Your employees have choices whether it’s a good economy or bad.

They can stay on the job or quit.
They can work hard or back off.
They can learn and grow or stagnate.
They can help you or hurt you.

What choices are your employees making? And what are you doing to keep your employees engaged and part of the team?

Research from Career Systems International’s What Keeps You white paper reveals that employees want:

*Exciting, challenging, or meaningful work
*Supportive management/good boss.
*Being recognized, valued and respected.
*Career growth, learning and development.

If employees have these things, then they’ll stay. If not, they will disengage, give less or leave.

As a manager, there are five things you should be doing, as part of ongoing Stay Interviews, to keep your employees engaged, learning and contributing.

1. Understand their talents, wants and needs. Ask questions that help them think more deeply about their unique skills, interests, and values. Listen carefully to what they say. Probe, inquire, and discover more.

2. Offer your perspective. Help your employees reflect on their own reputations, on the feedback they’ve gotten from others, and on the areas they need to develop. Help them see themselves as others see them.

3. Discuss trends. Employees need to understand what’s going on in the organization and in the industry. They need to know what trends and forces are at work and how those things might affect their career path and development.

4. Discover multiple options. Help your employees consider multiple career options (lateral, exploring, enriching, realigning, relocating) while they grow within their current positions. Give your employees permission to discover the possibilities based on their interests, what they value, and what they can contribute to the organization.

5. Codesign an action plan. This will increase commitment to a career plan. Help them consider action steps to achieve their goals. Remember your job isn’t to give them a plan; it’s to support them.

This blog is based on content from Love ‘Em or Lose ‘Em: Getting Good People to Stay by Beverly Kaye and Sharon Jordan-Evans. 5th edition now available.