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My Employee just quit, for no good reason!

 

In my working with small businesses, I have had the chance to see the stress my clients experience by trying to hire and KEEP good employees. Here are some observations, not only from working with my clients, but from my time as an employee as well.

 

1. Have a clear job description. It is unfair to the employee to not give them the chance to succeed in the position because the job description was too vague. This could lead to resentment on the employee’s part because they are being asked to do more than what they were originally hired to do.

2. Offer a fair employment package; one that they will have to think twice about before resigning from your company. Your staff is one of your biggest assets, and they should be compensated accordingly. This might not only be reflected in the hourly rate or salary, but could include medical benefits, 401K options and company matches, bonus structure, vacation days, etc. Know what you are willing to offer and be clear in communicating it to your employees.

3. Advertising for an opening can produce an overwhelming amount of applicants. Compile a list of questions that will cause the-better-than-average applicant to stand out from the others. Questions could be asked in the initial ad or during the interview. This will also avoid subjective discrimination, whether intentional or not, since you are following a specific questionnaire in an effort to find the employee that best fits your company.

4. Keep your ads in a positive vein. There is nothing more irritating than an employer stating in their ad who it is they are NOT looking for, (don’t apply if, we don’t allow that, etc.). If YOU know what it is you ARE looking for, that is what you need to communicate.

5. Train the employee and then give them the ability to think and make decisions for themselves, all within the guidelines of your business practices. If you respect the input and work of your staff, this will go a long way in producing good work ethics.

6. Have scheduled and formal reviews. Listen to how the employee thinks they have progressed, and what they think are their strong and weak points. Then communicate your perspective. You might be on two ends of the spectrum, which can cause frustration for all. Then look forward to the next year and design some goals together that will allow them to grow more.

7. Staffing and Human Resources are becoming more and more complicated. Consider hiring a 3rd party HR team. The expertise they bring in keeping you compliant could well be worth the investment.

8. In the end, if you do have an employee that chooses to leave, conduct an exit interview face to face. This will be an opportunity for you determine if there is anything you can improve on.

 

If you have comments, please write to me and share them!

 

This is not to be considered legal advice but rather the personal experience and opinion of the author.

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