BackRecognition, opportunities and challenges key to retaining talent
Given that the appraisal season is fast approaching, what can companies do to ring-fence talent? Experts tell us about the top three things to do to prevent employees from leaving.
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STRUCTURE IN A MONETARY REWARD
—Vasanthi Srinivasan, professor (organizational behaviour and HR management), IIM Bangalore
Srinivasan cautions against certain ring-fencing methods which can prove counterproductive in the long run. “We must recognize that top talent in any organization chooses to stay or leave an organization. There is choice and volition in their actions," she says.
“The question of ring-fencing suggests coercion, which I am sure is going to be counterproductive in the long run. I know of companies which do this through a golden handcuff, which is to structure a compensation that is so high that they (employees) go out of the market and the competitor cannot even think of hiring them," adds Srinivasan.
Beyond monetary compensation, she suggested challenges, opportunities and recognition to ensure top talent stays with the company for a longer time.
“Organizations can do three things—providing employees with challenging assignments that allow them to experience meaningfulness with the organization. Second, periodically provide employees opportunities to transform themselves through learning and training opportunities. Finally, create spaces for public recognition in a manner that reflects their significant contribution," she explains.
“Many organizations have explored and exhausted the monetary compensation aspect. In fact, structuring a monetary reward with an attractive payout today is the easiest for an organization. Top talent stays in organizations where they have a peer group that challenges them constructively and fosters the best in them. They want to work with organizations where leadership provides them with opportunities to shape the future. Finally, they want to be recognized and respected by peers and direct reporters. These are difficult to do since they take time, and need to be carefully and deliberately done," adds Srinivasan.
—Amritha Pillay
APPRAISAL IS ONE OF IMPORTANT TOOLS
—Shailesh Naik, chief executive officer, matchmove.com
As a chief executive of a fast growing tech start-up, appraisal is one of the important tools for us to give feedback to our employees. Here are the top three things we do to ring-fence our talent.
Appraisal is an ongoing process. One needs to reaffirm with the employees that the appraisal process is just one key aspect of a year-long feedback process. At MatchMove, we ensure that what comes up should not be a surprise especially to top talent. It is only formally recorded for wider reference for when the company management wants to select internal candidates for new roles, promotions, training, etc. We make sure to provide feedback throughout the year. So the appraisal at the end of the year does not come as a complete surprise.
Secondly, an appraisal should be seen in a broader perspective. During appraisals at MatchMove, we review mid- to long-term goals of the company and employees along with a 360-degree feedback—starting with the CEO. As much as the employee uses the appraisal to call out and take ownership of successes, it’s also time for the manager to acknowledge where the previously agreed career development opportunities have been presented to the employee, or indeed not. It’s a time to review the “contract" made at the last appraisal and jointly commit to creating more successes for the coming period. Our star talent especially appreciates the visibility they can get of their own possible direct contribution to MatchMove’s planned goals.
And finally, I believe that an appraisal is a two-way process. The reviewer, starting with the C-level (highest-level executives in senior management usually have titles beginning with “chief" and are therefore called “C-level" or part of the “C-suite"), must make it clear that this is also (another) safe environment for employees to voice out any concerns, in a constructive way, about anything in the company, whether it is in their scope or not. Star performers usually feel a sense of ownership of the whole company and have strong views about both the good and not-so-good things in other parts of the company, and often have ideas which need to be coaxed out during the appraisal process.
Appraisals is, therefore, one of the best ways to tap into the core thinking of top talent, and it is something we practice at MatchMove by ensuring second-level reviews of top performers are done at a C-level.
—Nandita Mathur
CARE AND RECOGNITION ARE KEY
—Nishchae Suri, partner and head (people and change advisory), KPMG
Dissatisfaction with their pay and performance rating are two fundamental reasons for people to look for newer opportunities during the appraisal period, according to Suri. One reason is that the period coincides with salary hikes, which for most organizations is 1 April. Which means one can barter their deal with the organization looking for talent, he says.
The other reason is that the period coincides with one getting to know how much worth their organization places on them in terms of their (performance) rating, their contribution, their bonus. “Therefore, if I feel I am a candidate who deserve a 1 rating, with 1 being the highest and if I get a 2, the company has created an opportunity for the individual to look outside for an organization that will value his contribution as a 1 and not a 2," says Suri.
There can also be several other triggers as to why one decides to leave one’s job, he says. Appraisals are also often the time when an individual’s promotion or change in role get decided. “If I don’t get promoted and was expecting to be promoted, that is an issue. If my manager gets changed, who I don’t like, then there is a propensity to look for another job. Or if I am not happy with my job and if my interest lies elsewhere, again there is a propensity to look for a new job," explains Suri.
An organization must be extra careful and attentive during appraisal period to deal with any risks created on account of timing and the process of performance appraisal, he says. “All managers are not equally sensitive as far as attrition is concerned... A lot of the touchpoints are with the managers during this period. Which means can we ensure that we sensitize managers, train the managers, ensure adequate oversight during this period," he points out.
Two important attributes of retention for any organization to have are care and recognition, which means organizations must care for its people and recognize them for their good work, says Suri. “A majority of what you need to retain people is done with this. One can never look at a zero per cent attrition, in fact it might be unhealthy. But an organization must ask itself questions like who is leaving, why are they leaving, did we make adequate efforts to ensure that the person was retained, are we becoming more capable in terms of growing our talent."
The subject of retention has assumed a lot more significance across organizations because of the number of opportunities in start-ups and e-commerce companies mushrooming around the country, and because of the ongoing battle for talent within traditional industries, says Suri. “The subject of retention is still assuming more mindshare and there is lot of effort, investment and time going into answering some questions which can lead us to believe that by doing a few things, retention can improve in an organization," he adds.
Career growth, compensation and personal reasons continue to be the top three reasons for attrition, says Suri.
—Shailaja Sharma
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