Sometimes managers are so focused on reducing turnover that they never consider the possibility that some turnover is outside their control. The turnover might be too costly to control, or perhaps the reasons employees leave are outside their control. I like to term this uncontrollable turnover as “fact of life” turnover.

Ask two questions to assess “fact of life” turnover:
1. Can I control the reasons people are leaving?
2. How much am I going to have to spend to control turnover?

Controlling the reasons people are leaving
Can you control the reasons people are leaving? Be careful here. Some “uncontrollable reasons” may in fact be “controllable.” Let’s say an employee is leaving because of a change in his or her family situation (e.g., new baby). While some organizations consider this reason uncontrollable, other companies build incentives to return (e.g., flexible hours, return bonus, day care, etc.). If the reason is truly uncontrollable, then it is important to begin to manage the negative consequences of turnover. However, if the reason is controllable then you can design a cost-effective plan to correct it.

Spending to control turnover
Is the cost to control the turnover worth it? Calculate the cost to lose an employee. Then, calculate the cost of the strategy to retain him or her. If the cost to lose the employee(s) is less then the cost to retain them, then it may not be worth investing in that particular retention strategy. If this is the case, then management of the consequences of turnover is imperative.

Therefore, if you have “fact of life” turnover, don’t ignore it. Look at it as an opportunity to proactively manage its potential negative consequences. In future blogs, I’ll talk more about measuring the costs and managing the consequences of turnover.