Please Don't Go Turnover isn't necessarily a fact of life. Learn to keep your employees in the fold.
Opinions expressed by BIZ Experiences contributors are their own.
After spending all that time screening and hiring and trainingand sharing all your trade secrets with your employees, youdon't have to sit around biting your nails, expecting theirletters of resignation. Employees will stick around if you playyour cards right.
So it was with BitFlip Interactive Group in New York City. Sinceits 1997 founding, this interactive media developer has hadno--that's right--no employee turnover. For a company inthe Internet business, that's miraculous. The secret, accordingto founder Erin Jurew, is "respect for your employees.[Realize] you're not going to be in business without youremployees-and show them loyalty."
Her focus on giving her team fun and highly creative work hasalso helped. "We handpick our assignments and clients,"says Jurew, 41. "That keeps people interested." Withsales hovering at $3.5 million and clients ranging from governmentofficials to banking and securities firms, the BitFlip crew of 15employees is always doing something new.
Still, keeping employees loyal in the employment frenzy of thelate '90s was quite a feat. Jurew took special steps in hiringher staff from the start, such as having staff across departmentsinterview candidates to ensure a good employee match. "Ours isa collaborative environment," she says. It's important toher that each employee fit in with the culture-both skill- andpersonality-wise.
And with benefits not always offered by small companies-likeprofit-sharing and retirement plans, as well as a ping-pong tableand movie nights-Jurew is poised to keep employees for the longhaul.
Contact Source
- BitFlip Interactive Group
(212) 771-1700, www.bitflip.com
