“Two-Factor theory” explains the relationship between employee retention and

employee motivation.

Employee Retention Strategies

1. Shaping their Growth and Development
Helping employees achieve their short-term and long-term goals is one of the most
crucial employee retention strategies.Therefore, designing in-house training
programs for employees can advance their professional development.
2. Encouraging Open Communication
You can create a workplace where employees aren’t afraid to express their
opinions. In other words, a workplace where they can freely question their leaders
and voice their concerns.
An “open door policy” is an effective way to establish a culture of open
communication. It shows that you’re always available to listen to their opinions
and concerns.
3, Balancing their Workload
Some of employees feel less productive and disengaged due to work stress. Tower
Watson says stressing your employees can be unfavorable.Thus, encouraging team
members to share the workload and take time off can be effective.
4, . Developing Orientation Program
Good managers always keep their employees informed. They clearly explain the
policies, expectations of the employee from the beginning. Furthermore,
orientation programs help employees to understand how they can contribute and
excel.

5. Maintaining Work and Life

Some of workers have refused a new job due to lack of good work-life balance
opportunities. Another factor associated with overburdening is maintaining the
work-life balance. To take pressure off employees, share the workload, allow work
from home, practice flextime

6,Bonding with Employees

A good manager works continuously to nurture his relationship with his
employees. Above all, bonding with employees outside work is as important as
inside the office.You can do this by celebrating your employees’ major milestones.
Team lunches, group treks, excursions are some methods to celebrate employees.
Celebrating even their personal achievements- a new house, marriage- will deepen
your bond
7,Living up to their Expectations
Many employees feel that they don’t get the growth and exposure promised to
them during hiring. Develop innovative and challenging tasks to keep your top
performers engaged.

8,Monetary Benefits
Employees quit their jobs due to lack of compensation. One of the major reasons
that make employees quit is lack of compensation. And hiring someone new can
be quite costly. To avoid this, you can give fair and just appraisal to every deserving
candidate. A salary hike is another way to retain top performers.
Gamification is another way. This includes rewarding employees for coming early,
zero absenteeism, excellent performance.
9, Providing Leadership Opportunities
Many employees feel they are capable of contributing a lot more than their
current job roles. Assigning them with the right tasks, opportunities and
responsibilities can increase employee satisfaction. Consequently, you will see an
increase in the level of your employee retention.

10, Generating Peer-to-Peer Recognition

Increasing employees trust and believe about company. When they will value each
other, they will help each other and work as a team. This will lessen internal
conflicts, and create a culture of peer-to-peer recognition.

Some other Notes

Employee retention: 8 strategies for retaining top talent

In a tight talent market, retaining talent is of utmost concern. Experts offer advice
on how to keep your most valuable business asset: your employees.
If you wait until an exit interview to find out why a valuable employee has decided
to move on, you've missed a golden opportunity — not just to keep a productive
member of your team but to identify and fix issues within your organization before
you lose others. Instead, touching base with employees about what motivates
them while they’re still on staff is part of a key strategy in gaining an edge in
today’s tight talent market: employee retention.

Why employee retention is important

Employee retention is a critical issue as companies compete for talent in a tight
economy. The costs of employee turnover are increasingly high — as much as 2.5
times an employee's salary depending on the role. And there are other “soft
costs”: lowered productivity, decreased engagement, training costs and cultural
impact.
The payoff for organizations that focus on employee retention is well worth the
time and investment, according to the Society for Human Resource Management
(SHRM). Increased performance, better productivity, higher employee morale and
improved quality of work, not to mention a reduction in turnover, are all
organizational benefits.
The bottom line is that by focusing on employee retention, organizations will retain
talented and motivated employees who truly want to be a part of the company
and who are focused on contributing to the organization's overall success,
according to SHRM.

Employee retention rates

LinkedIn data from 2017 shows a worldwide turnover rate of 10.9 percent; the
tech sector showed the most volatility with 13.2 percent turnover rate, based on
LinkedIn member data. Certain areas within the tech sector showed even higher
turnover rates, which could indicate an increased demand for these skills,
according to LinkedIn.
“The computer games (15.5 percent), Internet (14.9 percent), and computer
software industries (13.3 percent) drove tech turnover the most — but those rates
pale in comparison to the churn you see within particular occupations,” according
to Michael Booz, writing for the LinkedIn Talent Blog. “User experience designers
had extremely high turnover at 23.3 percent (they’re also extremely in-demand ),
with both data analysts and embedded software engineers at 21.7 percent. In fact,
embedded software engineers receive the most InMails per person of any
occupation in North America,” Booz says.

Employee retention strategies

How can you increase retention rates? You should start at the very beginning of
the recruitment process.
1. Recognize retention starts with recruiting
"Retention starts right from the beginning, from the application process to
screening applicants to choosing who to interview," says Dan Pickett, CEO of
Nfrastructure, an infrastructure, managed services and network services firm. "It
starts with identifying what aspects of culture and strategy you want to emphasize,
and then seeking those out in your candidates."
Nfrastructure currently employs about 300 people, with a retention rate of greater
than 97 percent — almost unheard of in the IT industry; or any industry, for that
matter. It's a statistic Pickett's proud of, and one each member of the company
works hard to maintain, he says.
"It's an increasing returns model; the longer someone's with your company, the
more productive they become over time," he says. "You have to look at this as a
long game, and take steps to ensure you're doing it right by making sure each
employee is completely engaged with and part of the company's ongoing success."
2. Identify candidates who’ll stay the course
How can you choose candidates that are more likely to stay? There are some key
indicators right on their resume, says Pickett. First, he says, look for candidates
with longevity at their previous jobs.
"You're looking beyond what's written on the resume. Have they worked at a
company for many years through ups and downs? That speaks to loyalty,
perseverance, engagement," he says. "You should also look for someone who plays
team sports, who has committed to volunteer or other activities outside of work —
that can help tell you that they are invested in a cause, a team, a sport, yes, but
also that they have the mindset to stick with something they really care about."
Job-hoppers are something of a gamble, he says. While they might just be looking
for the right place to land, Pickett says a candidate "who's had, say, ten jobs in
twelve years is going to be really difficult to retain for any company."
3. Provide ongoing education and clear paths to advancement
Promoting from within not only provides a clear path to greater compensation and
responsibility, it also helps employees feel that they're valued and a crucial part of
the company's success.
Of course, promotions go hand-in-hand with employee development and
education, and this should be another tool in your retention arsenal, says Pickett.
Whether by corporate training to help foster the acquisition of new skills, new
technologies or new processes or through tuition reimbursement from outside
courses, furthering your employees' education can help them feel valued and
invested in the company, he says.
According to new research from the Consumer Technology Association (CTA), high-
skills training (80 percent) and professional development programs to hone soft
skills (74 percent) are perceived among the top benefits for retaining employees’
services over the next five years.
"Learning cannot just be an afterthought — it must be a core focus of any strong
organization," says Kevin Griffin, an IT advisor at Falco Enterprises and former CIO
of GE Capital. "When learning is part of your culture, it doesn’t stand out as
something outside the norm. For example, a learning-focused organization doesn’t
just hold periodic learning events or workshops separate from the day-to-day
work. Instead, learning is integrated in every project or task, and employees are
encouraged to dive in and learn by doing, asking questions when they hit
roadblocks. "
A focus on education is also key to higher retention rates, says Griffin. A
commitment to training is seen by employees as an investment in their worth and
a powerful incentive to stay at the company, he says.
"Investing in your employees’ education can help retain talent and intellectual
property at a time when there's stiff competition for both," says Griffin. "The need
for new skill sets and evolving roles are in demand at rapidly growing rate, so
putting someone on a career path that doesn’t have any room to develop is not
only a career-limiting move for the employee, but a business-limiting move for the
company."
4. Offer the right benefits
Benefits and perks play a large role in keeping employees happy, engaged and
healthy. But benefits can go far beyond healthcare coverage and paid sick leave.
You also should consider offering stock options or other financial awards for
employees who exceed performance goals or who stay with you for a
predetermined time period, says Pickett. Nearly nine in 10 companies (88 percent)
view incentive compensation and bonuses as key to retaining employees in the
next five years, according to the CTA.
Flexible work schedules, the opportunity to work remotely and generous paid
leave policies also go a long way toward helping employees feel they are valued
well beyond what they contribute at the workplace, says Change.org 's global head
of Human Resources David Hanrahan. Hanrahan's company, an online social
change platform, recently announced it will offer up to eighteen weeks of paid
parental leave for all employees, and adds that Change.org is encouraging other
firms to do the same.
Hanrahan argues that, if employees are not offered leave, or are forced to return
to work because they cannot afford unpaid leave, "is the employee fully engaged
at work or are they distracted and resentful?" That distraction and resentment can
build, and can often drive an otherwise satisfied employee to consider other
options.
Here, the CTA’s findings resonate, as flexible working arrangements ranked fourth
among the top benefits for retaining talent, behind health insurance, bonuses, and
paid time off.
5. Be transparent and open
Creating open communication between employees and management can help
foster a sense of community and a shared purpose, says Pickett. Regular meetings
in which employees can offer ideas and ask questions as well as “open-door
policies” that encourage employees to speak frankly with their managers help
employees feel they are valued and that their input will be heard, he says.
"I also open up my own personal network of former colleagues, friends,
networking contacts to any other employee that wants to network and talk to
someone at other companies and in other industries," Pickett says. "I set them up
to talk with each other, and then I leave them alone. Without me there, I feel I can
convey a sense of trust so employees and fellow leadership can learn and grow
from others outside my company."
6. Leverage technology
Another approach is to use an employee polling tool like David Niu's TINYpulse,
which sends out a single question to a company's workforce at pre-set intervals
and then tallies results anonymously.
"Everyone knows that the business changes more than once a year, and so do
people," Niu says. "Our tool lets businesses send one highly targeted question at
pre-set intervals — maybe monthly, or even weekly — so that HR can identify
issues early on and rectify them." For example, he says, some companies using the
tool have asked, “What is one process that, if eliminated, could make you more
productive?”
It's then up to company leadership to act on that feedback or explain why that
action might not be possible, Niu says.
"You have to be open and transparent and be able to say what you can and can't
commit to,” he says. “But just the fact that the employees are being heard, that
they are being listened to is important and can improve retention, even if there's
no way the company can address their challenges at the moment."
7. Put data (and AI) to work
Organizations have incredible amounts of employee data available — why not use
it to identify who’s most likely to leave, why, and then take steps to prevent that,
says Dave Weisbeck, CSO at workforce analytics software firm Visier. While on the
surface, an employee’s departure may seem obvious or to fit a pattern, but using
AI and advanced analytics can help pinpoint underlying factors that contribute to
attrition, ones that might not be as obvious as you thought.
“I recently stumbled upon this Glassdoor survey that calls out January as the
month when more employees are likely to leave,” says Weisbeck. “But contrary to
that survey finding, a lot of the data from our own clients shows that’s not
necessarily true. We looked across all of our data — about a million employees —
and what we’ve found is a very clear pattern on a quarterly basis, and Q3 is the
biggest quarter for resignations.”
Why is that? From the data, Weisbeck says Visier’s team extrapolated that the
timing of these resignations isn’t necessarily defined by the calendar, but around
internal processes and structures like bonus payments.
“People are thinking of this like, ‘Okay, I received my bonus and now I can leave,’
not ‘Oh, it’s a New Year, time for a new job,’” Weisbeck says. “Since many
organizations time their bonuses to hit around Christmas and the end-of-year
holiday season, it makes sense to see the January exodus. The pay and bonuses —
or lack thereof — aren’t the reason they’re leaving; often times they have decided
to leave months before but have hung on until they receive this money.”
Looking more closely at the data can help uncover patterns like this, potentially
contradicting conventional wisdom, he says. AI and machine learning can help
identify and address these issues before they lead to attrition and turnover.
“Commute time, for example, isn’t as big a factor in people’s engagement,
happiness and their chances of leaving a job as distance to family,” Weisbeck says.
“If your commute is an hour and a half each way and you have a family at home,
you’re not necessarily dissatisfied with the commute; it’s the time you’re not
spending with your family. So, organizations could add more flex time. Remote
work opportunities. Anything that could help address that pain point.”
A more extreme example he offers is an employee who grew up in North Carolina
and whose family still lives there, but who now lives and works in Portland,
Oregon.
“In that situation, commute time isn’t even in the equation; it’s a bigger
disconnect. Between travel time for holidays and vacation and trip expenses, the
time zone issues — people in those situations are more likely to leave,” Weisbeck
says. “We’ve seen client companies address these issues by relaxing their vacation
and travel policies; helping employees purchase airline tickets and so forth.”
8. Be prepared for turnover
Of course, sometimes turnover is inevitable, says Nfrastructure's Pickett.
Organizations must be prepared to lose star talent, especially if they have the
opportunity to move into their dream job, he says.
"It's difficult when we lose someone who's a rock star," he says, "But that's one of
the things you have to be prepared for. Especially in the IT industry, it's so
competitive — but it's also healthy. You don't want someone who doesn't want to
be there anymore," he says.
Here, succession planning can be key — especially for high level or hard-to-hire
positions.
"Another important thing to remember about retention — if you're doing it right,
your customers will see it, too, and they'll benefit. That enthusiasm, that
excitement, that investment, comes through in every interaction, and customers
will want to do more business with companies like that,” Pickett says.