Retention Management

‘Data and information live in systems, but knowledge resides in people. Much of the logic behind knowledge management lies in ensuring that when valuable employees walk out the door, they leave some value behind’ ( People Management, August 1998).

In his book, The Talent Solution, Edward Gubman suggests that in today’s workforce one of the things that gets in the way of retaining talented individuals is having a command-and-control culture which demotivates employees. An important part of any organisation’s retention strategy therefore, according to Gubman, requires maintaining a focus on engaging employees, as excited and engaged employees are more likely to continue to deliver, and stay with the organisation longer.

So how can you help your employees feel engaged? Gubman and his colleagues at Hewitt Associates have identified a simple framework:

Explain – Help people to see the big picture so that they know where the organisation is going and what it is doing to get there, how they can contribute and what the rewards will be if they help you get there. So the ‘know why’ talked about earlier.

Ask – Gubman argues that this is where many organisations go wrong, as they operate from a telling management style, rather than adopting a consultative style. He points out that it is far better to ask people what they think they can contribute to the business, along with what their needs are. The process of asking questions engages people’s thought processes. However, having asked for ideas or feedback from employees, it is of course very important to listen, and follow through.

Involve – Once people know where the organisation is going and what they can do to contribute, the next step is to let then get on with some of the implementation tasks without interfering. One thing that needs to be established is what level of freedom and autonomy is appropriate for employees to have. This needs to be balanced against the risks involved. Line managers need to ensure that they are seen as a resource to help people make the right decisions, not make decisions for them.

But what can HR do to help the organisation retain its talent, and hence knowledge assets?

• Help line managers identify who their most vulnerable team members are, i.e. the ones that they would least like to lose. Here managers will need to consider the different roles that individuals play in building, communicating and sharing knowledge. Losing central connectors, boundary spanners and information brokers, could be just as catastrophic as losing particular knowledge experts (these roles are discussed in more detail in the section on Social Network Analysis in the next chapter). Work with managers to develop a specific retention plan for vulnerable team members, or at least a transition plan, where it is inevitable that particular individuals will move on at a future point. Where HR can particularly add value here is in spotting knowledge gaps, overlaps and opportunities, because of their broader knowledge of resources in different business teams.

• Work with line managers to help them categorise their team members along the lines of Needs Attention, Watch this Space, Key Contributor and High Potential, so that they can then focus on the most appropriate development plans.

• Encourage line mangers to hold ‘anniversary chats’ with team members, using this as a time to reflect on most enjoyable projects/experiences, least enjoyable projects and experiences, critical learning moments, treasured secrets, as well as who their key supporters have been and why. Armed with this information, managers will then have a better understanding of personal motivators, how best to help an individual to develop going forward, as well as building an insight into the networks that individuals belong to.

• Provide managers with tools to help them manage the transfer of knowledge, which they can use at the end of major projects, or as individuals join/leave the team.

• Use Exit interviews as a way of gathering information to improve HR practices and also identify where HR practices are not aligned.

• Share Exit interview data with line managers, so that they can use this to reflect on, and then change, their own behaviours.

• When facilitating change programmes think through the implications and opportunities for building and retaining knowledge.

• Find ways of keeping in contact with former employees, so that their expertise can be tapped into at some future point if needed. A concept that seems to be gaining interest in the United States is setting up an Alumni scheme for former employees^[6]. The benefits of an Alumni scheme include: keeping the door open to re-employ certain employees in the future (often a more cost-effective way of recruiting than traditional routes); a source of intellectual capital; ambassadors and retention of investors (good Alumni relations can increase the odds that ex-employees will retain their stock holdings).

• The events of September 11th will have brought home the importance of considering the people implications of major disasters. Many organisations invest large sums of money in developing Disaster Recovery plans for their IT systems and yet a similar concept doesn’t necessarily exist for the organisation’s intellectual capital. What seems to be needed is a co-ordinated approach to IT and human resources disaster recovery planning, where plans are regularly tested out, as is the case with good IT Disaster Recovery plans.

^[6]Cultivating ex-employees by Sem Setoglu and Anne Berkowitch. Harvard Business Review, June 2002