“People come and go” as they say but in the HVAC business, it’s not easy and can be brutal. The market is not all positive sales and profit, it’s more about keeping HVAC employees. We are still in “The Great Resignation” era with 2.9% of the workforce quitting their post. According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, this started happening last August 2021 and is still unchanged until this month. This might sound alarming but manageable. Here’s what you need to know to improve your HVAC employee retention.

What is Employee Retention?

Employee retention refers to a company’s capacity to keep its personnel and reduce turnover, which occurs when individuals leave their positions for other reasons. Employee retention is also the goal of a business to keep HVAC employees and reduce turnover by building a great work environment. Similarly, it’s showing appreciation for employees, and offering equal access to resources and a healthy work-life balance. In periods of low unemployment and greater competition for skilled employees, it is crucial for HVAC businesses to retain their best talents.

• Keep your best employees by building a great work environment
• Show appreciation for employees with benefits and resources
• Provide a healthy work-life balance to retain employees
• Reduce turnover and the costs associated with it

Deep dive into retention: Baby boomers are retiring, at a rate of 10K per day, between today and 2030. Millennials aren’t considering a career in the HVAC trade. The solution isn’t simple. But it’s been right here the whole time ➡

Why is Employee Retention Important for the HVAC Industry?

Keeping HVAC employees around for the long haul is good for the health and success of your business. Hiring and training new employees can take a lot of time. Losing them can cause a lot of stress, and cost a lot of money. Employee turnover can also hurt your business. High employee turnover causes many problems, such as high costs, loss of expertise, and low productivity.

To recap and emphasize the importance of why HVAC employee retention is important to your success:

• Consistency is essential to the success of any business. It is impossible to develop a profitable business if you have a constant turnover of staff. It’s nearly impossible for a company to sustain any traction when everyone is constantly changing jobs. Management is required to regularly retrain new personnel and keep their current workforce interested, instead of focusing on the greater goals.
• Lost skills, expertise, and information. When experienced employees go, they take their knowledge with them. Employees’ information and abilities can be lost forever if they fail to pass on their institutional knowledge to their peers. This can result in decreased productivity and confusion among team members who are left behind.
• Cultivating teamwork can be hard. If team members are constantly leaving, it can be difficult for employees to form bonds and work efficiently together. And training new personnel is a burden on the remaining workforce.
• Indirectly, Your Competitors May Benefit. You may lose valuable assets if an employee leaves your company and goes to work for a competitor.

How Can HVAC Business Owners Fix Retention Problems

One of the most important things you can do to improve retention is to take note of your current situation. However, this step is often skipped. It’s not usually a good idea to try to solve a problem before you know what it is, but this happens a lot.

Find out where your retention problems are coming from and how you will measure how well your solutions are working. Taking an objective look at your HVAC business might be hard, but it’s a good thing to do. Once you know where the problems are, it’s time to fix them. Most problems with retention are linked, so solving one can help you solve others.

• Pinpoint the sources of your HVAC company’s retention problems
• Measure the effectiveness of your solutions
• Get a comprehensive report that is specific to your business
• Take corrective action and improve your bottom line

Great employee experience is the next battleground for companies to retain and attract the most talented people

— Chris Herd (@chris_herd) May 30, 2022

As you can see, there are a lot of things to think about when it comes to retention. However, if you take the time to do it right, your efforts will be worth it. Are you currently facing any retention problems with your HVAC business? If so, what are you doing to solve them? Let us know!

HVAC Employee Retention Strategies

Candidates with in-demand talents won’t have to wait long to find a new job, even if the employment market favors employers in some industries and places. Many HVAC businesses didn’t cease hiring because of the pandemic, and those that did are now ramping up their employment efforts.

Make quick action to strengthen employee retention strategies when you suspect your company is losing top talent. It is possible to raise employee happiness and retention by focusing on the following 14 areas:

Recruitment and Onboarding

Employee attrition can be reduced by giving applicants accurate job descriptions during the recruitment process, which is supported by considerable research. New employees should be given the tools they need to succeed right out of the gate. During the onboarding process, new employees should learn about the company’s culture and how they may contribute to and prosper within it. This is the most important phase, so don’t skimp on it. The tone of an employee’s time with your company can be set by the training and support they receive on their first day, whether in person or remotely.

Communication

The pandemic emphasized the significance of effective workplace communication. Any time employees’ have an idea, question, or worry, they should feel free to bring it to your attention. It is your responsibility as a leader to ensure that timely, productive, and good communication is promoted across the whole team, including both onsite and remote workers. Make sure to check in on a regular basis with each member of the team to learn about their workload and level of job satisfaction.

6 HVAC Industry Trends in Business and Technology: As an HVAC business, it’s important to stay up to date on the latest industry trends. That way, you can make sure your business is staying ahead of the curve and offering the best possible services to your customers. In this blog post, we’ll take a look at six of the most important HVAC industry trends in business and technology. Keep reading to learn more! ➡

Invest in Your Employees’ Growth and Learning

Employees see training as an investment in their value and a great motivator to stay with the organization. It is possible to find areas of professional improvement for your staff by giving them regular feedback on their performance. With the rapid advancement of technology, it is more necessary than ever to stay on top of one’s professional game. People who upskill expand their skill set in response to the shifting demands of the workplace. Workforce members seek an organization that encourages their professional development, and if one does not exist, they are likely to seek employment elsewhere. Short- and long-term benefits of a well-executed training and development program include employee engagement and retention; an increase in inventive thinking; and an organization’s competitive advantage.

Dear employers,

Just realize your employees have options too.

Don’t lose your best talent. Invest in them. Show them you’re invested in their growth at your company.

Trust me, they’ll stay with you and help the company grow this way.

😎🤝

— The Random Recruiter (@randomrecruiter) June 4, 2022

Build a Sustainable Recognition Culture

Each and every one of us desires to be recognized for our efforts. Even more so for today’s workplace, where gratitude from an employer can have a significant influence. To that end, make a point of praising and recognizing those in your organization who go above and beyond for the good of the company. In order to encourage new ideas and creativity, several firms have formal award systems in place. However, even with a small team or minimal resources, you may implement powerful recognition programs.

Provide a Diversity of Employment Options

Many organizations are planning for the possibility that some of their employees would wish to work remotely at least part-time whenever their offices reopen following the pandemic’s forced closure. So, if permanent remote work isn’t a possibility, consider what else you can give your staff as soon as possible. Possibly a shortened workweek? Flextime? Is there a possibility of a part-time working arrangement? As a result, your employees will be happier and more productive.

Exit Surveys Can Provide Useful Information

Before leaving a company, an employee will have an exit interview performed by a company representative. Exit surveys are a great way to get firsthand input from departing workers about their experiences. Ask them why they left and if they have any ideas for improvement. This aids you in enhancing the overall working environment for people who choose to stay with your business.

If your organization is losing staff on a regular basis, it could be financially damaging. The greatest way to get the most out of your investment in keeping HVAC employees is to make your workplace even better so that employees desire to stay. In the event of infrequent employment vacancies, those seats won’t be empty for long. In order to attract the best employees, a company needs to demonstrate its commitment to its employees by offering them a range of challenging and rewarding career paths.