How do employees feel about your organisation? Do they run for the hills shortly after onboarding or do they stick around and become loyal champions for your organisation’s success? The latter is a dream scenario, and if not already a reality for your business, can become one if you empower your leadership to play their critical role.

The People Have Spoken

In 2023, more job seekers are applying for employment at companies that do more to consider the well-being of their employees. Organisations like Microsoft, Adobe, Peloton, and HubSpot understand this and have raised their hands with genuine displays of care for their workers, and as a result, are enjoying an abundance of loyalty and commitment.

HubSpot’s people have spoken… a Glassdoor review reported that 81% of their employees would recommend working there to a friend, while another review scored the company at 91% in favour of it being a great place to work. It’s also no coincidence that HubSpot boasts a higher-than-average employee retention rate, putting them in the top 5% of 1799 similar-sized organisations.

Very few businesses match this kind of worker sentiment. So what’s really going on behind these numbers? What are companies like HubSpot doing to win such favour from their employees?

Authentic Relationships Create Positive Experiences

Businesses with high employee engagement and retention rates have a lot in common; they make people feel part of something bigger, show recognition, foster respectful cultures, provide strong mentorship, create trust, communicate effectively, and inspire emotional investment. But most importantly, their leaders actively bring these attributes to life in the relationships they build.

It’s a well-known fact that “employees join companies and leave managers,” so leaders need to be advocates of all the good a company has to offer and not stand out as a sore point that creates friction and frustration for workers.

Employees who are victimised or publicly undermined by their leaders are likely to become resentful and negative and may share their disapproving outlook with others. And if they feel undervalued, they might spend time hunting for alternative employment opportunities.

Leaders Have the Power to Inspire Loyalty

Loyalty is an umbrella term for emotions that make employees feel attached to their current employer and less likely to see greener grass elsewhere. To cultivate it, leaders must increase the positive emotions and decrease the negative emotions people experience in their roles.

The most influential factor in employee engagement, performance and loyalty is the employee-manager relationship. Leaders are responsible for making people feel valued, respected, and part of something meaningful and can inspire a greater contribution by acknowledging and appreciating the wisdom and skill on offer.

The onus is on leadership to create a positive and rewarding workplace experience that helps build strong teams of loyal employees who are willing to give their best to the company.

Coaching Creates Loyal Employees

Professional executive coaching that focuses on leadership development helps organisations attract and keep great talent. How exactly does it work? Coaching considers the leaders’ area of influence and supports their development to make the biggest possible impact where it matters.

It helps leaders learn valuable communication and emotional intelligence skills that are essential for building strong relationships. By empowering them to make authentic connections, they’ll be able to positively impact their people, who may then become more supportive of the organisation’s objectives.

Coaching solutions that support leaders in strategic positions deliver a high return on investment because of the powerful nature of the intervention and the far-reaching impact a developed leader has.

When leaders are empowered through coaching, they inspire loyalty, turn employees into committed champions, and tell the world… “This is an amazing place to work!”

As a leading provider with 25 years of experience coaching leaders in blue-chip companies and government, Change Partners is perfectly positioned to help you advance.

Les Weiss is a highly qualified executive coach at Change Partners with more than 20 years of experience developing leaders at board and executive levels. His challenging and empathetic approach to development supports his ability to create high-performing leaders and engaged organisational cultures.

Contact him at lesweiss@change.co.za or on 082 610 0122 to help you take your performance to the next level.