Executive Summary
The employee turnover rate is one of the integral features that display the running and progress of a particular business and can indicate significant issues that require immediate attention. When the rate is high, a company suffers substantial damage in the form of financial loss since a company spends money on employees’ training and compensation, and loss of talent and skilled workers. Moreover, the rapid replacement of team members negatively affects team spirit, coherence, and willingness to meet everyday challenges. Thus, this report focuses on discussing three types of incentives that can be implemented in the given company, namely, training, appreciation, and health promotion programs, for preventing high turnover and increasing employee loyalty. In addition, the report will offer recommendations that consider the weaknesses of each of the types and facilitate their implementation.
Introduction
Business strategies that are directed at strengthening employees’ motivation and loyalty are the focus of most employers’ and related scholars’ attention. Effective tools, in this context, have appeared to be different types of incentives that a company can offer to its workers to improve their performance and devotion. Thus, this report focuses on discussing three types of stimuli, namely, training, appreciation, and health promotion programs, that can be implemented in the given company to prevent high turnover and increase employee loyalty. In addition, the report will offer recommendations that consider the weaknesses of each of the types and facilitate the implementation of the incentives.
Training and Development Opportunities
Education and training is a complicated process of teaching the company’s employees about critical aspects of social behavior in the workplace and technical and non-technical understanding of the specific professional area. The aim of education is not only to equip workers with necessary and relevant skills but also to polish and deepen their acquired knowledge. A company that can afford to implement sound and appropriate training practices will ensure long-term and stable development in meeting the most crucial business demands.
In the context of employee turnover, training is an essential tool that can improve worker loyalty since most applicants and employees consider which opportunities a particular company can offer to provide them with professional growth. In the study conducted by Oloke, Oni, Babalola, & Ojelabi (2017), it has been identified that over sixteen percent of all respondents indicate that training opportunity is a critical factor promoting motivation and satisfaction of a job. Besides, in 2014, the job and recruiting website Glassdoor published the research stating that 72 percent of employees appreciate specialized internal training more than a degree earned in higher establishments (“7 in 10 Employees Value Skills,” 2014).
In both studies, the employees are confident that training furthers their career promotion and help them better understand the company’s goals and values. In this regard, to encourage workers to stay in the firm, the management should introduce relevant seminars and training courses and provide employees with useful educational sources.
On the other hand, although training for workers is a vital tool for almost any business, employers should also take into account the potential disadvantages that a firm may face. The first and inevitable drawback is the initial cost that a company incurs during the process of implementation since the company has to hire external trainers or pay for seminars or courses intended for workers. Besides, a company wastes valuable time when training its employees instead of using them to produce goods or deliver service.
The second weakness is that the training may be stressful since mastering new, unfamiliar material requires some time, patience, and considerable effort, which can lead to loss of interest regarding target knowledge. Finally, the training process demands much control as many employees are inclined to take seminars unseriously, namely, as a break from their daily work routine. This can result in the absence of noticeable results from the training course.
Appreciation and Recognition
Although monetary remuneration is essential in employees’ satisfaction, every worker, especially an expert with high performance, wants his or her persona and work to be valued and recognized by the employer. The idea of recognition includes actions directed at praising, thanking, presenting employees with a certificate, medals, and other acknowledgments of employee performance and attainments, which are announced at a company meeting or in public.
In this regard, Abduljawad and Al-Assaf (2011) state that recognizing employees will enhance retention and have an apparent and useful effect on attracting new employees. Moreover, since the employee’s performance depends on not only his or her workability, knowledge, and responsibility but also how effectively they have a rest, the company should develop its own perk benefit system. This system may consist of various forms of gatherings, outside meetings, corporate celebrations and picnics, flexible work schedules, among others. Due to these incentives, a company will promote team-building and even facilitate brainstorming since many interesting and creative ideas are produced in such events.
However, it should be indicated that to ensure that recognition is valid in terms of employee performance, the company should use it as an additional motivating instrument and give more priority to base salary. For example, the study by Oloke et al. (2017) reveals that only around fifty percent of respondents admit that recognition plays a role in their motivation. Besides, Weiner (2016), in his article, asserts that usual office perks and fringe benefits can harm creativity, indicating that the most creative ideas can be born only under constraints and obstacles. Thus, a company should take into account the company’s budget limitations while planning and realizing a particular number of perks gifted to employees.
The Health Promotion Programs
One of the effective incentives, which is gaining popularity among employees and will benefit the company’s budget, is health promotion programs. First, different physical and mental diseases cause growing concerns among both healthcare professionals and employers because they significantly burden the government’s or organization’s budget, especially those in chronic or acute forms. According to the Integrated Benefits Institute (2018), for US employers, the illness-related lost productivity accounts for $530 billion per year, $178 and $198 billion of which relate to unplanned absence and impaired performance, respectively. In this regard, to decrease its expenditures on the treatment of its employees, the company should apply programs that improve workers’ health and prevent the spread of infection.
Moreover, many workers welcome programs that include primary care, physicals and lab tests, and clinical exams, partial or whole reimbursement of gym memberships, and advocate for participation in sports events. For instance, Mazareanu (2019) states that among the main benefits expected by job seekers in the US, 72 percent of respondents consider those related to healthcare. Thus, the company should introduce healthcare programs since they allow for keeping the staff healthy, preventing severe disorders, reducing costs for their treatment, and stimulating employee loyalty. Nevertheless, it is worth noting that, in some cases, such incentives demand additional expenditures, primarily when a company has to waste money on a membership and the organization of events. Besides, sports activities are still not widespread enough among employees because this requires somewhat interest and considerable, consistent efforts.
Recommendations
The first recommendation correlates with training incentives because its realization may be complicated and costly and entails risks regarding training relevance and outcomes. To ensure that training courses and seminars do not disrupt the general workflow, the company should develop a schedule with intervals that are comfortable for workers and employers. Besides, the company should pay much attention to the quality of materials and focus on the most actual issues that raise interest in employees and provide them with the necessary knowledge. Regarding appreciation programs, the company is recommended to give more thanks to its workers, regard their work-related and, sometimes, family-related problems.
Besides, to avoid decisions that harm employees’ resourcefulness, the company should carefully design a relevant perk strategy allowing employees to relieve stress from the workload and periodically review by evaluating its impact on employees’ performance. Finally, the company should thoroughly approach the selection of wellness programs and promote a healthy lifestyle and participation in sports events. In this respect, the company can introduce strategies that include low or medium-cost options such as physical activity breaks, employee activity clubs, recreation centers, fitness opportunities, among others.
References
Abduljawad, A., & Al-Assaf, A. F. (2011). Incentives for better performance in health care. Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal, 11(2), 201.
Mazareanu, E. (2019). Main benefits US job seekers expect from employers in 2019. Statista. Web.
Oloke, O. C., Oni, A. S., Babalola, D. O., & Ojelabi, R. A. (2017). Incentive package, employee’s productivity, and performance of real estate firms in Nigeria. European Scientific Journal, 13(11), 246-260.
Press release: Poor health costs US employers $530 billion and 1.4 billion workdays of absence and impaired performance (2018). Integrated Benefits Institute. Web.
7 in 10 employees value skills training more than degrees; glassdoor employment confidence survey. (2014). Glassdoor. Web.
Weiner, E. (2016). Op-Ed: All those office perks? They’re ruining creativity. Los Angeles Times. Web.