5 Crucial Ways Managers can Enhance Motivation and Retention of Employees

Employers often go to considerable lengths and expense to recruit great people.

Commonly, a challenging work, work/life balance, competitive salary, feeling valued by management, and feeling a contribution to the greater good are just a few of desired traits in a well-balanced organization.

Retention becomes challenging when people feel underemployed, have a lack of advancement opportunities, are not challenged, or don’t receive a pay increase.

Individual leaders within the organization can influence employee satisfaction and retention.  Here are several ways to do this:

Be human in your interactions, including face to face conversations, emails and texts.  This builds a foundation of trust between management and staff.

Understand that life happens outside of corporate policies. When possible, foster a culture of flexibility. Avoid the statement “It’s our policy.”

The team members who question or challenge the status quo are usually the ones that provide the best learning opportunities.  See those as a challenge and embrace it.

Upper management needs to know how their decisions impact the staff.  Understand that feedback needs to follow up and down the chain of command.  The staff should feel comfortable sharing improvement opportunities with management.

Engage in the team’s career development.  Create goals and achievement plans individually and as a group.  Feedback is great for motivating your employees. Instead they prefer someone who will motivate them and lead them towards a goal.

Retention is a management issue just as much as an organizational issue.  Managers are only as good as their team.

Employee retention should be at the forefront of every company’s radar. Employees want to know they are being treated fairly, receiving the highest compensation possible and being appreciated by their employers.