Work Environment and Employee Retention

What makes a company a desirable place to work? For many employees, a company's work environment determines whether it's a desirable employer. A work environment is comprised of the atmosphere in which employees work and the attitude a company has toward its employees.
A positive work environment is one of the most important reasons employees stay with a company. If the environment is poor, it's likely people won't want to be there. You can create a positive work environment by following the suggestions provided below.

1. Demonstrate a genuine concern for employees, their families, and their communities.

The first way to create a positive work environment is to show employees genuine concern for them, their families, and their community. No matter what the size of your company is, you can show employees that they're important and valued.
What can your company do specifically to show it cares? It can donate money to community charities, help with employees' needs for child care and elder care, send flowers when a new child is born to an employee or when there is a death in an employee's family, and even hire a masseuse to give employees chair massages during stressful work periods. When companies do these things, employees feel valued.
Working for a company that cares often makes employees feel connected to and proud of their company. Employees may feel there's honor in working for a company that respects people as well as the demands of business.

2. Support a commitment to a work/life balance.

Another way to create a positive work environment is to support a commitment to a work/life balance. There was once a definite line between what was done during work hours and what was done on an employee's personal time. Today this line is blurred. Employees can now do their banking at the office and their work at home.
Employees today work, on average, far more hours than they did 25 years ago. In fact, recent studies show today's workers, especially in high-tech fields, work an average of 60 hours a week.
Supporting a work/life balance means embracing the new realities of the workplace. For example, your may want to ensure that your company sets reasonable deadlines to make sure your employees work an average of 40 hours a week. Then when employees do have to work more to meet a deadline, it's not such a big deal.
Also, be generous with vacation time, holidays, and the number of personal days your employees get. In return, you'll get a dedicated and motivated work force. When a company recognizes and accommodates its workers' needs to balance work and life demands, employees are more loyal and less likely to leave.

3. Provide an appealing physical environment.

The third way to create a positive work environment is to provide an appealing physical environment. There are 120 hours in a five-day workweek. If you account for eight hours of sleep each night, that leaves 80 waking hours. That means that employees spend half of their waking hours at work. And many of today's employees work far more than that. Pleasant surroundings raise the quality of the work experience.
A pleasant environment can be achieved by encouraging employees to "make themselves at home" in their own areas by displaying personal items. The physical environment is also enhanced with windows, good lighting, plants, works of art, and alternatives to cubicles.
Try using low cubicle walls so employees can see one another, and provide common areas in which employees can visit with one another or take a break. Most conversations begin as social exchanges but often return to work-related topics. When that happens, valuable ideas emerge. If not, employees get a needed break.
Also, try to keep your work environment informal, creative, and fun. If possible, opt for a relaxed dress code and provide comfortable meeting rooms. You want your employees to enjoy coming to work.
Think about the companies in which you've worked. Does one stand out in your mind as the all-time best place to work? If so, what made that company better than the others? Chances are you liked being there because of a positive work environment. Remember, having a positive work environment is an important factor in retaining employees.

Benefits and Employee Retention

Is your company an exceptional employer? It used to be that the benefit of working for a company was a paycheck. Only exceptional companies offered health and life insurance benefits. Now employees expect such benefits. Therefore, to be considered exceptional, today's companies have to offer even more extensive benefit packages.
Companies that have generous and flexible benefit programs have lower turnover. So what kinds of benefits should your company offer to recruit and retain employees? Two factors employees look for in companies today are discussed below.

1. A generous benefit plan
The first way to retain workers is to offer a generous benefit plan. In surveys, employees list benefits as one of the most important reasons they stay with a company. Health and life insurance benefits are standard, but to stand out as an employer of choice, your company must ensure that its benefit program offers many options to employees.
Your company's benefits are available to everyone, but not every employee will use every benefit. Having a variety of benefit choices shows your employees that you value each of them. The more benefits you offer employees, the more likely they'll be to stay with you. For example, you may want to subsidize or reimburse employees for child care or elderly care costs, fitness club memberships, or educational programs that enhance an employee's knowledge.

2. A flexible corporate attitude
Another way to retain employees with benefits is to have a flexible corporate attitude. Work is more dynamic and creative than it was 50 years ago. Fewer factory and routine jobs are available. Much of today's work can be done anywhere there's an Internet connection and access to a company's intranet. This means the paradigm of a 9-to-5, Monday-through-Friday workweek is becoming obsolete.
It used to be that a supervisor could look out his office window at 9 a.m. and see his staff busily working. Now a supervisor may see empty desks as employees come in at different hours or work from home on certain days. As the type of work people do has changed, so have corporate attitudes about when and where that work gets done.
More and more employers are allowing for flexible schedules and telecommuting by their employees. Often, employees set their own schedules. Supervisors meet with employees once a week and keep in touch through e-mail. This has meant that management has had to let go of some control and can no longer micromanage, but usually the employees work just as hard—and are often happier.
Many companies are also recognizing the need for their employees to better balance work and life. These companies have accepted the fact that today's workers often value family over work responsibilities. They want employees to satisfy their obligations to the company as well as to their families. Therefore, these companies are willing to allow employees to adjust their schedules so they can meet both demands.
Technology plays a big part in making these 21st-century schedules work. Even when they're away from the office, employees can easily keep in touch with managers and clients using a variety of tools, such as e-mail, faxes, cellular phones, and the Internet. These technology tools enable employees to work seamlessly and meet deadlines, no matter where they are.
Benefits are important to every worker. The more you can offer and fit into your corporate culture, the less likely employees will be to leave for a company that offers better benefits. A generous benefit plan and a flexible corporate attitude are two factors today's employees look for in an employer. Remember, you can retain the valuable employees you have and recruit new ones by offering excellent benefits.

Monetary Compensation and Employee Retention

As the common saying goes, "You get what you pay for." In surveys conducted to determine why employees stay with a company, money is ranked fairly low in importance. But a chance to make more money somewhere else is often the reason many people leave their jobs.
So how much of a factor is money? The fact is that people stay with companies if they feel adequately compensated, even though many say money is not their No. 1 concern. Think about your job. Would you stay if you were getting paid peanuts?
Money is at the heart of the business world. Any strategy for keeping your valuable employees is going to have to involve money. Three effective strategies you can use to retain employees with monetary compensation are discussed below.

1. Offer adequate salaries.
People don't like to talk about salaries, since it's not considered polite. Many people will say, "It's not about the money," when talking about their jobs. However, most people will leave a company if they're offered more money elsewhere. Like it or not, people need money to survive, so paying employees adequate salaries is the first and most important way to keep them.

2. Offer stock options.
Offering stock options is the second strategy you can follow to retain employees with monetary compensation. This is a good way to compensate employees without busting your budget. When employees hold company stock, they're investors, not just assets. Treating employees as investors shows they're valued by the organization—they're not just values to the organization.

3. Offer cash incentives.
The third method for retaining employees with monetary compensation is to offer cash incentives such as bonuses, rewards, and profit-sharing programs. These are good ways to immediately compensate and reward employees for their contributions to your company's success.

When employees know they'll be rewarded, they'll be more inclined to stay. You can use two approaches when offering cash incentives.
Project-completion rewards - You can offer employees project-completion rewards. Offer employees on key projects a $5,000 to $10,000 bonus for staying and completing a project. Most employees will stay for their bonuses.
Cash rewards for exceeding goals - When the company is successful, you can reward employees with cash. When your company meets or exceeds projected financial goals, ensure that all employees share in the profits. This shows employees that your company recognizes how its employees' contributions affect the bottom line. Although most employees don't like to admit it, money is a huge motivator for how and where people work. A strong monetary compensation system, which could include stock options or cash rewards, should be a part of your retention plan.