The team-building weekend was great and the new hires are fired up and optimistic. That’s important.
But what do you do about the guys who have been with you for a few years now and are thinking about their lives. More money is great - and no matter what retention plan you choose you can expect to shell out plenty. But there’s more to life than salary.

There are benefits that you just can’t walk away from.

Let’s say – just for laughs – that you find yourself asked to shell out more cash to hold on to your best, most reliable people. The backbone of your operation. What can you do with a pile of cash to retain the best?

1) Higher salaries. Great for a while, then they want more. Plan on this step as more of a starting point than a finish line.

2) Bonuses & Commissions. A necessity, but beware of encouraging negative behaviors. Lots of competent salesmen tend to look at year-end bonuses and big commission checks as more of an EXIT STRATEGY than a retention plan.

3) Multi-year investments. Paying for MBA is the most familiar example. You can tie tuition payment to a number of years with the company – both before and after the benefit is paid for. In other words, you have to work for the company for 2 years before you’re eligible, and then for 2 years after you get the degree or you must repay X% of the tuition. Get creative, and it works a lot of different ways. Help with mortgages, education savings funds (matching), professional training & certification…

4) Life-style enhancements. Yes – better health benefits and retirement planning. You’ll be paying a lot and it only works on married guys – preferably with kids. But once the wife gets used to good benefits (in Shanghai that means the nice international hospitals where the receptionist brings you tea, and an education savings plan) there’s no going back. You can structure them any way you want, and give owners & other key decision-makers (i.e.: you) better programs better packages than others.

5) Leave the door open. Some of the most loyal employees are the ones who leave and come back. Only works once, though.