How do I keep my people?
One of the most asked questions!
More and more I get asked about how leaders can retain their people as the competition for resource, especially but not exclusively, rising stars and top talent.
Equally more leaders are talking to me about delivering talent focused development programme which I love (of course I do). When in corporate, I too believed in the need to continually invest in people, but I did it proactively and consistently not reacting to times like now.
This week’s #giftbite tackles the subject of retention, opening with a little twist in the tail which has surprised a few people:
The purpose of these articles is to offer some thought starters and ‘+1s’ that you can think about and add to your overall strategy. Hence I thought I would supplement the above #giftbite with 10 thoughts from the GiFT631 tool-box on how to better retain your people (I also believe these will enhance your leadership brand and over time help with your attraction strategy as people tell people what a great leader you are):
‘People don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.’ What do you do consistently to show you are committed to your people as much as you are committed to their performance?
Find reasons to praise, recognise and celebrate. Make sure you are constantly catching people doing something right! Let them (& those around them know). Live personal bests and +1 performances. I knew everyone’s personal bests and I constantly applauded any team member who improved upon their own best efforts. Do you?
An extension of both 1. and 2. is the power of hand-written praise. Taking the time and making an effort to put pen to paper shows you care, shows you are committed and shows it is personal from you to them. The ripple effect of this over time is significant. I had 15 minutes a day in my diary everyday for ‘thank you’ time. Put good out into the universe and keep doing it!
Praise loudly and blame softly. Both elements to this quote are critical to me. The first part reinforces the above, the second is about treating people with respect. A leader who disrespects a team member in front of their colleagues and then wonders why people are leaving and/or giving less and less discretionary effort needs to attend a leadership 101 programme!
Have a constant stream of communication events, with as many ‘Ask Andy’ sessions as Townhalls etc. A great leader who creates a culture where people want to be is a great listener. For me, this was about spending as much time as I could with people in customer facing roles, as opposed to just those in management positions or central functions.
Be present! I used to say the greatest GiFT you could give your people was your time, now I say it is your presence. 30 minutes of dedicated, focused 1:1 time is way better than turning up for a monthly 1:1 and being clearly distracted by your phone. Distraction = disinterest and a lack of respect.
Use development as a reward. When people achieve, send them books, place them on relevant courses, seminars and conferences. Show you want to take every opportunity to help them grow as people.
Evidence to people they can make a difference - they have the opportunity to influence the business and how it operates. The best example for me as TNT UK’s programme from the early 2000s: ‘If I gave you £50 how would you spend it to improve the company.’ The amount was not the important thing, what mattered was that everyone could put forward their ideas on how to improve their job or the jobs of others through their daily observations. Senior leaders do not have a monopoly on good ideas and simple improvements.
Understand people’s superpowers/signature strengths and play to them. Get people doing more of what they are good at and what they love to do. They do better work, they are happier and more engaged. This is so simple but not always practiced.
Put people in a coat that is too big - be willing to take a risk on your talent. The great leaders who I respect and remember did that for me. Do you play it too safe and then wonder why your top talent has become impatient and disappeared?
👉Please feel free to comment, add your own ideas, extend these ideas or present alternatives thoughts. This is a major issue for so many people. Let’s understand it and help each move forward. It’s #whatwinnersdo