Question:
Hi. I am the HR manager of a medium-sized business in Dubai. Due to unknown reasons, the company has been suffering from high employee turnover rates lately. This problem has affected us so much that our most important goal at the moment is to keep employees at least past their probation period. So how can we retain employees, gain their loyalty, and provide them with the job satisfaction they need? – George C.
Answer from Bayt.com:
First, to get some more insight into the subject, I would like to refer you to an infographic by Bayt.com regarding ‘
Employee Retention in the MENA Workplace.’ It shows the reasons why professionals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) leave their job and can help you with identifying the problem better.
Now, back to your question. Turnover has been an issue facing a great number of companies around the world generally, and in the MENA region specifically. Although some companies may find it beneficial at times, we can all agree that employee turnover is not cost efficient. When you lose an employee, you will have to consider the costs of hiring and training a new person (including interviews and screening). But most importantly, you will lose a lot of time, and time is money.
The following are some tips that can help you in dealing with high turnover rates:
1. Review your company’s hiring history
This step is crucial to identify the reasons behind your high turnover rate. Look at it this way, in any medical case, doctors always look for the hidden factors that cause the symptoms, and turnover by itself is more of a symptom than an issue. Turnover can happen due to
several reasons, such as relocation, family issues, economic issues, or simply getting a better job offer. Sometimes,
the recruitment process itself may be flawed. If you keep track of your hiring and turnover history, you may be able to screen and categorize your resignations. This way you can identify the problem and begin planning for the solution.
2. Use exit interviews or surveys
The best and most direct way to know why your employees are leaving is to simply ask them. You can do so by either inviting them to an exit interview and ask them questions regarding the reasons why they decided to leave or simply by creating a survey that they can fill out before leaving. This tool, combined with the previously mentioned point, can make the screening process very exact and helpful.
3. Engage your employees
Studies show that committed employees tend to be more ‘present.’ “How can I do that?” You may ask. Well, it’s quite simple really,
engage your employees. You can enhance your employees’ performance by making them part of the decision making process. Give them the power to make decisions on their own and take those decisions into consideration.
Respect their points of view and appreciate the hard work they are doing. If you talk to your employees regularly, you will at least have an idea of what they are thinking, their levels of satisfaction, and what you can do to make the work environment more suitable for them.
4. Separate the ‘rotten apple’ from the healthy ones
It is quite possible that your company has a ‘rotten apple.’ What do we mean by that? A rotten apple is an employee who spends the day spreading negative energy among his coworkers. I think we can safely say that almost all of us, at one point in our career life, met this employee. The ‘I can’t stand this job anymore’ guy. The person who always praises other companies and criticizes his own. Of course, some criticism is healthy, but when such words start affecting other employees, that’s where a problem that needs to be solved starts.
5. Provide job security
While it is not only about the money, the
remuneration package still plays a fundamental role when employees are comparing job offers from potential employers. Employees are inevitably seeking some degree of job security, especially during times of economic and whether they have rent to pay, children to school, or a car loan to finish off, your employees need to know that the possibility of losing their jobs at any passing minute is as low as possible. Fear cripples everyone and if your employees are afraid, they will most likely look for better opportunities where they can safely build a future.
