8 Effective Strategies to Reduce High Employee Turnover

Before tackling high staff turnover, we must understand what it is, identify its causes, and explore how effective employee management can keep employees happy and engaged.

While many employees leave for personal reasons beyond your control, a significant number move on due to issues that can be addressed early on. Identifying and resolving these problems promptly, along with efficient document management, can significantly improve employee satisfaction and retention.

What is staff turnover?

In simple terms, staff turnover refers to the number of employees who leave a company within a given period of time, usually annually or quarterly. This data is often measured and reported as a percentage.

What is a good staff turnover rate?

You're in a good position if you have a turnover rate of 10% or less. Well-run companies have a retention rate of around 90%.

Low staff turnover is inevitable, but high and consistent staff turnover can significantly and negatively affect your company's reputation and finances.

If you have a problem with high staff turnover, don't stress. We at IceHrm are here to help. In this article, we'll look at the causes of high staff turnover, the negative impact it has on businesses, and what you can do to reduce it.

How to Calculate Staff Turnover

Calculating staff turnover is simple. First, divide the total number of employees who left your company by your average headcount in a year. Multiply that number by 100, and you'll get your annual staff turnover rate as a percentage.

50% left previous jobs because of a bad relationship with their manager

44% would quit their job for more money

66% would quit their job if they didn't feel valued

5 Causes of High Staff Turnover

1.Money - Kind of

The results of a 2018 survey of 2,800 employees show that 44% would quit their job for more money. However, the promise of more money is far from the main reason people quit their jobs. What people really want is an honest day's pay for an honest day's work. The Beatles had something in mind when they said, "Money can't buy me love."

A 2017 study showed that an employee's actual salary has a "small to moderate" impact on whether they stay or leave. When it comes to pay and employee retention, it's important to keep up with the current market rate. That means offering occasional raises based on performance and experience.

But if you're desperate to keep a great employee, don't throw money at the problem and pay them well above the average salary. That's costly in the short term and ineffective in the long term.

2.Feeling underappreciated

According to Forbes, a whopping 66% of employees said they would quit their job if they didn't feel valued. For millennial employees, that number rises to 76%.

But it really doesn't take much to make someone feel valued in the workplace. Giving employees the opportunity to give feedback to their bosses, celebrating birthdays and milestones, organizing events, and rewarding the best performers with an extra day or two off will go a long way in keeping employees happy. In fact, employees at companies that prioritize employee recognition are 56% less likely to look for a new job.

3.Career Stagnation

Feeling stuck in one place and seeing no opportunities for advancement can quickly kill an employee's passion for a job. After a while, they'll feel like they're stuck in a dead end and start looking for companies where they can climb the career ladder.

To avoid stagnation, managers need to provide their employees with opportunities for growth. These growth opportunities can be simple things like training, brainstorming sessions to share ideas for new projects, feedback times where employees can share their ideas for future growth, etc.

4.Bad Managers

A good or bad manager can make the difference between a good and bad workplace experience. While employees don't necessarily have to love their managers, they should expect them to be fair, care about their professional development, be free from discrimination, and not pick favorites.

Statistics prove that bad managers are bad for business. According to a 2015 Gullup survey of 7,272 people, 50% of professionals left previous jobs because they had a bad relationship with their manager. Bad managers can lead to a lack of employee engagement, make people unhappy in their daily lives, and negatively impact employee career advancement, performance, and even well-being.

5.Employee Burnout

We are in the midst of a burnout pandemic. In 2021, a Viser survey of 1,000 full-time employees in the U.S. found that 89% of them experienced burnout. This is concerning because some of the symptoms of employee burnout include depleted energy, mental distance from the job, and reduced productivity.

The most concerning findings, however, are that 70% of burned out employees say they are ready and willing to leave their job. So what can a company do to prevent employee burnout? This is another problem that can be solved through good management.

Promoting work-life balance, allowing employees to work from home, encouraging them to take vacation days, and giving them enough time to do their jobs without micromanagement makes their jobs much more enjoyable and their productivity high.

How high staff turnover negatively affects your business

High recruitment costs

Recruiting the right person for the job is no easy task, especially when high staff turnover has damaged your company's reputation. After many weeks of reading applications, interviewing various people, and finally offering the candidate the job, you need to go through the onboarding process.

No matter how experienced and talented your new hire may be, they will start with no experience with your company culture and processes and will need time to become as productive and knowledgeable as their departing colleague.

Loss of productivity and profits

We know that not even the best new hire can hit the ground running. But what happens to the well-trained and experienced employees who have stuck with you? Unfortunately, they tend to become less productive for a variety of reasons.

First of all, the hiring process requires a lot of time and attention from managers and HR professionals, which results in existing employees being poorly motivated and, in some cases, getting away with less work. When it comes to teamwork, progress generally slows down because new hires often need more guidance and support than experienced employees.

The prevalence of poor morale

Many people feel very close to their colleagues. A survey conducted by Olivet Nazarene University asked 3,000 people if they consider the people they work with friends, and 81% of respondents said yes. So it's no wonder someone might be sad to lose a friend to another company.

And people don't tend to keep low morale and motivation to themselves. In fact, low morale spreads like wildfire that isn't easily extinguished. Poor morale en masse is a major cause of high staff turnover.

More Staff Turnover

What happens when you combine poor morale, lack of appreciation and attention from management, and inevitable changes to company culture caused by a horde of unsuitable newbies with a company that's losing money? That's right, more staff turnover. It's a vicious cycle that, once started, is hard to break.

So to avoid these problems, let's look at how to reduce high staff turnover now.

How to Reduce High Employee Turnover

Now that we know the causes of employee turnover, let's break down how to reduce it in eight simple steps.

1.Offer hardworking and dedicated employees a fair wage

A fair and competitive wage makes employees feel valued. Being open to raises when business is good is a great way to keep employees with the company for many years.

2.Give your employees positive feedback

Show employees that they are valued and encourage them to share their thoughts and feelings during appraisals and brainstorming sessions.

3.Don't make employees feel trapped in their roles

Give them opportunities to grow through training and even promotions.

4.Ensure managers build positive relationships with their employees

Managers should never shout or constantly show visible signs of frustration over small obstacles, and they should definitely not favor or discriminate against employees.

5.Don't overwork your employees

Let's face it. Companies sometimes have busy periods, have tight deadlines to meet, and even have short periods where the atmosphere seems pretty serious. However, let's say this atmosphere becomes the norm and people are burdened with tight deadlines and mindless routine work. In that case, you will see even the most resilient employees sending out resumes as frantically and frequently as a captain of a sinking ship sends out distress signals.

6.Maintain high company morale

As we've already discussed, low morale can quickly become entrenched in an organization and is incredibly difficult to stop. Maintaining a positive environment for employees and showing appreciation with simple things like milestone celebrations, birthday cakes and cards, and occasional team nights will show employees that their company cares about them.

7.Give employees the option to work from home

The commute can be a stressful ordeal, leaving employees tired before they've even turned on their computer. But a few days of working from the comfort of their own home will leave them feeling refreshed and ready for a new day.

8.Hire the right talent

Hiring a new person is difficult, time-consuming, and expensive, and that's even before the onboarding process begins. Making sure you hire the right person for your company will help you avoid the hassle of a high turnover rate.

Finding the right match is no easy task. But there's good news. At IceHrm, we're here to help you reduce turnover by helping recruiters make better hiring decisions.

Reduce employee turnover with IceHrm staffing services

If you are in urgent need of a new employee, are short-staffed, or are facing unpredictable resource demands, IceHrm staffing services can help you reduce the risk of bad hires by measuring candidates' soft skills to find the best match for you.

Companies shouldn't have to suffer the cost and hassle of a high turnover rate caused by hiring people who were never right for the job.

At IceHrm, we predict job performance with data-driven recruiting to ensure you get the candidates who will stand out in your company culture and stay with you for many years. By measuring candidates' soft skills, such as how they work, how they stay motivated, and how they tackle problems, we can find you an individual or even a team of employees to reduce your risk of a high turnover rate.

But that's not all. Our dedicated Consultant Care team helps with employment issues to ensure new employees remain happy, focused, energized and productive in the workplace.

High staff turnover can be detrimental to any business. By understanding its causes and implementing effective strategies, you can foster a positive work environment and improve employee retention. IceHrm can assist you in making better hiring decisions and ensuring your employees remain happy, productive, and engaged.