Cut turnover and save
Cory, not her real name, did a great job talking up her company. There was opportunity for a decent wage in her area. Cory wanted to do well. We chatted about her high turnover- much of it immediately after the hire. I asked her to go through her hiring process with me.
* Good phone interview.
* Good initial interview face-to-face.
* Didn't over sell the job.
* Didn't lie about income opportunity or working conditions.
* Listed all the job requirements.
* Didn't gloss over upper management's foibles.
* Or her own.
And still she would hire people and many would leave immediately.
What was she doing wrong? We all know that turnover kills organizations. Especially in leadership or customer facing positions. Sends the message that you can't keep good people. And if you don't treat your employees well enough to keep them, how in the heck are you going to treat your customers?
When best intentions go bad
What was Cory (not her real name) doing wrong?
I knew that if I drilled down far enough I would find the reason. I asked her to again walk me through her hiring process. She repeated what she had told me and then we took a tour of the building. I asked if she offered her high potential new-hires an opportunity to shadow staff members. She looked uncomfortable and avoided the question. I had part of my answer.
Then we arrived at the work area in the basement. It was a former press area. The carpet was stained. The room was smelly. The cubicles were too close together. The lighting was poor and the area was noisy.
She said, "you can see why I don't bring them down here. If I did, I would never hire anybody."
The definition of happiness: Exceeded expectations.
sad face man Cory pretty much guaranteed that all of her new hires would expect one kind of work environment and then be confronted with one that was, quite frankly, grim. Result - continual turnover. We know that we cost ourselves one and a half to two times annual comp every time we turnover a position. And how does it feel?
Terrible!
Solution:
Undersell your open positions!
When talking about hours, talk about the high side.
When talking about compensation-tend below the mean.
When talking about upcoming change, tell people that you inform as soon as you can, but sometimes you can only give a month or two's notice on major change, knowing your manage change much better than that.
Let the new person know your faults as a leader and don't stress all of your virtues.
You will immediately hire fewer people. And you will have much, much less turnover.
Your Homework Assignment
1. Undersell your open positions!
~ Be conservative with your 'sales pitch'.
~ Show candidates the physical environment during regular work hours.
~ Give specific examples of your leadership style and how you communicate with staff of a similar level to the open position. AND HAVE POTENTIAL NEW HIRES SHADOW IF YOU CAN. Honesty is... well you know the rest.
2. Take an inventory of all your expectation setting areas.
~ What words do you use that set expectations?
~ What expectations do you convey through your body language and demeanor? Are you 'putting on a front' during interviews that is inconsistent with your day-to-day style?
~ Do candidates leave with an honest understanding of working conditions?
Visit us at http://www.customsalestraining.com/
Cut Turnover - To learn more about this author, visit John Cameron's Website.
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John Cameron
(Visit John's Website)
Long before he became an energetic and
powerful speaker and trainer, John Cameron
was a courageous member of the 1st of the
509th Airborne Battalion Combat team.
Following his military service, he earned
a B.S. degree in Business Administration
then spent several years working as a
stockbroker in Carmel and Sacramento
California. Following this, he spent
several years in the advertising field,
leading his sales team to 37 uninterrupted
quarters of growth.
When he became a speaker and trainer, John
already possessed a wealth of life and
workplace experiences to draw upon for his
presentations. The result is seminars
fraught with strategies and techniques
that have been tested and proven to work
in the real world.
A dynamic and entertaining speaker, John
Cameron leaves his audiences eager to put
his ideas to the test and re-engaged to
face all challenges awaiting back on the
job.
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