The labour market is struggling to find young skilled employees for respective jobs and many employers often have to begin from scratch by teaching new recruits through an intensive probation by correcting their mistakes, anchoring the company’s vision and formulating them into good employees competent enough to do their jobs.

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Yet, this is only the beginning of the puzzle because as soon as the employees master what they do, many start looking elsewhere for the obvious, better remuneration. I cannot blame them. We all want, and need, more money. However, even if yours is the best paying organization, some employees will leave simply because money is not the only motivator for most employees. Research has shown that money is not even in the top three reasons why employees quit.

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Last week, Rwanda Broadcasting Agency (RBA) held a brief and yet strategic ceremony to reward their top performing employees. A ‘selection committee’ had carefully identified top performers from different departments of the organization. Some of the criteria followed was that senior managers or directors were not eligible. Another criteria was that gender balance had to be respected throughout the awarding process.

In his brief speech, the CEO first thanked all the workers and emphasized that regardless of their varying degrees of performance, everyone was a worker and was contributing something to the organization’s growth and he requested everyone to better their best. It was a good statement polished with acknowledgment and encouragement. It was expected from a top executive’s public speech but I kept asking myself; what will it take to retain these top performing employees?

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Top performers deserve our attention not only because they matter most for the organization’s growth. They also have many options and you could argue that it is a matter of time before they leave your organization and this is what it takes to retain them;

Anchor your organization’s vision

If your vision is, "To be the leading and most trusted media company on all platforms’’ setting such a vision is not enough. You need to anchor it and let everyone of your employees know it, live it, and work towards it. Walk the journey together with all your employees and don’t just stop at the vision but rather rehearse the mission as well as strategic objectives too. Ask your subordinates what they think about your strategic plan and where possible incorporate their inputs. This way, they will feel part of your organization and their departure from the organization will begin to sound like betrayal.

Appreciate top performers and develop a good relation with your team

This is exactly what the CEO of RBA was doing; letting the top performers know that their efforts were worthwhile. It doesn’t cost a leg to say thank you. A small certificate of recognition could be the reason one great employee may prolong their stay on the job. Nothing motivates a junior employee like the CEO’s, ‘‘Good morning Sarah, what are you working on today?’’ Sarah will be happy that the CEO knows her name but equally motivated that the CEO cares to know what she’s doing at the organization.

Learn to delegate

Many big organizations have multiple and different tasks that cannot be executed by a single boss. Even if you are a PHD graduate, you may struggle to anchor the news or host an entertainment program. This is where skilled and passionate employees come in handy. Stay close and help where necessary but let them know that they are in charge of that respective task or department. This too, will build a sense of ownership and belonging within your organization.

Train your people

There’s always this debate as to whether organizations should train their employees and equip them with enough skills only to benefit the next employer but the alternative is worse. Embrace the principle that labour is mobile. Have a capacity building plan and let your employees know when and how they will be trained next. Keeping incompetent and non performing employees will cost you money and output.

Promote and pay them well

As an employer, you shouldn’t be paying less than your competitors. Money is scarce and some organizations struggle to pay salaries. That said, companies should implement horizontal promotion that adds to the salaries of top performers at least every two years. You see, if an employee has a sick child who requires an expensive surgery or if she, or he, is struggling with a mortgage, one hundred certificates of recognition will not pay a single bill-unfortunately. That said, money shouldn’t come free. Let them work for it and earn it as a promotion for showing great results.

The writer is a corporate lawyer.