There’s a lot of buzz out there now about what will happen when the economy turns around, job growth accelerates, and people have more choices about where to work. One of the most pressing issues is what will happen with your top talent. Here’s a link to a point-counterpoint discussion from Deloitte about the issue of voluntary turnover, what we can do to prevent it, and if it’s even a cause for concern.

Here’s another link to a recent online poll showing results from a survey about the most likely reasons that people will leave when the economy turns around.

The most common reason chosen overall across all sizes of companies and sectors: not feeling valued. Among HR professionals, however, 100% of the respondents believed that the top reason was “being poached by the competition.” This represents a concerning dichotomy of perspectives and locus of control. There is very little a company can do to combat their top talent being poached by the competition. This belief pretty much keeps you in a victim role, feeling justified that making changes and investing in your people won’t make a difference.

I am sure this poll does not represent all HR professionals – certainly not our clients! However, it does indicate an alarming attitude within a company, a tragic victim role that we believe does not bode well for innovative growth within companies.

Companies can make efforts and investments in valuing their employees to prevent unwanted turnover. We’ve been writing for the past year and a half about the importance of taking care of your people, even during tough economic times. We’ve outlined ways to motivate and value them with minimal monetary incentives. And, we’ve continued to offer targeted leadership training to help leaders engage, motivate, and inspire their employees. The companies we have worked with during this time have weathered very difficult times and kept their focus on their employees, leaders, and vision for the future.

Here’s our advice.

• Don’t be a victim.
• Invest in your people.
• Take proactive steps to inspire your best people to be with you as you grow into the future.