Staff turnover – also often referred to as employee attrition – is a key metric that any business or HR leader should be familiar with. Improving it is an ongoing challenge which HR teams around the world grapple with constantly. Staff turnover effectively comes down to one key metric: the length of time the average employee spends with your business.

Improving staff turnover is something any agile business aspires to do, but it’s not a one-step process. First we must measure, before then managing the concept. The benefits of having a strong employee turnover rate are vast and far-reaching – sustainable business growth and strong company culture development, just to name a couple.

Here’s how to measure, manage and improve staff turnover.

Measuring staff turnover

Step number one involves understanding your current rate of turnover. First, work out what you want to know; consider whether you’re interested in the data surrounding voluntary or involuntary turnover, both, and other similar questions. Basically, know what you’re aiming to do here.

Next, take pains to measure these aspects of your employee turnover. There are equations you can find on Google which will help you work out the actual percentage, but here we’re talking about measuring more than just the rate itself. Measure it over time, through different seasons, different circumstances. Take note of how some instances could be linked – try to spot trends. Look beyond just the numbers and try to get into the psychology behind them to understand where some improvements could be made.

Manipulate this data in as many ways as you can, to understand what it’s trying to tell you. Did you spot a pattern in the time of year that employees leave? Is the seasonal nature of your business holding you back from long-term growth goals? Does one instance of someone leaving have a knock-on effect to others and lead to other resignations? All of these questions can be answered – and they may just hold the data you need to each the next level for your organization.

Managing staff turnover

Now that the holes in your game have become visible, we can create a plan to effectively plug them. Some employee attrition is absolutely inevitable, of course – nor is it always a bad thing. But, to ignore red flags or obvious fixes makes little sense.

Once you’ve got the measure of your staff turnover rate and its causes, begin making changes towards improving these factors. It could be that seemingly small details (certain parts of the onboarding process, for instance, or a very slight raise in compensation to meet your competition’s markers) can have a massive effect.

Begin managing your staff turnover with your employees in mind – their experience, opportunities, the way they’re looked after. Think about it from all angles – from employee engagement to training and development, company culture, and more. Put steps in place to ensure you’re operating at your optimum level as an employer, not just a business.

And watch as improving staff turnover becomes second nature, as a result.

Improving staff turnover

If you’re struggling to get to grips with your own staff turnover rate, your hiring process is a good place to start. The impression your new hire gets from the very first meeting (whether virtual or face-to-face) can determine how an employee’s journey goes, well into the later years. So, better make it a good one.

With our incredible network and strong industry name, having NLG as that initial impression is something we’re proud to say, works. We’d love to talk more about how partnering with us could go a long way toward improving your staff turnover – get in touch today.