Ending the revolving door when it comes to attracting and keeping quality people is important for any business. This is especially true for pallet and lumber operations where employee costs have skyrocketed over the past few years. Since 2020, the Great Resignation has affected nearly every industry. Managers are seeking to better understand what can help key employees stick around.
Working in the pallet industry can be challenging. Companies that develop a better culture are more likely to create a sticky work environment where employees are less likely to leave.
Recently, I have started using some resources put out by a Christian business organization called Faith Driven Entrepreneur (FDE). This non-profit organization provides free resources including videos, podcasts and written materials designed to help business leaders run more missional companies and organizations. The FDE team also sponsors and supports a network of small groups across the country called Foundation Groups and Entrepreneur Groups.
According to a recent article on the FDE website, the U.S. economy has seen a 57% employee turnover rate over the past year. Companies facing serious labor shortages are willing to try almost any retention strategy. FDE suggests that incorporating faith concepts in a workplace can increase the relationship and connection that employees have within a company. A report by the Society of Human Resource Management found that the average cost to replace an employee is $4,425. This includes advertising, human resources staff, onboarding, drug tests, background tests, etc. You also lose production and the knowledge and skill that the employee has obtained while doing that job.
FDE sought insights from key stakeholders and partners to develop some key reasons why employees tend to leave their jobs. Its team discovered that “the best course of action is to support employees’ personhood and not treat them like cogs in the machine.”
An Inc. magazine article pointed out that “77% of workers shared that loyalty to their company remains high when their recognition needs are fulfilled.” When people put in the effort and don’t receive any acknowledgment, they’re more likely to become burnt out and unhappy.
Employees who see poor management or mismanagement are more likely to leave a company. This is where proper Biblical principles can bring accountability and respect to an entire organization. For example, Jon Christiansen wrote in the Harvard Business Review that inconsistent expectations, too many process restraints, and leading with bias can decimate employee morale.
FDE encourages the following employee retention tips that are summarized from a FDE blogpost (http://tinyurl.com/2hwa7fkv).
Be Disciplined in Encouraging Employees
A lack of recognition is a major contributor to the Great Resignation. Rather than just be haphazard in how managers recognize good performance or personal milestones, FDE recommends developing systems to ensure that employees don’t get overlooked. It is important to recognize personal milestones as well where possible. Little things like birthdays can go a long way.
Be a Leader People Want to Work For. Be Vulnerable.
Inviting an inflated ego into the C-suite is a fast track to employee turnover. Don’t try to pass yourself off as an expert in all aspects of your business. Be willing to admit your mistakes and seek insight from frontline employees. Your teams will see straight through your hypocrisy, and no one will relate to you. Instead, try being vulnerable.
President of the Faith Driven Movement, Justin Forman, suggested, “Nothing is more repulsive than the fake polish of a story that hides the truth. Nothing is more attractive than the soothing grace of the gospel piecing together our brokenness.”
Don’t Isolate Yourself Ask for Feedback
Receive feedback from mentors and colleagues. If you don’t, your blindspots will erode any confidence your employees have in you. Unfortunately, many entrepreneurs can be bad at seeking feedback, but that’s not an excuse. Isolation can be devastating.
Isolation allows leaders to maintain an illusion of control. We can easily avoid uncomfortable conversations when employees rarely give unvarnished feedback on our leadership or when our boards are disengaged in our day-to-day performance. So, when we make decisions, set goals, and create systems apart from a community of high-capacity peers, we can easily avoid accountability, sidestep taking responsibility for poor choices, and stop challenging ourselves to be better.
Establish a “Why” for You and Your Company
Companies can’t afford to neglect mission and meaning. Young people entering the workforce prioritize companies and organizations that embrace more than simple bottom-line numbers or exceptional products. Employees want to “make a difference” and “work with purpose.” This is true even for people who do not come from a religious background.
The pandemic identified how critical the work of the pallet industry is for supplying Americans with everything from food to clothing to medicine to almost everything bought or sold by consumers. Pallets may not be sexy, but they sure are important.
New hires want to know what is the business deeply passionate about? How does its products and services affect the world? Increasingly, the stickiest businesses align individual purposes with a wider communal purpose.
Provide Support for the Whole Person Through Corporate Chaplaincy
FDE is a strong advocate for corporate chaplain programs. A corporate chaplain is simply someone who can provide emotional and spiritual support to the broader organization. They’re able to talk to employees about real-life concerns without the awkwardness of opening up to a direct supervisor. As many people are more isolated and not involved in a local faith community, they may have fewer resources when it comes to handling major life events.
Research shows that personal life events can make people feel as though they need to change jobs just to take a breath of fresh air. But if your business has a corporate chaplain, employees may see your business as a place of peace and stability, somewhere to turn for emotional support when their personal lives become hectic. While these programs do cost a little bit of money, they can provide big benefits when it comes to caring for employee personal needs. The right corporate chaplains are discrete and respect personal boundaries of workers. See sidebar for some established chaplaincy organizations.
In the end, it’s not all that farfetched to say that reducing employee turnover is rooted in love. What can you do to show love and concern for workers? While these ideas are not overtly Christian, they do reflect a Biblical worldview. For more information on FDE visit https://www.faithdrivenentrepreneur.org.
Corporate Chaplain Organizations
Two established organizations that can provide chaplains who can fit any environment and speak a wide variety of languages.
Corporate Chaplains of America
Marketplace Chaplains USA
