In this episode of Transform Your Workplace, host Brandon Laws sits down with Erica Keswin, a renowned workplace strategist and bestselling author. Erica sheds light on her latest book, The Retention Revolution, which urges leaders to reevaluate their strategies in the ongoing War for Talent to remain competitive in this ever-changing world of work. When it comes to talent retention, Erica explains, leaders must provide avenues for professional growth, nurture connection, embrace flexibility, and keep doors open even when employees decide to pursue new opportunities.
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GUEST AT A GLANCE
Erica is a workplace strategist, consultant, speaker, and bestselling author. In 2020, she was recognized as one of Marshall Goldsmith’s Top 100 Coaches and one of Business Insider’s most innovative coaches.
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🔊 Podcast: Transform Your Workplace, sponsored by Xenium HR
🎙️ Host: Brandon Laws
📋 In his own words: “The Transform Your Workplace podcast is your go-to source for the latest workplace trends, big ideas, and time-tested methods straight from the mouths of industry experts and respected thought-leaders.”
HUMANITY AT WORK
There’s no doubt that the COVID-19 pandemic irrevocably changed the workforce game. According to recent guest Erica Keswin, “the pandemic accelerated some of the trends” that she was already seeing, one of which was the need for people to be treated more humanely at work. As they grappled with the unexpected at every turn, leaders were also compelled to listen to their people and adapt to avoid losing them to the Great Resignation.
“Even leaders who didn’t have an inclination to bring who they were to the workplace didn’t have a choice,” Erica explained. Remote work — dogs and kids in the background and frequent technology breakdowns — made it nearly impossible for us to hide our humanity, and this shift increased the expectation for leaders to be empathetic and vulnerable with their people. Erica Keswin’s newest book, The Retention Revolution, explores the impact of the pandemic on the modern workplace, specifically discussing how today’s leaders can change with the times and embrace the “virtuous” retention cycle instead of fighting a losing battle in the War for Talent.
PODCAST EPISODE HIGHLIGHTS
Changing Times
“I was an executive recruiter for a long time, and I would get a resume, and if somebody had ten jobs or even five jobs, it was like ‘red flag, red flag.’ And now I think we’re going to see these resumes, and it’s just going to be par for the course. It’s just going to be normal. And that’s really what led to the book being called The Retention Revolution. Because what I believe is that in this new world of work — with people coming in with an expectation that they’re not going to stay in one place — we need to be really intentional about how we onboard and who we say we are as a company, what our values are, what we believe in, and how we’re going to help you grow and develop while you’re there.”
“And on the other end of the spectrum, when you’re ready to leave — unless you cheat and steal — the average employee, like let’s try to get our leaders to move away from this idea of ‘you’re dead to me, and don’t let the door hit you in the behind.’”
Unlocking the Handcuffs
“The idea behind the book is that if we assume that people aren’t going to stay forever, which they likely aren’t… If we get over ourselves and be okay with it, and if we’re willing to invest in people, even though we’re not golden handcuffing them to the desk — which never really worked that well anyway — then people will grow and develop, be engaged, and add to your bottom line while they’re there. And what we’re starting to see is if you do some of these things, not because you expect them to stay or you’re tying them to the desk, they end up staying longer because you’re treating them like humans.”
Onboarding: The Real Work
“We used to think that onboarding was, ‘Okay, let me give you your computer, tell you where the bathroom is, and here’s a key, and if you’re remote, here’s your password, and now your real work begins.’ In The Retention Revolution, onboarding is so critical, and there are even companies in the book that have what I call pre-onboarding — that time between when I give Brandon an offer to work at my company, but he’s not starting for a month. What do we do in that month? […] And so the phrase that I love in this chapter, it’s called start-as-you-mean-to-go onboarding. […] So the minute that you give someone a job offer, how are you showing up? As a company, how is the manager showing up? How are you living the values? And really, are you connecting this person to a buddy? Are you inviting them to something?”
Celebrating the Offer
“One of my favorite stories in the book is from a company that [has] a celebration when they give the person the offer, which is really, really cool. And so they’ll say, ‘Alright, Brandon, congratulations! We’re offering you this job.’ And then[…] all the people that interviewed you are there, and each person goes around and says, ‘I’m excited, Brandon, to have you on the team because I think you really could hit the ground running in this. And here’s where I think you can add value.’”
Redefining “Work”
“We need to really change how we’re measuring performance and flexibility […]. The technology has enabled us, so we have to find what I call the sweet spot between tech and connect. Let’s leverage technology for all of its greatness, but we also have to make sure that we put it in its place. […] Back in the middle of the pandemic — the mouse jiggler — which was a lot of the leaders saying, ‘Oh, if Brandon’s working from home, he’s definitely not working.’ There’s this assumption: out of sight, out of mind. […] So when we think about flexibility, to make flexibility work, you as the leaders need to be really clear. What are the expectations? How are we measuring performance? Because if you can’t define that, then you can’t really make the case for whether or not people where people should be working.”
The Power of Connection
“This sounds so cheesy, but left to our own devices, we’re not connecting. And so one of the things that I saw in the research was that companies now — big and small — are making this connection thing part of someone’s job or even hiring somebody to do it. I call it the connection curators. They all have different names for what the people are, but they don’t leave it to chance. […] Because what you don’t want, and this is the ‘left to our own devices’ part, is you and I both come into the office, and we commute, and we’re there, but we’re not talking to each other all day. And that actually can make the loneliness and the isolation and the frustration that much worse.”
The Frontlines Fighters
Managers are, in my opinion, the MVPs of the Retention Revolution. The middle might be messy, but the middle really is the center. They are the center of your organization. They are on the front lines of the Retention Revolution, and their job is really freaking hard right now. And it’s always been hard, but it is really hard now because they are the ones that are trying to implement hybrid work. They are the ones that everybody’s coming to them saying, ‘I need an exception. I can’t come in on Wednesdays.’ So leaders need to understand how hard this role is. […] So we need to start really being strategic about that role. If you want managers to have time to manage along with the other pieces, we’ve got to invest in training them and giving them the support that they need.”
Final Thoughts on Retention
“We know that people want to grow and develop on the job. And if you don’t create opportunities for them to do it inside your company, they’re going to leave. […] You start with this assumption that people may not be there forever. You give them what we know they want, which are trained managers who are empathetic and willing to listen. You give them opportunities to grow and to develop. You figure out what makes sense for your organization around flexibility. You’re doing all these things. And if they do decide to leave, you don’t close the door forever. And so that really is the magic.”
LEARN MORE
Stay up to date with Erica’s speaking engagements, best-selling books, and podcast by heading over to her website.