Losing several of your best talent in a short time span is a great way to sully your reputation.
In today’s strong tech job market, in which talented developers could easily have multiple offers at a time, taking some time to cement your relationship with your teammates is simply good economic sense.
The more engaged your people are in their work and with you, the more they have at stake to produce higher results. Studies by Brian Solis, Principal Analyst of Altimeter Group and Author of What’s the Future of Business, show that loyalty is directly correlated with engagement. After all, if your people are disengaged, they have less motivation to go above and beyond for you.
"Loyalty is directly correlated with engagement."If your best people are dropping like flies, this article contains three steps you can take today to help solidify a long-term, winning team.
Marc Prine, PhD in business psychology and consultant, offers some extremely valuable insight from his research on how organization (large or small) leaders can boost engagement:
But what does it really mean when it comes to brass tacks?
It means setting a clear reason as to why you wake up and go to work every morning. What is it that the organization, as a whole, is working hard to achieve?
This won't work unless you're honest. What drives you?
Seeing the faces of those you’ve helped who are less fortunate than you? Making as much commission as humanly possible?
“One key thing I found that increased employee engagement more than anything else is the closer the relationship between the organizational goals and values and the goals and values of the individual, the more likely they are to go above and beyond,” Prine says.
When you’re building your team and hiring new people, make sure your values align with his. It’s the only way to build a strong team that will work diligently, not just for you, but alongside you.
Talk to your best players, find out what’s important to them and how their role helps them achieve their values.
“It’s the simple things that show appreciation,” Prine says. “Telling someone ‘you’re doing a great job,’ or relating back to them by saying ‘look, I know this stinks, but we have to get this done and it might mean working into the weekend.”
You’d be surprised just how far little gestures can go. Setting concrete, clear expectations and offering consistent feedback is a tried-and-true method of cultivating long-lasting credibility.
“We’re social beings and having people tell us we’re doing a good job and appreciate our time. That means a lot,” Prine says.
It all goes back to relating to your people.
“Giving people the opportunity to stand up and say they want a specific project,” Prine says, is a highly effective, practical way to boost employee engagement.
Investing this time and effort into your people will not only help boost loyalty to you but also yield higher results. Again, if you can find what truly motivates your people (Re: No.1), “they’re all going to go above and beyond for you,” Prine says.
Thousands of full-time and remote jobs in every industry. Search jobs.
We'll find you the right candidate, fast. Get started.
Our recruiters connect people with great opportunities and help our clients build amazing teams. Learn more.