Finding the ideal talent for your tech team is the first stage of building a successful business. Once you’ve attracted top-performing candidates to your business, you also need to ensure you’re taking steps to keep them around. 

In today’s skill-short landscape, great employees have endless opportunities to switch employers and businesses whenever they’re unsatisfied with their current employment. That means learning how to retain your top talent is more important than ever. 

Staff members can choose to leave a business for a variety of reasons. Sometimes, they feel they’re not getting enough satisfaction from their role, or they lose interest in the company’s vision for the future. 

Other times, employees may feel they don’t thrive in their current position due to issues with colleagues or managers. 

While the cost of replacing a lost employee can be significant, it’s worth remembering that anywhere up to 75% of turnover can be avoided. 

That is why it is critical to recognise the signs that your employee might be looking elsewhere. So in this post, we are going to share several signs to consider. 

1. They’re Avoiding Long-Term Projects and Growth 

When an employee decides they no longer want to work with a company, they often begin to reduce their involvement in long-term projects and strategies for development or growth. They stop envisioning a “future” with the business, which means they generally spend more of their time on short-term tasks and simply “checking boxes” on their to-do list. 

When an employee who previously volunteered for various challenging projects no longer raises their hand in meetings or delegates long-term work to other employees. In that case, this could signify they’re not planning on being around for long. 

Pay close attention to whether your team members still invest in their future with the company by agreeing to learning and development opportunities or discussing goals during one-on-one meetings. If your employees no longer see a future with you, change their perspective by offering them insights into progression opportunities, tech stack changes and developments they might miss out on if they leave. 

2. They Show Visible Signs of Stress

The World Health Organisation says “burnout” is a significant occupational phenomenon that has increased drastically in recent years. Burned-out and overwhelmed employees disengage from the workplace, show clear signs of exhaustion, and often look for alternative work opportunities. With this in mind, tracking your employee’s mental and physical health is important. And if you’re running a remote first team, then this becomes important to keep an eye out for. 

Pay attention to signs of exhaustion, like the heavy reliance on caffeine, yawning, or even a slower-than-usual pace in your team member’s workflow. 

The attitude of your employee might begin to change too. They may appear to be overwhelmingly negative towards other colleagues or attempt to isolate themselves from their peers, taking part in meetings less than usual. In some cases, they could even become more argumentative or aggressive. As mentioned, this is especially noticeable if you’re running remote teams. If you notice signs of burnout, speak to your staff member about how you can help them manage their workload. 

3. They’re Not as Creative or Intuitive as Usual 

When employees decide to leave a business, they stop actively contributing to its growth. You may notice some of your top performers who used to share ideas for development in previous meetings are now quieter when you’re asking for suggestions or advice. 

Rather than trying to solve problems with out-of-the-box ideas and collaboration, your team members may simply pass difficult tasks onto other employees. They could stop taking the initiative with their work and may focus on doing just the “bare minimum” to get by. 

A team member who’s occasionally quiet during business meetings isn’t necessarily a cause for alarm. However, if they seem to have lost their passion for helping the company grow, they may no longer feel inspired by your company’s mission or values. 

A good way to address this issue is to give your team members regular feedback and let them know how much you value their input. Employees are more likely to contribute when they feel recognised and rewarded for their hard work. 

4. They Focus More on External Networking 

Networking is important in building a thriving career as a tech professional. It’s not unusual for dedicated tech individuals to visit industry events and connect with other experts on social media, github or tech forums. However, there may be a problem if your team members focus more on external networking than on building internal relationships. 

If you notice your team members are disconnecting from their internal peers, failing to attend meetings, or spending less time chatting with colleagues either on or offline, check out their external networking efforts. If they’re heavily invested in adding new connections on LinkedIn and improving their personal brand, this could be a sign they’re looking for a way to branch into new opportunities. 

There are a few ways managers and supervisors can tackle this issue. Preventing staff from building external connections isn’t an option, but you can encourage your team to bond with their colleagues through team-building exercises and more consistent internal communication. 

5. Their Performance Begins to Suffer 

For an tech team member to thrive in their role, they need to do a lot more than just show up and follow the instructions given by a manager or squad leader. The best staff members are constantly pushing themselves to be their best. However, if your employee is disengaged and disinterested in their work, you may begin to notice performance issues. 

You might be able to notice more errors in their work, which they never used to make before. Or perhaps your customers are providing negative feedback concerning a specific employee’s behaviour. Other colleagues may even complain that one team member is no longer pulling their weight in their projects. 

If your staff member is no longer reaching their targets or making the right amount of effort, the first step shouldn’t always be to engage in disciplinary action. Speak to your team member and discover what’s happening behind the scenes. 

Don’t Lose Your Top Performers 

In today’s changing Tech landscape, issues like disengagement, burnout, and even “quiet quitting” are becoming increasingly common. Fortunately, if you can recognise these signs ahead of time, there are still things you can do to re-ignite your staff’s passion for your company and prevent them from seeking other employment options. 

Pay attention to your top performers, and make sure you’re not actively pushing them away.

About Inspire People

We believe that technology has the power to change the world for the better and we love working with businesses whose technology or purpose has a positive impact. We help businesses that share our vision access the people, resources and strategic advice they need to achieve their digital transformation goals

Our service is designed to accelerate your digital growth. We created our offer in response to emerging challenges in an uncertain business landscape: a blend of Advisory, Talent and Project led services that will help you achieve your strategic aims and deliver more for your employees and customers. We’ll connect you to rare specialist talent, experts and insight to help you navigate your biggest challenges and remain competitive in a changed world.

Get in touch today to discover how working with us could help you innovate and grow.

Speak to our expert team on +44(0)20 7871 8550 or email  hello@inspirepeople.net

Finding the ideal IT experts for your team isn't always a simple process. As larger numbers of IT professionals choose contracting services over full-time employment, the skills shortage has become a serious problem for employers, particularly in high demand areas such as DevOps.

Since your people are key to your success, it's important to make sure you have a strategy in place to retain your most valuable staff for as long as possible. A "Stay" interview could be the perfect way to improve employee retention and reduce turnover. Rather than trying to figure out what went wrong after your employees have already left, "stay" interviews allow you to find and reinforce positive elements in your workplace while addressing any triggers that could be sending your talent elsewhere.

Why Are Stay Interviews So Effective?

While learning why employees leave your organisation is important, it's just as crucial to understand why they stay. Stay interviews give business owners and leaders the chance to make important changes to retain current team members, by offering insights into what makes your people feel happy and productive.

By actively working to create an environment that nurtures your staff, you can make sure that the people you find with your specialist recruitment agency stay with you for as long as possible. After all, people prefer to work for companies that understand and respect their professional needs. With a stay interview, you can discover the reasons why experts want to remain within your team, such as:

• A strong company culture
• Positive relationships between employees and employers
• Opportunities for development and growth
• Feelings of appreciation and acknowledgement

All you need to do is make sure you're asking the right questions.

Question 1: What do you enjoy about your job?

Employees are more likely to show loyalty to a career they enjoy, than one that makes them feel bored or unsatisfied. Show your team members that you value their job satisfaction and by asking them what part of their role gives them the most pleasure. This will help you to determine how you can distribute tasks in the future according to specific skill sets and preferences.

Question 2: What does a good day at work look like to you?

Like the previous question, this inquiry asks your employee to specify what they imagine to be a good work day. This will help your team members to focus on their positive experiences of the different kinds of work and projects they have been involved in while working with your company.

This will also give you insight and guidance on how you can adjust work strategies to suit the needs and ideals of your team.

Question 3: Do you feel your skills are fully used in your current role?

When digital experts search for a career, they look for an environment where their unique talents can thrive. If your team members feel that their experience or background is being under-utilised, then they're unlikely to get much satisfaction out of their job. Asking this question will help you to make sure your staff has the chance to really let their skills shine.

Question 4: What would fully utilising your skills look like?

If you have team members who seem a little demotivated or disengaged and you are not sure why it could be that they feel their skills are not being used to the full. This is where you'll need to dig a little deeper to find out what talents they'd like the opportunity to use further. Ask your team member to describe what the perfect role would look like to them, and explore how you can adapt their responsibilities accordingly

Question 5: Are you recognised for the work you do?

All team members appreciate the recognition from their employers. The right amount and type of motivational feedback will help employees to feel valued when you acknowledge their efforts and contributions.  Frequent recognition is crucial to maintaining high levels of employee retention and satisfaction.

Question 6: What kind of recognition would you like to receive, and how often?

Different types of professionals appreciate different kinds of recognition from their leaders. Asking your "stay" interview candidate what sort of praise they'd like to receive, and how frequently they'd like to hear from you, is a great way to make sure that you're providing the right level of support.

Question 7: Do you feel listened to and respected?

Even if your employees feel that you recognise the work they do, they may not feel respected. It's important for companies in any industry to listen to the ideas and thoughts of their key staff members, and create a strategy for strong internal communication. Opening the doors for open communication throughout the business can help to foster improved creativity and innovation, which is crucial to the technology sector.

Question 8: What kind of support would help you to excel in your career?

Finally, it's important to make sure that your team feel confident and competent in their roles. By asking this "stay" interview question, you'll be able to decide whether you're placing too much pressure on certain employees, or distributing work unevenly. You'll also be able to discern whether your organisation could benefit from additional learning facilities or opportunities for skill development.

About Inspire People

We believe that technology has the power to change the world for the better and we love working with businesses whose technology or purpose has a positive impact. We help businesses that share our vision access the people, resources and strategic advice they need to achieve their digital transformation goals

Our service is designed to accelerate your digital growth. We created our offer in response to emerging challenges in an uncertain business landscape: a blend of Advisory, Talent and Project led services that will help you achieve your strategic aims and deliver more for your employees and customers. We’ll connect you to rare specialist talent, experts and insight to help you navigate your biggest challenges and remain competitive in a changed world.

Get in touch today to discover how working with us could help you innovate and grow.

Speak to our expert team on +44(0)20 7871 8550 or email  hello@inspirepeople.net