Retaining talent is one of the most important things any manager can do. Finding the right workers who fit your company and its culture can be a difficult and time consuming task. Not to mention training new employees and setting up benefit plans, such as 401Ks, can eat up time and resources. For these reasons and more it is important to retain your talent.

One of the most important things a manager can do is take to care of their employees and this goes far beyond just pay. Taking care of your employees means developing holistic policies that can increase their emotional, physical, and yes, financial well-being. By developing such policies you will retain your best staff and ensure a productive work environment.

A good place to start is to figure out what your employees want or would enjoy and what drives them. Employees could be provided with a feedback system through which they can both put forward ideas and also lodge complaints when the need arises. Making sure that your company has a human resource manager or other staff member who is both open to listening to complaints and willing to maintain strict confidentiality is also an important step.

Further you should train your managers to listen to ideas from their staff and to provide positive reenforcement for people who are willing to put their ideas forward. This will help you build a highly innovative and meritocratic working environment that can boost productivity and output. The most successful companies are often those companies that remain dynamic and are constantly adapting to changing conditions and opportunities so you should try to install such innovation in your own workforce.

Another great option for increasing employee retention rates is setting up flexible working hours. While not every office and work environment can support flexible working hours, a surprising number of them can. Would it really hurt your work capacity if an employee elects to come in an hour later, in exchange for leaving an hour later? Perhaps not, and it could greatly assist your employee who might have to drop off a child at school. Flexible working hours can both increase employee satisfaction and also create a more productive working environment.

As the suggestions above point out, taking care of your employees isn’t just about money. There are numerous other policies that can make your employees happy and more productive. Other little things, like giving employees their birthday off, can also increase satisfaction and retention rates. You and your employees should explore the options and figure out what will work best for your company. Numerous studies have proven that happy employees are both more productive and likely to stick with their company, so the efforts will definitely be worth it.