The Business Exchange Bath & Somerset Issue 15: Spring 2020 | Page 35
BUSINESS ADVICE
HOW DO I STOP MY BEST
PEOPLE FROM LEAVING?
By Jo Kangurs, Keystone HR
Employee turnover is part of business.
Whilst it’s healthy to have a degree of ‘churn’
within your business to bring in new talent,
losing your best people is something every
business owner or manager dreads.
Losing your best people isn’t just about
losing the input of those individuals it also
has wider implications for the business and
overall productivity. Hiring and onboarding
costs time and money, both of which could
be better invested in other areas of the
business. Additionally, a stable team is a
productive team. No matter how good the
people in your team are, replacing a team
member means it takes time for them to get
up to speed and become fully operational.
So, what steps can you take to stop your
best people from wanting to leave?
1. Look at your numbers
Regularly review your staff turnover figures
to see if there is a pattern. Your business
might be small enough for you to see if
some teams or departments are losing
employees more than others. If your SME is
larger, review the data by team and by time
period to see if there’s an underlying trend.
2. Understand why people leave
Numbers alone won’t help you. You need
to know why your people are leaving.
Conducting exit interviews provide valuable
insights into why employees have made the
decision to leave and can help you identify
what changes you need to make to stop
people leaving in the future.
4. Help them develop
Give your employees the chance of a career,
not a job. Developing your employees
means better retention. People joining
small organisations want challenge, impact,
vision, and culture - not necessarily pay.
Ask your employees what they want out of
their careers and discuss how you might be
able to help them.
5. Recognise & reward
Under-appreciated employees don’t stick
around for long. Reward and recognition
don’t need to be all about cash gifts and
extravagant gestures. Giving regular
feedback as well as a simple thank you goes
a long way.
7. Get flexible
If you’re serious about improving retention,
introducing flexible working is a really
positive step. A study by the Trades Union
Congress found that 28% of employees
would consider a new job if it gave them
more convenient working hours.
If you would like any advice or support
to create a retention strategy for your
business, please do not hesitate to get
in touch.
3. Engagement
Studies repeatedly show that employees are
more likely to stay if they find meaning and
are engaged in the work they do. Consider
conducting an employee engagement survey
to identify how engaged your people are.
[email protected]
07866 487 673
For more info:
www.keystonehr.co.uk
EXPLORING OPTIONS FOR
PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT
IN 2020? FOCUS ON CPD
By Chris Dawes, Open Dawes Training
Training and keeping abreast of
industry changes or new ways of
working is important in any field.
But in some sectors, training isn’t
only desirable it’s a requirement,
not just to show that mark of
quality but in order to remain
part of a professional body or
association.
We’re talking about CPD, or Continual
Professional Development, and many
professions expect those working in their
field to participate in CPD accredited training
to maintain and develop their knowledge
and skills.
At Open Dawes Training, we believe we
are the only organisation in the region to
offer CPD accredited public speaking and
presentation training.
So, as we move into a new financial year,
when budgets are being set, now is a great
time to put plans in place for:
• Your own personal development,
particularly if CPD is a requirement for
your profession
• Your staff development, if CPD is part of
your employees’ personal development
plans or can act as a benchmark
for ongoing investments in staff or
management training.
And that training could be in public speaking,
communication and presentation skills.
Why choose a CPD accredited course?
If you’re an employee, CPD keeps you up-
to-date, helping you maintain a professional
standard and affiliation to your professional
body. It also helps you determine the
course of your career, as well as giving you
credibility and confidence. Moreover, CPD
accreditation may advance your career and
help you to achieve a higher salary.
If you are an employer, CPD accredited
training enhances the skills of your
workforce, and demonstrates to you their
individual levels of ability. Staff taking CPD
training will be able to share best practice
and maximise their potential. CPD is a useful
benchmarking tool for annual appraisals and
salary review.
Why choose CPD in public speaking
and presentation?
CPD training credits may not have to be
limited to sector-specific training. Where
there is flexibility, employers and employees
can choose more general training, such
as our public speaking and presentation
training.
This is a chance for people at any level –
from director to new recruit - to develop an
important skill, which will help them in every
area of their working and, indeed, personal
life, whether they are required to give
presentations, to speak in public, or to get
their point of view across during meetings.
For example, we’ve worked with an
insurance company, training staff who attend
trade shows. Our input has given them the
skills and confidence they need to be able to
present in seminars at the shows, to speak
confidently to delegates and to ensure they
make the most of the investment they have
made in the exhibition. And, of course, all the
course participants have been able to gain
CPD credits.
Why did we decide to have our training
CPD accredited? We know it gives our
candidates and employers who send their
staff on our courses the confidence that
the training, coaching and mentoring
services we provide have a recognised mark
of quality, having been through the CPD
Standards Office’s assessment process.
We offer training in groups or one-to-
one at our clients’ work setting, or at our
Wiltshire training centre.
CPD offers an opportunity for personal as
well as professional development. At Open
Dawes Training, we can help you or your
organisation develop new or improved skills
and confidence – it may even lead to new
doors opening that you didn’t know existed!
Something to consider when you are making
plans for the next calendar and financial
year…
For more information about Open Dawes
Training CPD accredited training, email
[email protected], call
01793 238259 or visit:
www.opendawestraining.co.uk
THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2020
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