Smile When Your Best People Leave You: employee growth and fulfilment

Written by Sheu Quen

4 minute read

It goes against the grain to be happy when your best people leave you. It is rarer still to help them do it. The fact remains is that everybody leaves, and how you deal with it will separate you from others, and helps you stand apart.

As a recruiter, it should give you pride when the people you have hired, leave to assume better positions or roles of leadership somewhere else. You should have a strong belief in employee growth and fulfilment, even to the point of them leaving the company in order to spread their wings. Think of it as a strong statement of your company’s culture.

This outlook can conversely help in the hiring process. When hiring, make it clear to candidates that the company will do all it can to make sure they are constantly growing at a personal level, especially in areas like leadership, skills, competency and fulfilment – apart from merely a way to make a living.

Remember that when employees leave, they become ambassadors for your brand. All that they have learned, they take with them. They become examples of your company’s culture, and take a piece of you with them to their next role, giving your company a chance to directly influence another. They become your informal spokespeople, and their favourable words can be your most valued referral system.

As positive as this outlook may be, for some, it might not ease the hurt of dealing with someone leaving.

The first thing to remember is, it isn’t personal. Remember that the terms of their employment didn’t include being committed to your company’s culture for life. If they are a valued asset, it is a good chance that they have put in years of committed service, and are entitled to enjoy the fruits of their labour with bigger roles and more perks elsewhere, if you are unable to provide it. Also, remember that the best employees don’t just work hard on your business, they work hard on themselves.

They are constantly working to better themselves and their positions in life. This means that you may not always be in a position to provide that next rung up the ladder when they feel they need to move up in the world, and in their careers. They’ve worked hard and were great additions to your team. Maybe they will again someday.

So, while good employees leaving is inevitable, not all employee departures are unavoidable.

So, while good employees leaving is inevitable, not all employee departures are unavoidable. Remember that it is your job to make your people love their jobs. A fact that many people forget, in their quests to increase revenue or succeed in a business.

That doesn’t mean a pool table, big screen TVs and free catered lunches, but talking, asking and listening to what your employees have to say, then acting on it.

Take time to talk to your employees about their lives. Make it a point of emphasis to set and discuss professional goals and challenges they hope to overcome. Ask them what they want to accomplish in a certain timeframe. Listen to what they have to say, then act to help them achieve that. That could mean them leaving for something better, but if that is so, you’ll be able to count it as a win for your part in helping them achieve that.

If you are to be happy when your best employees leave, how do you even begin to replace them?

Remember that nobody should be indispensable. That might seem like a counter-intuitive mindset but no single employee should be un-replaceable should they leave. No task or role in your company should one that only a single employee knows how to do. Make sure to take redundancies into account when you plan out your hiring. And what about hiring? If you are to be happy when your best employees leave, how do you even begin to replace them?

Here at Accendo, we have more than 20 years of industry knowledge to help you do make sure you get the right, most talented and skilled hires. We believe in People, Performance and Work and have the technology and tools to not only attract the right kind of candidates but train, inspire and retain them too, helping your company attract a performance-oriented workforce who seek to better both themselves and your company, helping to drive you forward towards greater successes.

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