The Real Reasons Employees Leave and How to Keep the Best

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Why do people leave teams and organizations? The # 1 reason people leave jobs is because they fail to connect with their bosses as leaders and as people.   People are rarely honest about why they leave a company. Too many associates that depart follow Jimmy Conway’s advice (played by Robert DeNiro) in the 1990 hit movie “Goodfellas,” who told Henry Hill (played by Ray Liotta), “Never rat on your friends and keep your mouth shut.”
There is no upside incentive for the employee to be open and honest. Think about it! The primary reason people leave companies is because of the relationship and lack of emotional connection with their boss. However, it is almost never talked about in the exit interview. Why? Who wants to burn a bridge with a boss they may need for a future job reference? It is easier to talk about work/life balance, moving on to build your skill sets, or the need to make more money.   Salary is much further down the list as a reason to leave than what is usually reported in exit interviews. What is your current game plan to keep your best people? While most companies talk a great deal about the need to retain the best people to sustain growth, they lack an integrated game plan to create retention momentum.         
As a leader, you are personally accountable to acquire and retain the very best people. It is that simple. If you fail to recruit and retain the top talent, you will not sustain growth over time. At the end of the day, the effective leader must embrace a plan to retain the very best talent.
 
Emotional connections provide the fuel that greatly enhance retention. It is driven by the trust and development of your individual team members.   It starts with building your emotional connections with each team member.
The power of the “unexpected” is the most powerful way to emotionally connect with another person. Think about it! Do you get more credit with your significant other when you send a hand written note when they least expect it? Of course you do! The same concept applies to you as a leader. It is the “unexpected” things a leader does that really make the difference. Some examples:
 
1. Write a personal handwritten note or send a greeting card to the spouses or significant others telling them what a difference their partner is making to your business.
 
 2. Take the employee to breakfast, lunch or dinner (if appropriate) and ask them what “really matters” to them and what you can do as a leader to help them build their future dreams
 3. Take your entire team out together to celebrate a special event. For example, when I was with Hallmark, I would take my team out every year for a holiday dinner in the private dining room of a local restaurant. I would go around the room and say something special about each of the team members at the end of the meeting. The primary message   delivered in front of the entire team focused on the unique skill sets each person brings to the table throughout the year to make us all successful.

4. Place a call to a significant influencer or key family member in their lives. You should make phone calls to fathers and mothers if you believe it will make a difference to your best employees. Always ask permission first if you are going to contact anyone beyond the spouse. It is impossible to know without asking whether a call to someone’s parents would be comfortable for an employee or not. You also should follow any laws or rules regarding employee privacy.
 
5. Create a surprise, fun outing as part of a team business trip. For example, I took my team on a business trip together to the West Coast. While on the trip, we  made an “unexpected” stop at “The Rock,” or Alcatraz in San Francisco.  This created wonderful experiences that directly enhanced team bonding.
 
6. Create local, fun activities for the team. These events are fun team activities that should be done during regular business  hours to truly be appreciated. Weekend team activities that cut into individual personal time are almost always guaranteed to land with a giant thud. Remember, your team wants you to be a great leader. They are not looking for another weekend friend.

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