By Rob Prior & Frida Andersson
March 2025

Employee turnover is costly. It disrupts teams, affects morale, and drains resources. But the good news is that retaining great employees isn’t complicated. It’s about creating an environment where people want to stay and grow with you and your business.

So, how do you do that? Here are a few key strategies to help keep your employees engaged, motivated, and committed to your business.

Build a Positive Workplace Culture

This is probably one of the single most important things that you can do to retain your employees. Most people who love their jobs will tell you that their workplace has a strong, positive work culture. It’s not just about perks, it’s about how people feel when they come to work. Here’s how you can cultivate that:

Encourage Open Communication: Employees should feel comfortable sharing ideas, feedback and concerns. Regular check-ins and an open-door policy go a long way in building this.
Set Clear Expectations: People perform best when they know what’s expected of them. Be clear about goals and responsibilities, then step back and trust them to deliver.
Align with Business Values: Make sure your team understands your core values and how their work contributes to them. If they feel a sense of purpose, they’ll be more engaged. Of course, you need to first determine what your actual core values are! If you haven’t yet done this, then get your key employees involved from the outset to assist with alignment and commitment.
Lead by Example: If you want a positive and accountable workplace, show your team what that looks like. How you treat employees will set the tone for your whole business – flowing on to impact how your team then treat your customers/clients.
Promote Social Connections: Strong work relationships make employees more likely to stay. Whether it’s an occasional casual team lunch, coffee catchups, or a main annual event, create opportunities for your team to connect.
Set Clear Boundaries: Ensure everyone understands that inappropriate behaviour, including bullying or harassment, won’t be tolerated — whether it’s from coworkers or customers.

Pay Fairly and Offer Competitive Benefits

Ok, let’s be real, salary matters. If employees feel underpaid, then they’ll start looking elsewhere. But money isn’t everything. Beyond a competitive salary, offering your team other meaningful “perks” can make a big difference.

Stay Competitive: Review your industry or competitors’ salary benchmarks regularly to ensure you are paying in line with current market rates.
Offer Non-Monetary Benefits: Consider offering your team things like professional development allowances, wellness programs, flexible work arrangements or even small perks like free coffees or team lunches.
Think Beyond the Basics: Salary packaging arrangements, such as allowing employees to salary sacrifice work-related mobiles and laptops, can add extra value without increasing your costs.

Provide Growth and Development Opportunities

Ambitious employees won’t stick around if they don’t see a future with your company. If there’s no room to grow, then they’ll outgrow you.

Create Career Pathways: Talk to your employees about their goals and show them how they can progress within your business.
Invest in Training: Whether it’s workshops, courses, or mentorship, providing learning opportunities keeps employees engaged and improves their skill sets.
Plan for the Future: If you have high-potential employees, consider ways to keep them long-term. For the right people, offering some level of ownership in your business at the right time can make it an attractive place for them to stay and build their careers.

Embrace Flexibility

For many employees, flexibility is just as valuable as salary.

Flexible Work Arrangements: Consider offering work-from-home options or flexible hours where possible. Small adjustments can make a big difference in – employees’ work-life balance which in turn will result in a happier, longer-standing team.
Support Life Transitions: Offering part-time options or temporary adjustments (e.g., to accommodate family commitments or further study) can help retain employees through different stages of their lives.

Prioritise Employee Well-Being

When employees feel looked after, they’ll stick around. Well-being isn’t just about avoiding burnout—it’s about making employees feel valued.

Support Mental Health – Provide access to resources like employee assistance programs, mental health or “well days”, or simply encourage a culture where people feel safe discussing their challenges without judgement.
Promote Physical Well-Being – Whether it’s subsidised gym memberships or wellness initiatives, small investments in health can lead to happier, healthier, and more engaged employees who will also take fewer sick days.

Keep Working on Your Leadership Skills

Strong leadership can make or break a workplace. A great boss inspires and motivates, while a poor one drives employees away and destroys your workplace culture.

Never Stop Learning – Read, attend workshops, and seek mentorship. Good leadership isn’t about having all the answers—it’s about being open to growth.
Listen to Your Team – Employees want to feel heard. If you take their feedback seriously, they’ll be more invested in the business.

The Bottom Line

Keeping employees isn’t about grand gestures or expensive perks—it’s about building a workplace where people feel valued, supported, and challenged. When employees see a future with your company, they won’t be looking for an exit.

We’ve been employing people here at Lincolns since 1951. During this time, we’ve been through many challenges and changes including change of business owners as well as client and team growth. We now employ nearly 60 people of which nearly a third have been here for over 10 years (and some for many more years than that!) But one thing that we focused on over 70 years ago remains at the heart of what we still do here today – and that’s a clear focus on our team and culture.

If you’d like to talk through strategies for your business and maybe even discuss some of the things we’ve done here at Lincolns to be so successful in this area, then give us a call at (08) 9841 1200.

Hospice Spinathon 2025

Lincolns takes the spin for a cause!

Our team showed true community spirit by participating in the Albany Hospice Spinathon on March 8th and 9th. We cycled with determination, contributing to a great cause - supporting the vital services provided by Albany Hospice.

While this event may be over, Albany Hospice accepts direct donations all year round. Support here!

Nurturing talent: How to keep your employees