About 6 months ago, employees received an email from management that went something like this..."We need your help! We are looking for new ideas to improve morale and create a positive atmosphere among our staff. Please give us your ideas. Turn into your supervisor."
Unfortunately, turn over rates for this last quarter was at an all time high and the suggestions submitted ended up at the bottom of the trash can stationed just below the suggestion box. Guess what? Last week we received another email for suggestions on improving moral in hopes of improving the employee turnover rate. Why bother?

I read an article where a writer expressed hiring the right people will help in improving employee turnover rates. I agree when it comes to hiring the right management. But, when it comes to your employees, they will not last long in a negative working environment no matter how talented and experienced they are. Improve your employee relations. They are the heart of any business. And, at the core of this is poor management. I don't understand why a company is willing to loose most of their workforce and still keep the same lousy management. Most employees will leave their manager not the job itself. So first, look at your managers. Are they capable of empowering your employees?

When my employer first ask of our peon opinions, I actually researched the web for articles on improving moral which goes hand and hand with employee turnover rates. It is harder on the employees when turnover is high. We have an invested stake in this. When there is not enough employees available to do a job, then the ones that are still with you are left to create the same production numbers with the same results with less workforce creating more damage. And when employees are more concerned about keeping their jobs, they are less concerned about doing a good job. Production suffers. It's a vicious cycle.

One theme that kept repeating itself was 'empower your employees'. Give them a sense of control over their environment. Don't micro-manage. Listen to what your employees have to say. There is a fascinating article taken from LeadershipJornal.net. http://www.christianitytoday.c om/leaders/newsletter/2006/cln 60220.html
The key here is leading instead of managing. I realize that maybe this article should be under a heading topic under management sense that happens to be a major theme for me. However, creating a positive working environment can only boost performance, moral, and retain employment. How expensive is it to recruit and train new employees? How much would it cost to retain the ones you already have?

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