A recent Mckinsey report reveals the great attrition wave that has hit the job market and one that will continue to only grow before it stops. In our recent blog we speak about how lack of human connection, purpose and culture are the three main reasons behind this high level of attrition.
Is there a way to stop this? Can there be a simple solution that can help you tide over the three big challenges of human connection, purpose and culture? While investment in training, culture building and finding better hires is a continuous organizational process, there is one small but greatly impactful tool that some companies use more than the others and better than the others.
This tool is treated as an investment in the human capital of their organization and is hence given the right kind of importance in their annual budgets and in their HR policies. Once an organization decides to implement this tool strategically in their employee happiness initiative, the results are there for all to see.
So what is this ONE TOOL? It is the tool of GIFTING.
Now before you stop reading further, consider this. Make a note of the amount of time, effort and dollars that go into the process of hiring the right candidate for a particular job in your company.
A study by the Society for Human Resource Management states that the average cost to hire an employee is $4,129, with around 42 days to fill a position. According to Glassdoor, the average company in the United States spends about $4,000 to hire a new employee, taking up to 52 days to fill a position.
According to Deloitte, the average cost-per-hire in India is $4,000. It takes 50-60% of the employee’s salary to find his or her direct replacement. Although the true cost of hiring a new employee will vary by region and industry, the real cost can be high. The cost of hiring an employee does not just include his or her salary. It includes recruiter’s salary, time and efforts, training and onboarding costs, and more such heads that add to the overall expense in making a new hire.
Some of the new hires, once fully trained, start doing well, and turn out to be an asset to your organization and become one of the top performers. Some others perform at average levels and some fall out of the system, putting the HR team back at the beginning of a new hiring loop.
Over the last two decades of being in the gifting space, we have noticed time and again, that the tool of gifting and appreciation when used strategically can help an organization save themselves from re-entering the loop of new hiring and have increased talent retention.
Intelligent HR understand the need to implement meaningful appreciation and recognition drives within their companies every quarter or annually to enhance employee happiness and retention. They earmark clear budgets for each round of appreciation and start to look out for the best products, services and experiences that will fit their requirements.
There are plenty of options to choose from – awards, recognition certificates, branded apparel, chocolates, desktop accessories, office tools, electronics, smart devices, handcrafted hampers, health and wellness gifts, holiday experiences and many more. Does buying this alone solve the problem? Yes and no.
Yes – it serves a certain purpose – bringing delight to the employees by sending them these gifts.
No – it won’t help you tide over the challenges of human connection, purpose and culture.
Then what will?
Read carefully from this point on. What makes any gifting spend super effective is how valued the employee feels on receiving the gift. To the final gift add this gold dust and watch them glow with joy and shoot your ROI through the roof!
- To the gift that is being sent – add a personalised note / letter, highlighting how the employee has made a difference by contributing to the work of the team.
- Get the respective team lead and managers sign that letter.
- Add the right adjectives that are appropriate for their contribution on the awards you make for them.
- Invite family members to witness the award ceremony, it builds a great connection for them with your company too.
- Thank the family members for their continued support to the employee so they may be at their best when at work
- Thank the parents of the employees for giving you the gift of their child who is helping you achieve your organizational goals.
It is the best time in history to re-build the lost human connection, re-inspire your teams and re-member your clients with gifts that speak a different language!
– Leena Munot
Over the last two decades of being in the business of corporate gifting we have seen few organizations go all the way through these steps to make their appreciation exercise count. The ones who did have reaped the highest benefits year on year! They understand the need to continuously stay invested in the process of talent retention as its benefits compound over the years. They see how investing anywhere between $100 to $500 per employee over a year, helps create a great win-win situation for both the employee and the organization.
Happy and inspired employees are role models for everyone in the organization. They help new joinees set the right aspirations for growth and allow greater milestones to become possible in the shortest time! It is indeed the best time in history to re-build the lost human connection, re-inspire your teams and re-member your clients with gifts that speak a different language!
Leena Munot, Co-founder -The Giving Tree
