“Retaining employees is much more advantageous for us in our businesses than looking to hire new talent in the marketplace,” says Shelly Waggoner, CEBS, MS, SHRM-SCP, vice president, MGMA Human Resources, in a recent episode of the MGMA Small Talk podcast.
With low unemployment rates in many areas of the country, healthcare workers have more options than ever for finding new and better opportunities. “Employees really have their choice about where they want to spend their time,” Waggoner says. “And so now more than ever it’s important that we think about how we retain our top performers.”
She recommends working to improve engagement within your workplace. “Just the simple things — the hellos, the good mornings, the ‘how are you?’ — if we take a few minutes to engage with our staff and let them know how important they are to us and show some interest in who they are as individuals in the workplace, I find that that will serve us well longer term.”
Another key, Waggoner says, is to provide opportunities for growth. “Employees are typically looking for continuing to grow themselves in their current roles, and if you can play a role in that process you have the ability to retain someone longer term.”
Listen to the full episode to learn more about stay interviews and other ways to keep your best employees from leaving your organization.
Visit our Podcasts page to hear more episodes of MGMA Small Talk, or subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Google Play or SoundCloud so that you’ll never miss an episode.
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