Through Guy’s Eyes – (Don’t) Show Me the Money

Since money makes the world go round, you might expect remuneration to be one of the biggest draw cards when it comes to holding on to good staff. But it isn’t.

In fact, according to a Forbes study in November 2018, there are five more compelling reasons why staff leave for greener pastures before salary becomes a consideration. These range from feeling unappreciated to finding the work insufficiently challenging: from feeling disempowered, stifled or resenting a toxic culture. Money factors rank sixth, only after all of these issues – which shows that it actually counts for relatively little. What employees really want, more than a fatter cheque, is the sense that they are valued by their organisations, and that the work they do has an impact on society at large.

In spite of this, the salary bill remains the greatest expense for most organisations. That’s an interesting insight, when you think that the research is clear on the fact that organisations that want to retain their best people would do better to focus on the other, less tangible factors that influence commitment, motivation and loyalty. I like to think of these factors as your ‘invisible balance sheet’ – the assets and liabilities that make a true difference.

This raises a question: if salary is one of the least important issues when it comes to skills retention and discretionary effort of those who stay, why does it receive so much attention? One reason could be because it’s easy. You can literally ‘throw money at the problem’ – whereas it’s seemingly far more difficult to remove the obstacles that make someone feel stifled, for instance, or addressing a lack of inclusion in the bigger picture. And yet, these definitely can – and should – be tackled, and at a fraction of the cost.

Let us show you how.