Digital Transformation: The Vehicle for Internal Process Development and a Happier Workforce

Nothing brings joy to any human resource executive or team than experiencing a high retention rate in their organisation. Face it, no company will turn down an opportunity to enjoying a high employee retention rate. This is because employee retention has always been a major challenge for many human resources departments in several industries.

Unfortunately, things can only get worse. With the global economy receiving a huge hit from crisis and pandemic, coupled with the coming talent crunches as more boomers are retiring, the rate of retention promises to plunge even lower. Currently, the turnover rate for all industries is slightly less than 15%, with a far higher rate in the private sectors. Sadly, as the talent war rages and more millennials – the job hoppers – form a larger part of the workforce in many industries, this retention crisis will inevitably intensify.

When it comes to measuring the efficiency of an organization’s recruitment effort, the best metrics are the employee turnover or employee churn rate.

Why is Employee Churn a problem?

Employee churn rate is the total turnover that takes place within an organisation’s staff. It is the rate at which employees leave and are replaced by new ones. This churn rate is often measured and calculated by the number of employees that leave a company over a defined period. It is almost inevitable to experience some staff turnover. However, a high rate of churn can have a great negative impact on an organisation.

Several factors could lead to a high turnover rate in a company. Poor working conditions, low pay, and bad hiring decisions are only but a few major reasons why most companies experience high employee churn. In the end, a low employee turnover rate could be a reflection of sound company culture, impeccable work environment where employees are valued, feel satisfied, and are given growth opportunities in their career paths.

So, to the big question: where does your company stand between a below-average and excellent employee churn rate?

In 2019, the Office of National Statistics revealed that the employee turnover rate in the UK was 15%. The rate grows exponentially varying from industry to industry. Private sector organisations in the retail, catering, construction, and media industries experience the highest levels of turnover in the UK. A closer study showed that these people either retired, quit their jobs voluntarily, or were laid off from their point of duty. Other related studies have reduced the average rate to 10%. If you find yourself between the two as a company, then you’re doing quite well.

Research shows that the employee turnover rate in the hospitality industry is staggering – between 30% to 35%. This large volume of churn is often caused by low wages and the inability to keep up with the overwhelming demands to deal with a lot of customers.

Although some might opine that employee churn takes out the bad apples; getting rid of under-performing employees and giving you room to hire better people. However, employee churn brings several negative aftermaths to your company.

Apart from costing you a lot of money, a huge employee churn rate could be a major pointer to a much bigger internal structure problem within the workforce. Employees are the heartbeat of every business, and this infers that you cannot do without them. Hence, you would need to bite the bullet and commence replacement plans. This can be very time consuming and might prevent you from focusing on more productive things. Consequently, this would cause a lag in the company’s growth.

The Horrors of On-boarding New Employees

Next to the distressful attempts to fill up vacant positions is the horrors of bringing new employees up to speed with your business operations and expectations. Most companies have their fair share of experience with new employees who cannot get the job done, or execute tasks accurately, as well as those who just keep missing deadlines. Often, the problem lies with these employees either being too uncomfortable or too adamant to admit their need for guidance. Due to this, some costly mistakes can be made, costing the company a lot of money, time, or customers. Sometimes, clients might receive the wrong information from mal-informed newbies or be they might be totally ignored.

Oftentimes, when most employers attempt to step into the ring, they receive feedbacks along the line of “I didn’t want to bother you”, “I thought I had it”, or “I wanted to impress you”.

Sounds familiar?

Luckily, it’s not all gloomy skies.

Solving Your Problems with the Right Tools

The advancement of technology has birthed convenient and intuitive tools that companies can integrate into their business processes to improve internal communications and groom a happier workforce. With the right tools, managing and retaining your employees can become a much delightful task, regardless of their age brackets.

Research shows that real-time employee feedback, social engagement experiences, and mobile access play a vital role in boosting employee engagement – either they are Millennial, Gen Z, and Baby Boomer members of the workforce. An HR team that is well-informed and armed with the appropriate technology is one step away from achieving optimum workforce efficiency.

By understanding each workforce group’s technology comfort level, HR professionals can create effective strategies to tackle major challenges, including high employee churn rate, low engagement, and poor productivity level.

Now, more than ever, we bear witness to new technologies being employed to reduce employee turnover rates. Companies are now able to track their employees’ performance and well-being via employee satisfaction polling software. Platforms like YouEarnedIt and Kudos are now used by companies as a form of recognition and reward system to boost employee’s morale and productivity.

With the use of predictive analytics, HR teams can now make more data-driven decisions around their employee retention plans. Some technologies up-speed the onboarding process of new employees and help maintain turnover costs as employees depart.

levels.digital is a full-service design and technology agency with high-level expertise in designing and developing market-leading digital products, SEO, branding, product design, and digital marketing services. Over the years, we have provided digital solutions to industry leaders globally. In recent times, we have tackled employee churn problems using first-rate digitalized solutions and strategies.

How can we help you? If you would like to discuss prospective solutions for your organisation in detail, do contact us.