Top tips for retaining superstar employees for years to come

Last month, you discovered some expert recruitment tips for hiring great leaders into your business with the help of the awesome GC Index.

So, now you know how to find the perfect new hires to plug the gaps in your team, it’s time to think about what you can do to make sure these outstanding individuals never want to leave!

Because, let’s face it, if you think your key players are the best of the best, the chances are your competitors will too. That’s why you need to put as much effort into retention as you do into recruitment.

What’s more, keeping hold of your most-valued team members is crucial for building the stability your business needs to grow. It’s also an excellent way to reduce unnecessary business costs.

So, keep reading to discover our top three tips for retaining the amazing employees you worked so hard to hire.

1. Make your employees’ first 6 months an absolute dream

An employee’s early experience of working in your business is super important.

First impressions count and these early days could determine whether your fabulous new hire becomes a long-standing, loyal employee or heads off to pastures new within six months.

So, to retain top talent, it’s essential to get your onboarding process just right. You’ll also need to think about providing ongoing support to ensure that your new team member feels engaged and motivated after the initial excitement of starting their new role begins to fade.

There are lots of ways to make a new starter feel welcomed and valued, including:

• Connecting new hires with key people throughout the business
• Assigning a mentor or work “buddy” and scheduling regular check-ins
• Outlining corporate values and helping them get to know (and feel part of) your business
• Creating an initial six-month plan for progression and setting clear expectations
• Building a culture of transparency and honesty by inviting ongoing feedback
• Sharing information about social events, employee wellbeing support, and additional perks.

A stellar onboarding process is likely to look different in every business, and you may need to tailor your process to the individual needs of each new hire.

But essentially, you want to show your employees what an incredible workplace you’ve built, so they’re never tempted to move on.

2. Identify and motivate your top talent

Who are the key players that are really adding value to your business?

There’s probably a handful of people who immediately spring to mind. They’re the superstars who are full of positive energy and commitment to your company’s culture. In fact, you can’t imagine the business without them.

Great stuff! Every firm needs top talent to drive it forward.

Yet, the more you come to rely on these individuals, the greater the potential risk they could pose to your business. Were they to leave, day-to-day operations could suffer.

So, once you’ve identified your most ambitious, productive, and all-round exceptional team members, you need to nurture them.

This could mean:

• Linking individual goals to broader business objectives so your key players feel fully invested in the firm’s future
• Continually reviewing the progress of your top talent, setting them new goals and providing opportunities for professional development – such as training or increased responsibilities
• Motivating ongoing commitment to the business by providing incentives, be they monetary or otherwise (such as flexible working patterns).

If your most-valued team members enjoy working with you and can see an exciting future for themselves in the business, they’re much more likely to stick around long term.

Read more: Embrace leadership coaching to enhance your team’s true talent

3. Invite your key players to become an integral part of the business

So, you’ve made some fantastic hires, given them an unbeatable onboarding experience, and provided your key players with strong motivation to stay with you for the foreseeable future.

The final step in building a robust plan for retaining your top talent is to look even further ahead.

If one of your superstars decided to move on, would they leave a large gap in the team? If so, you might want to think about how to keep them interested and invested in your business for years to come.

This might include:

• Incentivising senior employees to grow the company by giving them shares in the business.
• Giving your key players a stake in the business by establishing an Employee Ownership Trust.
• Offering your top employees the opportunity to become a partner or director.

In simple terms, the key to retaining your most-valued team members is to ensure that they come to love your business as much as you do!

Get in touch

If you’re lucky enough to have some superstars in your business who you don’t want to lose, we can help!

Hit us up in our inbox at hello@melo.co.uk or have a chat with us on 0113 4656 111.