Nearly every January, we see a rash of articles in the business press reporting the percentage of employees who have made a New Year’s resolution to find a better job.
In 2012, a Manpower survey reported that 84 percent would seek new employment. In 2013, Forbes reported the level at 69 percent and, this year, Jobvite put the number at 71 percent.
However, as is the case with most resolutions, if it doesn’t happen easily, it won’t happen at all. Believe it or not, this is good news because the No. 1 source of excellent employees is all the great people you once employed who left you!
Start calling right now
So strike while the iron is hot and start re-recruiting them right now.
Call the best ones first and ask if they would consider coming back. Whether they say “yes,” “no,” or “maybe,” be sure to also ask if they know of anyone else who may be interested (because birds of a feather flock together). Then make sure the re-application process both easy and convenient.
When you re-hire former employees, they’re up and running right away, they’ve picked up a lot of new knowledge and experience to bring to the table, and their return tells your existing great people that the grass isn’t necessarily greener elsewhere.
So, while it’s important to give extra attention to employee retention at the first of the year, it’s also prime time to re-recruit top talent.
This was originally published on Mel Kleiman’s Humetrics blog.