It will come to no surprise to you that most American businesses face 18-34% average yearly turnover. Plus, studies show that most employees leave supervisors - not companies. This information was sent to me once again, strengthening the need for leadership to elevate the degree they are focusing on employees. Back in the 90’s, managers were told they should spend at least half of their time working on employee development and coaching. At the time, many managers told me I was crazy. I relented and realized they had a stack of operational activities to focus on as well as their “managing” tasks.

Recently, those numbers came back again when Larry Bossidy, author of Execution, noted that managers should spend 40% of their time with new employees and at least 20% of their time with current employees. I spend many hours of my time working with management teams encouraging them to find ways to coach and develop employees. As wonderful as it sounds at the time, execution still does not take place. Other priorities and tasks get in the way of true employee development and attention.

It is critical that each company, once again, pay attention to the important resource they need to cultivate and keep - employees. The cost of re-hiring is great and the impact is has on the overall effectiveness of a company is even greater. I encourage each manager to find a way to spend at least 20% of their time with their employees each week (knowing this will fluctuate from week to week). Start out small, take just a few minutes each week and see the impact it can have on morale and productivity. In the end, you will be putting out less fires and may have less employee issues to manage.

Let me know what you think - is this reasonable? Is it a matter of discipline and focus? Can you truly put aside other tasks in order to spend more time with your employees? Good night and good coaching. Jennifer