Don’t Let Your Top Finance Talent Slip Away

‘The Great Resignation’ has hit a range of industries particularly hard, but with a staff turnover rate of 10% in 2022, this is a particularly big concern for finance departments. There are industry-wide issues with skill gaps and high demand for talent in Finance. Finance employees can afford to be particularly choosy, especially if they have the key skills that your competitors are looking for. 

Here are five key ways that you can boost employee engagement and keep your talent with you for the long haul. 

Set clear goals 

One of the simplest ways to boost employee engagement and make talent feel appreciated is to make sure they know what they’re actually working towards. Give your employees some key goals with tangible results, both as a team and as individuals, and they’ll feel a lot more engaged. 

However, it’s critical to ensure that these goals are attainable. If your team is told they have to generate some high-level finance insights, but they’re stuck on low-level processing tasks, then you’re only going to boost their stress levels and make them more likely to quit for a competitor with more automation and more reasonable expectations. 

Likewise, if one department is consistently reaching all their goals without much effort, that could be a sign that they need a change of objectives to push them further. Most employees don’t want to feel like they’re coasting and bored.  

Either way, none of these quotas or KPIs should be set in stone. Solicit feedback from employees and management and adjust as needed.  

Offer new challenges  

Truly engaged employees will always look for new opportunities to develop. If they feel like they’re stagnating, they’ll start to look for new opportunities elsewhere. With skill gaps being such a big issue in finance departments, your employees have plenty of options, and if they feel they’re not given the opportunity to grow their careers, they’ll take their talents to your competitors. 

Giving your employees opportunities for self-evaluation as well as opportunities for growth will ensure they feel like their career path is heading in a direction they like. 

You should also bear in mind that not all employees want to be promoted onto management tracks with supervisory responsibilities. If this is your only internal career path, these employees will look elsewhere. Instead consider progression paths that involve taking on more important projects. 

Creating a culture centred around development will ensure your employees feel valued and appreciated. You may want to consider investing in an LMS, as this will provide a centralised system. 

Be transparent 

Engaged employees want to give a company their all, but if they sense there is wall between them and the rest of the company, this desire will quickly dwindle. Promoting open communication between all levels of the organisation will establish a much more positive work culture where your workers will feel valued and heard. 

Consider a recurring internal newsletter, or regular monthly meetings where you can talk openly and honestly about challenges your teams are facing, answer questions. You may also want to look into a work-specific social media platform. 

Promote inclusivity 

There are laws concerning workplace discrimination, but you need to go above and beyond this standard if you want to foster a more positive company culture that will lead to higher levels of engagement. If your employees don’t feel safe and comfortable at work, they’ll make it a point to find another employer. 

Factor diversity and inclusion training into your onboarding process and make it an ongoing strategy for employee development. You may also want to consider looking into alternative talent pipelines that will lead to more diversity within your organisation, which creates a positive feedback loop. 

Boost recruitment and onboarding 

Imagine turning up for your first day of work, and your new manager is off sick, or a key bit of equipment is missing. You’re left to flounder without direction. Even the most talented employee would struggle with this, and many would be more than willing to quit immediately.  

30% of new hires leave their jobs within the first six months, leaving you stuck with a bill for the recruitment process and no talent to show for it. A poorly managed recruitment and onboarding process is often to blame for this. 

You set the tone of your organisation’s relationship with an employee from the moment they apply for a job with you. If you make sure that recruitment and onboarding process is as smooth and painless as possible, you’ll create a much more loyal employee who’ll stick around for the long haul. 

Improving Engagement With MHR 

One of the best ways to boost employee engagement is through talent management software.  

Whether you’re looking for a way to reduce admin and gain more effective insights from your people data or create ways for your employees to develop in a way that makes them feel appreciated and challenged, MHR offers a range of HR talent management software and tools to help you attract, hire and retain the best talent possible. 

Click the button below to book a demo!