Quitting Time:

There are many reasons why good employees quit; most are preventable, and all, according to Steve Smith, president of Chart Your Course International, revolve around management.

1. Management demands that one person do the jobs of two or more people, resulting in longer days and weekend work.

2. Management cuts back on administrative help, forcing professional workers to use their time copying, stapling, collating, filing and other clerical duties.

3. Management puts a freeze on raises and promotions, when an employee can easily find a job earning 20 percent more somewhere else.

4. Management doesn't allow the rank and file to make decisions or allow them pride of ownership.

5. Management constantly reorganizes, shuffles people around and changes direction constantly.

6. Management doesn't have or take the time to clarify goals and decisions. Therefore, it rejects work after it was completed, damaging the morale and esteem of those who prepared it.

7. Management shows favoritism and gives some workers better offices and trips to conferences.

8. Management relocates the offices to another location, forcing employees to quit or double their commute.

9. Management promotes someone who lacks training and/or necessary experience to supervisor, alienating staff and driving away good employees.

10. Management creates a rigid structure and then allows departments to compete against each other while at the same time preaching teamwork.



Greg Smith is the president of the management consulting firm Chart Your Course International and is the author of the book Here Today Here Tomorrow: Transforming Your Workforce from High-Turnover to High Retention.

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