Five Signs Your Best Employee is Headed for the Door

By Jezabel Southard

Posted on June 4, 2014

While onboarding new talent allows for fresh, innovative ideas and unique skillsets to be brought to the table, turnover is never fun.  It affects a company’s finances and reputation, and it takes valuable time away from already busy employees when they have to train new hires or handle an extra workload.

It’s important to pay close attention to the day-to-day happenings of your organization and take note of subtle shifts in work practices. They may be indicators that your employees are dissatisfied with their jobs.

Have you noticed any of the following changes in an employee’s “typical” work behaviors?

• Attire – Has an employee gone from business casual to business suits? Or from business casual to simply casual?
• Time – Has an employee recently been taking a lot of time off or taking extended lunch breaks? Coming in late and leaving early?
• Work space – Does an employee’s desk seem to have less personal items than it used to? Are pictures of their loved ones gone?
• Productivity – Have you noticed a decrease in productiveness from an employee who was always on target?
• Attitude – Has an employee gone from extrovert to introvert, or vice versa? Does he or she just seem different?

Apart from discovering an employee’s revised resume in the copy machine (awkward!), or being told directly that he or she is unhappy (which is about as straightforward as it gets), these are not-so-obvious but still telling signs that your employee may be feeling detached and uncommitted to the job, or potentially searching for employment elsewhere – possibly on your time!

While you should always remain diplomatic, it’s definitely important to develop a plan of action. You’ll need to decide whether the person is someone you want to keep on your team, or if they are replaceable.

Don’t panic if the person showing signs of dissatisfaction is one of your best employees. You may still have a chance of retaining your exceptional talent. Simply ask if they are looking elsewhere or if they are frustrated with the job. Not only will your employee feel valued and heard you will gain valuable insight on where your employees may be struggling and what motivates them. This will allow you to determine possible areas for improvement so that you can hopefully decrease your turnover rate.

If the feeling that a certain employee would do better with a different employer is mutual, don’t hesitate to reach out to your staffing partner for support.

At TERRA, our goal is to ease the burden of screening and interviewing potential candidates and help you find a workforce best-suited to your company. So if you find yourself anticipating hiring new staff, let us facilitate things for you! We offer various hiring options and are happy to help you determine which best fits your needs. Contact us today to learn how our staffing services can benefit your organization.

Categories: Employee Development, HR and Management Advice

Tags: employment agency, seattle WA employment firms, seattle WA top staffing firms, staffing agency, strategic staffing, TERRA, top staffing firms portland or, turnover

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