As a team manager, you certainly don't want to come to work one day and find out that your best employee suddenly quit. You can't always make him stay. However, if you want to avoid at least the fact of being surprised by this departure, you should learn to look around better and communicate in time. Regularly talk to your people about their satisfaction and future plans. BusinesWeek.com pointed out to five warning signs showing that the best member of your team is going to leave the ship.
1. He stops complaining
If your best employee stops to come up with ideas to improve your daily activities, he probably already understands that he was just wasting his energy. It is highly possible that he has already started to sent his CVs.
2. He participates in more social events
When an employee who has never had enough time to meet important people in the field starts visiting social events, beware of that. He is apparently looking for new opportunities.
3. He has become interested in numbers
When an employee who doesn't have to prove anything to you starts investigating the statistics of his success in the company, be careful. He probably needs it for his resume.
4. He wants to work more on external tasks
If he has so far been dealing with mainly internal stuff and now he wants to work more closely with customers and vendors, it is suspicious. It indicates his interest to start somewhere else.
5. He has lost his interest in the opportunity to get promoted and earn more money
If he has always been interested in the possibility of a long-term career development in your company and now he takes it more than half-heartedly, it will have a reason. What do you think the reason is?
-kk-