Mark Krull from Logic4training gives tips to small business owners on retaining their staff in 2020 – a vital ingredient for long-term business success:
January has a dark reputation. With the bright lights of Christmas over for another year, the transition back to ‘real-life’ – working, paying bills and battling with the dreary weather – can be a struggle for us all.
It’s not much of a surprise that 31st of January is statistically the most popular day for employees to quit their job.
Losing a valuable team member at this crucial time of year can be detrimental, particularly for small businesses owners. Not only will you lose any financial investment, you’ll also be operating at reduced capacity and facing the challenge and cost of recruitment.
It’s not the best way to start the New Year by anyone’s standards, so what can small business owners do to ensure their staff don’t jump ship?
Here are our top tips on keeping your workforce contented, productive and loyal:
1 – Create a culture where every employee is valued and trusted
Show your staff that you trust them by giving them responsibility. Delegating tasks does not always come naturally, but it is an important part of good workforce management and will ensure your staff are engaged and motivated.
2 – Support career progression
Lack of career progression is a common factor in the decision to look for a new job. Consider your long-term vision for your business – how do your employee’s individual skills and career goals fit into this plan?
3 – Keep an open dialogue
As above, make it your business to know your employee’s hopes for their future career. Regular reviews provide the ideal opportunity to give feedback, discuss the future direction of the company and make training plans.
4 – Provide ongoing training opportunities
Training is not just something that tradespeople do at the beginning of their career. With so much change happening within the building services sector, upskilling staff should be part of your long-term business plan.
Heating and plumbing businesses might consider training up more of their team to become Gas Safe Registered – there are specific routes to achieving ACS designed for candidates with transferable skills – or adding domestic electrical skills to provide a more cost and time-efficient service. Additionally, tapping into emerging markets such as heat pumps and Electrical Vehicle (EV) charging point installation, could create new revenue streams and help future proof your offering.
Training’s not just good for your business – learning new skills will increase employee job satisfaction and make staff feel invested in the success of your company.
5 – Take a genuine interest in staff wellbeing
Work-related stress, depression and anxiety are the most reported workplace health issues in the construction sector. Providing a good work-life balance is key to a happy workforce. Going back to my first point, trust your staff to do their job in a manner that suits you both. Could some tasks be undertaken remotely? Consider flexible working hours – in many cases it leads to greater productivity.
As well as helping you to retain valuable members of staff, building a reputation as a forward-thinking employer will attract the best new talent to your team. Good management is key to creating a culture of employee contentment, motivation and productivity; expressing clear expectations, trust and taking a genuine interest in your employee’s needs and ambitions will bring out the best in your employee – and in your business.
Logic4training provides quality training and assessments to operatives within the building services sector. For more information, visit: www.logic4training.co.uk
