2021 was full of talk about ‘the great resignation’ with people purported to be leaving their jobs in droves as one of the consequences of Covid inspired them to want and expect more from their employers. For some businesses this may have driven change but for others change has not been so forthcoming. Now, one company is calling for businesses to step up, turn the situation around and make 2022 the year of the ‘great re-engagement.
Anthony Sutton founder of Cream HR has compiled a list of things that all business owners can do to keep their team motivated, engaged, and happy.
He explains: “The average business spends between 15 and 30% of its annual revenue on payroll, some as much as 50%. Staffing costs can often equate to around 70% of all costs in a business. This is huge, and yet many employers fail to recognise this spend as the investment it is. They don’t focus on what makes people happy and how they can keep quality staff, so it is no surprise that with the upheaval and changes in the way people work that have taken place over the last two years, that workers are searching for better ways to work to ensure that they get more balance in their lives. People are the most important investment in any business. It doesn’t matter what sector you are in it’s the people that matter most and more companies need to realise this.”
“As with other business costs, the more time and money you invest, the greater the return you seek from that investment.”
Here are five things Anthony says that all business leaders should do in the next 12 months to re-engage with their staff.
- Engage with your people and listen to them. Learn and understand what motivates them so you can provide meaningful work that they enjoy and excel at. You will also find that they have some great ideas to improve your business.
- Ensure that your HR teams are fully involved in your business planning. Take time to ensure that you build an effective and properly resourced people plan to support your business objectives.
- Genuinely show that you care about your people – this is nothing to do with being “soft” it’s about managing your investment.
- Understand what training needs your people may have when they join your company and look at any skills gaps. What training will they need to enable them to progress and develop their career now and in the future?
- Live and breathe the four key principles that support a high-performance culture – Clarity, Strengths, Praise and Concern.
He continues: “The more time and effort you put into your employees the better they will perform. Fully investing in your people will create more engaged teams, doing better work, leading to happier customers – otherwise known as the virtuous circle. Plus, your organisation is more equipped for the future with multi-skilled employees supporting an agile workforce. Simply put, don’t just pay the money out and leave your employees to it, properly invest and reap the rewards.”
