5 Ways to Decrease Turnover

In the corporate world, a high rate of employee turnover can be a significant problem. Research suggests that for some companies it can cost up to one-fifth of an employee’s salary to find, hire and train a suitable replacement. If turnover rates are too high, this can be a cost for the company that can’t be recouped. Luckily, by improving the environment at work, practicing smart hiring strategies, and ensuring that your company stays well organized, it’s possible to keep turnover at a minimum. We’ve got a few steps to help you get started. Follow these, and you will be well on your way to shrinking your turnover numbers, and keeping top talent.

1. Use Keywords to Target Applicants

The best way to ensure loyal and long-term employees is by reaching applicants who are a better fit for the position. In selectively targeting applicants, do not underestimate the power of search engine optimization. SEO is a new and valuable tool to use keyword search patterns to your advantage. The key to directing the right applicants to your position relies on finding the most precise target words.

It can cost up to one-fifth of an employee’s salary to find, hire and train a suitable replacement.

The Direct Employers blog explains how SEO can not only increase overall traffic to your website, but how you can use keywords to “engage” job seekers more effectively. The right applicant for your open position exists, SEO is simply the way you target them. Engaging applicants right from your posting verbiage helps you find the long-term asset your company is seeking.

2. Post to Strategic Locations

Even if you have a job description written to take advantage of every search engine algorithm, you won’t find the perfect candidate if you don’t post to job boards and locations these applicants are searching on. Do your research and know where programmers, engineers, nurses, managers, and whatever other employee types you are looking for go to search for jobs.

Know your local culture and where job seekers are most likely to search for positions. Know your target candidate and how they use social media, specified job boards, or how they network to find careers. When you know what type of candidate you are looking for, it becomes very simple to know where to post your job.

3. Balance Wants vs. Needs

The minimum qualifications for the position need to be just that: the minimum. Understand what education level is essential for your candidate, not simply ideal. Balance previous experience, certifications, and education to increase flexibility.

Forbes explains the damaging hiring culture that plagues the job market today where job qualifications search for a candidate who does not exist. This so-called “purple squirrel” emphasizes experience and education and minimizes compensation.

The minimum qualifications for the position need to be just that: the minimum.

Finding the ideal candidate does not mean being unrealistic. In fact, as you keep qualifications realistic and pay competitive, you are much more likely to find a long-term employee. Save your turnover and retraining costs and put it into a more valuable source: an employee’s salary. The simplest way to keep an employee is better compensation. Don’t overlook this option.

4. Create the Ideal Work Environment

An ideal work environment’s strong impact is the coworker. How well employees work together, know each other and enjoy being at work, will be the single greatest contributor to your company’s work environment. Therefore, employee referrals can be your greatest resource to harvest a productive and cooperative work environment.

A common misconception is to overvalue work experience and education and undervalue work ethics, personality traits and other “immeasurable” items. Effort can often translate to skill, and quickly, especially when they enjoy being with their coworkers.

Focus on productivity instead of wheel spinning work. Coworkers who know each other well, get along and work well together often produce more in less time. Reward employees for adding value to your organization instead of accounting for hours. The workplace that emphasizes trust in its employees as well as high expectations balances high productivity and employee satisfaction to produce the ideal work environment.

5. Assess Your Applicants

The candidate who is the best match for your position is not necessarily the applicant with the perfect resume. Qualifications, education, and experience do have their place. An over qualified candidate may lose interest or feel under compensated. An under qualified candidate may feel overwhelmed or fall behind. However even if the qualifications seem to fit the candidate, the new employee may still leave.

To avoid quickly churning qualified candidates, focus on more than just the résumé. You need to know the person, their traits, characteristics and tendencies. Pre-hire personality assessments are the most effective way to measure traits like: reliability, assertiveness, work ethics, trustworthiness and punctuality. Turnover has a cost. So redistributing the cost to employee referral incentives, purchase assessments, or pay for postings on specific jobs will most open produce a net gain. Evaluate the full cost when balancing the turnover rate and seeking additional options for decreasing that rate. For more in-depth info on Pre-employment Testing, check out our site here.

See more on the best way to assess your applicants by viewing ApplicantPro’s Assessment Options.

Or to schedule a demo of the ApplicantPro software click here.