OPINION
December 2007 / January 2008
How to keep your biggest customers—Your employees
By Scott Stoppler, President
Executrade
A key aspect of employee retention is employee satisfaction. Members of your workforce should be treated like internal customers. Employee retention is strongly correlated with the quality of service you give your staff.
Is your employee service up to snuff?
You spend significant time and money researching what your external customers want and need, but what about your internal customers—your employees? Do you know what they want and need? Do you know how to provide it?
In our experience, the top three job satisfaction indicators today are
- the opportunity to make a meaningful contribution in the organization
- the chance to learn, grow and face new challenges
- corporate culture
Yes, you ensure the employee training subsidy is up to date, or implement a weekly lunch and learn, but what about corporate culture? Typically, it is easy to say “well I have nothing to do with that”. However, as a supervisor, manager or employer, you have a large role in creating the corporate culture of your organization.
Corporate culture
Who you work with, how things are accomplished, how your peers treat you, and how you are treated by your supervisors are all components of corporate culture and ultimately, job satisfaction. A healthy corporate culture will go a long way. Consider the following:
- Do you hire the right people? Do you fire people when they are not right for the job? Do you honestly practice the company’s values and encourage others to do so?
- Are there clear processes in place that allow employees to do their jobs efficiently, or do current processes bind and frustrate them?
- Do you trust your employees? Do you allow them to take ownership with projects and make decisions? Micromanaging is one of the ways of taking ownership away from employees.
- Do you listen to your employees? Do you hear their concerns and take action to resolve issues? Do you have a process in which issues are easily addressed?
Most often, the value of external customers is placed above that of the employee. The external customer is equated with revenue and therefore company vitality. However, the truth is that your company is only as good as your worst, or most unhappy, employee.
