Articles-Thought Leadership Solving the Retention Problem | Page 2

The bottom line is that turnover is expensive, especially
in terms of onboarding costs and the time spent in
training new employees. Employee engagement is a key
measure for any healthcare organization that is trying
to retain competent staff. As one study shares, “It is
widely assumed that more-engaged employees stay and
contribute [to the organization]. While close to half of
disengaged employees will be job hunting in the next
12 months, only one in 10 of those who are highly
engaged will be looking for a new job with a different
employer. In other words, 90% of highly engaged
employees plan to stay with the organization, at least
for the near future” (Lowe, 2012). What the research
makes clear is that “Improving engagement therefore
carries another important advantage for the
[healthcare organizations] already competing to find
and keep a dwindling supply of people with critical
skills, especially in clinical areas” (Sherwood, 2013).
What are some of the tools that organizations
across the care continuum can adopt in their
efforts to improve retention?
Training and Workforce Development
Opportunities
One important tool is training and staff development.
In an article from McKnight’s Long-Term Care News,
author Alyssa Salela references one industry expert,
who states, “Employees feel more rewarded when they
have tools to do a great job, which leads to higher
retention rates” (Salela, 2017).
An article from Provider Magazine discussed multiple
organizations that have demonstrated success in
keeping employees, identifying one commonality:
organizations with higher retention rates provide
opportunities for individual employee development and
growth on many levels. The author Joanne Smikle
suggests multiple examples, “ranging from advanced
training being important to CNAs, to the focus on
leadership development for administrators, to the
excitement of being offered the chance to try a new
role for an admissions staff person.” The article quotes
an individual employee, who states, “The company has
helped me in so many ways, such as personal and
professional development. I have always been given the
opportunity to participate in different committees. I
have had input in making decisions and then seeing
them come to life. They just give you so much
opportunity” (Smikle, 2015).
According to the same article, “While it is easy to pay lip
service to valuing human capital, this research makes it
clear that skillful human capital utilization requires a clear,
compelling strategy. That strategy should include
attention to creating an organizational culture and a
climate that generates goodwill. It should also focus on a
clear strategy for developing talent at all levels of the
organization.” The ultimate result of such an investment
is that employees end up staying because they feel their
employers are committed to them. Smikle suggests that
“Employers can measure their degree of commitment to
employees by thoroughly analyzing their policies and
procedures from the employee’s perspective.
Cumbersome, antiquated policies and practices do not
signal commitment to the employee” (Smikle, 2015).
Leadership by Example
Another very important component of the retention
puzzle is found in how organizations are led. Smikle
offers that “Leadership behavior is a forceful driver of
commitment and retention.” In her research,
“Employees freely, often emotionally, cited examples of
ways in which leaders throughout the organization have
impacted their lives.” She adds, “One such story was
“Improving engagement therefore carries another important
advantage for the [healthcare organizations] already
competing to find and keep a dwindling supply of people
with critical skills, especially in clinical areas.”
HealthStream.com/contact  •  800.521.0574  •