To make sure key employees do not jump ship, managers must focus on the personal relationship they have with these individuals.

Caela Farren of MasteryWorks is an expert in worker-boss relationships. A survey by MasteryWorks found that the primary factor affecting a respondent’s decision to leave the organization is not typically money or benefits, but whether or not the manager developed a trusting relationship with them.

Says Farren, “Especially during turbulent times, managers who get to know their people, respect and trust the competency of their employees, and listen continually for how employees are doing relative to their aspirations, quality of work-life and sense of career advancement will have a far greater chance of developing and retaining their key employees.”
Here are the top 10 ways managers can develop a trusting relationship with their employees:

1. Spot an employee’s unique talent or skill and coach him/her to get the very best out of that.
2. Do not micro-manage; give employees space to find their own solutions.
3. Provide important information rather than holding on to it for political reasons.
4. Listen to employees’ concerns about the progress or direction of their careers and support them in moving in that direction.
5. Know what’s important to employees in terms of both their professional and personal lives and help them design — or redesign — work and learning around that.
6. Provide frequent and specific feedback on performance and challenge employees to make contributions based on their talents.
7. Foster networking and mentoring, linking people to valuable resources inside and outside the company.
8. Negotiate work schedules, work styles, and work modes so that skilled employees can fit in and have a balanced life.
9. Run interference, remove barriers, and help employees work through organization politics.
10. Recognize and reward employees publicly for their accomplishments and give them credit with colleagues, management, and customers.

“The quality of the manager-employee relationship is a critical feature of the workplace environment for an employee,” says Farren. “Particularly during these trying times, building a relationship based on trust is the most effective way to retain your key people.”

For more information on employee engagement and retention visit Canadian Management Centre’s online resource

The Training & Development Professionals’ Tool-Kit

(Reproduced with permission of author Caela Farren)