My One Prediction for the New Year

Last week, I reconnected with a former client who works as an operations executive for a company that owns and operates high-end senior living facilities. This executive spent the previous nine months flying around like Superman, trying to secure PPE for the workers in his facilities and putting in new safety measures required by the state, which were changing daily.  

He wasn't expecting a parade to honor his efforts. However, he did hope to have his boss acknowledge him. Instead, he got this. 

Yesterday, he texted me and said, "My holiday bonus hit my bank account this morning...hope you're sitting down...it was $250." 

He then went on to say he didn't even receive a call, text, email, or card from his boss thanking him and wishing him a happy holiday season. 

Usually, I make a bunch of predictions for the New Year, but since we're still in a state of flux, I've decided to limit my predictions for the year 2021 to one prediction, which, if it comes true, will impact your business big time.

Here's my prediction:

Workers are going to flee their companies in droves. 

This gentleman's story is all too common. Many employees are feeling unappreciated and, in some cases, undervalued. These employees may not bolt out the door come January 1st. However, you'll see the migration begin as soon as the Covid-19 vaccine is readily available to the general public. 

There's still time to prevent this from happening to you.

How you treat your employees, especially during these difficult times, matters a lot! So, here are three pieces of advice to help you avoid a mass exodus.

You can Still Get this Right. Let's say you now realize that you weren't as generous as you could have been with your year-end bonuses. There's still time to make amends.

• Go back over your list of star performers.
• Send each of these people a personal note telling them exactly why you feel they're an integral part of the team. Write this note from your heart.
• Enclose a sizable gift card or a check to show them they are valued.

Understandably, not everyone has additional funds to dole out this year. If that's the case, instead of a gift card or check, give them the gift of extra paid time off in your note.

Re-think the Employee Experience. Who would have expected an employee experience like the one we just had? Not me! Take time to start thinking about what you'd like the employee experience to feel like in 2021 and beyond. 

Start by involving your employees in this process. 

Forget about doing another employee engagement survey this year and instead, ask your employees three simple questions about the employee experience.

1.    What did we get right this year?

2.    Where did we drop the ball, big time?

3.    What can we do to improve the employee experience?

Pick one or two ideas and begin taking action.

Invest in the Development of Your People, Especially Your Leaders. People don't work for companies. They work for people, which helps explain why a lousy boss is one of the top reasons given for employees leaving their previous employers. 

In the old days (pre-Covid), to take advantage of learning opportunities, you had to send someone off to a conference that required you to reimburse travel expenses. These opportunities could get quite costly, so you'd limit who could attend to only a handful of people. 

We've grown accustomed to online learning and virtual conferences, thereby making development options accessible and affordable for more people.

There are many cost-effective online learning opportunities available, including LinkedIn Learning, Skillsoft, and Udemy. I'm an instructor for LinkedIn Learning instructor and Skillsoft and can attest to the quality that goes into creating their programs. 

In particular, one course may be of interest to those of you wanting to focus on employee retention. My class on Motivating and Engaging Employees is surging in popularity these days. 

If you'd rather talk through some ideas on employee retention, schedule a call with me. I'm here to help.

As we say goodbye to 2020 and hello to 2021, may the New Year bring you good health, happiness, and high employee retention levels!

Cheers!

Roberta