Bye-bye, Boss: Why good employees leave and what to do about it.

• Author: Zabriskie, Kate

Thoughts like these happen many times every day in organizations large and small. While a certain amount of turnover is healthy and normal, when an employer hemorrhages staff, it can take years to recover. And let's face it, retention is tough in many places. While you can't make people stay, you can take some critical actions to address the main reasons people say sayonara, so long, and see you later.

GOODBYE REASON ONE

Employees want a better relationship with their managers

If you haven't done a good job cultivating a good relationship with your direct reports, today is the day to start. Evaluate your behavior. Would you want to work for you? Would anyone else? Look for patterns. If people don't stick around and they don't cite another plausible reason for their decision, guess what? It's probably you. You never hear from any of them after they depart? It's definitely you. Get honest with yourself. Are you a yeller? Inconsistent? Punishing? Self-centered? Uncommunicative? It's time to get to work. Identify the behaviors that would cause someone to leave and stop doing them. Next, identify the behaviors that will encourage someone to stay and start doing those things. Needing to be a better manager is a simple diagnosis with a hard prescription. If you don't know how to get better on your own, take a class, read some leadership books, craft an action plan, hire a coach, or pursue a combination of these actions.

GOODBYE REASON TWO

Employees are bored or no longer challenged

While people do outgrow jobs, and sometimes there is nowhere to move them, you can solve this problem. If people can do the job and become restless, look for special projects, cross-training opportunities, and other extras. At a minimum, that extra attention should slow their departure. If the problem is recurring, ask yourself what kind of person would be right sized for the position, and consider hiring for those attributes the next time.

GOODBYE REASON THREE

Employees want a better work-life balance

It's called a job, not purgatory. While certain people live to work, most people want some semblance of a life outside of work. Ask yourself if you're running a sweatshop. Does everyone need to be in the office from nine to five Monday to Friday? If not, a little flexibility can go a long way toward building loyalty and making a job attractive. Next, think about measuring people based on output instead of the hours worked. If employees must type on a keyboard a few times...