Page 211 -

Managing the Employee Factor through Cycles 201

employees because typically this type of mentoring activity
goes unrewarded and leads to feelings of resentment and
lack of acknowledgment.

Mentoring is a critical activity for any business because
most new employees are likely to leave within the first year.
For a ballpark figure, $5,000 per new employee is the addi-
tional cost incurred by the business to acquire them. This
$5,000 does not include training of the employee. This type
of mentoring recognition increases employee satisfaction,
customer service levels, general morale, and long-term busi-
ness growth. Conversely, high employee turnover has the
opposite effect on all these critical elements of business
success.

In good times and in bad

Employees have a direct impact on customers. And custom-
ers have a direct impact on any company’s bottom line. In
good times (and more so, in bad), the employee factor is a
crucial component to any business’s success.

Ensuring leaders are focused on creating and maintaining
a positive culture with open, honest communication regard-
less of the economic cycle will go a long way to ensuring
the long-term prosperity of a business. Take a long-term
view of your most important asset – your employees.