Guest Post by Denise O’Neill, Owner, CEO Executive Coach, Peer Advisory Business Solutions Strategist – The Alternative Board – Baltimore Washington

Recently FAST COMPANY shared a new study from Glassdoor about the reasons people quit their jobs. Based on analysis of resumes of 5,000+ workers who changed jobs in the last 9 years, researchers identified several trends. Some seem obvious, such as people quitting to work at another company or getting a raise. The much talked about “Work Life Balance” didn’t make the top three!

After examining these trends, Glassdoor’s statistical analysis surfaced the 3 factors responsible for employee retention:

1. Company culture

2. Employee salary

3. Getting stuck in the same job for long periods of time

Last week I was reminded that there’s another reason good employees resign. Career Mystery! In an exit interview I held for a growing mid size company, a star salesperson shared that he wouldn’t have entertained leaving the company had he understood the long term vision the company had for him. He hadn’t appreciated the salary growth, management options and career opportunities available to him. It is critical management ensure key employees understand their value to the company and that regular career pathing discussions are held. In a low unemployment environment, holding on to valuable employees by building and sharing a long term career path, can be an important differentiator when hungry future employers “ come a calling”!