7 Reasons the Best
Employees Quit, Even When They Like Their Job
To win at being the best company, you must first win over your best
employees.
Losing a great
employee is a terrible thing. There's the
expense of finding, onboarding, and training a replacement. There's the
uncertainty of how a new employee will work out. There's the hardship on the rest of your staff until the position can be filled.
Sometimes there's a solid reason-
The person was a bad fit for the team, or moved away for personal reasons, or was offered an opportunity too
great to pass up. In those cases, even if it's a difficult transition, it feels
fundamentally right.
But what about the rest?
Keeping your best employees starts
with understanding why people leave. Here are seven of the top reasons:
1.
Stagnation.
People don't
want to think they're locked into a groove and will come to the
same place and do the same thing every day for the next 20 or 40 years. People
want to feel that they're still moving forward and growing in their
professional life. They want to have something to aspire to. If there's no
career ladder or structure for advancement, they know they'll need to seek it
somewhere else. In the meantime, they're far more likely to be bored, unhappy,
and resentful--things that effect performance and the entire team's morale.
2.
Overwork.
Some periods
of stress and feeling overwhelmed come with most jobs, but nothing burns out
great employees faster than overwork. And often it's the best employees--the
most capable and committed, your most trusted--you overload the most. If they
find themselves constantly taking on more and more, especially in the absence
of recognition such as promotions and raises, they come to feel they're being
taken advantage of. And who could blame them? You'd feel the same.
3.
Vague visions.
There's
nothing more frustrating than a workplace filled with visions and big dreams,
but no translation of those aspirations into the strategic goals that make them
achievable. Without that connection, it's all just talk. What talented person
wants to spend his or her time and energy in support of something undefined?
People like to know that they're working to create something, not just spinning
their wheels.
4.
Profits over people.
When an
organization values its bottom line more than its people, the best people go
elsewhere, leaving behind those who are too mediocre or apathetic to find a
better position. The result is a culture of underperformance, low morale, and
even disciplinary issues. Of course, things like profit, output, pleasing stakeholders,
and productivity are important--but success ultimately depends on the people
who do the work.
5.
Lack of recognition.
Even the most
selfless people want to be recognized and rewarded for a job well done. It is
part of who we are as human beings. When you fail to recognize employees,
you're not only failing to motivate them but also missing out on the most
effective way to reinforce great performance. Even if you don't have the budget
for raises or bonuses, there are lots of low-cost ways to provide recognition--and
a word of appreciation is free. People won't care if they don't feel noticed.
6.
Lack of trust.
Your employees
have a vantage point for viewing your behavior and weigh it against your
commitments. If they see you dealing unethically with vendors, lying to
stakeholders, cheating clients, or failing to keep your word, the best and most
principled of them will leave. The rest, even worse, will stay behind and
follow your lead.
7.
Excessive hierarchy.
Every
workplace needs structure and leadership, but a rigidly top-down organization
makes for unhappy employees. If your best performers know they're expected to
produce without contributing their ideas, if they're not empowered to make
decisions, if they're constantly having to defer to others on the basis of
their title rather than their expertise, they don't have much to be happy
about.
Ultimately, many people who leave their job
do so because of the boss, not the work or the organization. Ask yourself what
you may be doing to drive your best people away, and start making the changes
needed to keep them.
BY LOLLY DASKAL
http://www.inc.com/lolly-daskal/7-reasons-the-best-employees-quit-even-when-they-like-their-job.html?cid=em01014week32a
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