So what can a manager do to improve employee retention? Ask your employees.

Companies ask their customers all the time what they can do to earn more of their business. How about asking employees what the company can do to ensure they remain with the company and stay productive by conducting stay interviews.

How to Conduct a Stay Interview

Unlike a hiring or exit interview, where rapid-fire questions might be used to point out weaknesses, it is recommended a stay interview be done casually, in the hope the employee will open up and give honest answers if they feel comfortable.

Start out by explaining the purpose of the interview; that it’s for the employer to learn what they are doing right and where they can improve in supporting the employee. Let them know there are no repercussions for any of their answers, that everything will be held in strict confidence, and nothing will be tied to their performance evaluations or compensation.

Start out with an easy question to break the ice and gradually work up to more challenging ones once a manager feels the employee is fully engaged and trusts what is happening. It’s important to keep the interview a free-flowing discussion where both sides can ask questions and follow-up on ideas. Managers must be vulnerable during this discussion or the employee will not be. Never trivialize an employee’s concerns or suggestions or become defensive. This is a trust-building exercise, and if you are sincere in wanting to walk away with genuine ideas or learn about potential problems, you must demonstrate your sincerity.

Stay interviews should last approximately 30 minutes. When it is time to wrap up, be sure to let an employee know you appreciate their time and the discussion, then summarize their feedback and relay the next steps.

When to Conduct a Stay Interview

Stay interviews for new employees should be conducted twice within their first six months, since new employees are statistically the most likely to quit and may feel overwhelmed as they are adjusting to the company.

Established employees should receive them once a year, six months prior to or after their performance review and any potential compensation boost. This will help to demonstrate their answers are not linked in any way to those occurrences. If possible, try to do all established employee stay interviews within a two-week period to create consistency.

What to do After a Stay Interview

Once your stay interviews have been conducted, read through any notes and carefully consider all the answers and suggestions. Look for patterns and identify employee trends that may be happening. Take the recommendations to your company’s management team and talk through which make the most sense to address. Determine what changes should take place to improve employee experiences and increase the likelihood of improving employee retention.

If a company never acts on any of the information provided by employees through the stay interview process, it will be detrimental to the company. Employees will know the company is not serious about making improvements or supporting them, and they will be less likely to trust management in the future or be open with potentially important suggestions. Publicly recognize any employee who had an exceptional idea for the company and privately recognize any employee who shared something personal that allowed a manager to have the insight needed to help them.

Questions to Ask During a Stay Interview

Remember to start off easy with questions that will gain trust and get the ball rolling. Consider the following:

• What do employees look forward to everyday when coming to work?
• What is something employees would tell a friend that you enjoy about working here?
• What are some things this company is doing right to support employees?

Once management feels confident, and employees are feeling comfortable and willing to share, ask a few more challenging, personal questions like:

• How can the company better support you?
• What would make your job more satisfying?
• Do employees feel properly utilized in their current roles?
• Have there been any situations that made you consider leaving the company? If so, please tell me about them.
• What would tempt you to leave the company?
• What are some talents of yours that you are not able to use in your current role?
• Do you feel you are receiving clear goals and directives?
• How would you like to be recognized for your efforts?
• If you were the owner for a day, what changes would you make?
• What additional tools, technology, or training do you need?

I talk to a lot of business owners from all over the country. Many of them feel that if they just had a better system or magic bullet for hiring, they would be successful. It’s not true. There isn’t any of this. We work in an industry where everyone uses the same equipment and training to meet the same standards and certifications. The only real differentiator a company has from its competition is its employees.

When a company has good employees, it needs to do everything it can to hold onto them and show them they are valued. Take the time to demonstrate to each one that they are heard and appreciated as a person, not just an employee. Stay interviews help managers gauge why employees are staying or leaving and where their company policies can be improved. As Simon Sinek says, “Customers will never love a company until the employees love it first.” Give them a reason to.