Employee loyalty is a big deal. Loyal employees can be up to 12% more productive, which could make a huge difference to your business’s bottom line.
They’re also up to 87% less likely to leave, leading to all sorts of financial savings. This includes during the hiring process, training, and onboarding. Which then gives you more money to invest in other areas of the business. For instance, upskilling existing employees to increase their industry knowledge and help you stay ahead of the curve.
However, 95% of employees are open to a new job in the next year. So if you’re not looking to boost employee loyalty, your people are far more likely to leave when an opportunity comes knocking.
Replacing an employee costs around double their annual salary, equalling somewhere between $25,000 and $100,000. That’s a lot of money to lose because your company culture needs work.
So, how do you boost employee loyalty? Especially when employees work remotely some or all of the time?
Ask them what they want
What you have in mind isn’t always what your employees want or need from you. This is particularly hard to gauge if your team is remote. You can’t see anyone’s body language (or not properly on video) to tell if they’re really saying what they mean or just telling you what you want to hear.
But you can ask in a survey! That way, you can get feedback on your hiring process, onboarding process, employee reviews, workplace practices, and offboarding practices. The possibilities are endless.
Listen to their opinions
The further down an employee is in the food chain, the less of a say they get in decisions. This can make them feel unvalued and expendable.
Whether an employee is a cleaner or team leader or any role in between, they should be able to voice their opinions about what’s happening within the business.
Sending a survey shouldn’t just be something you feel obligated to do. Instead, you should listen to people’s feedback and take action when it’s appropriate. While you can’t solve every problem, if multiple team members have issues with the same thing, that should be a red flag that requires immediate action.
Likewise, if there’s something positive that many employees highlight when you speak to them, you should lean in to that. And include a mention to it in your employee branding materials and/or job descriptions when hiring for a role. It could be a key driver of employee loyalty!
Create a sense of community
If employees feel like they belong, they’re going to be happier in their roles and therefore more likely to stay.
Employee groups are a great way to build a sense of community. Employees can connect with colleagues from other parts of the organization who share their interests, goals, and/or backgrounds.
They don’t have to be complicated to manage, either. With Workrowd, you can get more out of your employee groups and even track their success in real-time.
Offer to help employees set up their offices
Helping employees get the right equipment for their home office allows them to feel more comfortable working from home. That way, they’ll be happier and can get more done. It’s a pretty straightforward way to boost employee loyalty.
Simple things like the right chair, mouse, or keyboard can make a huge difference to our mood and productivity.
I used to work in a really uncomfortable chair. Because I was uncomfortable, it was hard for me to concentrate. When I switched jobs and worked from a better chair/desk setup, my back pain went away. Meaning I wasn’t thinking about being in pain and could instead get more work done.
Reward them
A little recognition can go a long way. Sometimes, all it takes is a quick ‘thank you’ for an employee to feel appreciated and like they belong. It can increase employee loyalty and make them want to stay.
Of course, you can take things further and consider a gift of some sort. It could be an onboarding package with some branded merchandise, or a sweet treat at the end of a project.
You can even go so far as to personalize employee rewards by paying attention to things like their interests and favorite brands.
Help them grow their brand
One way you can really show employees you care about them is by helping them grow their personal brands.
Not every employee will be interested in doing this, but it’s something that can make a huge difference to their confidence levels, their network, their career opportunities, and how they feel about you as an employer.
Of course, it does mean that they could get headhunted because of the strength of the personal brand that you helped them create.
But if they’re truly happy in their role and working for your business, they’ll say no to that new opportunity because they won’t want to leave. Enabling team members to grow within your organization is key to increasing employee loyalty.
Show trust
How do you show your employees that you trust them?
Is it by allowing them to post about work on social media?
Is it by prioritizing how much work they get done over how many hours they spend sitting at their desk with Slack open?
The more employees feel like you trust them, the more you’ll get out of them. And, the more you’ll see employee loyalty increase.
If employees constantly feel uncomfortable or like you don’t trust them to do their jobs, the quality of their work, their confidence levels, and their productivity levels, will suffer.
Conclusion
Employee loyalty can play a key role in your talent acquisition and retention levels. The tips above were a start, but these aren’t the only ways to increase employee loyalty.
Stay tuned for part two, where we share more ways to boost employee loyalty among your remote and hybrid workers!
In the meantime, if you want an easier way to increase employee loyalty and watch your numbers rise in real-time, Workrowd can help.
Our one-stop shop for engagement and inclusion makes it easy to get employees deeply involved at your organization from day one, and then track progress over time.
Sound useful? Our happy customers certainly think so! Visit us online to learn more, or email us at hello@workrowd.com to schedule some time to connect.
