Keep Employees IN LOVE with their Job – Top Three Retention Strategies

Any Human Resources professional will tell you that unwanted employee turnover is not a good thing. With turnover, a business must absorb the cost of recruiting, hiring and training a new employee. According to an article in Inc. Magazine, this can be as much as 150 percent of the employee’s annual salary. Plus, turnover places a heavy burden on the remaining staff, decreases morale, and compromises good customer service.

According to a recent survey conducted by CareerBuilder, 30% of currently employed people still regularly search for jobs, and 23% of employees ages 18-34 expect to have a new job by the end of 2015. So what does it take to keep employees fully committed to their job within your gym? We surveyed some professionals and came up with this short list of key retention tactics for you to consider.

1. Set clear expectations.

This is a tried-and-true strategy that should be done with each employee. Typically job frustration and disappointment comes from unclear expectations between an employee and their supervisor. While employees usually do their best to try and figure out what their employers expect, rapidly shifting priorities and natural communication challenges make it difficult for both parties to inherently align on expectations. It’s important to have on-going communication with your employees about what you expect. By doing this you’re setting them up for success and long-term happiness in their jobs. You also empower them to use their talents and abilities on what matters most to you, and that’s so much better than allowing them to flounder in the dark – wondering if they are doing the right work.

2. Give affirmation.

Gratitude goes a long way toward keeping your team happy and productive. Look for different ways to say “thank you”, this can be anything from a note, email, a team callout, or a cup of coffee in the morning. Take the time out of your day to recognize your team to show them that you care about them and the efforts they bring to work every day.

3. Help them find purpose in what they do.

Everyone wants to do meaningful work. When we align our work with a purpose, we usually find genuine happiness in what we do. Help your team connect to a measurable goal with a timeline, benchmarks and deliverables that all tie back to a larger company goal. Have one-on-one periodic touch base meetings that include feedback and collaboration as they work toward their purpose.

No retention strategy will guarantee that all your employees will be happy with their jobs, but committing to these easy tactics will decrease your turnover rate and improve the bottom-line. As an added bonus, you’ll notice a few more smiling faces in the office and improved customer service.

If you’re looking for additional ways to improve the bottom-line, understanding how to measure the metrics that matter most to your fitness business is a key step to success. We have developed the ultimate guide to fitness business metrics that’s ideal for both number crunchers and those who don’t love math.