Ten traps to avoid to hold on to your best people

  • Published
  • By Senior Master Sgt. William Granger
  • Band of the Golden West
TRAVIS AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  A few nights ago, I was catching up with an old friend through the miracle of Facebook and read a link shared by a former colleague titled, "Top 10 Ways to Ensure Your Best People Will Quit" by Mel Kleiman.

What really caught my attention was his additional sarcastic comment, "Nice job, Air Force!" While this Airman always demonstrated high standards, I began to wonder what had happened for him to become embittered with current supervision.

It finally occurred to me his leadership likely failed him in an important way. Starting on day one, his key unit leaders forgot to reinforce these messages: 1) you're part of a great organization, 2) we're glad you're here and 3) your job is very important - and here's why.
It's no secret the Air Force is facing manpower challenges. But each of us as stakeholders need to remember during this process our focus should be on retaining the best Airmen to fly, fight and win.

So how can each of us ensure the most talented and deserving Airmen stick around and keep their skills engaged in defense of their country? Avoid falling into any of these 10 traps:

10. Don't make your inprocessing program tedious. Airmen are most impressionable during their first 60 days on the job. How can you expect excellence from your new Airmen if your orientation process is a mess of paperwork, policy and red tape?

9. Don't forget to do an Airmen exit interview. When a great Airman walks out the door, conduct an exit interview to see what you could have done differently before they leave for another job.

8. Don't have dumb rules. I didn't say have any rules. I specified dumb rules. Great Airmen want to have direction, but they don't want rules that get in the way of doing their jobs or conflict with values the Air Force says are important.

7. Don't tolerate mediocrity. A plus players don't want to play with a bunch of C minus players.

6. Don't forget to develop an Airmen retention strategy. Make a list of Airmen you Don't want to lose and next to each name write down what you will do to see that person engaged.

5. Don't fail to recognize outstanding performance. Remember Psychology 101: Behavior you want repeated should be rewarded immediately.

4. Don't treat your Airmen equally. Initially this sounds wrong, but in terms of work performance all Airmen are not equal. Some are worth more because they produce better results. In terms of work performance, the key is to treat all Airmen fairly.

3. Don't fail to keep your people informed. You can't communicate just the good, but also the bad and sometimes the ugly. Bad news doesn't get any better with time and if you don't tell your Airmen the rumor mill will.

2. Don't micromanage. Once properly trained, tell your experienced Airmen why it needs to be done and why their job is important. Ask for their input on how it could be done better and make certain to repeat these messages frequently.

1. Don't forget to have fun at work. Some Air Force jobs are by definition more serious than others, but human beings are not designed to be engaged that way 24/7. Find appropriate ways to make the work environment more relaxed and fun and you will have Airmen who look forward coming to work each day.