Every leader is concerned with retaining their top talent. At Betts Recruiting, we have worked with thousands of people to plan what their next move will be. The first question we ask is, “Why are you looking to leave?” Knowing this can help us better understand what they find important when looking for a new position.
From all these questions, we’ve compiled a ton of data – and found seven common themes on why people leave. Here are those reasons, along with our suggestions on helping them stay:
1. Lack of Growth
If an employee does not see potential growth in the company, they will most likely seek other opportunities where they can grow.
This can be avoided by providing clear career paths and promotions for your employees. At Betts, we promote several people every month to encourage them individually and demonstrate to everyone that hard work pays off. Additionally, having frequent conversations about these possible advancements — while giving them opportunities to continually learn and improve – can motivate employees and incentivize them to stay.
2. Culture
A company’s culture is an often overlooked but important factor in employee retention. Specifically, a positive, collaborative work environment will help motivate teams to achieve their goals and be passionate in their role, further leading to success.
You may want to ask yourself: Do the values of the employee match the values of the company? How do the employees communicate with each other in the office? Do they feel respected and supported?
When employees gain trust and support from their coworkers, open communication can develop and create an effective – and lasting — work environment for everyone.
3. Relationship with Management
Managers play a large role in the happiness of the team and can directly impact an employee’s work experience on a daily basis. Employees want to feel supported, and to report to people with whom they have a genuine relationship and trust.
Though it may seem obvious, managers hold the key to igniting that spark of passion and motivating their employees to be excited about coming to work every day.
4. Compensation
Talented people know their worth. They are frequently being recruited by companies willing to pay above market rates. To help with this, we created a salary guide to share with our clients when determining compensation for open positions.
It’s a competitive world, and many people tend to be financially motivated. And if employees are feeling undervalued, they might start to imagine what it would be like to work elsewhere. By providing competitive compensation – which can include more than just salary, like equity, flex time, and more – you can help your employees feel valued and more inclined to stay.
5. Financial Instability
When companies have layoffs, hiring freezes, or are running out of money, employees can get scared. This fear of the unknown can cause them to leave for a new company where there aren’t concerns about whether they will have a job the next day.
Employees want to feel secure where they work. Being open and transparent with your employees about changes to the business will build trust and make them feel more comfortable with riding out any rough patches.
6. Commute
A long commute, whether it is on public transportation or in a car, can be a significant factor for why people decide to leave their jobs — as well as which job they take next in their career.
Having this conversation early in the recruiting process can help manage expectations, especially for those who will have a long commute. Additionally, offering solutions like commuter benefits or flexible hours can help offset any concerns surrounding a long commute.
7. Location
The location of the office can also make or break someone’s happiness at a company. For example, we often hear that there is a certain appeal about big cities for Millennials, who are attracted to the fast-paced energy that matches their personal drive.
Keeping this in mind, you can explore your options with a candidate if your company has offices in multiple locations.
At the end of the day, many reasons causing employees to look elsewhere can be completely avoidable. Checking in with your teams often to find out what they love – and what they don’t – can better enable you to make simple changes to keep your retention high and your attrition low. By sharing our learnings after talking to thousands of candidates, we hope these tips will help you find new ways to keep your top talent happy, motivated and loyal.