English 
In the business world, ensuring employee loyalty has become an essential practice. Indeed, the retention of talent is an essential component in their success since they fight to retain the best elements. This is called the talent war.
In order to maintain its competitiveness and stand out from the competition, it must offer its employees the best possible working environment. In addition, having a high turnover rate (also called turnover) could lead to significant costs related to recruitment and would have a negative impact on your employer brand. Establishing a relationship of trust and closeness with your employees will not only help you stabilize your business, but also help it grow significantly. But then, what is the way forward?
In this article, we will present effective strategies to retain your employees and significantly improve the image of your company.
1 - All about loyalty
1.1 - What is employee retention?
Employee loyalty corresponds to all the strategies put in place by an employer to make said employees want to stay with the company. It therefore aims to limit the turnover rate, ie the number of departures and arrivals in the structure. The objective of this approach is to stabilize the team in place, while strengthening the support and commitment of its members to the organization.
1.2 - Why is employee retention important?
Employee loyalty is crucial because it involves 5 major challenges :
1 - Stability : First of all, loyalty helps to maintain a solid team over the long term: it promotes the continuity of project operations and reduces the disruption linked to the departure of certain employees.
2 - Motivation : Secondly, loyalty helps to promote commitment. Motivating your employees will make them more invested in their work, they will then be more likely to give the best of themselves on a daily basis. This motivation will result in a positive work climate, which will strengthen relationships between colleagues and improve general cohesion.
3 - Cost reduction : Minimizing the turnover rate reduces expenses related to hiring and training, which will allow the company to easily save budget. Training recruits requires time and money, on the contrary, retaining your employees will allow you to earn it.
4 - Experience : Loyal employees will always have better knowledge of their work within the company, which, consequently, will lead to higher productivity. In the same vein, their expertise is a major asset since it will be difficult to replace given their seniority in the structure. Whether it's customers, working methods or the company itself, internal expertise is something that must be retained at all costs.
5 - Brand image : A company that manages to make its employees ambassadors will often be perceived as an employer of choice. It will gain reputation in the market, attract new talent, and the cycle will repeat itself. It is thanks to this same cycle that your company will be able to evolve, because a structure that treats its employees well will always attract more motivated candidates.
In summary, the loyalty of your employees will contribute to the performance and sustainability of your business, while creating a fulfilling workspace that will make your talents want to stay at home.
1.3 - What are the levers of employee loyalty?
When it comes to retaining employees, there are many human resources methods that can be considered. Nevertheless, we have listed the most important levers for you:
- An attractive recruitment
Contrary to what one might think, employee retention begins long before hiring. Hence the importance of taking an interest in our article on the 3 essentials for an attractive recruitment. Thanks to this, you will be able to create a first impression of confidence among applicants and start on a solid foundation. Your employer brand will be valued even before the first contact, because modern recruitment methods are rather trendy among the latest generations of candidates.
- A quality onboarding
Onboarding, or company integration, is an English term designating the process by which new employees acquire the knowledge, skills and behaviors necessary to become full members of an organization. This integration period is a first step towards a healthy relationship between the employer and the recruit, also called the employee experience. This is why it is necessary to follow recruits regularly, the time that they take charge of their new position and can develop their autonomy as it should be. If you're not sure where to start, we've written an article on onboarding a new employee.
- A healthy working environment
The working environment plays a very important role in the development and well-being of your employees. They must be able to feel comfortable in their workspace, otherwise their mental or physical health could suffer and have direct consequences on their ability to work. It is in this environment that your employees will spend most of their days, so this aspect should not be overlooked. Living conditions are one of the main factors to maintain in a business.
- A good remuneration
It will be very difficult to retain your employees without offering them adequate compensation. They need to know that their hard work is paying off, and increasing salaries is a great way to get your troops back to work. You will thus promote the values of generosity, sharing and show your employees that you care about them.
- Social benefits
A final factor of loyalty lies in the social benefits that you can offer to your employees. They are a major argument, because if your employees decide to leave the structure, they will not be sure to be able to benefit from these advantages elsewhere. This list includes paid holidays, retirement plans, insurance, but also opportunities for development! If you present your employees with opportunities for skills development or internal mobility, they will perceive their presence in the company as an opportunity and will therefore be much more likely to stay.
2 - The loyalty challenge
2.1 - Why do employees leave the company?
It is not uncommon for employees to suddenly decide to leave the company overnight. The reasons can be many and depend on the individual, but the most common is the bad relationship between an employee and his colleagues and/or his manager. Relationships between people, if unsuccessful, can lead to conflict and have a negative impact on collaboration. If he does not feel fulfilled, the employee can choose to end his contract. The issue is therefore purely sociological and there is no real solution apart from trying to ease tensions.
On the other hand, it is possible to take preventive measures if it is a question of remuneration or lack of opportunities. Indeed, many employees may resort to resignation if they feel that their salary is not satisfactory, or if they have few prospects for personal development. If their work is neither economically nor hierarchically rewarding, they will simply pursue a career elsewhere.
Another hypothesis is that some employees may feel neglected. That their work is not recognized and that the valuation of their efforts is lacking. An employee feeling neglected will no longer be motivated and may choose to join a company that places more importance on their achievements.
Finally, a final factor is the employee's lack of alignment with the company's values and culture. When an employee does not feel in agreement with these, he can decide to join another structure, closer to his own convictions. For example, if the employee is in a company whose culture promotes long days and repeated crunches, this pace may have an impact on his personal life. He will then look for a company providing him with a better balance, with shorter days or possibilities of telecommuting.
2.2 - How to retain employees?
You now know all the major reasons why an employee could leave your structure. Now, we're going to tell you how to get them to stay instead. To support you in your approach and help you retain your talents, we have listed several tips that you can apply today:
- Establish a good communication
The first big step in setting up good loyalty is communication : the latter must be healthy and therefore open and transparent. Such communication is essential to create a climate of trust within the company. Plan regular exchanges between employees and management, organize regular meetings to discuss the needs and expectations of your employees, set up internal communication tools, but above all, be attentive no matter what. This first step towards dialogue is a necessary action in a management that wants to be professional.
- Innovate your recruiting ways
If the previous step is important for the human side, it can also be enriched by opting for recruitment solutions like Yuzu. A new generation and gamified Assessment Center created after several years of R&D with researchers in Work Psychology and Neurosciences.
We immerse talents in situations developed with the latest video game technologies. Each adventure assesses a soft skill (knowing how to be in French) in 10 to 20 minutes. In addition, our solution is accessible to everyone and from any computer thanks to cloud gaming.
If it is a decision support tool to reduce cognitive biases, it also gives access to an exceptional candidate experience to retain your future employees and strengthen your employer brand.
Discover the future of assessment with Yuzu
- Offer development opportunities
Next, it is important to realize that your employees are - for the most part - motivated by the desire to evolve professionally ; that is to say, access to a higher job, or in another service, in order to gain responsibilities. Get to know the objectives of each of your employees and offer them training programs accordingly. Take care to value internal promotion, give them career opportunities through which your employees will feel rewarded. They will then be able to have future prospects within your company.
- Cultivate your corporate culture
The next step in your loyalty process will be to define and develop your company culture. Indeed, cultivating a strong and positive work culture will create a sense of belonging and commitment among your employees, which will strengthen their loyalty to your structure. Encourage team spirit, collaboration, trust but also respect within the company. Thus, it will always be good to live in your offices and the atmosphere that reigns there will be significantly improved.
This action could also make it possible to reduce the rate of absenteeism, since going to work will have become synonymous with having a good time. If this method works, then you will have succeeded in creating an environment conducive to productivity and fulfillment.
- Ensure a balance between personal and professional
Establishing a healthy balance between personal life and professional life is essential for the satisfaction and loyalty of your employees. If the two were to overlap, it would be a problem because your employees would be the first to suffer the consequences. It is therefore recommended to put in place policies and practices to support the well-being of your employees, such as flexible working hours or teleworking possibilities.
In the same line, encourage the taking of holidays or simple periods of rest, because an employee in good shape will always be more efficient and motivated than an employee in burnout. If your sector allows it, you can also consider the 4-day week. Studies conducted in the United Kingdom have shown that this new method has very beneficial effects for employees. This is why companies like LDLC have recently taken the decision to import it into France. We can therefore conclude that it has proven itself.
- Offer attractive benefits
Your employees will be much more likely to stay with you if you offer them benefits that they won't find elsewhere. Among them, we can cite paid holidays, insurance, retirement plans, but above all career opportunities and salary development within the company. It is also suggested to create a pleasant working environment, with relaxation areas and teambuilding activities to strengthen team cohesion. Finally, you can set up a recognition and reward system to highlight the achievements of your employees. This theme brings us moreover to our last point:
- Recognize and reward performance
In order for your employees to feel gratified, you can set up a recognition system to give prizes or rewards to deserving employees. Rewarding performance, whether individual or collective, is essential to maintain the loyalty of your employees. Encourage positive and constructive feedback to recognize contributions, give regular thanks. You can even host events to celebrate your team's accomplishments. We guarantee that the results will be there.
To remember
Retaining employees is an ongoing process, which requires constant attention from employers. By listening to your staff and making efforts to ensure their well-being on a daily basis, you will make a big leap forward in the growth, stability and success of your business.
If your employees leave the structure, it is undoubtedly because of their bad relationship with their colleagues or their manager, of working conditions which they consider questionable, of too low remuneration, of their lack of opportunities for evolution, their lack of recognition, their lack of alignment with the values of the company, or even the fact that their professional life has negative consequences on their private life.
By establishing open and transparent communication, you will create an environment conducive to mutual trust. By offering them professional development opportunities, you will allow them to progress in their careers, to feel valued and to see a future within your company.
By implementing a healthy work environment and a corporate culture that lifts them up, you will foster their sense of belonging and strengthen their commitment. Finally, by valuing their efforts, by celebrating their individual and collective successes, the motivation of your employees will reach new heights.
Now that you have all the keys in hand to ensure the retention of your employees, all you have to do is start as soon as possible. The sooner the better !