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Talking all things HR to help you make sure you are dotting the "i"s and crossing the "t"s ensuring you have everything in place to have a thriving business with happy employees.
[00:00:00] Karen Hillen: Hi, I'm Karen Hillen. Welcome to the My HR Partner podcast. We talk about all things HR from recruitment to ending employment. If you'd like support with your HR, check out our website, www. myhrp. com. au.
[00:00:24] Adam: Hello, and welcome back to another episode of the My HR Partner podcast. Today's chat is all about keeping your team intact.
[00:00:32] Adam: We've got Karen Hillen here from My HR Partner to discuss Maximizing employee retention for small to medium businesses. Now Karen's insights are golden for anyone to keep their star players on the team. So welcome once again, Karen.
[00:00:48] Karen Hillen: Thank you.
[00:00:49] Adam: Excellent. Okay. So why is employee retention so critical these days for small to medium businesses, isn't it?
[00:00:59] Adam: [00:01:00] Just with what we've been through in the employment market.
[00:01:02] Karen Hillen: Yeah. I think. Especially small to medium businesses, pretty much any business employer retention is so important because it saves you money. That's the number one thing. It's going to improve your bottom line. If you can keep your employees, you're not having to.
[00:01:20] Karen Hillen: spend the money to go through another recruitment process, train a new person uniforms, protective equipment, whatever extra expenses you might have with a new employee. If you can keep your good employees, it's going to save you all of that money.
[00:01:36] Adam: Absolutely. We've talked before just how expensive it is to put somebody new.
[00:01:41] Adam: Let alone the knowledge and experience that's leaving your business that you've got to replace.
[00:01:47] Karen Hillen: Absolutely. And let's be honest, not many businesses are great at documenting absolutely everything. So you're always going to have people in your business that have got a lot of that.
[00:01:59] Karen Hillen: [00:02:00] Corporate knowledge in their head,
[00:02:01] Adam: especially small to medium size that, Big massive organizations, they probably do have everything down pat and they're used to turnover but it's so critical for small to medium businesses where Yeah, you lose that person that the time money and that knowledge.
[00:02:18] Adam: So so tell me what are some employee retention strategies that, that small to medium businesses can implement.
[00:02:25] Karen Hillen: Yeah. So they don't have to be expensive. I think some of them, might sound really simple, but just be a good place to work.
[00:02:32] Adam: Yep.
[00:02:33] Karen Hillen: Be a good employer. And that doesn't mean offering expensive perks to keep people there.
[00:02:40] Karen Hillen: It just means having a good environment for you. People to work in having that good culture making sure people feel valued and that can be as simple as thanking somebody for doing a good job or, giving a reward of I don't know. It could be [00:03:00] anything from an early mark of an hour to having a half a day off or getting a bonus day off,
[00:03:06] Adam: bringing them in a coffee,
[00:03:08] Karen Hillen: any, anything.
[00:03:09] Karen Hillen: Yeah. Bringing in a coffee. And I think we might've spoken about this on one of the other episodes. I remember someone told me once, and this was a business owner of a business that was probably the medium to large size. He would go down and get a coffee in the morning and he'd always pick a different employee to go for a walk for him down with him, sorry, down to the coffee shop.
[00:03:31] Karen Hillen: They would just have a chat and it, for him, it was good because he'd get to know people, especially if they were new. But from the employee's point of view, They liked the fact that's the business owner and they've actually taken the time to I feel special. I
[00:03:46] Adam: feel valued.
[00:03:47] Karen Hillen: Yeah. And people would know that, he does that with someone different every day, but, and probably everybody gets a turn.
[00:03:53] Karen Hillen: So everyone's special. So I think that's the message that I took out of it was he cares about the [00:04:00] people that work. In his business and he could just be sitting in his office and not knowing the name of the people, not knowing the names of the new people or even worse people that have been there for a long time.
[00:04:09] Karen Hillen: But he made it a point to, to make sure that he got to know those people.
[00:04:14] Adam: Sure. And I think, the point we brought you brought up in that is, I think one thing that's forgotten a lot is recognition. Yep. Yep. It, I think there's been so many surveys and things done where that's one of the highest rating things that employees actually want, recognition, not necessarily rewards.
[00:04:33] Adam: Everyone thinks rewards, bonuses but recognition. And I think that goes a long way to retaining your staff.
[00:04:41] Karen Hillen: So true. And look, let's be honest, everybody loves a pay rise. Everybody would love to get more money, but it's not. Usually you're right, usually when there are surveys out there. It's not usually the number one thing that people talk about.
[00:04:56] Karen Hillen: It's not the money. It is the recognition and it [00:05:00] doesn't have to be an expensive, elaborate reward and recognition program. It can be as simple as saying thank you.
[00:05:07] Adam: Absolutely. It can
[00:05:08] Karen Hillen: be as simple as having employee of the month or recognizing somebody in a team meeting for doing a great job. And that could just be that they're doing their job well.
[00:05:19] Karen Hillen: They may not have done anything special or out of the ordinary, but they've just been really good at their job and it gets recognized. So a simple thank you. Anything above that is fantastic as well. So it could be, the, a couple of hours off, or it could be a voucher to the movies, or a voucher to the person's favourite restaurant.
[00:05:41] Karen Hillen: And I think personalising those sorts of things, if that's what you are going to do, can be really important as well, because then people know, not only have I been rewarded, But they've actually taken the time to find out what's important to me. For sure. It's
[00:05:55] Adam: genuine. Yeah. It's not, you're not getting it through a system.
[00:05:58] Karen Hillen: Yes, exactly. And look, there are [00:06:00] some great systems out there that you can use. But I think if you know it's personalised, then it's going to mean more, and for somebody who's got kids, it could be and this might not even be a reward that's tied to something an employee's done. It could just be having a culture of it's okay to go and watch your kids for a couple of hours at their athletics carnival or their swimming carnival or whatever it might be.
[00:06:27] Karen Hillen: Or it could be, if you haven't got kids, it could be something different that you like to do that the business owner or the manager has recognized and said, Hey, why don't you go and do that? I know you love. whatever it might be, go and do it. There's something happening in the afternoon that I know you just go do it.
[00:06:45] Adam: Yeah.
[00:06:47] Karen Hillen: So I think those sorts of things, they don't cost a lot of money. If it's a couple of hours off work, I think you're going to get that back in value a lot more because people appreciate being valued and getting those little [00:07:00] extra things.
[00:07:00] Adam: And if you're getting those things, I guess from an employee's perspective, if there's any reason for wanting to move on from that job or leaving that, you start to think.
[00:07:09] Adam: Would this happen at any new place?
[00:07:11] Karen Hillen: Exactly. And you don't know. So yeah, we're talking about rewards, but it's all really related to retention that is going to be key to retaining good stuff. And there are probably some stuff that you don't want to retain and might have to take a different path with them.
[00:07:28] Karen Hillen: But I think the thing is when we're talking about retaining good stuff, You need to value them and they need to know that.
[00:07:34] Adam: For sure. Yeah. For sure. Let's flip this around. Let's talk about maybe reasons why employees do leave. Some common reasons why people do move on. Highlight those, we can probably then work out how to avoid, obviously it's part of life that people do move on from jobs and so forth, but if we look at the reasons people do leave, we can maybe then work out ways to minimise that.
[00:07:55] Karen Hillen: Absolutely. So I think, there are always lots of surveys out there and I think [00:08:00] something that always factors at the top of the list of why people leave is their boss. a bad boss. And that could be the business owner. It could be a manager, but a lot of the time people just leave. They, Don't even try and address it because they just think it's easier to go and find another job.
[00:08:18] Karen Hillen: So that factors very highly on a lot of surveys that you see out there.
[00:08:21] Adam: And that does into other episodes we've done here too about constantly having reviews and talking with your employees to know what's going on.
[00:08:29] Karen Hillen: Yeah. Yeah, absolutely. So I think that's the thing. People don't want to work somewhere that they don't like.
[00:08:34] Karen Hillen: And if they don't like the boss or they don't like people they work with, why wouldn't you go and find somewhere else to work? So I think that factors pretty highly. Sometimes people will move for more money. So if you can address that and it's possible, then it's always worth considering. And again, as you say, doing reviews and having those conversations.
[00:08:54] Karen Hillen: You should know those things. So if you do have somebody who is always [00:09:00] wanting more money and it's something you can accommodate and they're valuable to the business and you don't want to lose them, you might find ways of doing that. Sure. So that, that can be another reason, but, or sometimes people will move.
[00:09:12] Karen Hillen: Sometimes they'll get a job closer to home. Sometimes there'll be things that are totally out of your control. But I think the things that are in your control is having a good culture, having good people to work with. being a good boss being appreciative, showing recognition, all of those things are going to help people not want to go somewhere else.
[00:09:33] Adam: Sure. Let's work through a scenario here. So you're a business owner, small, maybe five to 10 employees. And that email comes through from someone you do not want to lose and they are saying they're resigning. Yep. And there's no further information.
[00:09:49] Adam: You don't want to lose this person. What process, what would you do in that scenario? Right through to, potentially a counter offer If they're going somewhere else.
[00:09:59] Karen Hillen: Yeah. [00:10:00] I think ask them, have, take them out for a coffee or have an informal conversation. What's happening.
[00:10:08] Adam: I don't want to lose you.
[00:10:10] Adam: Yeah.
[00:10:10] Karen Hillen: Talk to me, tell me the reasons.
[00:10:13] Adam: If you do, I can potentially do something about it. What is it? Yeah, absolutely.
[00:10:18] Karen Hillen: And I think even, exit surveys are a great idea. But an exit survey is probably too late as well. Exit survey sometimes will get the reasons and you might be able to have a counter offer or talk to the person about why they're leaving.
[00:10:32] Karen Hillen: But I think talk to them, if they're in your physical location. Take them for a coffee have a chat with them in your office, whatever is practical. If you've got remote workers or you've got people that aren't in your physical location, pick up the phone and have a chat with them. Don't just fire back an email, why are you going?
[00:10:52] Karen Hillen: Actually have the conversation so you're getting that, that personal interaction where you can ask the [00:11:00] questions. And again, like you say tell them. I really value you in my business and I don't want you to go. Can you tell me why you're leaving? And then you might be able to counter offer if it's about money or it might be that they're being bullied or harassed by somebody.
[00:11:17] Karen Hillen: Which you need to address to,
[00:11:19] Adam: for a multitude of other reasons.
[00:11:21] Karen Hillen: Yes. You need to address that anyway. But if you don't know about it and a lot of people do, they will just leave. They won't tell you they're being bullied and harassed because. A lot of the time, I've had lots of people come up to me when I've done bullying and harassment presentations at various different businesses, and I've had people almost every time come up to me at the end and say, I left a job because I was being bullied.
[00:11:45] Karen Hillen: I didn't report it. It was easier for me just to leave and find another job. So sometimes you'll find those things out, which is going to be really valuable. Sometimes someone's just not happy. If there's anything you can do about changing that happiness, that's going to be great. Sometimes it's just time for [00:12:00] somebody to move on.
[00:12:00] Karen Hillen: They might feel like that they don't have any more advancement opportunities in your business. But you might be able to find one and find something for them. Or if you can't, then I think if you've with respect, you've asked why, you've told them how much you value, you're going to have a great advocate out there about your business because right until the very end you've treated that person with respect and let them know how much you appreciate them.
[00:12:28] Adam: Perfect. So I think, again, probably looking back at what we've talked about here, recognition. Yep. Communication and just really letting your staff know that they're valued in what they do and not not letting them wonder about that. And that will go a long way as we said, people do leave, but that will go a long way to ensuring that there, there is no reason to leave.
[00:12:53] Karen Hillen: Exactly. And I think that's the thing, if you've got a great culture, it's less likely people will want [00:13:00] to leave for. a bit more money. People will weigh those things up and they might think, oh, okay that job's out there. It might be paying 10, 000 a year more, but what am I going to miss out on if I go there?
[00:13:12] Adam: Yeah. What am I losing?
[00:13:13] Karen Hillen: Sometimes people will pass up an opportunity for more money because they don't want to go somewhere that's unknown and it may not be a great place to work that they've got with you now. So yeah, I think, The keys for retention, great culture, matched values, and making sure people do know that you appreciate them and do whatever you can to keep them.
[00:13:36] Karen Hillen: And it could be flexible work. It could be lots of different things and it's going to be, it's quite possibly going to be different for every person.
[00:13:44] Adam: Sure. So look, it's pretty clear. Just having the right strategies can make it your team a loyal and long lasting one. And they don't have to cost it. A lot of money if anything.
[00:13:55] Karen Hillen: Yep.
[00:13:55] Adam: Thanks again for sharing your expertise. It's just everything HR. Karen is [00:14:00] definitely your go to. How do that, how do people get in touch, Karen? We know just all the support that you give is invaluable to businesses. And where do they get in touch? What's your website?
[00:14:09] Karen Hillen: Yep. Website is www.my hrp.com au. All of my services are on there. You can book in a call. You can see all of the different services we offer.
[00:14:20] Adam: Perfect. And I think, what we're showing with this series too is that you've got a wealth of knowledge and experience and can give tips and tricks on all areas of hr that aren't necessarily packaged up in your services.
[00:14:31] Adam: Yep. If any of your clients need to know anything you've. You're there and able to give them what they need to know.
[00:14:37] Karen Hillen: Yep. Lots of flexible options. So yeah, always happy to help.
[00:14:40] Adam: Fantastic. Thanks once again for joining us.
[00:14:43] Karen Hillen: Thanks a lot. Have a great day.