Employee Retention is increasingly difficult in this day and age. Many things come into play when employees decide to stay or leave a job including pay, work environment, benefits, and more. Now that the millennials and Gen Z are emerging in the workforce, employers need to find ways to keep these younger generations from job-hopping by changing up their usual tactics. The employee retention methods you use for your older generations may not be the same for the current due to their differences in wants, needs, and outlook on the workforce.
Fortune named the top places to work for millennials in the USA and these companies use several distinctive approaches like a more laid-back dress code, open work spaces and flexible schedules. Elite SEM in New York is made up of 92% of millennial employees due to their genuine care of their employees and rewarding promotions based on performance instead of tenure. So, what steps can your business take to get on Elite SEM’s level? Here are some important points to consider:
1. Treat Your Millennial Employees like Individuals Instead of a Number
Yes, I will admit it, Millennials like to feel special…BUT not babied! When you remember our name and what we’re good at, it makes us feel like an important part of the team, thus maintaining employee retention! We understand you may have twenty plus staff members to remember but we do appreciate you trying to get to know each one of us. This type of personalized work environment makes us feel like work is our second home, our second family, so we will feel more comfortable and less likely to leave.
2. Offer Autonomy with Projects and Tasks
As much as millennials love to collaborate and brainstorm, sometimes it is nice to work on our own. When you offer us projects to tackle on a solo basis, we feel like you trust us and you are interested in seeing what talents we bring to the table. This also allows us to learn how to be more self-sufficient which is always an important life and work skill to have. And, when we complete these tasks (and do a great job, of course) give us the proper feedback so we can be aware of how to improve for the next project. Consistent and clear communication is key, especially when you want to keep millennial employee retention flowing!
3. Be Flexible in Most Aspects, Not Just with Scheduling
Having a flexible work schedule is always a plus for the new age employee but there are other major ways in which you can be flexible for your workers. Allowing them to work from home instead of coming into the office, giving the employee the option to work alone or with someone on a project, allowing different departments to work together or allow employees to find their niche and explore other departments – these are all things that millennials see as valuable and will assist in long term employee retention. Options are always convenient to have and when employees see that you are willing to work with their wants, needs and overall lifestyle, they will realize that they most likely won’t find this anywhere else.
Personalizing your approach for each employee is crucial and will save you time and money by keeping them working for you! It’s easy to put them all in one box and be a boss, not a leader but in the end, you will notice a revolving door of millennial employees. Make sure you are treating them as individuals, allow them more responsibility, and be open to flexibility throughout – this will only provide the best employee retention needed to keep your business flourishing! Who knows, you may be on that top places to work list for years to come!
