How to Keep Your Best Employees in 2022 — in Malaysia & Beyond

Throughout 2021, you might have heard of the term, The Great Resignation — with workers across the globe leaving their jobs at historically unprecedented rates. This came down to a number of different factors, including the economic effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well the (drastically) accelerated popularity of flexible work arrangements.

Many have opted to look for better opportunities, or even to start businesses, work in the freelance economy, or other flexible employment options. As a result, 2022 has started with employers and HR departments looking at the best ways to keep their best employees — or to keep their best talents from leaving.      

If that sounds like you, take a deep breath, and relax. Here are the best ways to retain your best employees in 2022. 

Purpose & Values 

The Great Resignation has triggered quite a bit of conversation on workplace culture, and the role that it plays in employee retention. This employee-centric perspective, of course, means that companies are now under more pressure to offer an environment that empowers employees to feel valued and included. 

So, how do you achieve this? For starters, it’s crucial to understand what your company’s Purpose and Values are — and how they drive the everyday goals of your organisation. This ultimately helps your employees to understand what matters most to the business and customers, while giving them a sense of community and purpose. 

Inclusive Culture 

Strength comes in many shapes and forms, and diversity is key to ensuring that you attract — and retain — the best talents for your company. Having contributors from different backgrounds, generations, disciplines, or even locations, can and will lead to more innovation, as well as employee engagement. 

Employers and HR managers also need to understand that diversity and inclusion shouldn’t simply be a policy, or even a quota to be filled. Instead, it’s all about appreciating the unique perspectives that can be offered by a varied workforce — and the benefits that this approach offers to holding on to your best talents.

Adopt a data-driven approach

2021 hasn’t just been the year of The Great Resignation — it has also been a year that has seen drastically accelerated digital transformation efforts. As workforces transitioned to flexible work arrangements such as remote or hybrid work models, organisations have also had to undergo digital transformations in order to survive, and thrive in the endemic. 

This process of digital transformation is equally as relevant to employee retention. With the right tools, your HRMS will play a key role in holding relevant employee information, which can be used to better predict outgoing trends when it comes to employees in the team. Take altHR’s Performance Management module, for example, which allows managers and employees to schedule, and store performance reviews at customisable intervals. 

Read more about that here.

Offer the right resources

As the Fifth Industrial Revolution (5IR) arrives, it’s critical that employees upskill and update themselves. This will result in mutually beneficial outcomes for both employers and employees, with the former reaping the rewards of a future-ready workforce, while the latter can boost employment prospects. 

In order to keep the best employees, you’re best advised to lend a helping hand in improving your talents to be the best that they can be. Invest in learning programmes to empower your team, while it can also be helpful to offer incentives, or even scholarship initiatives to encourage your employees to improve their digital skills. 

At the end of the day, you’ll reap the rewards of this approach. Take care of your employees, and you’ll have better employees for it — personally and professionally. 

Offer flexibility, where possible

According to a recent Accenture report, over 80 percent of respondents revealed that the hybrid work model would be “optimal” — signifying a shift in mindset of today’s workforce. In fact, it can even be worth exploring other flexible work arrangements such as a shorter work week, which can help boost employee recruitment and retention rates.

Of course, this can depend on the nature of your business’ industry, or individual job scopes and competencies, but as 2020/2021 has shown us, the widespread adoption of digital tools has meant that the traditional work model is no longer a mandatory requirement for many organisations. In fact, Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey even announced “permanent” work-from-home arrangements for the social media giants’ employees back in 2020 — along with a number of other prominent organisations.

At the end of the day, this is a call you’ll have to make from industry to industry, company to company, or even employee to employee. If you need help getting started with that, click here.