Content about Turnover

December 12, 2011
Hidden Costs of Temporary Workers

The practice of applying cookie-cutter, commodity pricing to people comes at a huge cost. As the temporary staffing industry matured, the typically large disparity in pay between full-time regular employees and temps gave rise to a wide gap in the quality and dedication levels between the two types of workers.

By Randall Hatcher

During the early days of temporary staffing in the 1960s and ’70s, most companies turned to this option on a short-term, project, or seasonal basis only. As they started to increase their number of temporary workers, the enormous cost savings caught the attention of the number crunchers. Before long, some “temporary” jobs were lasting two, three, or five years, and others would end only if the business folded.

May 24, 2011
Employees Pop the Question: Will You Engage Me?

Engagement surveys are effective tools for determining employees’ connection to the organization. But before implementing them, HR professionals first must determine what they want to measure and then create a survey that will get results. By focusing on the core issues facing the organization, company leaders can make sure that their Mr. and Mrs. Rights stay perpetually engaged to the organization.

By Elaine Varelas, Managing Partner, Camden Consulting Group

Wedding season is in full swing. Whether you are elbow-deep in puffy dresses, flowers, and invitations, or leisurely browsing the online registry at Crate and Barrel—most us are involved in someone’s nuptials this summer. While weddings launch the beginning of a couple’s married life, they also mark the end of another special point: the engagement.

May 3, 2011
Measuring the ROI of Training

In an ideal world, what if we could pick a company, look at every measurement that training personnel might possibly impact and then train that staff from hello to goodbye. After three months, six months, 12 months, etc., of coaching and reinforcement to ensure the employees continue to use their new skills, we’d compare all the measurements. Would that be the perfect solution to the training ROI quandary?

By Holly Zoba, Senior Vice President, Hospitality Sales, Signature Worldwide

How do you measure the ROI of training? Is it through an increase in sales? A decrease in employee turnover? Better delivery of customer service?

In some ways, measuring the ROI of training is not unlike answering the question, “What is the ROI of putting on your shirt?” It doesn’t seem like there is a lot of value, until one day you don’t do it and you show up at work shirtless. Unless you are a professional surfer, you probably will regret it.

April 6, 2011
The Return of Turnover—And How to Prevent It

Most organizations have been running very lean, and as the economy recovers, the disruption and lost capability of increased turnover will be even more difficult to manage. What can organizations can do to increase their ability to retain their best employees? Here are six prescriptions organizations can act on right now.

By Joseph Folkman, Ph.D., President and Co-Founder, Zenger Folkman

Before the recession, Zenger Folkman had an effective metric that predicted turnover: intention to leave. We would ask employees if they were thinking about quitting. The percentage of those who answered “yes” or “neutral” was highly correlated to turnover. About 50 percent of employees who thought about quitting actually would do so.

March 24, 2011
Training Today: Retain & Gain

A recent poll of more than 300 leaders by The Ken Blanchard Companies revealed that organizations are taking the issue of employee retention seriously. Almost a third of respondents reported that their current turnover rate was less than 10 percent, and another third reported that turnover levels were below 20 percent.

Most forward-thinking organizations today realize that having valued employees is what differentiates them from their competitors. In this increasingly commoditized and competitive world, good people make an organization survive and thrive. And with the cost of replacing an employee estimated to amount to between 1.75 and 2.5 times his or her yearly salary, organizations are wise to pay attention to this critical issue.