Keeping your best employees is essential if you want to grow your business and beat your competition. It’s hard enough to recruit the right staff, the last thing you want is for them to up and leave, particularly after all the induction and training you have taken them through.
So how do you prevent (as much as possible) your best team members from leaving you even if they enjoy their job? Be aware of these seven areas:
• No chance of career progression This can be quite challenging in a retail environment where there are often limited places to advance with relatively flat structures. However, this does not prevent us from challenging our people daily.
• Working your great staff too hard This happens quite frequently as these guys are reliable, you go to people to get things done. That’s ok as long as they are recognised with praise and other small incentives.
• No vision I have mentioned a number of times how an inspiring vision is critical to inspiring your team, but the team also has to know what they need to do to help achieve this vision.
• Profits first, people last Richard Branson says it best with his approach to his people – my first priority is not the shareholders or even the customers, it’s my staff.
• Not acknowledging great work This is one of the biggest areas most managers fall down, they are too focussed on what’s wrong, rather than looking to catch their team doing it right.
• Lack of trust Trust is another key area I have mentioned quite frequently, it is essential to build and maintain if you want your team to go above and beyond.
• Lack of empowerment The best leaders know how to delegate effectively, they grow their team by empowering them with new and challenging tasks. They don’t focus on steps, they focus on outcomes by not micro-managing. Your team needs the chance to express themselves and make mistakes knowing you have their back.
I hope these seven areas have made you more aware and helps to keep your top talent motivated and wanting to stay with you. If you can lead them well, they will generally stay and add so much value when they do.
Roger Simpson – CEO, The Retail Solution and Author of “The Ultimate Retail Sales Experience” With over 35 years’ industry experience, Roger Simpson is recognized as Australia’s #1 Authority on customer ROI in the retail industry and as a global expert on staff coaching, customer service, and selling skills.
