Helping High Performing Employees

Helping High Performing Employees Your most valuable employee hasn’t gotten a raise in 2 years, her salary was cut last year, and she’ll get no bonus again. Should you be worried? Nope. You should be terrified! Come on managers, let's talk about high-performing employees. If you’re not worried about retaining your top performers, you’re in trouble and so is your organization. Retaining the people who helped your organization survive maybe even thrive during the recession should be top of your 2010 to-do list. Here’s how to develop these superstars. #1: Identify whom you cannot do without. Yes, every employee contributes value. But you must distinguish between those who are crucial to daily success and long-term strategy and those who are not. For example, who if gone, would double your workload? Or make it difficult for you to reach your quarterly numbers? #2: Build a high-potential program. This sounds intimidating and expensive but it doesn’t have to be either if you start small. Pick a few books to give participants; then, on a monthly basis, meet with the group to discuss the book in the context of their roles and the organization’s goals. Recruit several experts within the company to give 1-hour presentations on their top projects. Add to that targeted training classes and you have a solid, yet low-cost, program. #3: Find executive mentors for top performers. No matter how busy the execs in your company claim to be, they are NEVER too busy to have lunch with top performers. Recruit these execs by saying something like: Joe, if Terry leaves, we’ll lose the person with the closest relationship to our largest client. Having you spend 1 hour a month with Terry would make a big difference.’ #4: Push for merit increases or bonuses. If you wish to retain your superstars, you can find the money to provide merit increases or small bonuses. Is it fair that some employees receive increases and some don’t? No, it’s not. But the emphasis is on retaining employees whom you cannot lose. One best practice underlies all of these steps: regular feedback. Feedback from you the manager. And feedback from other superiors, peers and clients. Take steps now to retain your most valuable employees. For more information, go to www.bnet.com.