Michelle Mook is founder and MD of Pro-Development, a Yorkshire-based company providing support in all aspects of employee engagement and people development. She is the go-to specialist for workplace wellness strategies that really deliver to your bottom line.

Did you know that the true cost of losing an employee is estimated by the Hayes Group to be between 12 and 18 months of that person’s salary?

When you lose talent, it impacts in so many ways. As well as the sadness that comes with losing the day-to-day contact with someone who has often become a friend, there is of course the increased workload and frustration losing a team member can bring. Loss of knowledge can slow down what was a slick and efficient process.

Someone in the business needs to find time to recruit the right person – not an easy task – and, once the person has been selected, they require a full induction. I don’t just mean a tick list of things you show someone in the first week, I mean a six-month programme to support people in their new role.

Can you afford to lose good people?

So, I ask you. Can you afford to lose good people? Do you know if one of your best people is considering leaving? And are you doing everything to ensure people want to stay?

Below is just a snippet of what we hear every single week from some of the people that we come across in our employee engagement work.

• “Nobody cares about me here, I’m just a number.”
• “I don’t feel valued; nobody says thank you for what I do.”
• “I haven’t had a 1:1 or review with my manager since I started.”

Without our people we simply wouldn’t have a business.

How many of you are reading this and thinking your team would never say this? Lots of employers are guilty of thinking this but are you sure? Are you valuing your people; letting them know they matter? After all, without our people we simply wouldn’t have a business or be able to deliver for our customers and clients.

How about what we hear from business owners, leaders and managers? Take a look …

• “We just can’t get good people.”
• “We’re losing good people and we don’t know why.”
• “Our industry is renowned for high turnover of people; it’s just how it is.”

It’s the last one that’s my biggest worry. Our industry doesn’t have to be like that. If we treat people in the right way, if we respect and value what they bring and help them to be the very best they can be, they won’t always want to leave our businesses and you will attract the right kind of people.

By gaining insight into employee engagement, employers can become well informed about employees’ views and feelings. This enables you to focus your energy (and resources) on doing the right things, which will probably make the difference and be enough to retain your talent.

I challenge you to consider how you can create an engaged workforce

Whether you have started your journey to employee engagement already, or if your'e aware it’s something you need to work on, I challenge you to consider how you can create an engaged workforce, who your best advocates are and how you can help make your business a great place to work.

www.pro-development.co.ukwww.pro-development.co.uk