SmartPulse — our weekly nonscientific reader poll in SmartBrief on Leadership — tracks feedback from more than 150,000 business leaders. We run the poll question each Tuesday in our e-newsletter.
Last week we asked: As the economy shows signs of improvement, how concerned are you that your top talent will look for new and better jobs?
- Somewhat concerned, 39.79%
- Very concerned, 36.01%
- Not concerned, 24.20%
Hindsight is 20/20: Sure, economically, things have been tough for a while. Many firms hunkered down and chose not to invest in people during the cycle (training, raises, promotions, bonuses, etc.). Now it’s time to pay up. If you signaled to your teams that you didn’t value them during tough times, they’re much more likely to seek greener pastures when things improve. For now, identify those top performers, demonstrate they mean a lot to the company, and do what you can (training, raises or giving them more important responsibilities) to let them know they have a bright future with your organization. Hopefully you’ll be able to mitigate some of the flight risk you face.
Mike Figliuolo is managing director of ThoughtLeaders.