Employee retention is one of the prerequisites for success of any business. An employer should be aware of the ways to keep an employee happy in order to ensure sustained business continuity, and Phruit thinks it has the right formula.

Phruit, a leading provider of telemarketing services, believes it knows what it takes to maintain a high level of staff retention.

"In this industry, around a third of staff move on to other companies once they have received training,” Ian Allison of Phruit said in a statement. “This is due in part, to the high pressure environment and the fact that employees may not see a clear path for progression.”

“We've introduced a number of processes to help avert the issue of staff migration,” Allison added. “By providing a clear career path for staff to follow, we can help them develop and offer every opportunity to progress, should they wish to.”

One of the first things to do in the workforce is to make it clear that mobility exists by defining the different roles such as agent to senior agent so that employees can see the next level they can aim for.

In terms of staff development, Phruit also offers funded NVQ training, allowing employees to carry out activity during normal working hours.

“This provides the opportunity for staff to improve themselves and their skill-set – which of course we hope will encourage them to continue their career with us,” Allison said.

To ensure a decent level of staff retention, Phruit has introduced a comprehensive incentive program that involves prizes and regular social events, ensuring staff is happy. Also, the company offers apprenticeships. Apprentices are trained to multi-task so they can work across different campaigns at the same time – giving them a diverse breadth of skills.

Allison added, "Staff retention and staff motivation go hand in hand - so our comprehensive incentive programme, involving prizes and regular social events, really does go a long way in ensuring staff are happy and stay with us. It's a consideration for most businesses; you do not want to invest in staff training, only for them to take their skills elsewhere. But in an industry where migration is particularly prevalent, those companies that do not address the situation with a distinct plan will see their investment wasted."

Rahul Arora is a TMCnet contributor. He has worked as an editor and freelance writer for several reputed organizations in India. To read more of his articles, please visit his columnist page.

Edited by Carrie Schmelkin