At Mason & Dale Recruitment, we meet with new candidates every day, who are either looking to branch out into a new career path, or are dissatisfied with their current job. Candidates’ reasons for leaving their role can range from lack of opportunity for growth to toxic work environments.

As a boss, it is your responsibility to ensure that your team feels valued – and it is also in your best interest to keep hold of talented team members. Why? Not only is it far more costly to undergo the hiring process and train up new employees, but retaining long-term staff instils team spirit, helping to reinforce a positive work culture for the whole team.

So, how can you retain talent on your team? Read our 7 top tips below!

1) Offer Competitive Salaries

We’re all too aware that we are living amidst a cost-of-living crisis, and frankly, if salaries aren’t going up to reflect inflation, staff are being underpaid. We see the term ‘competitive salary’ littered all across LinkedIn – and it simply means that employees’ salaries should align with similar roles at different companies.

If you want to attract the top talent, you need to offer attractive salaries; the last thing you want is to be outbid by your competitor! What’s more, you need to ensure that salaries reflect candidates’ living location and number of mandatory in-person hours – ‘London living wage’ isn’t a myth, you know! Nor is the price of public transport!

2) Provide Benefit Packages

Similarly, alongside said competitive salaries, top employees will be looking for top benefit packages – particularly if they’re aiming to stick around. Benefits such as pension, health insurance, company discounts and bonuses all bode well for the long-term employee. Particularly in today’s post-COVID age, many employees desire and expect flexibility at work – and, to be frank, if this is something that your company cannot provide, they will likely look elsewhere. 

So, if you’re keen to keep your team for the long haul, give them golden reasons not to jump ship. 

3) Prioritise Positive Reinforcement

Some bosses are all too quick to criticise, but fail to give credit when due. Rewards and recognition are a crucial way to make employees feel seen, heard and valued within the team. In addition to awarding promotions and bonuses (which are important too!), non-monetary rewards can also go a long way. Whether you drop a “well done!” message over Slack, or make a habit of giving positive shout outs (rather than passive-aggressive call outs!) in weekly team meetings, this will help enforce a happy, healthy work culture. And, believe it or not, positive reinforcement motivates your team to perform well, so everybody wins!

In terms of standard monetary incentives, you should ensure that your company has a clear reward structure in place, providing deserving employees with the remuneration they deserve. Trust us, high-performing employees who don’t feel appreciated for their hard work will likely seek greener pastures.

4) Create a Safe Space

We cannot stress enough the importance of work being a safe environment for all. Employees need to feel like they are free to express their ideas, opinions and suggestions for improvement without fear of backlash. You can achieve this by fostering an open communication culture; you should set a precedent for this when welcoming new employees, making it clear that you actively want their voices to be heard.

Additionally, as the boss, you should make it your duty to check in with employees individually on a regular basis. Beyond the standard biannual performance reviews, we advise that you have an ‘open door policy’, and arrange casual chats to see how employees are getting on – and give them space to raise any queries or concerns they may have.

On the topic of open communication culture, we’ve found that many candidates leave companies due to a lack of honesty and transparency – particularly from managers or team leads. For example, we’ve been told countless stories of managers who make promises that they don’t or can’t keep, selling candidates a dream which will never manifest into reality.

Whilst this can be understandable due to uncontrollable external factors, stringing employees along with false promises is certainly not the way to go. Honesty is synonymous with respect, and your team has the right to know the truth about any business matters which affect them. Similarly, employees relish honest feedback; whilst constructive criticism can be a little hard to take sometimes, it’s certainly preferable to being blindsided by empty praise… and then facing a formal warning out of the blue! Or even worse – a probation extension (trust us, this happens!). Be candid with your employees; focus on the positives, but also communicate clearly any areas where they could improve. Remember: they may be talented, but they’re not mind readers! 

5) Diversify Job Responsibilities

Next up, let’s talk about diversified responsibilities and opportunities within the workplace. The age-old stereotypes of employees watching the clock in an unfulfilling 9 to 5 are long gone. Nowadays, workers look for meaningful work that fulfils them, and allows them to flourish.

Therefore, make it your mission to diversify your employees’ job responsibilities; no one wants to be doing the same old thing every day! Whilst, of course, each team member has their own specific role, together, you can explore different areas and opportunities within this role – and different ways that they can directly contribute to the company. Utilise every tool in your employees’ skill sets; it’ll make their job more interesting, and also add value to the company. Even something small like putting together your weekly team newsletter, or helping to arrange team socials can spice up someone’s work life!

With this in mind, you should show your team that you trust them by delegating important responsibilities; not only will this make them feel valued (and give them something new to get their teeth stuck into!), but this will also enhance the meaningful nature of their work, as they will be able to directly impact the company in a significant way. So, ask them to hop on that important client call. Tell them you trust them to make the opening speech at that big company event. Remember: there’s no ‘I’ in team! 

6) Make a Development Plan 

It is of utmost importance that you make a clear development plan, tailored to each employee. So many candidates are searching for a new position due to feeling stifled and stagnant in their current role.

If you provide employees with clear milestones and goals, whilst also mapping out a clear trajectory of their future within the company, then they are far more likely to be long-term assets to your team. Plus, there’s nothing more wholesome than witnessing an employee rise through the ranks, from rookie to top dog!

7) Instil Team Spirit  

Last but not least, a key way to retain talent in your company is to instil team spirit! When we really think about it, we spend a significant portion of our lives working – and the people we work with are central to our happiness and wellbeing! Therefore, organise team-building activities, regular socials and events to allow your team to bond! This is especially important if your team predominantly works remotely – as many do nowadays. You can’t beat the beauty of in-person camaraderie!

You want to create a work culture where managers and employees alike feel as if they are part of one big family. And – you know what’s so wonderful about family? You can never leave them behind.