Deepdive #9
Talent Retention
How to retain your team with a strong culture
About talent retention
Everybody wants the best team
But talent is scarce, and competition in the talent market is fierce. So, being merely an attractive potential employer for new talent is not enough. Ensuring that you can retain this scarce talent is just as important. In other words, how do you foster long-term talent commitment?
To develop a distinctive and sustainable talent retention strategy, you need to offer more than just competitive working conditions as an employer.
How do you engage valuable team members as an employer?
The three key building blocks for creating a distinctive and sustainable engagement of your team are:
- Growth Perspective: clear and transparent opportunities for professional development.
- Coaching: support in their professional development.
- Culture: alignment with the company mission and the opportunity to contribute to the team culture.
A good way to understand why these three building clocks are so crucial is by examining the primary reasons employees provide for leaving their jobs
Lack of growth opportunities
Employees often leave their jobs when they see no prospects for career development. A significant 2021 study found that 63% of departing employees cited a lack of growth opportunities as a major reason for their departure, with 33% indicating it was the decisive factor.
Lack of guidance
Employees often state that a lack of career guidance, one-on-one mentorship, and regular constructive feedback plays a crucial role in their decision to leave their employer.
Lack of connection with the company vision
The absence of a clear company mission and connection to the culture plays a significant role in employees' decisions to leave their jobs.
However, the reverse is also true: not only are these three themes consistently cited as reasons for departure, but they also frequently emerge in research on factors that positively influence productivity, talent engagement, and average tenure. In short, it is clear that these three themes play a significant role.
As an employer, it's clear where you should direct your efforts. By effectively addressing these employee needs, you can strengthen your unique appeal and commitment as an employer.
#1: Clearly defined Growth Perspective
Clearly defined growth paths are invaluable for both attracting and retaining valuable employees. A well-articulated growth perspective motivates workers to continue developing and challenging themselves within the organization while contributing to a culture of personal and professional growth.
Well-defined growth paths provide employees and team leads with the context to work together on ongoing talent development. They also offer talented employees the structure to actively take ownership of their own development and career.
Effective growth paths consist of both company-wide cultural competencies that promote (cross-functional) collaboration and role/expertise-specific competencies that focus on substantive skills and expertise. For each level within the growth path, clear expectations are established for what is required of an employee at that specific level
#2: Continuous support in Talent Development
Ambitious and high-performing employees highly value opportunities for learning and growth in their roles. While this applies to anyone with ambition, it is particularly true for younger generations, such as Millennials and Gen Z.
These generations increasingly view work as a means to advance their skills and careers, with their desire for professional development being a key factor in their job satisfaction and retention. In fact, research from Gallup shows that these two generations consistently cite "opportunities to learn and grow" as one of the top three factors in deciding where to work or stay.
For effective talent development, it is crucial that employees take the initiative. This requires not only clear growth paths but also established, recurring rituals that support this process. A talent development cycle typically consists of the following components:
- Goal Setting: Establishing both role-specific and organization-wide cultural competencies.
- Coaching: Regular one-on-one check-ins and "on the job" guidance.
- Peer Feedback: Input from direct colleagues with whom employees collaborate.
- Self-Evaluation: Employees' assessments of their progress toward established goals and competencies.
- Reflection: A collaborative discussion involving the team leader and the employee to consolidate all perspectives and create a shared analysis of progress.
By incorporating these elements, organizations can create a comprehensive approach to talent development that empowers employees and enhances overall engagement.
#3: Being part of and Co-Owning a Connecting Culture
A strong team culture fosters a sense of purpose and identity within the organization. When employees can identify with the company's mission and values, they feel more connected to their work and colleagues.
Companies that can clearly articulate their shared mission and consistently focus on evolving their winning culture are more successful in retaining talent.
A good mission statement is clear, concise, and answers the questions: "Why (what motivates us), what (what do we offer our customers), and how (what characterizes our approach)?" Your cultural values are the company-wide competencies that enable your team to achieve its goals.
Your cultural values can always reflect an ambition: this is how we want to work. Let your mission statement guide the definition of your cultural values and behaviors. Formulate your cultural values in a way that they are applicable for your entire team in all team-building rituals, such as hiring, employee onboarding, talent development, and engagement. This ensures that all team members can experience the significance of your cultural values in every interaction.
Wrapping up
Retention isn’t just about keeping employees; it’s about creating an environment where they can grow, contribute, and belong.
By investing in clearly defined growth perspectives, strong and consistent support for talent development, and, above all, a strong team culture, organizations can not only attract top talent but also retain it over the long term