Building & Keeping the Best Staff Retention Strategies for the Real World

Jeanne Supin, MA, NCCBH Consultant & Watauga Consulting

Terry Haru,PhD, Heritage Behavioral Health Center

Session Objectives

Learn what the best research says about retaining excellent staffExplore how this relates directly to your staff and your organizationDevelop concrete strategies to apply back home

World Café

World Café is a method for creating dynamic conversations, sharing

knowledge, and exploring strategies around questions that matter to you and your work.

World Café Etiquette

FOCUS on what mattersCONTRIBUTE your thinkingSPEAK from your mind & heartLISTEN to understandLISTEN TOGETHER for insights, patterns & deeper questionsPLAY, DOODLE, DRAW – write on the tablesHAVE FUN!

The World Café Resource Guide, by Juanita Brown (2002)

Discussion

Introduce Yourselves.

Why Are You Here?

Turnover Trends in Behavioral Health

Turnover rates for case management and paraprofessional staff can be as high as 30-50%Turnover rates for clinical staff can be 20-30%Recruitment of specialty clinical staff is difficult, to say the leastPsychiatrist recruitment is extremely difficult

Losing Staff Affects …

Client & family engagementContinuity of careService capacityFinancial bottom line

Calculations

Direct cost to fill a $60,000 job ranges from $9,777 to $49,000Other studies suggest replacing an employee can cost (direct & indirect) more than 3 times the annual salary

Direct Costs

Placement, advertising feesInterview costsHiring, bonus, relocation costsTraining costAdministrative expenses

Indirect Costs

Care discontinuityLost revenue due to vacanciesLost training & experience“Ramp up” time

Learning curveStaff stressOrganizational image

General Turnover Trends

Unemployment rate is only very slightly higher (5.4%) than in the boom years in late 1990’s (4.6 average)Baby Boomers will begin retiring in 2011, with likelihood many will retire early (60% by age 62)Estimate a skilled labor gap crisis will begin 2005 Source: John Izzo & Pam Withers, Values Shift: The New Work Ethic and What it Means for Business

Additional Changes in How Employees Perceive Work

Work is no longer considered the primary focus of one’s lifeParadox: employees also want their work to be meaningful and offer real fulfillmentEmployees are more committed to their own work, their own professional growth & development than to an organization

"In these days of talent wars, the best way to keep your stars is to know them better than they know themselves – and then use that information to customize the careers of their dreams”

Timothy Butler and James Waldroop, Job Sulpting – The Art of Retaining Your Best People, Harvard Business Review, Sept/Oct 99

Change Tables!

1. Three people from each table find new, different tables to join.

2. A host remains at the original table to share the table’s history with its new participants.

3. Once settled, please …Introduce yourselvesBriefly share your thoughts, insights, learnings from your previous group

Discussion

Why do staff leave your organization?

Why do they stay?

Gallup Organization Research

Authors Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman25 years worth of interviews1,939 workgroups in 26 organizations, 21 industries around the worldOver 1 million workersFirst Break All the Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently (Simon & Schuster, 1999)Q12

Most Important Variable in Productivity & Retention

Assuming reasonably competitive pay, the most important productivity & retention variables is:NOT pay or benefitsNOT commitment to the missionIt’s the quality of the relationship between employees and direct supervisors

Not Pay & Benefits?

Pay, benefits, senior management & org structure were initially on the list but dwindled under analysisThey are important, but they are equally important to all employees – good, bad, mediocreAccording to the Gallop research, competitive pay & benefits will get you employees but they won’t encourage the great ones to stay

Gallup Organization Q12

1. I know what is expected of me at work.2. I have the materials & equipment I need to

do my work right.3. At work, I have the opportunity to do what

I do best every day.4. In the last seven days, I have received

recognition or praise for doing good work.

5. My supervisor, or someone at work, seems to care about me as a person.

6. There is someone at work who encourages my development.

7. At work, my opinions seem to count.8. The mission or purpose of my company

makes me feel my job is important.

9. My fellow employees are committed to doing quality work.

10. I have a best friend at work.11. In the last six months, someone at work

has talked to me about my progress.12. This last year, I have had opportunities at

work to learn and grow.

High Scores Mean Higher:

ProductivityProfitEmployee retentionCustomer satisfaction

Specific Retention Questions

1. Do I know what is expected of me at work?2. Do I have the materials & equipment I need to do

my work right?3. Do I have the opportunity to do what I do best

every day?5. Does my supervisor, or someone at work, seem to

care about me as a person?7. At work, do my opinions seem to count?

These 5 questions are most directly influenced by managers, not companies.Employees stay with or leave managers, not companiesThey may join your organization because it’s the type of work they love, but they stay because they have a great boss.

McKinsey & Company

“War for Talent 2000”Surveyed 6,900 corporate officers, top executives, midlevel managers56 companies

McKinsey’s 7 Talent Imperatives

1. Talent mindset at all levels2. “Extreme Employee Value Propositions”

– compelling reasons why someone wants to work for you (great organization, leaders, job & attractive compensation)

3. High-performance culture that combines strong performance ethic and open & trusting environment

4. Recruit great talent continuously5. Develop people to their full potential6. Make room for talent to grow7. Focus on retaining high performers

“War for Talent II: Seven Ways to Win,” Fast Company, January 2001

John Izzo & Pam Withers

Values Shift: The New Work Ethic and What it Means for BusinessStudied 200 companiesNot just typical dissatisfaction, Profound culture shift in which people are asking themselves fundamental questions about what they want from their work

Six Suggestions

1. Proactively offer meaningful ways to improve work / life balance & synergy

2. Actively promote sense of deeper cause3. Promote & support professional growth &

development4. Treat employees like partners5. Create community in the workplace6. Maintain mutual trust

Some Results

Izzo & Withers found staff turnover falls up to 50% when employees are offered benefits like child-care subsidies, elder-care programs, flexible hoursProductivity increases about 20% after organizations implement work/life balance programs

Source: John Izzo & Pam Withers, Values Shift: The New Work Ethic and What it Means for Business

Discussion

Now that you’ve heard the research, how might your

answers be different about why your staff stay

and why they leave?

Discussion

Based on the research, list all the things about your organization (your structure, your practices,

your leadership, your managers, your culture, your pay …) that

might cause staff to leave.

Most research about employee retention and excellent performance shares the following

common themes.

Employee Themes:

Reasonable compensationAbility to do excellent workProfessional & personal integration and synergyStrong relationshipsSense of meaning

Organizational Themes

Demonstrated alignment between vision, mission, values and everything else!Highest qualityPerformance excellenceSuccessful infrastructureStrong relationshipsSense of meaning

Employee Themes

Reasonable Compensation

Reasonable related to industry and community comparisonsDoes not have to be the highest but has to be within an acceptable rangeAssuming “reasonableness” it really isn’t the most important variable for retention & performance excellence

Ability To Do Excellent Work:

Am I the best fit for my job?Do I know what’s expected of me?Do I have everything I need?Can I do my best every day?Can I achieve the best possible results?Can I grow and develop professionally?

Professional & Personal Integration and Synergy

Can I align my professional and personal values?Can I take care of both my professional and personal responsibilities, goals, desires?Does someone care about me at work?Can I find a sense of community at work?

Strong Relationships

Do I have a great supervisor?Do my opinions seem to count?Can I help make improvements?Do I trust others in the organization?Do I believe the organization has a culture of honesty?Can I be honest and trustworthy?

Sense of Meaning

Does my work feel meaningful?Does my work lift my spirit and fill my soul?

Change Tables!

1. Three people from each table find new, different tables to join.

2. A host remains at the original table to share the table’s history with its new participants.

3. Once settled, please …Introduce yourselvesBriefly share your thoughts, insights, learnings from your previous group

Discussion

Considering employee themes from your own perspective as an employee …

To which questions can you answer the most resounding YES!

Which questions generate less enthusiasm? How do your answers affect your

performance & commitment?

Discussion

Now consider these questions from your employees’ perspectives …

Where might their resounding YES! be?Where might you get less enthusiastic

answers?How might their experiences affect excellent

performance & retention?

Organizational Themes

Foundation is Critical

Virtually all organizations have a vision, mission, and valuesBut … few really use these as the drivers for key, explicit, measurable indicators of individual, team, and organizational performance

Foundation as the Driver

How do we directly link our vision, mission, values to all we do and communicate this organization-wide on a regular basis?How do we demonstrate our accountability for this link?How do we continuously strengthen this link?

Highest Quality

Do we set and strive for the highest possible quality and outcomes?Do we embrace and implement best practices in all we do?Do we live a culture of real continuous quality improvement?

Excellent Performance

Do we recruit for the best talent?Do we ensure the best fit between employee and job?Are our expectations clear?Do we provide ongoing, meaningful feedback and valuable performance reviews?Do we spend the vast majority of our time, attention, and money on those who do excellent work?

Successful Infrastructure

Do our policies, structures, and practices support excellent work and talent?Are we flexible, emphasizing individual strengths and quality outcomes?Do we lavish managers & supervisors with training, guidance, mentoring, support, time, and energy toward their success?Do we encourage, allow, and reward managers & supervisors to do the same with their employees?

Strong Relationships

Do we value strong, healthy, collaborative relationships?Do our structures and practices support strong, healthy, collaborative relationships?Can employees actively participate in continuous quality improvement?Do we encourage honesty and trustworthiness?Are the top leaders honest and trustworthy?

Sense of Meaning

Is our vision & mission clear, meaningful, and truly inspiring?Does everyone know, understand, support, and embody our vision & mission?Can our consumers, families, and employees find real meaning in what we do?

Change Tables!

1. Three people from each table find new, different tables to join.

2. A host remains at the original table to share the table’s history with its new participants.

3. Once settled, please …Introduce yourselvesBriefly share your thoughts, insights, learnings from your previous group

Discussion

Relating to organizational themes, where is your organization most

successful? Why?

Where are your organization’s most significant challenges? Why?

“Recipe” Review

We have distributed several “recipes” that describe what some organizations have done to retain excellent employees. These are just a few examples to use as you wish.We know all of you have implemented many different strategies and there are many other examples out in the field.

Discussion

If you could cut your turnover rate in half what would that mean for your organization?

Discussion

What are the most challenging themes (employee or

organizational) for your organization?

What might you & your organization do to improve those

areas?

Discussion – All Participants

What are your improvement ideas?

Discussion

What can you do in the next three months to initiate these

strategies to improve your organization’s retention of

excellent employees?

Discussion – All Participants

Share some of the initiatives you identified at your table?

What else might you take home with you?

What might you need – from all of us here and/or others – to help you put these ideas

in action once you get home?

World Café

World Café is a method for creating dynamic conversations, sharing

knowledge, and exploring strategies around questions that matter to you and your work.

Use the World Café …

With groups sized 12-1200When you have 1 ½ or more hours availableIf you want to get input, share knowledge, explore possibilitiesWhen you want to encourage authentic, meaningful conversations about things that matterWhen exploring in-depth, strategic possibilities

World Café Design Principles

Clarify the ContextCreate hospitable spaceExplore questions that matterEncourage everyone’s contributionCross-pollinate diverse perspectivesListen together for insights and deeper questionsHarvest & share collective discoveriesHave fun!

World Café

Created by Juanita Brown & David Isaacswww.theworldcafe.com

Whole Systems Associates166 Homestead Blvd.

Mill Valley, CA 94941

Presenters

Jeanne Supin, NCCBH consultantWatauga Consulting

Boone, North Carolinajeanne@supin.com

828.265.0367

Terry HaruHeritage Behavioral Healthcare

Decatur, Illinoistharu@heritagenet.org

217-420-4706