Are your employees leaving before you find out their name?

Hey guess what, the latest statistics out there in employer branding land suggest that 25 percent of new recruits decide how long they will stay by the end of the first week in their new job. It goes further to suggest that over 50 percent make that decision by the end of the first month. I guess first impressions count after all.


HR managers had better be very afraid.

Early leavers bolting for the door cite the following reasons…

1. Lack off cultural fit with the existing team
Did they not get to meet with the team before saying ‘yes’?
2. Misunderstandings as to what their role involved
Was it in writing, was it discussed at length and did they get the chance to discuss the role with fellow workers?
3. Being left unsupervised and unsupported too early
Did they have a supervisor and a buddy system?
4. They were not inducted properly nor given the support at the start
I’ll say that again… Did they have a supervisor and a buddy system?
5. They really were not interested in the first place
The interviewer should be trained to spot this in the application submission and detect any hesitation at the interview
6. They fear not being successful in the role
Perhaps they need more encouragement to get them through the first few weeks and to address any questions and concerns they may have

Employers need to know their own limitations and those of job candidates. A recruitment agency must take on the huge responsibility of identifying both and plan accordingly.

Post placement surveys of each new employee are essential to identify mismatches and misunderstandings so that appropriate action can be taken to rectify the situation. This can be tricky as some candidates have the ability to mask their true feelings down to a fine art, particularly if they have not as yet developed a sufficiently high level of trust in their new employer.

It is generally accepted that there are five key questions to be asked when selecting new employees:

1. Do they understand the organisation’s brand?
Can they identify positive aspects of the organisation’s brand? Can they identify how the organisation is differentiated from others? Do they understand what are the organisation’s values, vision and positioning in the market?

2. Are their behaviours appropriate?
Is the employee stable? Do their recognised habits fit with this role? Do they understand the company culture and know how to fit in?

3. How motivated are they?
Do they want to go the extra mile? Do they have business acumen? Do they want to get involved? Do they have the organisation’s success at heart?

4. How innovative are they?
Can they identify challenges and issues, think through them and find a solution?

5. Knowledge
Can they actually do the job? Do they understand what it entails? Do they have the education and training that enables them to perform the tasks required of them?

6. Comfortable in teams
Do they want to help people? Do they have the people skills to work together as a team and leverage other people’s ideas and involvement?

Tick these boxes and you’re likely to land a long term employee. If they leave early I guess you’d better engage a review of your employer brand. Or perhaps it’s the office wallpaper?


Tony Heywood is a Fellow of the Design Institute of Australia, founder of Heywood Innovation in Sydney Australia and joint founder of BrandSynergy in Singapore.
tony@heywood.com.au
www.heywood.com.au
www.brandsynergy.com.sg

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