Canadian HR Reporter

20 FEATURES January 27, 2014 CANADIAN HR REPORTER HR LEADERS TALK Tackling turnover The economy can't stay bad forever, right? As it improves, there's no doubt employees will be tempted by greener pastures. We talked to HR professionals across the country to find out what they're doing to retain talent as more options become available. Doug Alloway, vice-president of HR at the Edmonton Economic Development Corporation The not-for-profit organization has 300 full-time employees H aving worked nine years at the Edmonton Economic Development Corporation (EEDC), Doug Alloway says the not-for-profit entity has been relatively sheltered from economic downturns. "The strong Alberta economy has really softened the effects of the recession felt in other parts of the country…. it's like Alberta's in its own little bubble," he said. As a result, the corporation, which is partly funded by the City of Edmonton, has not seen much of a difference with turnover rates, says Alloway, who is vicepresident of HR at EEDC. At 15 per cent, the turnover rate is higher than he would like to see — but it's a bit skewed as there are many part-time workers and students at the convention centre. "We would like to get it down a little bit — you know, around 10 per cent would be healthy for the organization — but we don't think of it as being abnormally high." If the economy continues to improve, it's unclear what the impact will be and whether it will be "the free-for-all seen back in 2007," says Alloway. "Then it comes down to how strong the corporate culture is in each of the organizations. Com- pany loyalty can run deep if you really like your work environment, the people you work with, your boss, so that can temper it but certainly it would stand to reason that as the economy heats up and there's more choices, then you run the risk of more turnover." Even with a tough economy, the EEDC, which has 300 fulltime employees, has not really faced tighter budgets or resources, says Alloway. But employee engagement is always a challenge and there are three key areas, he says: effective employee communications; a strong, immediate supervisor you like and respect; and executives acting in a consistent, supportive manner. "If you can keep those areas quite strong, then you have a good chance of keeping your folks as long as you keep your table stake items competitive," says Alloway, adding the biggest driver is the immediate supervisor. "Often supervisors are made to be supervisors because they're good technicians, and they're not necessarily given the skills and the training to be effective managers, or maybe even just a good talk about what it means to be a manager, that 'You have your own work to do but you are responsible for these people and these people look to you for guidance and direction and a clear path.'" The EEDC has been very strong on managerial skills training, trying to reinforce those appropriate behaviours, he says. "If you don't like coming to work for your boss, then all of the other good stuff that a company does kind of falls by the wayside." When it comes to employee communications, the corporation holds all-employee monthly meetings where people provide updates on the corporation and various divisions, says Alloway. There's also a sharepoint web setup that provides information and news feeds and encourages people to blog about their efforts. "We just try and do as many things as we can so that the people feel they're connected to the company and what's going on in the company and the community." But does it make sense to change employee benefits, such as compensation levels or healthcare, when the economy takes a turn for the worse? That's always risky, says Alloway. "The total rewards package is really table stakes for the most part in all economies… companies really just need to keep in step with the competition and, in better times, that may mean increas- Suzanne Hyatt, vice-president of human resources at Rebellion Media The Waterloo, Ont.-based digital media company has 150 employees U ntil recently, the local technology sector has been relatively insulated from the impact of the struggling economy, according to Suzanne Hyatt, vice-president of HR at Rebellion Media in Waterloo, Ont., a digital media company with offices in Toronto, Seattle and Denver. "Where there have been restructurings or people that might have been laid off, we've tended to do a good job locally of absorbing talent into companies that have continued to hire through challenging times. But, that said, you may see higher turnover rates in a booming economy just by the nature of the fact the industry's hot and the economy's improving." There's always going to be natural attrition in the tech sector, says Hyatt. "In many cases, employees are looking for an opportunity to be a part of building a company — they like the opportunity to see the direct impact of their work and they want to work with smart, passionate people who they can learn from. And then you see a lot of that work hard, play hard attitude," she says. "As the economy improves, so do these types of opportunities that may be attractive to employees." People early on in their careers often have a shorter tenure and it's more acceptable for them to move around. "As they gain experience, then you'll see that those positions they'll hold will lengthen over time, though I don't think younger generations or even the midgeneration now definitely don't have the length of employment that we would have seen in older generations." While budgets and resources can be more limited during a recession, many technology companies always have limited budgets, she says. And in that scenario, it's about the basics: Communications and defining a corporate culture that employees want to be a part of. "You can do a lot to make your workplace an enjoyable place to work without having to spend a lot. Of course, that gets easier as you have money to put into a budget to work towards those types of things... but you can do a lot just in terms of defining your culture and keeping employees engaged." That can include regular or ad hoc staff events, says Hyatt, to boost corporate culture. "Buying the team ice cream on a hot day doesn't cost a lot, that's more of a fun thing to do as opposed to a big expense." And when it comes to retention, changing compensation levels or benefits plans isn't always the answer. "If someone is set on leaving the organization, they're going to leave regardless of whether you offer them a richer benefits plan or if you increase their salary by x per cent," she says. There's typically another driv- ing your offering to make sure it stays competitive. Things like salary, benefits, perks — it's all about their perceived value to the individuals receiving them. So… if you're going to make changes to your program and you feel that you've fallen behind and you want to be at least keep competitive, check with your employees and ask them what sort of things they would like to see." Focusing on culture is a huge area for the EEDC, especially with a relatively young working population, says Alloway. "We have to be tuned to the things that are important to those individuals. And that can be a changing dynamic over time but, you know, (it's about) the importance of work-life balance, the importance of doing things that make a workplace somewhere they want to go. It ebbs and flows a little bit with generations and we have to be responsive to that." As for highpotentials , the EEDC targets them ind i re c tl y, he says. "If we have ing factor behind a person's desire to leave, such as a better opportunity or lack of growth in his current role, says Hyatt. "In a strong economy, where business is thriving, you'll have more freedom... You can offer an enhanced benefits plan and you may just want to build on things that you're already doing, but it's important to make sure it's sustainable because you would never want to give something and be in a position where you have to pull it back, because that's never received well." And if an employer is seeing a higher turnover rate, it should look at the reasons behind the increase, says Hyatt. "In a hot market, where it might be natural attrition is expected, you would continue to focus on being an employer of choice... create an enjoyable work environment. And then if there is some natural attrition, you'll continue to attract top talent at the same time." And if it's a mat- people that show promise, we'll ensure they're well-paid and they will often get maybe more training opportunities in the course of the year as things arise maybe than some of the others. They may well be asked to get involved and/ or lead special projects as things come up, as a developmental sort of activity, the idea being these people know they're being given opportunities for development and future advancement, which hopefully they figure out will be a good thing and encourage them to stay." ter of higher turnover because an organization is going through challenging times, then it should focus on increased communications to employees and how to ease any employee concerns while emphasizing the need for their continued commitment, she says.

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