Even the best of the best and the high performing employees are subject to the hazards of the workplace that can lead them towards another employer. Those hazards? Disengagement, poor communication and a lack of goal alignment can drive employees to find another company who will provide solutions to these problems. There are common causes of the “quits” and some recurrent behavior of those team members who are on the verge of giving you their two weeks’ notice. Don’t worry… there is a solution.

Let’s Investigate…

Where does it begin? Explicitly or not, you’ve burdened your high performing employees with too many responsibilities. Subsequently, they fall to workplace stress and become less satisfied with their jobs. This, unfortunately, can progress to a cyclic process. Once an employee leaves due to excessive stress, their responsibilities are then:

• Given to coworkers to make sure projects don’t lag
• Passed to the new hire, who may or may not have the appropriate training
• Rinse and repeat

To exacerbate the problem with increased responsibility is a lack of communication. You’re a busy manager. Not only do you supervise your team, there are projects you spearhead as well. It’s understandable there’s not always enough time in the day to “be there,” right? Well, unfortunately, that can be a predecessor to employee disengagement. Eric Jackson, said:

“Lots of bosses protest that they have an ‘open door policy’ for their people to come in and talk with them whenever they need to. But, if you’re never around or – when you are – you zip in to grab something off your desk and zip back out or get on a conference call… that’s not going to invite a lot of your staff to come in and shoot the breeze with you.” [1]

If you’re not available for your employees to discuss projects or potential issues in the workplace, you won’t be able to stave off their two weeks’ notice.

Symptoms of the Quits

As with most workplace problems, there are key indicators that manifest before your employee begins to look for other work. One-in-5 currently employed workers are currently looking for new roles (potentially at different companies). [2] While these signals of a disengaged employee might be subtle, they are crucial to resolving the disengagement before it becomes a much larger problem. Some of these signs include [3]:

• Careless Work – A good employee who consistently has produced good work begins to present sloppy projects as finished products and shows boredom and disinterest in the work.
• Change in Hours – Some employees who are nearing their “two weeks” begin to take abnormally high amounts of time off; coming in late, leaving early, more appointments than normal… All signs they could be they they’re trying to use their PTO before their last day.
• Distance – Isolation from coworkers shows an employee is already checked out from the position.

Rx: Regular Performance Appraisal

The only way managers have a chance at understanding the driving force of an uncomfortably high turnover rate is regular performance reviews. Why? A performance appraisal has the opportunity to ignite a two-way conversation between an employee and their manager. Understanding the problems and concerns from members of your team will not only give you insight into how the team works, but how to solve those problems as well.

More than the standard 3% salary raise can come from a successful performance appraisal. These meetings can instigate a regular discussion that help to prevent a disgruntled employee. Because a change in performance can be an indicator of job dissatisfaction (and another job search), a performance appraisal can illuminate problem areas for the employee and develop solutions. Even with a traditional performance appraisal, managers see a 3-5% improvement in employee performance.

By integrating regular performance reviews into your retention and engagement strategies, your organization can solve retention issues before they become problems. Once leadership understands the signals of a disengaged employee looking for new work, it’s easier to pinpoint the reasons behind the disengagement and isolation.

Sources: [1] – Forbes.com – The Top 8 Reasons Your Best People Are About to Quit – And How You Can Keep Them [2] – Inc.com – Are Your Employees Looking for a New Job? [3] – HR Morning – 7 Warning Signs a Great Employee’s About to Quit

Bio: Chris Arringdale

Chris Arringdale is the Co-Founder and President of Reviewsnap, an online performance appraisal software that allows you to customize performance management, competencies, rating scales and review periods. Reviewsnap serves more than 1,200 customers worldwide including, Penske Racing, CubeSmart, PrimeSource and Nonprofit HR Solutions.