Getting Great Talent to Stick: How to Retain, Engage, and Grow Your Best People
The first step: Rethink your “team management” mindset.
After a massive hiring spree, many scaling tech companies face a new challenge: keeping that great talent. You’ve worked hard to build a skilled team, but how do you ensure they stay, engage, and grow with your company?
Retention is no longer just about a paycheck. It’s about understanding individual motivations, offering regular feedback, and aligning personal goals with the company’s mission. Let’s dive into how you can avoid the “onboard-and-ignore” trap and create an environment where talent—and your company—lives up to its potential.
Stop Whiffing the WIFM (What’s In It for Me?)
Too often, companies invest all their time and energy into finding the right hire, only to neglect that employee once they’ve joined the team. In a span of a few weeks (and often a few days), companies often forget that the promise of employment goes both ways.
It’s a common mistake: leaders think they’re managing a team, but in reality, they’re managing individuals with their own goals, motivations, and challenges.
If you don’t understand what drives your employees personally and professionally, how can you expect them to stay motivated to contribute to YOUR goals?
Employees need to feel seen and valued as individuals. This means knowing their objectives, understanding what motivates them, and recognizing their preferences. In my experience working with companies after helping them hire to scale, here are three powerful (and easy!) ways to ensure your employees stick around.
One-on-One Conversations
Start by having 30-minute developmental one-on-ones every two to three months. As in, get them on the calendar. Ask each team member, “What are three things you’d like to accomplish by the end of the quarter?” This helps you both identify, clarify, and fastrack personal and professional goals.
Customize Your Approach
Treat each person as a unique contributor. How do they like to communicate? What is their comfort level with recognition? What skills would they love to learn? They need to feel like their role is tied to their growth, not just the company’s.
Feed the Feedback Loop (All the Way Around)
Feedback is the cornerstone of growth, but too many leaders wait until annual performance reviews to address problems—or worse, they hold onto feedback for months, allowing frustrations to build. This not only hinders performance but also damages trust and morale.
Whether I’m working with a company with 30 team members or 1,000 employees, I’ve found that the success of a talent strategy depends on the strength of its feedback loops.
Time it right
Don’t wait until the end of the quarter or, even worse, the annual review to provide feedback. Take advantage of regularly scheduled one-on-ones to "feed forward," highlighting next-level delivery. Sprinkle in some spontaneous “pop-bys” so you can nip problems in the bud and keep momentum going.
Make it actionable
Are you just telling employees what went wrong? Or are you providing the tools, resources, and guidance to help them succeed? Effective feedback should include support and a commitment to their development.
Ask for mutual feedback
Create a two-way dialogue. Open the conversation by asking your employees what they need from you as a manager. This builds trust and helps you tailor your leadership to their needs. If you listen to them, they’re more likely to take your feedback to heart.
By making feedback an ongoing dialogue, you can build trust, identify challenges early, and ensure your team feels supported and valued in their roles. This feedback loop continues even after they give their notice—read my Exit Interview blog to find out why!
Show Values Alignment Between Work and Company Mission
Employees today are looking for more than just a paycheck—they want to work for a company whose mission and values align with their own. If employees don’t see how their work fits into the bigger picture, it becomes harder for them to stay engaged.
Connect Personal and Company Goals
Sit down with each employee and find out what personal and professional goals they’re working toward. Then, look for ways to align those goals with the company’s mission. Even if their personal goals are wildly out of scope with your company, like running a marathon or rehoming stray cats, there are ways to take a personal interest and create professional alignment.
Look at the bigger picture with them in mind
When tech companies come to me to optimize their existing teams, they often find that employees are ripe (and ready!) to evolve beyond their current roles, departments, and skillsets. Seeing this potential for growth within your company is one of the best ways to retain your talent before they start looking elsewhere.
Highlight Alignment
More employees are looking for jobs that reflect their personal values and beliefs. How is your company contributing to a greater purpose, and how are you communicating that to your team?
Build a Culture That Nurtures Retention
Getting great talent to stick is about more than perks or paychecks—it’s about building relationships, providing the right kind of feedback, and aligning individual goals with a meaningful mission. By making these key adjustments, you’ll not only retain your top performers, but you’ll also see them grow and thrive within your company.
Ready to see how your company stacks up when it comes to retention?
Download our Talent Diagnostic Tool to identify gaps in your current strategy and ensure your best people stay and grow.
