In the competitive landscape of today’s business world, retaining top talent is a key challenge. There is increasing volatility in the recruitment market, whether you want to cite The Great Resignation, Quiet Quitting or even Gen Z/Alpha. Better then to harness a proven strategy for employee retention. That is investing in leadership development programmes to nurture and grow internal talent.
There is much to discuss. As a result, this article is the first half of a two-part series. In this half, I explore the quick wins that your organisation can put in place, to start the process (or stem the tide). We will explore some compelling reasons why developing your own talent is not only a wise investment but also a powerful tool for retaining staff. And over the two articles, we will explore the various facets of leadership development that contribute to creating a workforce committed to staying with your organisation for the long haul.
Performance Management: Recognition and Retention
Let’s start with the simplest element of any leadership development programme: Performance management. However, although it should be the simplest place to start, in too many organisations this is a massive stumbling block. Too few managers and leaders are competent (let along confident) at giving feedback. Add to this a general reluctance to give people positive feedback, and you have a recipe for haemorrhaging staff.
What is so difficult about saying, “Thank you” and “Well Done for …”? It is basic courtesy. In addition, it is a manager being specific about good performance. Humans of any age will gladly repeat behaviour for which they receive praise. “Reward the good stuff” is a key parenting technique, which is left at the door in far too many workplaces.
There are some perverse notions of “strong” leadership out there, which would have you believe that if you thank your staff and recognise their efforts regularly, you are soft and weak. In fact, I would argue that managers are weak if they do NOT observe basic courtesies and rely instead on some outdated machismo.
So, let’s agree that we can all use this first step toward improved staff retention. Recognise your in-house talent when it performs well, and it will stay in-house longer. When you go further and add in goal-setting, incentivised performance recognition and the opportunity to grow and develop as leaders, you are likely to have a winning retention formula.
Building Loyalty through Mentoring:
Another quick win on in-house leadership development is Mentoring. This can play a pivotal role in fostering loyalty among employees. When organisations invest in structured, formal mentoring programmes, they are demonstrating a commitment to the professional growth of their staff.
Through one-on-one guidance, seasoned professionals can impart valuable insights, share the all-important “corporate memory”, and instill a sense of belonging in their mentees. This personal investment in an employee’s development creates a strong bond, with the mentor and their employing organisation. This, in turn, makes them more likely to stay with the organisation over the long term.
It is important to note here that poorly-organised, casual mentoring by leaders already past their enthusiasm “best before” date is not what we are looking for. Quite the reverse. Mentors need to be inspiring, authoritative and nurturing. That is not always a commonplace in organisations. It is worth developing your in-house mentors to be the best they can be, with mentoring training and supervision. It isn’t costly and it could actually save you huge recruitment agency bills.
Nurturing Leadership Skills: A Recipe for Employee Loyalty
Similarly straightforward is having a formal plan for leadership development throughout your organisation. Make sure it reaches across all departments, silos and sites. At its core, it will focus on cultivating essential leadership skills within the existing workforce.
To be clear, I am saying this is straightforward, but a lot of employers make it complicated. There needs to be a cross-organisational understanding of what you want your leadership development to achieve. It is impossible to be successful without that – how do you know when you’ve got to “good”?
As a simple rule of thumb, providing opportunities for employees to enhance their communication, decision-making, and problem-solving abilities will build a stronger, more resilient and more effective workforce. Essentially, it’s about leading from within an ethical framework. Your more senior employees will be more confident and competent, which will enable them to lead better. Better-led employees are more likely to stay with a company that values their growth, contributing to long-term stability and success. Leadership is all about retaining top talent too.
So, in this first half of the series, we have looked at a few simple (and cost-effective) ways to build up your workforce’s appetite to stay with you. In the next article, I will explore some of the ways that investment can really ramp up your options (and potential outcomes).
I hope this article has been useful to you and has triggered some thoughts. Please let me know what you have tried, in your firm (via comments or the get in touch button on my website)
And, as ever, if you want to discuss anything in this or any of my articles, my calendly’s available so please feel free to book a conversation with me. Let’s make leadership easier, together.
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