We are constantly surprised and dismayed at the apparent lack of loyalty displayed by our employees. We cannot believe our attrition rates are so high; we have a hard time fathoming that a 10-year tenured employee would just leave (even worse when they go to a competitor!).
We do a lot of things to help engage and keep employees; ranging from creating Values Statements, inclusion meetings, Employee Resource Groups, virtual or in-person fitness programs, free mental health counseling. But human beings do not measure loyalty on a simple basis.
Every “industry standard practice” you implement in your department is a weak link in your employee market positioning waiting to snap.
Which would you rather work with: a team who measure success as defined by “industry standards”, or a team whose measure of success is the frequency at which they out-perform those “standards”?
It does not take much to go beyond the industry standard, and small investments pay off big when it comes to employees. In a world where employees largely feel they are treated like assets which will depreciate and be replaced, giving them even a tiny amount of additional respect or reward will go a disproportionately long way towards building their loyalty.