We are experiencing a candidate-driven job market like never before. Retaining valued employees in this atmosphere is more important than ever. Employment turnover is very costly to a business. Hiring costs commonly include recruiting, interviewing, background checks, costs associated with time lost to fill the position, not to mention the inefficiencies associated with a new hires’ learning curve.
According to Enrich, the financial wellness platform, it is estimated that it costs a business $30,000 to replace an employee earning $60,000.
Are your employees satisfied with their jobs and engaged?
According to SHRM’s Employee Job Satisfaction and Engagement: The Doors of Opportunity are Open research report, these five factors lead to job satisfaction:
- Respectful treatment of all employees at all levels;
- Compensation/pay;
- Trust between employees and senior management;
- Job security; and
- Opportunities to use their skills and abilities at work.
Of course now, with more and more employees wanting to work remotely, a big focus is being placed on work/life balance.
What traditionally have businesses used to gauge how their employees feel?
Exit Interviews – these types of interviews, while valuable in finding out why the employee is leaving, are too little too late. The employee is moving on to another position with another employer that they hope will help them achieve their career goals.
Employee Satisfaction Surveys – these surveys ask questions that may or may not be important to your employees. As these are typically anonymous, it’s difficult to follow up with individual employees.
Unfortunately, exit interviews and employee satisfaction surveys may not give you the warning signs needed to correct an issue in a timely manner.
What is a stay interview?
A stay interview is a direct, open conversation, typically between an individual employee and a supervisor or manager. They are not conducted in groups.
During the interview, employees are encouraged to share what motivates them at work, how valued they feel at work, whether they truly know what is expected of them, etc. Supervisors and managers are expected to listen, take notes, probe deeper, and when it is time to talk, be honest with their responses.
How do stay interviews help to retain employees?
Stay interviews help to build a culture of trust and loyalty within your organization. They assist in creating long-term employment within the organization, thus reducing employee turnover.
Stay interviews can provide you the information that you need in real-time to assist you in retaining your valuable employees.
How do stay interviews build a culture of trust?
Before starting this strategy, explain to the employee why you are conducting the interview and what will be discussed. Once the interview is concluded, the process continues with follow through of things discussed. Make stay interviews a part of your company’s routine.
Are you ready to introduce stay interviews to your business?
Contact Marzano Human Resources Consulting and we can work with your company in rolling out a stay interview strategy. We use HR best practices in designing interview questions that will be in line with your culture and will assist in development of action plans to address results. We will also ensure your managers and supervisors have the skills needed to successfully conduct a stay interview.