We are in the last month of 2024 and now is the time to look very carefully at your company's employees, with the aim of providing individualized and – above all, fair – feedback to each of them, in addition to being able to understand how people's work is impacting the organization in general, whether this impact is positive or even negative.
The truth is that the end of the year usually brings that feeling of exhaustion and the desire for it to be over quickly. However, as a manager, you need to ensure that your team members do not feel discouraged; on the contrary. This is a time when employees need to be satisfied with their jobs, which will be the result of work that should have been done over the months.
And why am I saying this? People may start to consider ending cycles right in December, so that they can begin a new phase in the next year, considering the guaranteed bonus. And this includes resigning from your current jobs to accept new opportunities that are more interesting or have caught your attention, whether for more attractive roles or a higher and better salary.
The fact is that to reap, you have to sow. In these cases, it is very important that the leader has worked over the months to engage the team, making people not want to leave, especially during a festive and closing moment, when employees from most companies usually celebrate their achievements of the year and set goals to be achieved in the future.
For this reason, it is essential to know the pain points of team members so that they can eventually be addressed, thereby enabling talent retention, which certainly makes a difference in the overall performance of the company. No one is irreplaceable, but it's good to know that we can count on competent people who dedicate themselves to delivering the best performances daily.
One premise of OKRs – Objectives and Key Results – is precisely related to the importance of the team in achieving results, and the tool can help leaders understand what needs to be done to provide the conditions for employees to want to stay at the company and be satisfied. And this ranges from a healthy work environment to an increase in benefits, for example.
A high salary does not always 'bind' a person to a job, as there are other factors that influence the decision to stay or leave. GPTW consulting survey –Great Place To Work– listed the 5 factors that motivate employees to stay in companies, and salary is not the first: 1st Opportunity for growth; 2nd Quality of life; 3rd Remuneration and benefits; 4th Alignment of values; 5th Stability.
In this scenario, it is essential that the manager understands that it is necessary to build every day a process where team members will want to stay in the company, not because of lack of alternatives, but because they genuinely want to be there. And that is the difference in being able to retain talent and having employees who are truly happy with the position they hold.
When the full potential offered by OKRs is properly utilized, the leader engages the team in setting priorities and grants autonomy for them to work. Believe me, these two points are fundamental for greater employee engagement, which will lead to better results.
Don't change a winning team
