As many industries gear up for their peak production periods, it’s important to consider the costs and importance of employee retention. Capable, well trained, and self-sufficient employees play a crucial role in the infrastructure of a company. We all know how important the on-paper benefits to an employee are (i.e. health benefits, vacations time, salary, etc.), but those don’t always play the biggest role in actually retaining your employees. Remember: they already know all of that stuff before accepting the role. Typically, employee retention rests on the daily experience of working within an organization. Let’s review five important employee retention strategies:

Select quality employees from the start.

You’ve got to start somewhere! While simply hiring the best people from the get-go is much (much) easier said than done, it’s still worth reevaluating your new hire process if you’re having trouble getting the best employees to stick around. If people are consistently leaving, maybe the internal team is miscommunicating some aspects of the position. You’re not going to hit a home run on every new hire, but this is where “retention” begins—make sure you find that right fit to begin with!

Assess the work environment.

As a manager, it’s your job to make sure that the overall culture and vibe of your workplace is as enjoyable as possible. Within reason, you have to make sure that your team is generally comfortable. Update outdated equipment, refresh common areas, offer places for employees to work other than their daily assigned areas—anything to show that you’re making an effort toward improving their day to day lives! Be encouraging, and praise the hard work of your employees. Offer employees feedback and compensation for diligence and focus within their work. Read our post on showing employee appreciation for more tips on how this can be done!

Give your team trust and opportunity.

Offer employees opportunities to be involved in decisions that affect the company and their position. Whenever possible, make your employees feel involved in the inner-workings of your business. This will show that you value their input and trust what they have to say. More often than not, your employees will have a unique perspective on topics that you may find surprising. They may be much better connected to the day in, day out operations of your business, and can point out issues that you haven’t thought of.

Define a path of progression.

Motivated employees tend to work toward long term goals. Establish that path to them! Sometimes our careers can make us feel like we are just spinning the wheels. Without any idea of how a role can progress, you can count on your employees feeling directionless and getting antsy. Quality employees have a greater desire to progress within their career and feel more secure when opportunities for career movement and further education are presented to them.

Establish lines of communication.

Communication allows you to convey to your employees the responsibilities, roles, and goals you are expecting of them. It also allows employees to come to you when they have questions or concerns. They need to feel comfortable doing this, and as a manager, you need to cultivate a work culture that encourages that two-way communication.

Implementing these methods within your current will help you put your employees first and assist in increasing your retention rates down the road.