“People with the right talent for their jobs, and long tenures in them, outperform colleagues dramatically – and their contributions skyrocket when they are also engaged.”
So says James Harder in HBR’s Engage Your Long-Time Employees to Improve Performance. According to him, TET = talent, engagement and tenure.
The power of TET may not be a revelation to you, and it should motivate you to ask whether you are active in engaging (and retaining) these skilled, long-term employees. If you’re not, there is a risk that they will move on to other teams or organizations.
Next steps to maximize the TET trifecta:
- Put the right people in the right roles. Align with people’s natural talents, and if you find that you’ve made an error, find a new role with a better fit right away.
- Get to know your people – how the work fits with their purpose in life and their goals. Studies have shown that employees are more engaged when their boss really gets them.
- Allow them freedom to do what they do best. They’ll reward you with both high performance and commitment to the job.
What’s the bottom line payoff? According to Harder:
“Employees who hit the trifecta of tenure, engagement, and talent perform 18% higher than the average employee and 35% higher than a worker who goes zero for three. For skilled production, and support staff, this equates to a financial impact of $6 million and $12 million, respectively, per 1,000 employees. For highly educated professionals, the economic impact essentially doubles from $12 to $23 million per 1,000 workers.”
Definitely worth the effort.
Have a surefire way of hiring and keeping people and boosting their engagement? Comment below or message us.
Photo by Alex Kotliarskyi on Unsplash