Whatever business you run, whether it’s a digital design agency or a retail store in the middle of town, your workforce is vital to the everyday running and the overall success of your venture. That means that the one area of your business you want to make sure you attend to consistently is employee retention.
Also read: 5 Reasons Your Retention Rate Is So Low
One way of accomplishing this goal is to know how to help your staff members through a variety of family emergencies. The reason this is so important is that it can cost you a lot of money to have to keep replacing unhappy employees, and it will negatively impact your employer reputation if you’re known for having an office with a revolving door.
Luckily, there are various strategies for how you can do a better job of keeping your employees satisfied at work. Make this task a high priority and your business will likely experience many positive benefits from doing so which will help your company thrive and grow for years to come. Pride yourselves on treating your employees well and being there for them when they need you and notice what a difference it makes in your daily operations.
Listen to Their Concerns
As the employer, it’s always worth you taking the time to listen to your employees and help them sort through what’s on their minds.
You can support your employees through family emergencies by lending an open ear and assisting them in problem-solving whatever it is they’re dealing with at the time.
For example, you may find out in your conversation with them that they could use some extra time off work to attend to their issue and this is your chance to jump in and grant them this benefit.
Take Pet Emergencies Seriously
You never know what your employees are going through until you sit down and ask them. For example, it’s possible one of your top performers is suddenly making more mistakes and not doing a good job because they’re dealing with issues at home, such as whether it’s their cat has gone missing or their dog limping.
Also read: 8 Reasons To Make Every Day ‘Bring Your Pet to Work Day’
Pets are important to people, and it can cause great worry and stress when there’s a problem with them. As the employer, reach out and be understanding and suggest they take some time off as they sort through this dilemma.
Provide Resources
It’s a wise idea for your company to be proactive about distributing resources and tools your employees can use when dealing with a family emergency.
For example, make it clear who your staff can speak to in the human resources department should they have a problem.
Also, give them information about any employee assistance programs you currently have active that they can take advantage of if they choose.
Doing this will allow the professionals to step in and assist so you can work on managing your business and finding temporary help if need be while your employee is away dealing with their crisis.
Practice Open Communication
What will help your employees through family emergencies the most is if you practice open and honest communication with each other. Create a fluid dialogue where you’re both on the same page and understand the situation clearly.
Also read: Why Internal Communications is the Center of Any Successful Organization
Make sure each person is assigned a manager or coach who they can constantly be in contact with through this challenging time and give daily updates to so no one is left guessing about what’s truly going on. You’ll be helping one another out if you take notes and document what’s happening in case you need to refer back to this information at a later date.
Conclusion
You need intelligent and skilled employees on your team if you’re going to succeed in the long-term. After all, these are the cogs in the ever-growing machine of your business.
Regardless of what role each employee fulfills, you have to ensure whatever they are going through; they need support and understanding. One way to keep them around is to assist them when they’re dealing with family emergencies.
Take the time to implement these types of changes that are going to allow you to retain and keep around your best employees.
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