How to retain your best employees

The rules of employee retention have changed. No longer can loyalty be bought with big salaries, hefty bonuses, and rich benefits packages. Today it takes intangible, non-monetary rewards to create an atmosphere that makes your people feel valued, respected, and involved. It takes a whole new way of thinking. This is the 18th edition of a 20-week special on ideas you could implement to keep those best employees:

18) Give Employees Options

Rewards pack a bigger punch when they have personal meaning for the recipient. Let’s say, for example, that you want to recognize one of your teams for their new ideas on cutting office supply costs. The problem: you’re not sure what they’ll find valuable. In a case like this, the solution is simple. Give the employee a choice of rewards. Examples might include:

• A private lunch with the company president or a team pizza party

• A small cash bonus or an extra vacation day

• Public recognition in the company newsletter or a discreet letter of praise in their personnel file.

• An unscheduled casual day or an invitation to the next management meeting.

Recognizing good employees is one thing. Involving them in the process is quite another. By offering choices, you can make the reward uniquely theirs- not a cookie-cutter gesture, but a thoughtful show of appreciation that honors the personal talents of the individual.

Send a comment back and let me know what ideas your organization has done to reward their employees…