The Generation Y work force is the most transient group of staff ever in our industry. They move from job to job more often than generations before them. Constantly training new people is not only time-consuming, it’s a major expense to your operation. The cost of replacing a manager in many organizations is two to three times their annual salary. The cost of replacing front-line staff can be felt too – think about any terrible online reviews of your business. Your leadership team should be calculating employee attrition every month to determine the cost to the business and figure out ways to reduce it. A great way to find solutions to an attrition problem is to conduct “exit interviews” with all staff members. These should not be a witch hunt or an exercise in blame, but rather a top-level conversation on why the employee decided to leave and what two or three changes they think would make the business stronger. These interviews can be eye-opening. Tracking reasons over time will definitely show patterns and opportunities for improvement that can deliver previously untapped profits and a stronger company culture. Recognition: It’s free and powerful!Our new 19- to 29-year-old workforce has grown up being recognized for everything they do. Participation trophies and ribbons have become the norm. Today’s workforce performs better with a higher dose of recognition. So do that! The great news is, recognition is free or low-cost. The reality is, you have created a bar or restaurant for others to celebrate in. I ask you to think about what you are doing to celebrate the great things your staff does every day. A big recognition piece in our company is our annual “Peer to Peer Awards” (many of our clients practice these as well). Each year, employees nominate their co-workers for excellent work done throughout the year. Host a staff gathering at which time the winners are announced and celebrated. The feedback that staff members receive has a huge impact, not only on the individual being recognized, but on the entire company culture and staff morale. This exercise can cost your business $200 or $2,000 (the cost is not relative to outcome), and I promise that the impact this simple exercise can have on your company culture will be priceless. Our most successful clients provide proper direction to their managers (red, yellow, green reporting); measure staff turnover and perform exit interviews to ensure they improve where possible. Most importantly, they take the time to celebrate, and to celebrate often. To receive our red, yellow, green management dashboard, staff turnover calculators, exit interview questions or our Peer to Peer Awards white paper, please email me and I would be happy to share them with you. Front-line staff deliver bottom-line profits. I urge you to spend more time in the coming year investing in your people. See also:
About the author Matt Rolfe is the CEO of Barmetrix Global, a hospitality coaching and consulting firm dedicated to helping their clients increase profits through improved inventory control, staff training and engagement exercises and retail pricing strategy evaluation. For more information, please email [email protected] or visit www.barmetrix.com. | 
