Replacing an employee can cost up to 200% of that employee’s annual salary. “Even during a time of high unemployment, top salespeople are always in demand, and their skills are easily portable from one sales environment to the next,” says Katherine Graham-Leviss, founder of XB Consulting. “Losing them to a higher bidder or a more lucrative sales opportunity is too easy to be taken lightly.” Whether a great employee quits or a poor employee is fired, the costs add up – from severance pay and vacation accrual to job advertising, recruiting fees, and staff time used for paperwork, resume reviews, and interviews, it’s all lost resources. Because there are many better ways to spend your company’s money, here are seven great ways to reduce employee turnover.

 1. Market the job properly.

A lot of new hire turnover is due to bad hiring decisions. While it is possible that a candidate seems like a great fit in the interview and just doesn’t work out, more often poor job descriptions and failure to provide a clear understanding of the work are to blame for a new employee’s inability to thrive in a position. “When you hire people for the wrong job, they leave” says Graham-Leviss.

 2. Pay attention to cultural fit.

Just as hiring people for the wrong job doesn’t work, hiring people for the wrong company doesn’t work. “Employers should focus their efforts on acquiring candidates who are not just skilled for the position, but are also a strong cultural fit for the company,” says Nathan Parcells, VP of Marketing at Looksharp. “Behavior-based screening and interviewing will help to make best long-term hires.”Employees that enjoy your corporate culture are more likely to stay and to do well.

 3. Don’t let them get bored.

Boredom is the enemy of employee retention. Allowing employees to rotate between functions within your company not keeps them challenged and excited by the variety, but can also make them understand the company’s big picture more and be more invested in its success. "It [Michelin’s rotational program] keeps it new and exciting and they're challenged," says David Stafford, executive VP of human resources at Michelin. “And when people are challenged we know they perform better, both individually and as a team."

Want to know the other four tips? Read the full article on the Happie blog!