Last updated: 18 April 2024
The old adage that everyone is replaceable is outdated. It’s true to a certain degree, but prioritizing this way of thinking is a sure way to build a mediocre team full of employees who feel they have no stake in your company.
If you want to build a stronger team that can help your company achieve its goals, then you need to work on maximizing employee value, not diminishing it. It’s quite a simple concept. The more you prove to your employees that you care about them and their growth, the more likely they are to invest quality time and effort into helping the company grow as well.
Employee Value and Human Capital Management
It’s important to truly understand how valuable employees are if you want to make a difference and effect greater change within your company. As the Harvard Business Review (HBR) puts it, managers are fond of the saying “Employees are our most important aspect,” but most executives still see employees as expendable.
A lot of companies talk the talk to attract employees and make them feel like it’s a great place to work. But when it comes down to it, they don’t walk the walk because they don’t genuinely value their employees.
HBR states this is a dangerous way of thinking because employees are most companies’ only source of long-term competitive advantage. When you fail to invest in your employees, you jeopardize your own survival and success.
The key to creating a more successful company is to invest more in employee value, or human capital management (HCM). At every stage of the employee journey — which includes when they are still just a candidate — you must invest in their experience, growth, and development because doing so is a crucial investment in the performance of your own organization.
Tips for Maximizing Employee Value from Recruitment to Exit
You must stop and ask yourself what the employee experience is at every stage and think about how you can improve that experience to boost the value that person will have as a part of your company. This includes not only thinking about how you can make the employee more valuable to you but also how you can make the employee truly feel like they are valued and appreciated.
1. Recruitment
Many companies only start putting effort into the employee experience once a person has already been onboarded, but it’s important to start maximizing their value when they are still just a candidate. This will ensure you’re not only attracting top talent but that they will walk in the door on their first day excited and ready to work hard.
You can improve the candidate experience by attempting to build a relationship with them and personalizing the experience. Don’t just ask a set of standard interview questions — tailor the questions to the candidate’s experience.
You should also keep them updated throughout the hiring process and can even request their feedback through surveys or questionnaires to show that you value their input. If you want to go above and beyond, you can create a candidate care package as a token of your appreciation — a “thanks” for showing interest in your company and giving you their time. This can include a personalized thank-you note, maybe some candy or other goodies, and a little company swag.
2. Onboarding
The onboarding process can often set the tone for many employees and what to expect from your company and management. So it’s important to show your employees in this early stage that even though they are new, they are still valued and you want to help them grow and succeed.
This means ensuring they have everything they need to succeed, such as the right tools, the right information, and clear, open, and guiding communication from management. It also means helping them get comfortable with the rest of the team.
Some onboarding best practices to achieve this can include:
- Making sure they fully understand their role and what is expected of them
- Setting up their workstation with all the tools and resources they will need before they arrive
- Introducing them to the team
- Keeping the lines of communication open
- Scheduling them for regular check-in meetings for the first few weeks or even months
- Assign them an office buddy who can help them acclimate
- Treat them to lunch on their first day
- Talk to them about your mission statement and company values
- Make sure they are adequately trained or have access to any training tools they might want or need to improve their skills
It’s also important to conduct a pre-employment medical exam during the onboarding phase. Making sure your employees are in the right physical condition to handle the type of work they will be doing can help you create a healthier, safer, and more productive workforce. These medical exams can also inform you in case there are any accommodations you need to make for the new employee, such as things they might need due to a disability.
3. Retention
Once an employee is fully onboarded and has settled into their role, it’s crucial that you continue to prove that you value them and their efforts. If you only show that you care about them during onboarding and then drop off, it will make it seem like everything you did initially was just smoke and mirrors to lure them in.
You must continue to maximize their value, even on a daily basis. These efforts are what will help you improve retention rates and genuinely build a team of productive and successful workers who are vital to the overall success of your company.
This is often done by creating a company culture that continually inspires your employees. Offer programs that help them bond and feel like they are part of something that matters, such as social mixers, bonding activities, and even fundraising or charity events.
Another part of creating a quality workplace culture is providing employees with good pay and benefits. If your employees are well paid, they are more likely to continue putting in quality effort to help the company achieve its goals. Extensive benefits that go above and beyond traditional benefits are also advised, such as flexible hours, generous PTO, full health coverage, and access to wellness programs like yoga or massages.
4. Development
The development stage is where you can really start maximizing the value of your employees to ensure they can help the company succeed by improving their growth. In this stage, you want to create a career ladder for the employee so they can progressively take on more responsibilities to show them that they have somewhere to go and won’t be stuck in one role forever.
To do this, you’ll want to prioritize learning and development. Make sure they have access to opportunities to learn more and expand their skills. You can also establish a mentorship program so they can have someone who is specifically invested in helping them grow.
It’s also important during this stage to reward a job well done so they will be inspired and encouraged to continue working hard and growing their skills.
5. Exit
When it comes time for an employee to leave the company, you should continue to show them that their time and efforts were appreciated. This is also a great opportunity for you to ask questions that can help you improve upon your processes to further boost employee value while they are still with the company.
You can do this by conducting an exit interview and asking certain questions. Some examples of questions to ask include:
- Why are you leaving the company?
- What do you feel the company is doing right?
- How do you think we could improve?
- What was your relationship with management or your supervisor like?
- Did you feel the company helped with your professional development and career goals?
- How did the position align with your expectations?
These are just a couple of ideas to get you started. Make sure you keep the line of questioning professional. It’s important that you don’t ask things that feel too personal or that make the exit interview feel more like a gossip session. Keep things positive and ethical.
In Summary
Though some people might be replaceable, it’s important to try to view all employees as someone who matters and plays a vital role in the success of the company. When you invest in your people, you are investing in the future of your company. Even when they are still just a candidate, everything you do and say can have an influence on their overall experience with your company. So always be thinking about how you can improve their value and the value of their experience.
