Most people join a business because they like the look of the culture and the career growth opportunities it could provide them. Most people leave because of a poor relationship with their direct Manager.
It’s usually because the Manager hasn’t taken the time to engage in an effective way. Often, there are no dramatic arguments or outbursts. It’s a gradual build-up of lack of engagement over an extended period of time. Chances are the team member has been thinking and planning to leave for weeks which means there are plenty of chances to change this outcome with better communication.
Team members will rarely leave because the Manager isn’t technically proficient. It will be due to the Manager’s lack of people skills.
How can Managers be better?
- Open up conversations about the team member’s future direction and the specific support they need. Ask the team member to ‘wave their magic wand’ in terms of their ideal future state.
- Support the team member to be the best version of themselves even if it’s inconvenient in the short term
- See value in and seek to improve upon their own emotional intelligence and people skills including active listening
- Have genuine care on the welfare of the whole person and be prepared to be vulnerable. If the Manager doesn’t really care about people – find a different job.
- Spend time with your team members. Regular check ins, phone calls asking how they’re going and if there’s any support they need. Doesn’t need to be anything formal.
What can the HR Team do?
- Articulate the value in investing in coaching, training and support for Managers so they can make really good decisions with their people
- Set up core values sessions with the team, ensure that everyone including Managers are aligning with these values – this leads to a supportive workplace culture
- Provide structure and systems for Managers to follow which includes accountability for everyone. Including structured feedback such as performance reviews, exit interviews and check-ins.
- Challenge poor Manager behaviour in a constructive way because these issues will ultimately be a problem for the HR Team to resolve in the long term
- Conduct leadership training with Managers. What is good communication, what is constructive feedback etc?
What can the Senior Leaders do?
- Provide a clear vision on what the business stands for in terms of acceptable leadership behaviour
- Be careful not to recruit Managers based on technical competence alone. How good are they with people?
- Clearly articulate and role model the core values
- Invest in leadership development as a tool to provide a direct commercial return on investment
What are the risks of ignoring this issue?
- The good people will quietly leave resulting in a culture of low performance and engagement creating a negative downward spiral
- The business will waste large amounts of money and time training new people while filling the pockets of recruiters
Final Tips
- Introduce reward and recognition programs
- Quarterly team lunches/activity team building days
- Policies/procedures that are above minimum industrial relations standards
- Paid mental health days
- Portion of paid parental leave
- Flexibility to work from home
- Finish early once every month on a Friday