How to manage and reduce staff turnover

Every time your employees quit, it costs you to replace them and unsettles your team. That's why it's important that you look at how to reduce staff turnover.

You can't do much about people retiring or moving to a new city. But you can stop them from leaving if they feel they're underpaid or they're not progressing quickly. You just need to give them a reason to stay.

Want to know how to reduce employee turnover? We explain six ways to keep your staff happy at work.

6 ways to reduce employee turnover

Here's how to reduce turnover in the workplace:

1. Listen to your employees: You could form a committee that meets with you every month, or put out a suggestions box. Listen to their comments and make changes where you can.

2. Set up regular one-to-one meetings: Hold meetings with your staff to discuss their performance, how they can progress in their role and what training is available to them. Your staff are less likely to look for another job if they know you have a clear plan for them.

3. Celebrate your staff's hard work: Set up an Employee of the Month scheme to praise members of your team. Pick a new employee every month and explain why you've chosen them. You could reward winners with a voucher or an extra day's annual leave.

4. Offer flexible working hours: If it's possible for your business, think about offering flexible working hours to your staff. Your employees will probably be happier if they can work from home or adjust their hours to fit around their home life.

5. Plan social events for your team: Help your staff bond by taking them out regularly. You could organise a team activity day or go for drinks at the end of every month.

6. Offer competitive salaries: Do some research and find out what your closest competitors pay their staff. If it's higher than what you pay, plan to increase your staff's wages.

Now that you know how to retain staff, let's look at ways of managing employee turnover.

How to manage employee turnover

It's now enough to reduce the number of leavers. You need to know how to manage employee turnover so that it stays low.

Follow three simple tips to keep committed and loyal staff working for you:

1. Review how you hire employees: Look at how you recruit new members of staff. Ask yourself whether you see them working for you in a year's time. If you don't, make an effort to look for flexible staff who can adapt to your business needs.

2. Hold exit interviews with leavers: Sit down and have a chat with your departing staff. They're likely to be frank with you about why they're leaving and could give you an idea of what you can do better.

3. Work out your staff turnover regularly: Make time every month or quarter to calculate your staff turnover. Doing so will help you to see if the number of leavers is going up.

Is maths not your strong point? Not a problem. Read our simple guide on how to calculate staff turnover.