Retention during the Great Resignation is possible. Keep your team working as a team, happy and productive by giving them the space to work, acknowledging them when they do good work, and allowing them to learn new skills.
These skills fit nicely into a family to have your family working as a team and moving forward towards individual and mutual goals.
The saying goes, "when momma's happy, everyone is happy." And, in my opinion, nothing makes a momma happier than everyone getting along, contributing, and progressing.
As you read this, please feel free to interchange "team" with "family."
Who here believes that keeping a team is all about money?
If you have been down the path of throwing money at employees to keep them, you know IT ONLY GETS WORSE. Because what I hear is, "the more they get, the more they complain and disrespect me."
And if you are an employee, you know this deep inside. You know you deserve an excellent salary for all you do. However, money isn't everything regarding job satisfaction.
People with more background and knowledge about compensation packages than I can help you develop a financial plan.
But listen, I'm not talking about money. I'm talking about creating a culture that keeps phenomenal talent and inspires all to perform to their highest potential. So you can grow, whether you are a boss or an employee.
After working in the field for over 40 years, I have seen three crucial retention aspects. Those aspects are autonomy, acknowledgment, and acquisition.
Autonomy- Resist the urge to be a micromanager. Don't do that to another person. According to perkbox.com, "How to encourage employee autonomy," autonomy increases engagement and motivation. Freedom allows employees to work comfortably for them within the parameters given.
This freedom allows them to be more creative and innovative, moving the company forward. When employees feel heard and valued, they become more productive and engaged with the project's outcome. This engagement lowers employee turnover while encouraging leadership qualities in each individual to shine. Personal responsibility and trust are formed when people are trusted to work in their best way. And while it may take some time to foster such an office culture, employee retention and productivity benefits make it a worthy and profitable goal.
Acknowledgment- Celebrate successes. Many of us wait for the big milestone celebrations. However, umbrella.org.nz posted a December 2020 blog about the importance of celebrating small victories. By taking the chunking down to celebrating small advancements, you often feel motivated to keep moving toward the bigger goal. You get a hit of dopamine which feels good and is energizing. Your workday becomes more fun as you feel pride in each accomplishment. Each win provides the opportunity to reflect and learn. Finally, the sense and pressure of overwhelming grandiose goals are removed. You are taking the pressure off, allowing creativity to enter.
Celebrating smaller wins brings to mind a show on HGTV, the easy-to-watch Home and Garden TV. Dream Home in 100 Days begins with, "it's hard to get your client excited about their home when you say it will be done in one year. That's why we promise to be done in 100 days!" If you feel unmotivated by your 10-year plan, chunk your goals down to five years, three years, one year, monthly, and daily, and see how that helps. And set up a celebration program at work, or if you are a solopreneur, make time to celebrate yourself or someone you know. It doesn't have to cost money. Just a few minutes to pause and savor your satisfaction, write them down in your goal list, cross them off your calendar, or share them with a friend. The same things work for others. Acknowledgment of a good job goes further than slipping someone $20 if you see them regularly. Tips for a job well done with occasional help are different.
Acquisition- acquiring knowledge. Some of the benefits of expertise:
1-enables problem solving
2-builds confidence
3-key to success
Omole Richard and Beatrice Aiyedusho shared the information on B2sl.org, The Benefits of Knowledge. Continuing education and self-development scheduled into the work week will pay you multiples.
Autonomy, acknowledgment, and knowledge acquisition are paramount in creating a cohesive team that will rise to the challenge when asked, like KVH. KVH has who they are on their website. They are innovative and passionate about finding tech solutions for their customers. And they showed that in how they weathered business volatility during Covid. Their revenue and stock value have rebounded, and the company has grown. (KVJ.com)
Imagine the culture of the companies where paycheck cutbacks were initiated instead of pink slips. I am confident those companies that have created a "no man left behind" culture will build back stronger or shift to fit an emerging need and come back ahead. All because they value the people with whom they work. I believe they value autonomy, acknowledgment, knowledge acquisition, and skill.
As a dental professional, how can you create a cohesive team, whether or not you are the boss?
You can lead by example. Live by the Golden Rule. Treat others in the way you wish to be treated.
Here are some ideas to get you started.
Autonomy: If you are given a task or are the giver of a job, be clear on expectations; what needs to be done, why it needs to be done when it needs to be done, and a tip on how to get started if there is confusion. Then let the work begin until it is complete.
Have and respect boundaries. Make self-care a must. Honor lunch hours and appointment times. Take the phrase "it will only take a minute" out of your vocabulary.
Acknowledgment: Celebrate when you make your goals. If your office has no stated goals, make your production or appointment goals. If you feel you didn't get the acknowledgment you want from an achievement, invite others to join you in celebrating your accomplishment. By the way, while you are celebrating, pay attention to the successes of others. Celebrate them as you do your own.
Acquisition: There are so many pieces of training online for easy access. Some have been free. Please share it with the team when you learn something that helped you or sparked your interest. Let everyone enjoy an increase in knowledge. Best practices in dentistry are changing. Don't be left behind.
Rising tides raise all ships. Raise yourself to where you want to be, and others will respond.
And that, my savvy traveler, takes a bit of self-reflection because if you're not clear on where you want to go, no one else will come on the journey with you—people, what a vision to rally around.
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