Discover Why Talent Leaves

A stable economy – or at least an economy in recovery – brings nothing but good for businesses, right? Unfortunately, not. While there are many plusses, and we certainly favor it over the recession, there is one little annoying factor that raises its head when the economy is good – the battle for retention. As talented employees feel more secure in the economy, they are much more willing to go job shopping and hopping. A lot of articles share tips on how to retain talent, but maybe it would be better to focus on “why” employees leave and therefore, what not to do.

Top reasons for leaving:

Negative culture: Playing the blame game, tolerating rudeness, gossip, backbiting, playing favorites – you get the picture.

Overboard expectations:
Failing to replace an employee and dumping the extra work on another. Demanding long hours and 24/7 connection. Increasing workload without promotion and forcing employees to choose between work and personal lives.

Feeling undervalued and unappreciated: Lack of recognition, appreciation, and reward for not only the “above and beyond measures” tied to specific projects but also for consistently producing quality work day-to-day.

Lack of trust and empowerment: Being micromanaged. Lack of freedom/authority to make and act on decisions in according with responsibility. Unable to take “ownership” because management is continually second-guessing, overseeing to an extreme.

Lack of connection: Little, if any connection between management and staff. Management viewing employees as consumable rather than an asset. Failure to extend a sense of caring and family to staff.

Poor communication and organization: Lack of coaching and feedback. Changes made without communicating them to employees. Receiving different info from one source than another. Employees don’t know what’s priority or even what’s happening, creating a distraction, confusion, and inefficiency.

Inaccurate job descriptions: Employee accepted a position based on erroneous information – actual position doesn’t fit their skills or interest.

No room to grow: Failure to offer incentives or opportunities for growth. No continuing education, opportunities to develop new skills or advance in responsibilities. Lack of intellectual and creative challenge.

Company fails to keep their word: The better equipment, new system, technological devices are always coming soon, but never arrive. The new promotion or raise is always “about to happen” but never does.

If some of these top reason why good talent keeps leaving are striking an uncomfortable chord, it’s time to take action. Money talks, of course, but it rarely stands alone. There are many aspects to people and therefore, many ways to engage and retain talent in your company.

Springborn is here to help by connecting companies in Bangor and Portland, Maine with the right talent in the first place. Contact us today – we will help you connect with talent and make the

Leave a Reply