While February is the month where everything is covered in hearts, flowers, candy and all things lovey-dovey, there’s something managers should keep in mind that pertains to these showers of affection.

When’s the last time you let your employees know they’re appreciated? 

A good employee retention strategy involves and requires periodic reminders to your team that they matter to you, as individuals as much as employees, and that your company’s success would not be possible without them. Employees that feel appreciated are less likely to leave, or to complain about how their employer treats them, which can help boost your recruitment efforts as well. 

Here’s why an employee retention strategy is important to your company. 

• Hiring new employees is expensive. Let’s start with the bottom line. Each new employee you have to interview, hire, onboard, train and get up to speed is likely to cost your company thousands of dollars. A short-staffed team isn’t as productive as one in which everyone knows and understands their job and can maintain a good pace. Then there’s the possibility that the hiring decision wasn’t spot-on, which could result in the hiring practice starting up again a short time after it ended. That’s frustrating for everyone. Keeping the employees you have means all that time and all those resources can be otherwise allocated. 

• Lost institutional knowledge. While we know that no one stays with a company for their entire career anymore — or that it’s very rare to find someone who stays in a job for 20+ years as it was for our parents and grandparents — even someone who’s been with a company for two years, or five years, has a lot of knowledge about how the company works. They know how things run, what’s expected of them. They can act as mentors and problem-solvers much better than someone who’s brand new to the organization. When employees can ask one of their own about a problem they’re having, that’s also time you don’t have to spend handling a situation. 

• Better customer service and client communication. While each company is different, and their outward-facing needs vary, it remains true that people who have been with a company for a while will be better able to assist customers, clients and those who call in for information, compared to someone who’s still learning. Employees build their own relationships with external contacts, becoming a trusted voice and advocate and, for sales-related jobs, these relationships are vital to a company’s success. If a point-person leaves the job, and a series of new people come in, that’s a contract that might be in jeopardy. 

• Disengaged employees are less happy. If you have a high turnover rate, or low retention, the social bonds that form between coworkers will be weakened. The more people who change jobs and leave the company, the less engaged the team will become, especially if there’s a high rate of turnover. Disengaged employees will soon find themselves looking for the door because it no longer feels like a welcoming place that’s worth sticking around in. 

• Good morale means good retention. People who feel appreciated are less inclined to look for jobs. People who know their work and presence is valued don’t complain as much as those who feel overlooked, taken for granted or invisible. If people are happier at work, they’re less likely to grumble with their colleagues, meaning  morale remains higher across the board, not just on one team but throughout the company. Those social bonds remain intact and strong and people will pull for each other, working together to be successful and achieve their goals. 

Employee retention strategies can be viewed in one of two ways: Ways to keep the employees you have happy and under your roof, or ways to prevent people from leaving. Either way, it’s worth putting in place a regular reminder on your calendar to show some appreciation and affection for your employees. Your company is much better off with them than looking for new ones! 

If you do need to add to your team, contact Davis Staffing. We have great candidates looking for work and they’re eager to get to it, and we want to help you find them as quickly as possible. Call Davis Staffing today and let’s get to work!