Retention

It’s that “performance review” time of the year.

Give your top performers another good reason to stay—pay them fair compensation. Don’t expect loyalty from people if you think “loyalty” is a one-way street. Make sure you compensate them for their increased competencies and factor in cost-of-living for your region, and promote from within whenever possible.

Give your “solid performers” at least a cost-of-living adjustment, and use time in your performance reviews to “show them the ladder.” This means that, if they are looking to move up (and get the raise associated with a promotion), you should let them know what skills and experience levels you would like to see them develop and consistently display. Keep in mind that some junior staffers need the clarification that “doing it once” is not enough experience to be considered for a promotion. Develop metrics for what you want to see from them—what gets measured gets done.

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