#NextChat Recap: How to Win the Talent War on Your Own Turf

Employees are leaving companies faster than ever, and one of the main reasons is lack of career development and advancement opportunities offered by their employer. In order to keep employee retention high, managers need to be active in employee development focusing on making communication a priority.

“Stay interviews” between managers and team members are conversations about career paths, skills gaps and employee development. It’s crucial to hold these meetings regularly. If you missed this week’s #NextChat, here is a quick rundown of the best responses:

Q1. How does your organization currently assist employees with career development?

We thought Kelly Marinelli (@KellyinBoulder), Andrew Henck (@MillennialTweet) and Liz Sheffield (@Liz_Sheffield) had rockstar responses! Mentoring programs, temporary assignments and making ongoing career conversations a priority are great ways to enhance career development.

Q2. What gets in the way of employee development? (and how are you overcoming those obstacles?)

Callie Zipple (@SHRMCallieZ), Chrissa Dockendorf (@MissionHired), Jeff Palkowski (@JeffPally) and ClearCompany (@ClearCompany) pointed to regular performance reviews, setting aside resources and training time as crucial enhancements to employee development.

Q3. What do today’s employees want and need for more meaningful employee development? What are they asking for?

Mary Faulkner (@mfaulkner43),  Lena (@lena_nguyen), iRevü (@Engagiant_iRevu) and Mofota Sefali (@Mofota) spoke of hands-on learning, constant employee feedback and opening up the doors for employee development opportunities as great retention techniques.

Q4. What innovative programs or practices have your organization developed to encourage greater employee development?

Ken Okel (@KenOkel), Paul Wolfe (@PWolfe67) and Tunde Omotoye (@TundeTASH) had superstar answers! Career mapping, coaching and mentoring employees and having open-ended conversations with employees will encourage greater employee development.

Q5. How does your organization use new HR technology to help employees think about their development and their next steps?

Anand Sivashankar (@ggmarquez) and Gemma Toth (@Gem4ever) mention the importance of tracking performance, training and creating reports for employees. Also, there was discussion of how interactive DIY tools and career maps could better help keep employees on track.

Q6. Stay interviews are critical components of an employee retention strategy. What questions should organizations ask employees during stay interviews?

David Kovacovich (@DavidKovacovich), Jeremy Ames (@JeremyAllynAmes) and Elena Valentine (@Elena_Valentine) had superstar answers! Asking meaningful, open-ended questions will help employees envision their career at your company. Not to mention this will allow them to develop their own goals, which helps inspire ownership.

Q7. What are the cultural characteristics of organizations that are getting employee development right?

We thought Tunde Omotoye and iRevü hit the nail on the head with introducing an open door policy or offering a unique office environment. Both can help build cultural characteristics within your organization that resonate with candidate and employee alike.

Q8. What career/employee development advice is outdated or no longer applicable in the 21st-century workplace?

Xike Vaughn (@VaughnOSU98) and iRevü agreed with many in the space by saying the annual performance review is outdated. Now, it’s all about creating ongoing feedback with feedback loops. That means everyone from intern to CEO should be hearing about their performance.

Take a look at the complete list of the best answers we compiled from this weeks #NextChat below:

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