This article relates to the Career Opportunities competency and explores issues such as internal growth opportunities, potential for advancement, career development importance, and the relationship between job performance and career advancement. Evaluating the Career Opportunities competency in your organization will determine whether your employees believe they have a chance to grow within the organization. Studies show that lack of career opportunity is one of the top reasons why employees leave an organization. Also, continually hiring open positions from outside the organization can be detrimental to morale when a qualified candidate is available internally. Topics covered in this competency are: perceived opportunity for advancement, existence of a career development plan, and organizational commitment to staff development.
This article, Career Opportunity and Employee Retention, is part of AlphaMeasure's compilation, Tales From the Corporate Frontlines. It tells how one company changed procedures to offer new kinds of career opportunities to its workers and improve overall employee retention.
Anonymous Submission
Career Opportunity and Employee Retention
Over the past decade, the company where I work has been through plenty of changes with regard to the way it hires, promotes, and utilitizes its greatest asset---its workers.
"Human capital" is the phrase often used in corporate literature. I'm not sure that I like the sound of it, but I must admit, it's an accurate description.
As a human resources manager, I was asked to review the results of our recent employee satisfaction survey and choose one category of interest and prepare a report outlining possible solutions. I chose employee retention, because the survey indicated that many employees were leaving or looking for new positions elsewhere because they felt a lack of career opportunity in their current positions.
Upper management had recently issued a directive---No new promotions into management for the foreseeable future. We were already overstaffed and the budgets would not permit any more spending in this area.
So, I set out to find some ways to make changes that would allow employees to learn, grow, and feel fulfilled without becoming a member of management. Together with a few HR coworkers, I conducted a focus group. The findings may be valuable to companies in similar circumstances.
* Employees don't expect a lifetime commitment from your company. But they do appreciate the chance to learn new skills on the job that will make them more marketable in the future. Practices like cross training and adding increased responsibility give employees the opportunity to show what they can do, and if they are eventually chosen for management, they will be better qualified. * Employees want to learn more about the business they work for, as a whole. Once they learn the big picture, they feel empowered to make valuable contributions in terms of how they can perform more creatively and efficiently.
Eventually, we developed a series of policy changes that brought our company current with the changing structure of business today. To create more opportunity for our employees, we offered cross training and lateral job move options, as well as information groups and training sessions to let employees in on company wide business practices, procedural changes, and new opportunities as they became available. As a result, morale, retention, and productivity have improved greatly.
© 2005 AlphaMeasure, Inc. - All Rights Reserved
This article may be reprinted, provided it is published in its entirety, includes the author bio information, and all links remain active.
Measure. Report. Improve your organization with AlphaMeasure employee satisfaction surveys.
Josh Greenberg is President of AlphaMeasure, Inc.
AlphaMeasure provides organizations of all sizes a powerful web based method for measuring employee satisfaction, determining employee engagement, and increasing employee retention.
Launch your employee satisfaction surveys with AlphaMeasure.
I've heard it said?in fact, it might well have been... Read More
When looking for a telecommuting position, it is very important... Read More
Make sure that your resume is up to date with... Read More
More and more people are calling it quits to successful... Read More
Travel nursing is becoming one of our nation's fastest growing... Read More
These days, interviews don't come easily. When you get The... Read More
In Part One we'll look at how Positioning or "Coming... Read More
Career change is tough but rewardingThere are a number of... Read More
Dubai in the United Arab Emirates is one of the... Read More
Working abroad can be an exciting, rewarding and horizon broadening... Read More
There has been a lot of hullabaloo recently about the... Read More
Just how important it is to ASK for the job... Read More
Why do you work?Stop and think about it. Other than... Read More
It has been a long morning and you need a... Read More
In today's competitive job market you can't afford a résumé... Read More
I remember being asked this question a lot when I... Read More
Looking for work is generally a miserable undertaking. No matter... Read More
Here are some of the questions we have been asked... Read More
We have been studying the labor rates of Oil, Lube... Read More
A resume is a tool. It allows employers to see... Read More
Looking for a new job?I'm about to reveal one of... Read More
There is one little practice that is vital to generating... Read More
While traveling in northern California last October, I happened... Read More
Looking for work is a roller-coaster ride: high with elation... Read More
Current trends in business are conspiring to create a revolution... Read More
While identity theft is nothing new, the Web has opened... Read More
Seeing your job as an honorable job, adds more meaning... Read More
Applying for work is stressful, no matter the circumstances. Even... Read More
Disadvantages of Resume SoftwareFormat A large majority of software requires... Read More
Salary negotiating is an important topic that must be addressed... Read More
In Part I, we covered how to grab the reader's... Read More
Freshly qualified accounting graduates when asked by the interviewer "Are... Read More
Have you gotten tons of career advice, solicited and unsolicited?... Read More
TELEPHONE INTERVIEW BACKGROUNDTelephone interviews are quite common in today's job... Read More
Ruts: the routines in our work and lives that have... Read More
There are numerous tools and resources available to guide job... Read More
Despite the President's encouraging words, the job market is still... Read More
Chances are if you're reading this you've thought about becoming... Read More
I was rushing through the white-tented terminal building at Denver... Read More
When John applied for a job at Oakland Company, his... Read More
Municipal and law enforcement officials in Georgia are still calculating... Read More
The dreaded job interview is the Number 1 source of... Read More
Are you thinking about a career change? Many people do... Read More
There are many changes coming in the world of work,... Read More
For those who are looking for a career as a... Read More
The expense was substantial. An immersion workshop with twelve participants... Read More
If you were thinking of offering your employees special rewards... Read More
To succeed in today's global marketplace, companies must hire the... Read More
When cyclists prepare for a big race, they always make... Read More
Searching for a job has become easier than ever for... Read More
If you use your voice to get attention, you use... Read More
Passion comes in many forms. I'm focused on the version... Read More
Most people spend approximately 25% to over 67% of their... Read More
Do you want to continue your costly, time-consuming and exhausting... Read More
Promote Your Resume Business Website!While we make our websites to... Read More
Legging Up Your CompetitionLet's face it. When you graduate from... Read More
Interning is about more than earning money during summer break.... Read More
In todays Business and economy, starting any business service requires... Read More
Recruiting firms, like most businesses today, must embrace technology in... Read More
You're interested in becoming a nurse. How do you get... Read More
Inherent within the human spirit is a desire for fulfillment,... Read More
Change Your Career,Change your Life!Lots of times I see and... Read More
I coined this word to draw attention to the nervous... Read More
My starting point was how to draw on 25 years... Read More
Nurses wake up and take advantage of this extraordinary opportunity.... Read More
One of the most emotionally crippling aspects of unemployment is... Read More
Careers, Jobs & Employment |