It’s Not Just Money: How to Retain Your Workforce

Companies are constantly looking for new members to join their team but the real challenge lies in keeping employees. What happens when economic remuneration is not enough? That was among the questions addressed by the panel “Talent Retention and Development” at the Mexico Talent Forum 2016 in Mexico City on Thursday.

Beatriz Rivas, Director of Corporate Affairs at Great Place to Work, Federico Sada, CEO at INSAR, Mario Rodríguez, CEO at Arbomex, Silvia Mendieta, Director of Production Process at Audi Mexico and Claudia Raunich, Director of Human Resources Mexico American Express, participated in the day’s penultimate event at the Sheraton Maria Isabel hotel.

Times are changing and money is not necessarily the answer to producing a low-retention rate within an organization. Companies now have to discover what moves their most valuable asset, their workforce.

For American Express, the level of engagement of millennials is much higher than any other generation within the company. “We created various employee networks according to generations and their specific needs and from there elaborated a specific set of both attraction and retention strategies,” said Raunich. Identifying the needs of each employee can help companies create career paths that adapt to their lifestyles and that keep them motivated.

Nowadays employees want to become part of a company or a vision. They seek to have an impact within the organization. “At INSAR, we are collaborators, not employees,” said Sada. “Seventy-three percent of our team are millennials and they bring innovative ideas that are revolutionizing the industry.”

Arbomex is also seeing results from integrating millennials into its vision. “Integrating different generations into teams leads to great results. We achieved our first patent through our team of millennials who are coached by our older generations,” said Rodriguez.

Creating an inclusive environment for employees can drastically increase productivity levels and overall satisfaction. Rodriguez said that creating events which engage not only employees but also their families will give them a sense of belonging. “Having an impact on the lifestyle of an employee and their family will have a higher impact than economic compensation,” said Rodriguez.

This sense of belonging can also be reached through the reduction of working hours and offering home office. INSAR went against the current and began revolutionizing the workplace by allowing their employees to spend more time with their families. “We give our collaborators 60 hours of home office and combining this with flexibility and the proper recognition, we have been named A Great Place to Work for many years,” said Sada. Goals that are based on objectives can increase productivity and can boost an employee’s level of satisfaction.

Mendieta agreed that walking a mile in the shoes of employees helps companies elaborate detailed plans for the future but it is extremely important to maintain the trust of the organization. “Four hundred and twenty German expats were brought to Mexico to help kick-off operations but with the condition that they would have short-term contracts and that once it was completed, they could not be replaced with another expat,” said Mendieta.

“Credibility is elemental within a company. If these expats were replaced with new expats, we would completely lose the trust of our local workforce,” he said. An organization should ensure the credibility of its policies through the development of detailed career plans with goals and expectations.

In some cases, employees leave companies due to a lack of leadership. Sada pointed out that the leadership style should be the same throughout the entire organization. “Collaborators must feel that the essence of leadership is exactly the same throughout all levels and with all members of the organization.”