Employee turnover can be one of the most expensive and time-consuming parts of owning a business. When an employee quits, it is not just a person the company is losing. It is also the cost of hiring and training a new employee along with lost productivity and business errors that come with someone new entering the workplace. This is why, it is so important for management to be able to recognize the warning signs of an employee who is going to quit.
One of the most important parts of owning a business is keeping your employees as happy and healthy as possible. This helps prevent loss of motivation to work and employee turnover. Of course, it is not always possible to keep every employee happy all the time. Knowing the signs that an employee is going to quit, and the skills to dissuade them from doing so, will save your company time and money while building a better business relationship.
Here are a few warning signs that a valued employee is about to quit and ways to stay ahead of it.
Top 10 Warning Signs that an Employee is Going to Quit
- Their productivity has decreased.
- They no longer commit to long-term projects.
- They act like less of a team player.
- They have been exhibiting less effort and motivation for their work.
- They contribute less during meetings.
- They leave early and come in late more often.
- They have expressed frequent dissatisfaction with their job.
- They have been less interested in pleasing their manager.
- They have exhibited a more negative change in attitude.
- They have stopped returning phone calls and emails.
These are just a few of the more noticeable signs. Your best defense is to know your employees. If you are familiar with them, you’ll understand patterns in their personality and habits. You will be able to recognize when there is a change in motivation. Also, if you have a good working relationship with your employees, they will be more likely to listen and negotiate with you if you try to dissuade them from quitting.
Dissuading an employee from quitting
Once you recognize the warning signs that an important employee is about to quit, you can try the following 4 suggestions to dissuade them. However, these techniques are best if instituted into your corporate culture from the outset as they also create loyal employees.
Conduct a stay interview: This will better help you understand what is motivating an employee to stay along with reasons they might have for leaving. From there, you can adjust the employee’s job to help meet their needs.
Give more praise & recognition: People like being recognized for their work. As a matter of fact, 37% of employees in a study said recognition was their main motivator at work. According to OC Tanner research, 79% of people quit their job because of lack of appreciation. Providing both public and private praise creates a better work environment and will reduce employee turnover.
Ask for employee input: Asking for input from your employees will help them feel like their ideas are being heard and that their opinions matter. It keeps them engaged with the company, and according to a SHRM Special Report strengthening employee engagement can also help you retain talent.
Open communication: Establishing open and honest communication with your employees will go a long way to improve teamwork and morale. Employees become more connected to you and your business through this type of engagement. The more committed and embedded an employee is to a job, the less likely they are to quit.
Although these gestures may seem simple, they will go a long way to making sure your employees know they are respected and appreciated. If your employee quits anyway, let us help you find their replacement!
