Staff turnover can be an extremely costly occurrence for SMBs, but could artificial intelligence be the perfect solution for countering retention shortfalls?

With instances of staff resignations costing an average of $15,000 for companies, any businesses with serious ambitions about growth could find themselves severely hindered by higher turnover rates.

However, with businesses reporting 25% to 40% lower turnover with the adoption of AI-powered employee retention systems, it appears that artificial intelligence could be a leading solution in the fight against costly resignations.

AI equips employers with the ability to accurately anticipate and prepare for instances where an employee may be more likely to leave their role.

Thanks to developments in predictive analytics and machine learning (ML), artificial intelligence tools are becoming nearly as powerful as a crystal ball in identifying the employees most susceptible to turnover risk. With this in mind, let’s take a deeper look at how the technology is transforming the ability of SMBs to identify ‘flight risks’ and actively address them before they become costly resignations:

Leveraging Predictive Analytics

Flight risks, or forecasted turnover risks, have become far more accurate thanks to the implementation of AI in leading predictive analytics platforms with the support of ML.

These intelligent tools can integrate with existing HR systems to access vast amounts of data produced by employees, creating sophisticated models that predict retention likelihood with high levels of accuracy. As a result, SMBs can become more proactive in addressing turnover risks.

Platforms like Workday’s People Analytics and IBM’s Watson Talent Insights are two leading use cases in predictive analytics for workforces, and both use natural language processing (NLP) along with predictive modeling to assess employee sentiment, ranking their probability of quitting using actionable metrics.

Bespoke Onboarding

Data suggests that 80% of new hires who receive low-quality onboarding intend to quit, especially if they work in a remote capacity.

Skill gaps can be a challenge when countering employee turnover, and it’s essential that SMBs work to reduce instances of staff quitting because they’re improperly trained for their roles.

Artificial intelligence is capable of delivering interactive experiences and simulated environments that provide onboarding training in a far more engaging and bespoke manner than simple text-based modules. The ability to tailor training models instantly ensures that employees will enhance their skills and address prospective gaps far more quickly.

The implementation of AI training helps employees to feel more valued at work and equipped to develop their skills within their roles in a way that supports contentment and longevity in their positions.

Effective Monitoring

Workable data suggests that supporting employee training and performance can help to protect businesses against the high turnover rate of around 20% of new hires leaving within the first 45 days.

Artificial intelligence supports the monitoring of employee performance through surveys and automated feedback chatbots that can quickly identify issues and foster supporting communication with workers to ensure that they feel valued in their roles.

By uniting activity data, AI can monitor the actions of employees against their schedules, converting their productivity into actionable insights for leaders. Although this may have the appearance of micromanaging, the technology can identify when an employee may be overworked, protecting them against burnout and implementing a clearer operational structure.

These protective actions can ensure that prospective declines in employee performance are addressed before they result in turnover.

Supporting Efficient Payroll

As employers become increasingly accustomed to operating with remote teams, it’s becoming more important than ever to issue prompt payroll for employees around the world in a way that matches their expectations.

Artificial intelligence is helping to support more agile payroll services that can deliver cross-border payments using the most effective currency conversion rates at the most opportune time to protect against high fees while preventing employee disappointment.

With ML capable of adapting to compliance changes and varied regulatory requirements, more SMBs can address talent gaps by onboarding skilled workers from overseas and enrolling them on their payroll in a seamless manner.

Protecting Against Flight Risks

Flight risks can occur when employees are feeling undervalued and unsupported, leading to a higher risk of costly staff turnover.

Artificial intelligence is actively bridging expectation gaps between employees and employers by offering bespoke training programs and more efficient performance monitoring that can flag behavioral anomalies and individuals at a high risk of experiencing burnout.

These measures can help to maintain an engaged and happy workforce that’s more likely to be retained for longer, supporting SMBs in their growth ambitions.