High quality, top-performing employees are like gold dust – so Travis Bradberry* wonders why there are so many employers who treat them like dirt.
It’s pretty incredible how often you hear managers complaining about their best employees leaving.
They really do have something to complain about — few things are as costly and disruptive as good people walking out the door.
Managers tend to blame their turnover problems on everything under the sun, while ignoring the crux of the matter: People don’t leave jobs; they leave managers.
This can easily be avoided. All that’s required is a new perspective and some extra effort on the manager’s part.
Organisations know how important it is to have motivated, engaged employees, but most fail to hold managers accountable for making it happen.
Gallup research shows that a mind-boggling 70 per cent of an employee’s motivation is influenced by his or her manager.
So, let’s take a look at some of the worst things that managers do that send good people packing.
They overwork people
Nothing burns good employees out quite like overworking them.
Overworking good employees is perplexing; it makes them feel as if they’re being punished for their great performance.
If you must increase how much work your talented employees are doing, you’d better increase their status as well.
Raises, promotions, and title-changes are all acceptable ways to increase workload.
If you simply increase workload because people are talented, without changing a thing, they will seek another job that gives them what they deserve.
They don’t recognise contributions and reward good work
It’s easy to underestimate the power of a pat on the back, especially with top performers who are intrinsically motivated.
Managers need to communicate with their people to find out what makes them feel good (for some, it’s a raise; for others, it’s public recognition) and then to reward them for a job well done.
They fail to develop people’s skills
When managers are asked about their inattention to employees, they try to excuse themselves, using words such as trust, autonomy, and empowerment.
This is complete nonsense. Good managers manage, no matter how talented the employee.
When you have a talented employee, it’s up to you to keep finding areas in which they can improve to expand their skill set.
The most talented employees want feedback — more so than the less talented ones — and it’s your job to keep it coming.
They don’t care about their employees
Smart companies make certain their managers know how to balance being professional with being human.
These are the bosses who celebrate an employee’s success, empathise with those going through hard times, and challenge people, even when it hurts.
Bosses who fail to really care will always have high turnover rates.
They don’t honour their commitments
Making promises to people places you on the fine line that lies between making them very happy and watching them walk out the door.
When you uphold a commitment, you grow in the eyes of your employees because you prove yourself to be trustworthy and honourable.
When you disregard your commitment, you come across as slimy, uncaring and disrespectful.
They hire and promote the wrong people
Good, hard-working employees want to work with like-minded professionals.
When managers don’t do the hard work of hiring good people, it’s a major demotivator for those stuck working alongside them.
Promoting the wrong people is even worse. When you work your tail off only to get passed over for a promotion that’s given to someone who glad-handed their way to the top, it’s a massive insult.
They don’t let people pursue their passions
Talented employees are passionate.
Providing opportunities for them to pursue their passions improves their productivity and job satisfaction.
Many managers fear that productivity will decline if they let people expand their focus and pursue their passions. This fear is unfounded.
Studies show that people who are able to pursue their passions at work experience flow, a euphoric state of mind that is five times more productive than the norm.
They fail to engage creativity
The most talented employees seek to improve everything they touch.
If you take away their ability to change and improve things because you’re only comfortable with the status quo, this makes them hate their jobs.
They don’t challenge people intellectually
Great bosses challenge their employees to accomplish things that seem inconceivable at first.
Instead of setting mundane, incremental goals, they set lofty goals that push people out of their comfort zones.
When talented and intelligent people find themselves doing things that are too easy or boring, they seek other jobs that will challenge their intellects.
If you want your best people to stay, you need to think carefully about how you treat them.
While good employees are as tough as nails, their talent gives them an abundance of options. You need to make them want to work for you.
*Travis Bradberry is the award-winning co-author of the bestselling book, Emotional Intelligence 2.0, and the co-founder of TalentSmart. He can be contacted at TalentSmart.com.
This article first appeared at talentsmart.com.
