Retaining Talent – “The Gauntlet”

There are some very obvious statements we can make about successful retention of talent. It is important as:

It drives the business
Sets great examples for all employees
Success statistics are great recruiting “tools”
It is a testament to talent management process
It supports the best face of company
Presents continuous challenges and opportunities
Minimizes talent losses

How to retain it:

Secure the support of top management
Create related budgets to fund the process
Teach your managers to keep their “ear to the ground”
Have a strategy and continuous improvement practices in place
Involve employees in related process improvements
Expect bumps along the way
Communicate, communicate, communicate

Seek out best practices of other companies and consulting firm views on the subject – a great way to stay ahead of the competition, obtain fresh views on the subject, and build and internalize a process that just may be benchmark worthy. You know you have arrived when other businesses are seeking out your advice because you have great success stats in talent management and retention.

About “The Gauntlet”

When it is obvious that talent losses are forthcoming, or, a talented professional gives notice of leaving the company, create a team of “A” level managers to meet with the “defector” to point out the advantages of staying with the company. If the business has a good talent management process and success statistics, these are great topics for discussion as the departing professional runs the “gauntlet” of discussions with the “A” level managers, to include the top manager/leader of the business. It is also a great opportunity to reinforce the anticipated career path in the business. I have seen this work many times; on occasion airline tickets are involved to connect the professional to the right leaders. An airline ticket is far less expensive than losing the talent, the cost of replacing same, related retraining, and the certain impact on peers, other parts of the business, and customers.