Keeping the People Who Keep You in Business

Keeping the People Who Keep You in Business: 24 Ways to Hang on to Your Most Valuable Talent
by Leigh Branham

When you see a number of business authors addressing the same issue, you can be certain that the subject matter is more than likely timely and relevant to a wide audience. So it is with talent wars. In this book, employee-retention expert Leigh Branham explains what talented employees want more than money. He then goes a step further by shedding a great deal of light on what we can do to create an environment and a reward system that make key employees want to stay with us.

The author offers battle-fatigued managers a plan for victory in the rapidly growing war for talent. Critical to his plan are 24 compelling strategies for keeping good employees. He breaks the strategies into four key areas. Most retention books focus on the first two keys as they are certainly critical as well as challenging. The first key is: (1) Be a company that people want to work for. Many authors use the term “Employer of Choice” to say the same thing. The second key is also the focus of many authors: (2) Select the right people in the first place. This sounds like a simple and obvious step in any process. However, many companies fall short in their efforts at this point.

Branham’s last two keys are seldom mentioned in other books even though they are indeed critical to the process of keeping your best people. It’s refreshing to see an author address both areas in great detail. They include: (3) Get them off to a great start and (4) Coach and reward to sustain commitment. In addition, Branham identifies dozens of companies with outstanding retention programs and provides hundreds of examples of what these companies are doing to hang on to their most productive people.

Filled with guidelines, models, and planning aids, this book is a must for managers searching for ways to retain the people who are priceless to their organization’s success. It’s an easy, interesting read that belongs on your book shelf. You’ll find yourself going back to it time and time again.

(This book review was originally published in 2001 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 8.)