Keeping Your Superstar Employees Happy
Identifying *Star* Employees
Consistently perform better than what is expected Anxious to advance within the company Become bored with usual job tasks Eager to take on new or additional tasks Seeks direction in order to be able to move ahead Displays leadership qualities among peers Work as a self-starter Actively seeks solutions to problems Thinks outside of the box and is creative Is invested in company goals and culture Desires to be an active part of the team and the company Is persistent and doesn’t give up Has a positive, “can do” attitude
Leo Moran
• Given Authority to make decisions• Feedback (constructive critiques)• Flexibility • Trust
Andrea Rich
• Manager asks for her input and ideas
• Manager believes in her• Feels at home• Doing what she loves• Coworkers work as a team• Can go to manager about
personal issues
Jeremy Waters
• Trust – manager lets him do his job with out micromanaging him
• Work environment• Coworkers – no egos• Being able to dress in
costume• Food
Remember
The most-cited reason an employee remains in or leaves a job is either satisfaction or
dissatisfaction with a boss.
*Star* employees can keep you busy as you work continuously to keep them challenged and motivated, but they are human assets
that require care and nurturing if they are to continue to grow
Challenging *Star* Employees
Special assignment and projects
Advanced Training Opportunities
Greater Responsibility and Autonomy
Involvement in Decision Making
Exposure to All Aspects of the Business
In 2013, Google employees were asked what they valued most at work. The top response was compiled as such:
“Access to even-keeled bosses who made time for one-on-one meetings, who helped people puzzle through problems by asking questions, not dictating answers, and who took an interest in employees’ lives and careers.”
Make a list of your direct reports at workThese are the people you hire, inspire, schedule, discipline, review, and support
Every employee at your site? Coordinators and leads? Coordinators only?
Who follows you?
Using the list provided, highlight all of the employees who are still working for CSC.
Count up the number of highlighted names in each column (10, 5,3,2,1 years)
Divide that number by the total number of employees on the list for that time period
What is your retention %?
What could your retention rate be??
What is your current employee retention rate?
To varying degrees, employees value:
PayPromotionSupervisionCoworkersThe work itself
Workplace Values
The Value – Perception Theory
Overall Job
Satisfaction
PaySatisfaction
As much as they deserve? Secure? Similar to others?
Promotion Satisfaction
Feelings about company promotion policies. Frequent? Fair? Based on
ability?
Supervision Satisfaction
Feelings about their boss. Is the boss competent? Polite?
Good communicator?
Coworker Satisfaction
Feelings about fellow employees. Are coworkers smart, responsible,
helpful, fun, and interesting?
Satisfaction with the work
itself
Feelings about actual work tasks. Are they challenging, interesting, respected, and make use of key
skills
Overall Job SatisfactionPay
Satisfaction
(Pay want – Pay have) Pay importance
Promotion Satisfaction
(Promotionwant – Promotionhave)x Promotionimportance
Supervision Satisfaction
(Supervisionwant – Supervisionhave)x Supervisionimportance
Coworker Satisfaction
(Coworkerwant – Coworkerhave)x Coworkerimportance
Satisfaction with the work itself
(Workwant – Workhave)x Workimportance
The Value – Perception Theory
Challenge your stars. Give them room to make mistakes and take risks because that is where they can excel and bring more to your company.
Reward your stars. Money isn’t the only reward a star employee wants or needs. Face time over lunch with an important member of your company or more input into the decision on which project he or she will tackle next can also reward and motivate your stars.
Ensure their growth. Spend time with your stars, providing them with feedback on their performance, informing them of job expectations, and developing their future. Your stars need to know their long-term potential with your company. And, they want to be a part of planning that future.
Hold your stars accountable. While a star knows (and in some cases overestimates) their worth, don’t find yourself in an untenable situation. The star who thinks he’s irreplaceable may become unmanageable. While high productivity and revenue generation are great attributes in an employee, you also want your stars to play well with others. Attitude is important and should not be overlooked in the evaluation process simply because someone has good numbers. Doing that might alienate a future star in your pool of good performers.
It is often said that 20% of your employees will consume 80% of your time – and not in a good way. Make sure you invest some of what’s left in your stars, and you’ll brighten your company’s future.