Turnover is Not a Problem
"Ha!" you say. "For someone to make a statement like that, they obviously haven't worked in the real world and certainly have never had to run a company." Well, let me assure you. In my past I've not only run companies, but spent many years in one of the most notorious industries for turnover ? the restaurant industry.
Don't get me wrong, I understand and appreciate the challenges that turnover creates. Turnover causes a drop in productivity, lower profits, inconsistent quality, and certainly creates work overload. In addition, turnover results in a lack of motivation, a lack of enthusiasm, apathy, and a lack of teamwork. But here's the question?
Are the challenges I just raised problems or symptoms? In the context of our discussion of turnover, most people would agree that they're all symptoms of our turnover challenge. Turnover caused each of these shortfalls, which leads us to the core question:
Is turnover a problem or a symptom?
Turnover is a symptom.
But what is turnover a symptom of? You may argue that turnover is a symptom of a weak workforce ? unmotivated people, apathetic, too small of a labor pool, etc. I believe, however, that turnover is caused by other factors. Turnover is related to leadership. Turnover is a symptom of leadership problems. Some of these leadership-related problems are: lack of purpose, lack of integrity, absence of a plan for developing people, poor communications, and treating people as objects instead of people.
Let's discuss whether these factors really do cause turnover. I always suggest that clients use their own experience as their best example. Have you ever worked for a company just to earn a living? A job where you really didn't care about the work or the company? I'd guess that virtually everyone has been in that situation at one time or another. You may even be in that situation right now. When you were in that job, were you on the lookout for a better opportunity? Did you leave the company to take a job just to make more money? (? and then repeat the whole scenario once more?) When a company and a job lack purpose, turnover occurs.
Have you ever worked for someone who lacked integrity? Someone who would say one thing and do another? Someone who promised to do something but never did? Someone who took the credit and placed the blame? Unfortunately, I'd have to guess that each of us has had that kind of boss at one time or another. When you were in that situation, did you continue to do your work? Of course you did. Was your work accurate and correct? Of course it was. Did you take the initiative on new projects for the benefit of the company? Maybe not. Go the extra mile to make a difference? Hmmm? Did you leave the company at the first opportunity? Point made. When an individual or company lacks integrity, turnover occurs.
Ever work in a company where the prospects of advancement or expansion of responsibilities were nonexistent? Someplace where you knew that you weren't going anywhere? Stay very long? That's my point. Without an opportunity for growth, learning, expansion of responsibility, and increase in personal value, people leave. When people aren't developed, turnover takes place.
Have you ever worked in a company where major changes were "sprung" on you like a surprise attack? Where work was assigned to you and after you completed it, you found out you had done the wrong thing? What happens when people don't communicate effectively? Poor communication leads to misunderstandings, conflict, de-motivation, and stress. What do misunderstanding, conflict, de-motivation and stress lead to? You got it ? turnover.
And then comes the most insidious issue of them all - treating people as objects rather than people. The truth is that from time to time we all fall into this trap to one degree or another. I'm talking about how we regard people. Again, use your own experience as your best example. Have you ever had someone say something kind or positive to you, but you sensed that they were being "phony"? They used the right words, but you could tell their words were insincere? Did you believe the words or your sense of the person? No questions about it ? we believe our sense of things and people. When we are faced with someone who says one thing but means another, does our respect for that person increase, decrease or stay the same? Clearly it decreases. Not only do we rely on our sense of the person ? our intuition ? but we form opinions about them based on our insights. Have you ever worked for someone who you lost respect for? Did you stay at that job very long? When people treat other people as objects, turnover occurs.
Purpose, integrity, developing people, effective communications, and regarding people as people are all leadership issues. Exceptional leadership inspires the best effort in others, and when people give their best effort, the result is a high performance organization.
When you and your organization have a clearly defined Purpose, you attract and retain the talent you need. When you and your organization have integrity, you build trust and loyalty. When you and your organization are committed to developing people, people become the best they can be. When you and your organization communicate effectively, conflict and tension diminish and cooperation increases. When you and your organization work to treat people as people, they appreciate it and reciprocate.
Turnover isn't a problem - it's a symptom caused by leadership problems. Fortunately, the problems can be solved, and you have the power to make that difference. Strive to become the best leader you can be.
About The Author
Written by Michael Beck, President of Exceptional Leadership, Inc., a leadership development and executive coaching firm dedicated to creating exceptional leadership for higher profits and greater job satisfaction. Michael can be reached at 877-977-8956 or mbeck@XLeaders.com, and you can learn more about the company and these ideas at www.XLeaders.com
Permission to reprint with full attribution. Copyright 2004, Exceptional Leadership, Inc.
 Google News Updated : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 11:50:43 GMT McCain calms supporters, urges respect for Obama - Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times - 'NO MA'AM': Sen. John McCain takes a question from a supporter who called Democratic rival Barack Obama an Arab at a town hall meeting in Lakeville, Minn. McCain-Palin's hot rhetoric risks GOP backlash McCain Lauds and Attacks Obama in Same Day Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 09:04:20 GMT Paulson Indicates Need to Purchase Bank Equity `Soon as We Can' - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - By John Brinsley and Rebecca Christie Oct. 11 (Bloomberg) -- US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson indicated that pumping government funds into banks is a priority and said financial markets will remain volatile. US to buy shares in struggling banks Obama welcomes Paulson plan to buy equity in firms Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:21:05 GMT Mugabe Hands Ministries to His Party - New York Times
New York Times - By CELIA DUGGER JOHANNESBURG - In a step likely to lead to the collapse of a painstakingly negotiated power-sharing deal, Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe, in office for 28 years, has unilaterally declared that his party will retain the most powerful ... Mugabe 'gives Zanu-PF key posts' Zimbabwe's Mugabe hands key ministries to his party Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 10:57:49 GMT Morgan Stanley, Goldman May Gain Investment From US Treasury - Bloomberg
Bloomberg - By Christine Harper Oct. 11 (Bloomberg) -- Morgan Stanley and Goldman Sachs Group Inc., the biggest independent US investment banks, may reap cash infusions as part of Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson's plan to buy stakes in financial institutions, ... As Stock Falls, Morgan Looks to Japanese Bank Morgan Stanley hangs on Mitsubishi's $9bn pledge Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 04:30:39 GMT Palin violated ethics law, inquiry concludes - International Herald Tribune
International Herald Tribune - By Serge F. Kovaleski NEW YORK: Sarah Palin, the Republican vice-presidential candidate, abused her powers as governor of Alaska by pressuring subordinates to try to get her former brother-in-law, a state trooper, fired, according to an investigation ... Palin ethics lapse cited Alaska probe finds Palin 'abused her power' Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 09:58:28 GMT Stevens's Reputation 'Sterling,' Powell Says - Washington Post
Washington Post - By Del Quentin Wilber Former secretary of state Colin L. Powell told jurors in the corruption trial of Sen. Ted Stevens yesterday that the powerful Alaska Republican had a "sterling" reputation among the nation's military and political leaders. Reporter's Notebook: Powell Takes the Stand for Stevens Powell says Sen. Stevens' integrity "sterling" Publ.Date : Sat, 11 Oct 2008 03:13:53 GMT Thai protest leaders released on bail, vow new rallies - AFP
AFP - BANGKOK (AFP) - Leaders of Thai anti-government protests were granted bail Friday after surrendering to police and immediately vowed new rallies, raising fears of mounting turmoil days after deadly street clashes. Video: Raw Video: Tear Gas Fired at Thai Protestors PAD leaders surrender to Thailand police Publ.Date : Fri, 10 Oct 2008 15:31:03 GMT Display RSS Feeds on Your Website |
PARLOT::Ebooks, Scripts,
Websites, and more... Data Visualization is InteractiveHave you ever booked your flight plans... Read More One of the key skills for the leaders of growing... Read More Office politics! It's just another way of saying: "The employees... Read More This short story, Coworkers Collaborate to Complete Successful Initiative, is... Read More Whilst tests measuring the creative or innovative personality exist, there... Read More Trained employees are more productive employees; thereā??s no doubt about... Read More Because of my work as a consultant, trainer and coach... Read More Solving a big problem is a project: you're far more... Read More One of the biggest problems we encounter in our consulting... Read More Change is exhilarating. Change is terrifying. Change is badly needed... Read More Results of Poor Cross Cultural Awareness. Having a poor understanding... Read More During a recent seminar I gave located in the suburbs... Read More Decision-making shows up throughout the problem-solving process. The decisions may... Read More What is Six Sigma?Six Sigma is a quality management program... Read More One Bad Apple I know what... Read More Ellen was a clerk working for a large insurance company.... Read More Have you ever noticed french fries taste the same at... Read More Whoever said that being a meeting planner was easy, lied!... Read More One amazing, but sadly true, fact of today's advances in... Read More Plan/prepare - lack of purpose causes aimless meetings. Know why... Read More Pssst, want a stock tip that will make you rich?... Read More If there is someone nearby as you read this look... Read More One of the things that most impacts people's productivity is... Read More Some people make decisions without any difficulty, while others struggle.... Read More If you're old enough and were living in America about... Read More
Adsense
websites
What is Data Visualization?
Delegate, Dont Abdicate
Office Politics
Tales from the Corporate Frontlines: Coworkers Collaborate to Complete Successful Initiative
Creativity and Innovation Management ? Personality Testing
On The Job Training is Something You Canā??t Afford to Skip
Five Ways to Influence Change in Others
Problem-Solving Success Tip: Use Your Project Management Skills
Organizational Techniques - Tickler and Chron File
Managing Change in the Workplace
Results of Poor Cross Cultural Awareness
Sending Documents Through Email? Dont Get Burned by Metadata!
Problem-Solving Success Tip: Whatever You Do, Do It on Purpose
Six Sigma Training 101 ? Better Management Basics
One Bad Apple
The Paradox of Job Enrichment
Its All In The Systems
Ten Secrets of Super Successful Meeting Planners
The Supervisors 14 Essential Truths For Communicating With Direct Reports
Managing Meetings
Why Would Anyone Hold a Bad Meeting?
Identifying Potential in Ourselves and Others
Telephone Techniques: Boost Your Productivity With Effective Phoning
Successful Business Decision Making
What Makes a Crisis a Crisis?
Affordable and Reliable Web Hosting Starting at $4.49/Month
Is Your Brain Getting the Memory Full Message? 5 Ways to Free Up Room on Your Brains Hard Drive
Lynn was tapped to head up the project team for... Read More
Executives and Emotional Self Awareness
A major problem impairing an executive's performance is his Emotional... Read More
Time Management - How to Have Productive Meetings
One of the greatest time wasters of all are unnecessary... Read More
Indiscretion Can Kill Your Business
The quickest way to cancel out all the thought, work,... Read More
Motivating For Higher Performance
Employee motivation is probably the most important single manageable factor... Read More
Managing Yo-Yo Style
Does being managed by others smack more of "Survivor" than... Read More
Sarbanes-Oxley and Section 404: Old Dog, New Teeth
The failures we have seen in the quality and integrity... Read More
Managing Meetings
Plan/prepare - lack of purpose causes aimless meetings. Know why... Read More
25 Great Ways to Find the Right People and Not Break the Bank
Are you trying to hire dozens of hourly workers or... Read More
Micromanagement and Delegation
Micro-Management and Delegation ... Read More
DIVERSITY is a BIG word -- With A HUGE Business IMPACT
Second thought! Just in case. YOU or someone you personally... Read More
What Makes a Good Appraisal Interview?
WHAT MAKES A GOOD APPRAISAL INTERVIEW?Here is a tip for... Read More
From Boring to Interesting - Making Training Effective
Being a good trainer requires experience and skill. Experience comes... Read More
Take The Guesswork Out Of Problem Solving
In today's chaotic world and uncertain economic times too many... Read More
Have You Fixed the Broken Window?
Left alone it doesn't take long for a building with... Read More
Time Management Tips for Managers
Late last year I was presenting a workshop for the... Read More
ISO 9001, What Next?
The overriding goal of ISO-14000. (History 1995)As ISO-9000 becomes a... Read More
CEOs Role in Family Business
I first met Roland (not his real name) in 1972.... Read More
Organisational Culture for Continuous Improvement
I have been working with leading Business Improvement guru, Tim... Read More
Five Overlooked Ways To Hire Winners
Here is a true story. My dentist did a "clinical"... Read More
Creativity and Innovation Management ? Feasibility
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Know Your Client - The First Rule of Business Coaching
Whilst the very best coaches have undertaken independently accredited training... Read More
Creativity and Innovation Management ? Motivation and Management Layers
Creativity can be defined as problem identification and idea generation... Read More
Managing Rebellious Employees
Surveys of executives reveal that many companies fall short of... Read More
Medical Collection. How Organized is Your Office?
At one time or another, all of us have experienced... Read More
Business Management |