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It’s no secret in the HR and recruitment world that the beginning of a new year can be a time of great turnover. People take leave from work, consider what they want for the coming year, and decide that it’s time for a new job alongside other New Year’s resolutions. HR’s challenge is to funnel this employee energy into being engaged rather than disengaged with their current role.
Harnessing New Year’s energy
If you want part of your employees’ excitement for the start of a new year to be due to work, give your people something to be excited about! Don’t wait weeks to welcome your staff back to work if everyone is returning from holidays – strike while the iron is hot and communicate plans for the year ahead that everyone can get behind.
On a recent podcast with HR Leader’s sister brand, The Adviser, Annie Kane – editor of The Adviser – and Shandel McAuliffe – editor of HR Leader – talked about the importance of learning opportunities when it comes to retention.
Funnel your employees’ excitement and desire for new adventures at work into learning initiatives to show them there’s still plenty of mileage in their current role. Ask your staff what they want to get out of 2023 from a professional point of view, and then do what you can to meet those needs.
Redirect a desire for change into new internal opportunities
Back in November last year, HR Leader covered the idea of ‘stay conversations’ in This week in HR: How employers can support hybrid work and burnout. If your line managers have not had a chat with your employees recently about why they want to keep working for you, now is a good time to prod people to have that discussion.
New year’s resolutions are all about a desire to grab onto the excitement of a fresh start and a clean slate. HR should realise that this sentiment will be present in most workers’ minds, from the C-suite to entry level roles, and encourage the necessary conversations across the business to discover what each person needs be fulfilled at work this year. This might well involve opening up new internal mobility opportunities for your workforce.
It’s also important not to make assumptions. As Ms Kane noted in The Adviser podcast (referenced above): “Not everyone’s the same. Not everyone wants to be given the opportunity to thrive. Some people are like, ‘You know what? I’m happy where I am. I’m more than happy just punching in, punching out, and getting the most out of my day, and going home, and not really going any further.’ But each to their own.” So, asking people what they need to ‘stay’ is the crucial step here.
For more ideas on how you can keep top talent this year, check out the recent HR Leader webinar in partnership with Lotus People and Enboarder: Attracting and retaining talent in 2023.
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Employee engagement is the level of commitment people have to the company, how enthusiastic they are about their work, and how much free time they devote to it.
Shandel McAuliffe
Shandel has recently returned to Australia after working in the UK for eight years. Shandel's experience in the UK included over three years at the CIPD in their marketing, marcomms and events teams, followed by two plus years with The Adecco Group UK&I in marketing, PR, internal comms and project management. Cementing Shandel's experience in the HR industry, she was the head of content for Cezanne HR, a full-lifecycle HR software solution, for the two years prior to her return to Australia.
Shandel has previous experience as a copy writer, proofreader and copy editor, and a keen interest in HR, leadership and psychology. She's excited to be at the helm of HR Leader as its editor, bringing new and innovative ideas to the publication's audience, drawing on her time overseas and learning from experts closer to home in Australia.
