News & Videos

Building your talent retention plan during the Great Resignation

Organizations continue to ask, “Why are our employees quitting without jobs lined up?  Are they crazy?”  This is what I tell them.

Many of you know, I have a small addiction to Panera Bread.  Always good food and always a table available with great internet.  The Pandemic has changed my Panera experience for the better.

• Prior to 2020, I stood in line to order a large, iced tea.  I’d walk past the self-service kiosk and signs that tried to introduce me to the Panera online ordering app.  I would waste my time ordering the “old fashioned way” because it felt comfortable. 
• In 2020, to get my beloved Iced Tea, I had to order on the online ordering app and have it delivered to my car.  It really was simple, and I gained more value for my time. 
• Now in 2021, the old-fashioned cashier line is open, but I don’t use it.  I know the online app is faster and I can sit at a table to start working before it will let me know when my food is ready. 
• Never Going Back.  Why would I go back to the “old way” that is consistently slower and doesn’t value my time?  And if the app has technical issues, I can use different apps from Chick-fil A or Corner Bakery to get my breakfast!

So how does this relate to the Turnover Tsunami spreading across Corporate America: 

• Prior to 2020, millions of American’s were frustrated with their long commutes, annoyed with office politics, and uncomfortable in their corporate cultures.  Office based employees did not frequently jump to open remote roles that were available, because it was too easy to “just stay”. 
• In 2020, ALL employees instantly became remote workers.  Immediately, this forced action enabled millions to experience employment without a long commute, the annoying office politics, and a much more comfortable corporate environment.  And they blew away their annual goals!  They spoke with neighbors experiencing the same bliss.
• Now in 2021, “old school” companies are mandating office time, reintroducing long commutes and poor office environments.  But employees now know that a great job that values their time is possible.
• Never Going Back.  The balance has shifted.  It is deemed better to be unemployed and applying for a job worth having, than being employed to an old job that isn’t worth it anymore. Employees have been introduced to a choice, and they are taking it.

Employee Retention Plan 2021:

2021 should focus on options that drive the best results.  Notice, I didn’t say…that makes everyone satisfied.  What are the options that drive the best results?

1. Listen to the Individual.  What are their needs?  What do they value?  This isn’t making policies by department or by employee segment.  This is building an individual plan for each employee.  Some will go back to the office, some will not, and some will hybrid.  The real question…where can they drive the best results?
2. Evaluate based on Results.  If an individual exceeds expectations and soars above their metrics, allow them to work however and wherever they choose.  Or you can hire an “average” employee to replace them, but “at least I will know they come to the office.”  Focus on the results of the individual to support their individual plan.  And if they aren’t driving results, it may be time to change their individual plan.
3. Keep Listening.  This is an evolving market with new trends every day.  It is important to continue to gather information to ensure your instincts remain correct.  If you catch yourself saying, “this makes no sense, why in the world..?”, it means you need to be asking more questions and learning from your team.

At Panera, the shelf to pick up pre-ordered food is constantly being stocked.  Eliminating that option will result in a major loss in revenue.   In Corporate America, a remote option is here to stay.  And employees will hopefully find a remote option with your company, and not just with your competitors.

I recently found out I was nominated and awarded a CEO Today Magazine Top Consultant award. So humbled that one of my clients would nominate me for this award. Over the last three years, I have been blessed with amazing clients that have elevated their game and risen from Exhausted Heroes to Strategic Leaders. I love the work that I do and feel so blessed to create a satisfying career. Thank you for all of the support and trust!

https://managementconsultingawards.ceotodaymagazine.com/winners-edition/22/

In a recent study by DDI, 86% of high potential employees are feeling burnout. And high potential employees are twice as likely to leave compared to their peers.

It isn’t that much of a mystery why high potential employees are feeling exhausted. In the last year, the amount of change that these employees have experienced, and in many parts led, has been unprecedented. To name a few; leading from their home office, managing hours of Zoom calls, assisting children with remote learning, and managing understaffed teams.

But it doesn’t stop there. Many high potentials literally saved the company. These Exhausted Heroes put the company on their backs to reinvent supply chain models, build new apps, redesign the customer experience, and/or developed new customer solutions. They were asked to step up in a time of crisis, and they did. And they probably took on more than everyone else. A Harvard Business Review study says top performers can be 400% more productive than the average performer.

The bad news is these Exhausted Heroes are actively looking for new opportunities outside your organization. Nearly 60% of leaders reported they felt used up at the end of the workday, which is a strong indicator of burnout, according to DDI. Nearly 44% of these leaders expect to change companies in order to advance their careers with 26% expected to leave within the next year.

Pay attention now to your High Potentials before it is too late. Provide growth opportunities like leadership development programs or executive coaching. Unleash spot bonuses to recognize great work. Unfreeze promotions to allow them to reap the rewards of their hard work. And most importantly, recognize their hard work with a thank you.

You could not have had a successful year last year without your high potential talent. Make sure you have a successful year next year by retaining them! There is no time to waste!

According to a recent study sponsored by the National Bureau of Economic Research, the
amount of time employees spend in meetings has increased by 13% during the pandemic.

I didn’t think it was even possible, but yes, our calendars are filled with 13% more meetings as we work from home. With the inability for a 5 mins drive by conversation or a quick chat over lunch, we have scheduled our way into a meeting straight jacket.

Here are 3 quick ways to decrease your meetings by at least 20% each week (that is one out of five days saved!)

1. Proactively Decline Your Calendar: Every Friday, block 30 mins to review your calendar for the next week. Find meeting that you can decline or send your deputy to, orcombine with another meeting. It is amazing how many meeting owners will react by sending you a concise email or by moving the meeting out a few weeks. And if it is really important, they will call you and beg for a meeting…that just doesn’t happen often!

2. Make your One-on-Ones Count: When you review your meetings, how many are with your team? I am a believer the majority of meetings can be cancelled if you use one-on- ones to think proactively and not reactively. Don’t spend one on one time talking about what has been accomplished. Instead, focus on what needs to be achieved in the next two weeks. This provides the direct report with a runway to get things done over thenext two weeks, without scheduling a ton of meetings with you for buy in!

3. Create Project Captains: Instead of delegating tasks on a project, delegate the entire project. Take time in the one on one to help your new captain think through the steps to complete the project and proactively think through potential roadblocks. Then, send them to run the meetings, collaborate with others, and report back progress to you during weekly one-on-ones.

Now, what do you do with your “free time”? You become a proactive, visionary Fire Chief who can effectively influence change and coach their team to victory. For many of us, this could mean increasing our strategic behaviors, influencing skills, and coaching capabilities.

Visit www.gameplanleader.com to learn about leadership coaching engagements and leadership development programs that can elevate your leadership.

I had the privilege of being a guest of Andrew Wayfinder’s on “The Confidence Chats”. Check out the replay of the panel discussion below.

http://www.andrewwayfinder.com/CCApril2021

In a previous blog post, I predicted 2021 will be the year the high potential talent bubble will burst, and your companies will reactively scramble to keep their best people.

These high potential team members are currently running your organizations, expanding revenues, and leading efforts to modernize your business efforts.  In a year of countless challenges, these individuals were the problem solvers, the leaders, and the executors that saved the company.  Losing these individuals will cause costly delays, put accounts into jeopardy, and derail new initiatives.  And it is expensive, with the Society of Human Resource Management estimating it will take 200% of the high potential’s salary to replace them.  These leaders could be the current and future leaders of your organization, if you can keep them.

Don’t wait!  Be proactive in keeping your best talent and don’t risk it.  Here are 5 actions to take to bear hug your high potential talent so they will stay. 

1. Select your High Potential Talent:  As I speak with many organizations, they haven’t taken the time to identify their high potential talent by name.  Your classic HR leader will set up a 12-week project with an in-depth timeline and gnarly spreadsheets.  I instead encourage you to act fast.  Assemble your leadership team for one hour and create a list of 10 individuals that if lost, would create the biggest setback for the organization. 
2. Hire Executive Coaches:  High potential talent is motivated by personal growth.  Providing them with a one-on-one executive coach will reinforce your investment in them, provide them with a place to vent and process challenges, and enable them to grow as leaders.  The immediate results will be higher engagement and the longer-term results will be the leader of the future for the company.
3. Promote and Reward:  In these times of conservative budgets and eliminations of pay increases, I recommend a different strategy.  Decrease the total amount of money allocated to promotions and pay increases and focus them on the top 10 high potential talent.  If you need to replace these individuals, it will cost up to 200% of their salaries.  Or you can give them a pay bump now and reaffirm your support for them.
4. Focus on Inclusion:  A tactic to help a high potential to feel included at a company is to give them a seat at the table.  Invite them to strategy meetings and conduct one-on-one meetings more frequently with these individuals to ask their perspective.  These individuals are often workhorses.  Elevate them to strategic partners and they will feel included in the mission of the company. 
5. Prioritize and Resource:  Listen closely for the Exhausted Hero who subtlety asks for help prioritizing.  These are your drivers, so when they need help, they need help!  Sometimes priorities can’t shift, so also be prepared to provide additional resources in dollars or headcount to immediately help out.  Again, these are your best people so trust them when they say they need help.  If you don’t listen and act, they will act and go somewhere else!

Some of us bear hug as a constraint to keep someone in place.  The actions above bear hug the high potential talent so they WANT to stay in place.  If a high potential feels disrespected or unappreciated, there is nothing you can do to stop them from leaving.  It is amazing how much time HR departments reactively create counter offers to try to convince a high potential talent to stay. 

The best organizations focus on the five actions above to proactively ensure their high potential doesn’t want to leave.  Take action today!