a list of 39 ideas you can use to get started.
No matter what your employee retention program looks like, it pays to be proactive
Unhappy employees may be dissatisfied for months or years before they hand in their resignation. As the owner of a small business who wants to retain its top talent, the key is to be proactive about employee retention.
Talk to your team and learn what type of situation would make them feel fulfilled at work. Ask questions, schedule regular check-ins and keep the dialogue open so that any problems can be solved quickly. It’s the best way to cultivate a positive work environment that people won’t want to leave.
