Risk & Business Magazine CMW Insurance Fall 2015 | Page 20

Retaining Your High Performers
Learn Some Practical Ways to Retain Your Best Employees
BY: DR. BRAD SMART, AUTHOR AND PRESIDENT AND CEO OF TOPGRADING, INC.

Do you have so few high performers that when one quits
you feel your business is a little more at risk?

I

f so, at least you’re in good company.
Read on, to learn some practical ways to
retain your best performers. R&B talked
with Brad Smart, a talent expert credited
with helping leading companies such as
General Electric hire, develop, and retain
so many high performers it became the
most valuable company in the world.

company. Not any more! Small and mid
size companies, especially ones that are
growing rapidly, sometimes pay more, are
more fun because of relaxed rules, and
provide plenty of opportunities to grow.
That said; my guess is that 95% of all
companies feel that failing to retain high
performers is a significant issue.

R&B: Brad, which do a better job of
retaining high performers: small
companies or big companies?

R&B: Why is that?

Brad: Big companies used to have a
huge advantage – used to – because
they offered high pay and all sorts of
developmental opportunities, plus
the prestige of working for a famous

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Brad: Too many reasons! A big one is that
unskilled jobs are increasingly replaced
by robots and other technology, so there
is an increase in the demand for smarter,
better educated people. And those more
in demand are more easily recruited than
in the past because of LinkedIn. Their

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profile is out there for the world to see,
so unlike a decade ago, high performers
who aren’t even looking for another job
are deluged with “interest” from other
companies.
R&B: What about the Millennials we
read about? They are job hoppers, right?
Brad: Ah, the Millennials, the spoiled,
entitled, super special kids who think the
world owes them everything!
R&B: Is that stereotype true?
Brad: Yes, pretty much so, and research
shows that as a group, Millennials are,
as you suggest, less loyal to employers
than previous generations. People 32