So, you want your new hires to stay. Most don’t last very long. And the greatest reason cited is that how the job is explained to the candidate is not what they find when they start working.

Before we can discuss this, I need to ask, why do you pay your employees?

Most say, “to do the job,” “to make a difference,” some even say “because the law says I have to.” These all do not reflect the true nature of the employer-employee relationship. Instead, think “return.”

For your investment in your employee, you expect a return. You pay your employees to create that return, and that is not by only doing the listed components of a job description – the world changes to quickly to live to rigid steps. The real reason why you pay your employees is to create the most efficient, effective and profitable response in each situation they encounter in their jobs. Employees have to think; they have to be emotionally connected to what they do – this is how they add value. And if they see that the job is not as you described it, they disconnect. They feel betrayed. They stop performing.

In your interview process, get good at sharing an honest representation of what a day in the life of the employee in the job is like. Consider the following:

1. Create “A day in the life of” videos for each job in the organization, and host the video on the employment section of your website.
2. Have others who will work with the employee spend time with the serious interview candidates to share their comments about the company and the job.
3. Include a walk-through of where the employee will be working to familiarize the employee with the environment, the people, the attitude, the energy and the personality of the workplace.

What is missing in most employer-employee relationships is trust and honesty. Organizations represent the jobs, potential and workplaces as something different than they are. Candidates represent themselves as being more capable than they are. Then both sides are disappointed in the new arrangement.

Remember that each side must wisely invest in the other. Companies invest in their people. Employees invest in the visions, purpose, opportunities and products of their companies. Knowing the facts about the workplace prepares the job candidate to be well informed in the decision-making process. How can you expect an employee to commit to exceptional performance and loyalty if you are not honest with what the candidate will encounter in your workplace? And when they leave, in a connected world, they tell their friends.

Start a high trust relationship with your employees right from the interview process. This leads to better hiring, more significant performance and more loyal employees.

Please pass this one to someone who can benefit from it and contact me to help you learn how to use talent-based interviewing to hire the right person.