Tuesday, December 16, 2003.
( Article taken from www.globetechnology.com web site )
Hang on to your top talent
By Bruce Powell
Globe and Mail Update
Front Lines is a guest viewpoint section offering perspectives on current issues and events from people working on the front lines of Canada's technology industry. Bruce Powell is the managing partner of IQ Partners and president of the Association of Internet Marketing and Sales.
As the head of an executive search firm, I've seen some very interesting compensation arrangements. I've seen criminally high compensation packages that weren't accepted. I've seen companies cap or limit the compensation of their top performers. I've seen people negotiate a job contract for six months then walk away from it after two weeks.
What doesn't surprise is how corporations respond to challenging economic conditions.
And for white-collar workers, especially those who work in technology, it has been a tough slog. The industry has contracted and the job opportunities have diminished along with it.
The corporate world responds to a rough economy by changing the way it relates to its employees. When budgets are cut, cost centres are cut: departments that spend money see their budgets decrease significantly and in some cases, the departments are cut, sold or outsourced in their entirety.
This type of activity will make your best people very nervous. This is the time when corporations more than ever need to identify and retain their stars. It's a challenging thing to do when cuts are being made, yet at a time when they are most needed the stars are the most likely (and able) to leave if the ship is perceived to be sinking.
Assessment is key — but risky
Corporations recognize when productivity and employee satisfaction are decreasing, and the reaction is to invest more heavily in retention programs, training and professional development.
This can have two effects: it may encourage people to recognize that the company is addressing some of its issues, but it may also indicate that retention is a problem, signalling to top performers that it's time to go.
In fact, by the time you are putting retention programs in place, the people you most want to retain are busy interviewing for their next job. Lessson: Act quickly, recognize and stroke your top employees, maybe even RAISE their salaries!
It's also important to recognize your top performers to ensure that 'apathy creep' doesn't penetrate your company. Think of a corporation as a tree; it's necessary to trim the dead wood in order to allow other parts of the tree to survive and flourish.
A workplace that tolerates underperformance is one where employees see underperforming peers being rewarded at the same level as those who are achieving. That can create demotivation and productivity slide. Recognize your top people, and make sure dead wood won't bring the rest of the organization down.
Communication is critical
Ensure you are keeping your employees informed of any workplace development on a regular basis.
When cuts happen, the way that the company handles them, communicates them and how transfer of responsibilities takes place can make a significant difference in employees' attitudes toward their employer. Don't assume that anything is secret and deal with the reality as quickly and succinctly as possible.
Money isn't everything
We've learned over the past few years that money is actually a smaller part of employee satisfaction than other factors related to a job.
To keep your stars, you need to give them challenging but not overwhelming work, reward them for work well done, show consequences for underperformance, provide work-life balance and maintain a strong corporate culture that caters to their needs.
The bottom line isn't always the bottom line; money is a scale that many achievers use to track their success, but it isn't everything. The more insight you can gather about your employees' motivation, the better able you are to structure reasons for them to stay with you through good times and bad.
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