Employee and Workplace Communications -

Employee benefits and compensation have started to become less important in the changing job marketplace, but they still remain a top reason why employees stay with an organization or leave. Making it easy for employees to use their benefits improves engagement and performance.

That is, of course, something of a trick question. Retaining employees is a major part of building a strong operation, but retention of employees is not the primary goal of a business or other organization. Apple Computer may be good at retaining employees, but its top priority is to generate a profit for shareholders, and it does so by producing technology people want to buy. Because it is successful at making a profit with nifty iPhones and such, people like to work there. Yet, I am certain that there is a manager somewhere at Apple who has driven down morale and has lost some good people owing to a management style that does address employee retention.

The term “office environment” can often be an alternative way of saying frustration and angst, and that is exactly what you don't want it to be. In fact, there is probably a mathematical formula somewhere that shows success going down as these go up. And vice versa.

In my 35 years working in the private sector, the thing that appalls me most is incivility in the workplace. People who normally mind their Ps and Qs outside the office or shop can turn into the rudest individuals around. And people who are a little coarse to begin with turn into monsters. It affects everything in an organization from customer service to recruitment and retention.