Retaining our best employees is important to every organization. Often times, a major part of the retention effort is being able to recognize when employees are trying to find greener pastures. The following is a summary of seven red flags to be on the lookout for.
1. Sloppy work habits – Most likely, your top performing employees are consistent in their quality of work and meeting deadlines. Prolonged lapses in quality or efficiency could be a sign that the employee has become disengaged from the company.
2. Ties start appearing – A tale-telling sign that something may be up is if your employee who typically dresses casually suddenly begins wearing a tie a few times a week. If they aren’t just upgrading their wardrobe, they are most likely dressing up for interviews.
3. Keeping odd hours – An employee may be planning to jump ship if they begin leaving early, arriving late or requesting days off at the last second – especially if they have been a model employee prior to this.
4. Isolation – If an employee is covering up personal calls during work time and/or taking frequent trips away from the desk to seek alone time, you may be justified to be alarmed. They may be fielding calls from or making calls to potential employers.
5. Out-of-character complaining – If an employee who was regularly happy and pleased with their position suddenly displays a surly personality and complains about co-workers, you may be correct to assume that the employee has become disenchanted with his or her work.
6. Big life changes – Major life changes such as childbirth, death of a loved one, marriage, divorce, etc. could all alter one’s career. These are all also great opportunities to sit down with the employee and discuss future work plans.
7. Less interaction with coworkers – If an employee has become distant from coworkers it could be a sign that the person has already “checked out” and has decided there is no need to continue with the personal or work relationships.