Will Your Business Be a Victim of The Great Resignation?

We’ve all heard the horror stories; The Great Resignation is upon us!  Your business could easily fall foul of a mass exodus but knowing your attrition rate can help you get ahead of the game.

Why Should I Care About Attrition?

• The average logistical cost of attrition is £27,000
• Lost productivity can reach costs of up to £40,000
• Only 1 in 3 leaders believe their labour turnover is right
• Replacing an employee can cost up to 15x their salary
• UK businesses turnover 15% of staff every year

The good news? Knowledge is power. Keep reading for our top tips on improving your attrition rates.

What Is Attrition?

attrition · a reduction or decrease in numbers, size, or strength

We recently ran a LinkedIn Poll and 35% of respondents didn’t know what attrition meant.  Attrition, sometimes referred to as turnover, is the rate at which employees leave your business.  That can be through resignation, retirement, redundancy, or personal reasons, among many others.

Some companies create two turnover rates – voluntary and involuntary. It’s as simple as recording why an employee has left your business, and can be very valuable HR data.  Voluntary leavers are often employees that you can retain; this is an area of real opportunity for your business.

How Do I Calculate Attrition?

A simple percentage is all you need to get started.  Look at the number of employees who have left the business (for any reason) in a 12-month period against your overall headcount.  The UK average is 15%, but this varies wildly depending on sector.  Staff turnover in UK agencies sat at a whopping 29.8% in the UK! Improve your retention and you’ll have a leg up on the competition.

The next step is to unearth how much it is costing your business.

We’ve put together a free, easy to use calculator to estimate the cost of attrition to your business.  Getting an accurate figure is very complicated, but this is a good starting point for most leaders.

Try it now.

If you would like a detailed analysis of the true cost of attrition to your business, don’t hesitate to get in touch.  We use over 100 HR metrics to unearth opportunities and provide bespoke insights that you can action immediately.

How Can I Improve My Retention Rates?

58% of respondents to our poll said they either don’t measure attrition, or don’t use the data that they collect.  So much missed opportunity!  Attracting talent is the biggest challenge for business leaders right now, and yet so many are ignoring this essential element of the employee lifecycle.

It’s like putting water in a leaky bucket.  Everyone wants to keep the bucket full, but most leaders are simply adding more and more water, rather than taking the time to plug the hole in the bottom.

We’re often asked for ideas when it comes to reducing attrition.  Whilst there’s no one size fits all solution, here are some of the best strategies we’ve seen put into action:

1. Communicate your vision
   So often great employees leave because they don’t see how they impact the business. Their role could be crucial to business growth, and have incredible opportunity for progression, but if this isn’t clearly communicated, they will look elsewhere.
2. Improve the work environment
   This has many guises, from creating a workspace that people want to spend time in, to developing a culture of trust and respect.  Employee engagement surveys can be extremely beneficial here as they give people a chance to input on the type of environment that works best for them.  Of course, the vital element is that you must ACT on these ideas.
3. Review your Compensation and Benefits package
   Are your salaries competitive? Do employees make use of the benefits on offer, or would they prefer different perks?  If you are unsure of where to start, getting in a Comp & Bens specialist may be what you need.  But our advice is not to over think it, just listen to your team.
4. Personal Development & Training
   Businesses who focus on the development of their employees always rate highest for job satisfaction.  People want to know they are valued and investing in your employee’s future is a sure-fire way to show them that you appreciate their skills and experience.
5. Consider the Employee Lifecycle as a whole
   It starts with talent attraction and ends when an employee leaves but there are many layers in between.  Often referred to as Cradle to Grave HR or a Business to Employee (B2E) strategy, looking holistically at the entire cycle helps to identify weak spots, creating an opportunity to improve retention.  Check out our blog for more insights.

Getting stuck into the number might seem daunting, but it will pay back dividends in the long run.  Take time to give it a go this week.  There’s a world of opportunity right under your nose.

We’ve developed a unique service which combines your real data with industry expert advice to ensure you get the best from your employee journey. Click here for more info or call 0161 359 3789 to book your free, no-obligation consultation today.