This is the second in our two part article series based on Loch’s Level Up webinar, Recruit and retain: Building a workforce and benefits plan that attracts and engages great talent.
The webinar’s speakers include Kate Rigby, HR Director at Loch, Laura Acosta, Senior Training and Wellbeing Consultant at Loch, and Nick Hale, Founding Director of Engage Health Group.
The webinar is available to catch up on demand. If you would prefer to gain an insight into the key themes covered in the webinar before watching, you can continue reading below.
In part one, we explored how organisations can recruit and attract the right people. In this article, we look at the second section of the webinar: how to retain and engage great talent through clear communication, strong management, wellbeing, development and employee benefits.
Retain and engage
Attracting the right people is only the first part of the employee lifecycle. Once someone has joined, employers need to think carefully about how they keep people engaged, supported and clear on the full value of working for the organisation.
That includes how benefits are communicated, how managers set expectations, how wellbeing is supported and how the wider employee experience contributes to long-term retention.
Communicate benefits clearly and regularly
A strong benefits package only has value if employees understand it and know how to use it.
In the webinar, Nick explained that benefits are often forgotten after implementation, or employees may not fully understand what is available. He suggested that employers keep benefits visible through internal systems, employee presentations, annual refreshers, total reward summaries or benefits platforms.
This point was reinforced when discussing retention. Salary is important, but the complete employee package includes benefits, flexible working, development opportunities, recognition, culture, leadership, management and working conditions. Employers need to communicate this wider package clearly and consistently.
Retention supports performance and culture
Crucially, the webinar highlighted that retention affects performance, cost, culture and long term success. High turnover disrupts teams, increases recruitment costs, reduces consistency and can affect productivity.
When employees stay, they understand the organisation’s systems, culture and expectations. They need less supervision, teams become more cohesive and people are more likely to feel a sense of belonging.
Clear expectations are also important. Employees need to understand what success looks like, what they are responsible for and how their performance will be measured. Regular one-to-ones, feedback, objectives and clear priorities can all help employees feel settled, valued and able to perform.
Managers set the tone
The webinar also highlighted the important role of leaders and line managers. Culture becomes real when it is consistently modelled from the top down.
Employees take their cues from senior leaders. When leaders demonstrate organisational values in everyday actions, they build trust and consistency. When poor behaviours are ignored, they can become accepted as the norm.
Line managers are especially important because they shape the day-to-day employee experience. Laura highlighted the need to train managers to be good people managers, including how to support performance, coach team members, communicate effectively and contribute positively to retention.
Support wellbeing and development
Laura also discussed the role of training, development and wellbeing in employee engagement and retention. Organisations should consider how they create a learning culture, support personal growth and encourage constructive feedback.
Wellbeing should also be considered holistically. This includes physical, mental, financial, career, emotional and social wellbeing, as well as how connected people feel to the organisation’s purpose. Laura encouraged organisations to examine their wellbeing policies, communication and culture, and to consider how these connect with the benefits package.
Next steps for your organisation
A key takeaway from the webinar was that recruitment, onboarding, engagement, retention, wellbeing and benefits should be considered as part of a wider people plan.
We have created a Recruit and Retain Checklist, designed to help you quickly score how well your organisation is set up across the key themes explored in the webinar. This includes workforce planning, culture and values, recruitment, onboarding, communication, manager capability, development, wellbeing and benefits. The checklist gives leaders and people teams a practical starting point to identify strengths, highlight gaps and decide where to focus next.
If you are looking for support in any of the areas covered, please get in touch with our expert team. For more information about Engage Health Group, please visit their website.
Missed part one? Click here to read the first article in this series.
