Written by: Charmaine Hollaway, Managing Director of HR & Benefits, MidwestHR
It’s true, you spend at least eight hours, 5 days a week with your staff. Running through your week in your mind, do you spend 40 hours a week with your spouse? Your children? Unfortunately, many of us don’t. But, many of the tell-tale signs a couple might be in trouble are also signs that your employee is ready to leave you.
They are less attentive
As in any relationship, when you begin to notice someone is less engaged, you know trouble is on the horizon. An employee can exhibit this in a couple of ways:
- They come in and leave on-time. A worker who came in early and stayed late is now putting in just their scheduled hours. Unless there has been a change in their family dynamic (child care, taking kids to soccer, etc.), this may show they no longer consider their job as one of their main concerns.
- They no longer coffee-clutch, lunch or engage socially with co-workers. When people know they are going to leave a company, they often begin breaking ties with fellow employees – this actually helps them get emotionally ready to leave their work buddies behind.
- They no longer participate in meetings/brain storming/projects. If your employee actively participated in meetings (raised they hand, contributed remarks and insight, etc.) and now they sit silent on the sidelines, this may be an indication that they are saving all their good ideas for the new job or are not that invested in where your company is heading.
They are looking more “attractive”
If an employee recently completed a degree or special training (and you didn’t know about it or it’s not related to your company or their position), they may begin looking for a position which will utilize those new skills and probably pay more for them. Not too many people make such a sacrifice of time and money and not hope to reap the benefit. Also, if you notice a difference in their wardrobe (your company is casual and they begin wearing jackets/dresses) and/or asking to come in late or leave early “for personal reasons”, chances are that they are interviewing.
YOU stopped loving THEM
Have you been turning a “cold” shoulder to your employee? Whether it is being late/forgetting to give performance appraisals, failing to give recognition on a task well-done, freezing wages or cutting benefits, employees may no longer feel valued or appreciated for the work that they do for you. If you don’t show them love, they will look for an employer that will.
If you fear your relationship is on the rocks and have noticed one of the signs above, you need to figure out pretty quickly if this is an employee you want to keep. If so, you need to speak up and talk to them. Much like couples counseling, having an open and direct conversation with the employee may help you both “fall in love” again by finding why an employee is doing what they are doing. This may allow all parties to come to terms for a long healthy relationship. But, unfortunately, sometimes a relationship cannot be saved. If you discover an employee is really intent on quitting, you may be faced with asking them to leave sooner than later. This may be in the best interest for all parties, not only will this allow you to minimize impact of their resignation, it will also allow for you to plan for their replacement without disrupting your company.
Please contact us to see if MidwestHR, a Chicago PEO, is the right partner for your growing company.
MidwestHR supports growing companies by helping them simplify their business through HR Outsourcing. MidwestHR is a Certified Professional Employer Organization (CPEO) headquartered in the Chicago land area. As a CPEO, we provide business owners, CEO and CFO leaders with relief from dozens of time-consuming HR & employment related functions, while helping protect the business from ever-increasing HR demands and liabilities. In addition, our clients have the ability to offer “Fortune 500 type” benefits, while being able to better control their premiums in the process.
MidwestHR regularly works with all types of businesses, including medical practices, surgery centers, non-profits, professional service firms, technology companies, printing companies, religious organizations, start-ups, manufacturing businesses, trucking companies and financial institutions.