According to a press release from the Conference Board, Americans are increasingly growing unhappy with their jobs.

More then 60% of people define themselves by their jobs and the contributions they make to them. When employees don’t feel valued in the workplace, it becomes a retention issue.

It wasn’t that long ago when employees were employees for life. They believed their company would take good care of them and in return they did good work. Generation X and Y have a very different mindset. They think and function similar to “Free Agents”and tend to sell their services to the highest bidder.

High Employee Turnover Effects Many Organization

High employee turnover is effecting many organizations. The cost associated with recruiting and training new employees is astounding. In today’s competitive employment market, you need to not only attract top performers but develop a clear cut strategy to retain them. Employers today will have to find innovative ways to keep their employees engaged.

How To Make Your Organization a “Hard-to-leave” Workplace

Work/life programs such as telecommuting, flex-time and others are proven to be powerful in increasing employee retention rates. However, increasing employee retention doesn’t always have to be about adding initiatives.

Organizations often over look the people who have the most influence over an employee’s job satisfaction and motivation – their managers. A manger’s attitude can be one of the biggest obstacles in overcoming an employee retention problem.

In order for a manager to be an effective motivator, then need to understand what makes Their employees tick, and what gets them going within the context of the role they perform at the company.

Respect, Recognition & Rewards

While specific motivations such as compensation, job security, growth opportunities and interesting work are constantly in motion. Elements like Respect, Recognition and Rewards are constant motivators among all age groups.

Barb Wingfield of Green Thumb Management and Janice Berry wrote a short series book that talks about the 3 R’s of employee retention and gives examples of ways to implement each.

At the end of the day the best way to retain your employees is by keeping them satisfied. They need to believe that their needs are better met at your organization then anywhere else. Satisfied employees are more productive, and thus help organizations prosper as a result.