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At a time when attracting and retaining good people is a major business challenge, it is useful to consider conditions that will cause people to leave your company. These are not in priority order, nor will we claim to have thought of everything.
The first mistake is playing favorites. This is particularly common and dangerous in a family managed business. If workers feel that some of their colleagues get preferential treatment because they have a better surname, they will leave for a new job where there are no “favorite sons.” When new people are brought into the organization, do those with impressive college degrees get treated differently from others with lower credentials? To keep the best talent, be sure that everyone has an equal chance to move up the ladder.
The second mistake is setting inconsistent goals. In the warehousing industry, there is a natural emphasis on productivity. When people are pushed to move quickly, mistakes are made in the interest of speed. If a worker knows that improperly entering information could result in dismissal, that worker will be stressed by the need to choose between accuracy and speed. The Disney organization stresses the four most important priorities: safety, courtesy, performance, efficiency.
These priorities never change, since efficiency is far less important than the first three.
Putting people in the wrong role is the next error. If one of your people hates the job because they feel that management does not recognize abilities, that person will look for another job that is more rewarding. How do you know that one of your people is in the wrong job? The answer is to ask. The best organizations have “stay interviews” as well as exit interviews.
Many warehouse operations have process constraints. Workers are forced to wait for other tasks to be completed before they can move forward with their own project. “Hurry up and wait” is an old military proverb, but it is frequently found in warehousing. Whenever you see people in your warehouse who are not moving, find out why. Good workers will leave when they feel the system creates wasted time.
Wasted resources is usually the result of too many meetings, many of which are not effective. When a talented manager feels that needless meetings make it impossible to get the important work done, the frustration may be resolved by finding a better place to work.
A hostile environment hurts everyone. A safe culture encourages workers to stay, but when an employee fears that expressing unpopular ideas will be met with repercussions, one answer is to join a company with a welcoming atmosphere. Sometimes a hostile environment is no more than the presence of an abusive supervisor. People leave good companies when they are stuck with a bad boss.
At the same time, a moderate level of pressure and friction is healthy in a workplace. It may stimulate growth. People don’t have to agree, as long as they respect those who have different views. If your workers have no pressure at all, they may wonder if their work is even worth doing. If any of your people will feel that their work is insignificant or unimportant, they may hunt for a new job where they feel they can make a difference.
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