Hellen ward on how to increase staff retention

There’s no bigger highlighter of how specialist our industry is than when we talk to our accountants. For the average fiscal brain will gasp at our payroll percentage in horror, failing to understand that paying people well is key to success in our sector, and not totally comprehending that a low staff turnover is one of the critical factors in retaining clients, too. The salons that fly as businesses all have a common denominator – they hang on to their team members. Sounds simple, but is it? There are several key factors in ensuring we retain our people, because if we can do that, we can safeguard and protect our custom. • Incentivise through pay - most importantly people need to know that they can earn really well if they stay put, and that those earnings are going to increase the more senior they become, and therefore, the longer they stay. Tiered pricing systems help develop a strategy of experience and length of service equating to higher prices charged and increased rates of pay. Moving is always risky when you have a column of clients, so making sure that remaining in the salon is financially rewarding for staff is key. Commission related pay, so that the sky is the limit with earnings, works best though a strategy of sharing financial information with them and making performance open. Empowering the team to take ownership of their column as a business pays dividends to the salon owner and the employee. • Grow your own team - Mentoring through peers is very powerful – the young apprentice needs to see a clear path of how to reach senior level, and how they can achieve financially if they do so. Feeling inspired by watching people who have also come through the ranks achieve well is a huge motivator. • Reward and react – Long service awards or other such recognition of an employee’s loyalty and length of service is both a nice way to say thank you and a great PR exercise for younger team members. Long service becomes a culture that should be celebrated and highlighted to staff, clients and media alike. Equally, reacting to individual aspirations is also critical. Employee’s needs change during the course of their working lives, so ensuring opportunities are constantly explored and offered across the board is vital so people don’t feel they are becoming stale or stagnating. • Create a path of progression – Finding out what motivates an individual (and we’re all different) is always vital so ensure an action plan to achieve goals is discussed and formulated during appraisals and performance reviews. Salons should have a structural hierarchy, with all the potential opportunities for employees to explore in terms of leadership and development, so people feel confident they have a long term future with their salon. It’s never been more important to retain loyal team members and ensure service is consistent for clients, particularly in such a challenging climate, so the savvy salon owner is forever focusing on newer and better ways to encourage and promote staff loyalty and to ensure that it pays dividends for themselves, their team and their customers. Hellen Ward is the author of a series of salon management textbooks for City & Guilds: Getting Established, Managing Finances and Team Performance available from www.ultimatesalonmanagement.com