“Do you have a minute?”
When a valued team member walks into the office, utters those words, then closes the door behind them, many employers know what’s coming next “I’m accepting an offer…”
Conventionally this scenario has been associated with the understanding that employees don’t leave their jobs, they leave bad bosses. However, a recent study by The Harvard Business Review found evidence that employees leave good bosses nearly as often as bad ones. The study discovered that as companies empower their employees to take on greater challenges and more responsibility, they become strong candidates to outside employers. With this, they quit for better opportunities elsewhere – better pay, more responsibility, and so on.
After you hear this news, many emotions and thoughts may run through your mind. How you convey these feelings, and handle this information, is critical to maintaining your company culture.
Here’s how to find the silver lining when an employee quits and effectively build upon your internal brand:
Great Leadership
Always remain vested in the professional development of your employees, regardless of where that success will take them. As you continuously build goodwill with employees, those that do turnover will retain these efforts as alumni and become great sources for recommendations and business opportunities. Supportive managers and good bosses make for “happy quitters” who will maintain overwhelmingly positive feelings towards your company.
Good Faith Retention Efforts
Good leadership has a greater ability to generate alumni goodwill for employees whose managers go to bat for them. Make it known that they are a valued member of your team. Counteroffer if you can, these retention efforts are critical for preserving the goodwill previously generated and translate into a continuing alumni relationship.
Offboarding
Departing employees have power, whether it’s sharing experiences on social networks or working for a potential client. In order to direct this power to generate a positive outcome, placing an emphasis on creating a positive and productive goodbye is imperative. Manager-led exit procedures should build upon their experiences in the company and yield a lasting impact.
Lifelong Affiliation
As your employees turnover, take pride in preserving lifelong alumni relationships. Proactively seek to create ongoing connections and engage with alumni as strategic constituents. Even though they have stopped working for you, they can still work with you. Turn them into brand ambassadors and recruiters.
Boomerang Employees
The rise of the boomerang employee – someone who left an organization, for whatever reason, and then rejoined that same organization at a future date – means that even though they are leaving your company now, you should not treat them as if it is that last time you are going to interact with them.
Reacting appropriately to an employee who gives notice will set the stage for an effective and valuable departure. Great company cultures have a strong focus on professional success, encouraging employees to build bridges not burn them.
Has a superstar employee recently left their position in your company, leaving you struggling to maintain operations? Contact an ETS recruiter today – they stop at nothing to understand every aspect of your business and develop a deep pool of candidates, all with unique skill sets and backgrounds. Find the right talent, right now with ETS!
