An employee comes in and announces (or sends an email) indicating that they are leaving. Panic sets in, closed door meetings are happening, people have stomach aches, and conversations about pay and other’s pay is a top priority. This is how it goes at most companies.
It doesn’t need to be like this. Regular Performance and Salary Reviews will alleviate most if not all of this suffering. And this suffering isn’t only felt within the company but with the employee as well. People don’t like change and changes of this magnitude generate anxiety and loss of focus well before the “announcement”.
I believe that companies are afraid to hold annual salary reviews because they believe that by not giving raises this will disappoint their employees. But by not talking about it, they are doing the very thing they want to avoid. Employees understand the tough economic conditions facing companies. An honest and direct dialogue about these challenges will generate understanding.
Another way to avoid departures is to have “engaged” employees. One of the added benefits is that with engaged employees, it’s not only about the money. The entire package including: How am I treated? ; and Am I consulted on issues that affect my performance or the company’s?, is considered in addition to benefits and compensation. This is not easy to do, but the benefits of engaged employees far outweighs how difficult it is to get a program going.
If you’d like more information on Engaged Employees and how to get a program started, just reply to this Post or hit the Contact Us tab.
