15 Tips for Retaining Creative Employees in Today’s Market

We’re all searching for tips and tricks to retaining employees who embody the core values of our small, creative businesses. Over the last few years, we’ve watched inflation, wage stagnation, inequality, toxic corporate culture, and many other factors that force good team members to go elsewhere. Workers want fulfilling jobs with supportive teams that encourage them to be creative, innovative, and true to themselves. Whether you own a small pottery studio or a successful interior design business with multiple studios, retaining top talent you love working with can be difficult. In this article, we offer our tips for retaining creative employees in today’s market. From rewarding workers to fostering your company’s culture, our employee retention strategies all start with hiring the right employees. Follow below to learn all about how to retain employees in 2024 and beyond!

15 Creative Employee Retention Strategies for 2024 and Beyond!

Most employee retention strategies begin with informed, focused hiring practices. Carefully defining each role and choosing the right people for those roles goes a long way toward retaining talent. Of course, offering competitive pay and benefits packages helps, too. In today’s labor market, however, offering competitive pay, providing adequate benefits, and explicitly defining expectations is not enough for interior design firms to retain top talent.

Other elements—like flexibility, learning opportunities, and company culture—are equally important to workers in 2024. Below are fifteen employee retention tips for small business owners who want to inspire and encourage their team of creatives.

#1 Figure Out Your Company’s Employee Turnover Rate

First, small business owners should figure out their employee turnover rate. Some refer to turnover rate as an “attrition rate” or “churn rate.” Most businesses calculate either a monthly or an annual turnover rate. You can do so by dividing the number of employees who left the company by the average number of employees. Multiply that value by one hundred to turn your turnover rate into a percentage.

This resource from the Society for Human Resource Management explains how to determine your company’s average number of employees. According to SHRM, businesses should count both full-time and part-time employees but should not include independent contractors.

To calculate the most accurate turnover rate, your company’s HR department should regularly conduct a head count of full- and part-time employees. SHRM recommends a company-wide head count every one to two weeks. After a few months, add up the results of all these headcounts and divide by the total number of headcounts. This calculation will give you the average number of employees needed to determine your company’s turnover rate.

The last piece of the puzzle is how many separations occurred in your target timeframe. Of course, there are many reasons employees leave a company. Some leave to care for an elderly, injured, or ill relative. Others leave because they themselves have fallen ill or sustained an injury. Some retire from the workforce altogether, while others quit to have children or pursue educational opportunities. Certain employees might be laid off or fired for cause. Still, others quit because they want to find a job with higher pay, better benefits, or a different company culture.

Voluntary vs. Involuntary Separations

SHRM recommends adding “voluntary and involuntary separations” and warns against including any “leaves of absence or furloughs.” An attrition rate below 10% and a retention rate above 90% is generally considered adequate. Remember that not all voluntary separations are due to discontent when calculating your company’s attrition rate. Connect with your HR department to better understand why employees are leaving.

#2 Familiarize Yourself With Common Causes of High Employee Turnover

Replacing an employee is not only disruptive to the team that employee leaves. It can also be incredibly expensive for your interior design business at large. Picking the right employees from the get-go and putting effort into retaining them can actually save money in the long run. According to a Gallup article by Shane McFeely and Ben Wigert, replacing an employee can cost “half to two times [their] salary.”

McFeely and Wigert write that many workers would have stayed had supervisors listened to their concerns. In fact, 52% of workers who quit said that “their manager or organization could have done something to prevent them from leaving their job.” Given this, the second step on our list of tips for retaining creative employees is to familiarize yourself with common causes of voluntary separation.

Certain causes of employee separation cannot be controlled – like retirement, illness, and caring for a loved one. In her article “How to Calculate and Improve Employee Turnover” for Business News Daily, Skye Schooley identifies some of the preventable causes of separation. Schooley states employee turnover is often “caused by unfavorable workplace circumstances that can be managed.”

If employees quit because of their experience at your interior design business, your team can probably make some improvements to prevent future separations. Quoting Summit Search Group’s Matt Erhard, Schooley explains. Erhard tells Schooley that “‘employees are more likely to quit if they feel underappreciated and overworked.’” High employee attrition could also come from “poor management, negative company culture, lack of career opportunities and advancement, and inaccurate job descriptions.”

#3 Identify and Solve Any Underlying Issues That Might Lead to Attrition

Stemming from the second step in our guide to retaining employees, this next step is self-explanatory. Small business owners should identify and try to solve any underlying issues that might lead to higher rates of attrition. To do this, business owners can meet with their company’s HR department to obtain a breakdown of each department’s attrition rate.

They can also meet with managers whose teams have recently shed an undesirable number of employees. Conducting employee satisfaction surveys in departments with high turnover can also help you identify and solve issues before more workers leave the company.

#4 Tailor Your Company’s Flexible Work Policy to Meet Individual Needs

Fourth on our creative employee retention strategies list is tailoring your company’s flexible work policy to meet individual needs. Each employee in your company has a different home life and approach to managing tasks. Some prefer to work independently at home, while others need direction and community to thrive.

Acknowledging these differences and finding ways to adapt your company’s policy to fulfill each employee’s needs can help retain creative talent. Just be sure to implement these policies fairly and transparently.

#5 Promote Internally Whenever Possible to Retain Top Talent

Fifth on our list of ways to retain top talent is to promote internally whenever possible. Charlette Beasley and Jennifer Hartman explain this in their article for Fit Small Business. Hartman and Beasley write that small business owners should always “consider the career paths and goals of [their] employees in the context of existing roles.”

By promoting current employees, small business owners not only “boost morale.” This decision can also “be the key to keeping employees engaged, even as their goals and interests develop.” When employees know they will be rewarded for hard work, they are “more likely to participate in corporate events, training sessions, and other activities.”

Promoting from within can “foster a greater sense of loyalty.” This is because employees know that by investing in the company, they are investing in themselves and their teammates. If you need help retaining employees and structuring your organization, we recommend working with a financial advisor and a small business coach. Business coaches help small business owners structure their firms and chart a path forward with realistic goals. 

This can include writing up an interior design business plan to make your firm more attractive to investors and lenders. It can also include designing new departments, hiring new employees, and reassigning roles to existing team members. You can opt for one-on-one coaching, go through a business coaching program with other interior designers, or attend a small business workshop.

#6 Review Work and Rewards on a Regular Basis

Another way to retain top talent is to consistently review work and reward employees who are especially creative, innovative, and effective at their jobs. Recognition goes a long way, but so do bonuses and pay raises. Skye Schooley agrees in her article “How to Calculate and Improve Employee Turnover” for Business News Daily.

Quoting Sue Andres from KIS Finance, Schooley writes, “’it’s essential to keep your pay and benefits under review.'” This is one of the few ways to ensure the package you offer each employee is competitive in the current market. Andes tells Schooley that when employees believe managers no longer “‘ recognize their worth and true market value,'” they begin to look elsewhere.

#7 Provide Learning Opportunities to Employees

One of the values that DesignDash co-founders Melissa and Laura observe at Laura U is their commitment to lifelong learning. They offer leadership training and workshops at the studio and ensure our team attends markets annually. It’s important that our team continues to learn and hone their craft.

Providing employees with learning opportunities is key to setting them up for future success in your company. It is also vital to retaining talented employees. Referencing a LinkedIn survey in his article for Houzz Pro, Stephen Rabimov explains. Rabimov writes, “94% of employees would be willing to stay at a company longer if it offered learning opportunities.”

For business leaders in creative fields, this could mean sponsoring employees who wish to attend conferences or design fairs. It could also mean helping employees pay for continuing education courses. Employees feel fostered and inspired, while companies benefit from better-educated workers with up-to-date industry knowledge.

As a business owner, you should also be open to learning opportunities in the form of constructive criticism from employees. Listen and respond to employee feedback. Acknowledge where you can improve in either managing or delegating to employees.

#8 Offer Guidance and Mentorship to New Employees

Similarly, small business owners should find ways to educate employees from within the company. Offering guidance and mentorship is especially important when trying to retain recently hired employees. Not only does mentoring recent hires help retain new employees by reducing confusion and encouraging creativity. It also fosters a sense of connection and community between new employees and other team members.

Of course, there are potential pitfalls when providing guidance to new hires. As the business owner, you might ask a team leader or other senior employee to mentor a new worker. Just make sure your request does not overwhelm their current workload.

#9 Invest in and Foster Your Company’s Culture

In this climate, there is a good chance employees join your small business because of the positive culture it espouses. By investing in and fostering your company’s culture, you can keep employees engaged and encourage a sense of belonging. Of course, maintaining your company’s culture and fostering connections between team members can be incredibly difficult when managing a remote workforce. Still, making the effort to maintain a sense of connection is vital for employee retention in interior design businesses.

In their article “Fostering a Culture of Belonging in the Hybrid Workplace” for Harvard Business Review, Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic and Katarina Berg explain. Chamorro-Premuzic and Berg write, “psychological research has consistently shown that when employees feel that they belong…they tend to perform better.” Employees who feel connected to their company culture also “experience higher levels of engagement and well-being.”

To foster your company’s culture, your business plans might include investing in social activities that bring the team together. These activities should help employees “rekindle relationships, feel a stronger connection, and remain an active part of the cultural evolution” of your company.” Consider volunteering together, enjoying a long lunch, planning a retreat, or attending a design fair — all during work hours. These types of events attract new employees, too. However, make sure these efforts feel sincere to your employees — not just part of your marketing strategy.

#10 Make Work Purpose-Driven

In their article, Chamorro-Premuzic and Berg note that “the degree of meaning and purpose [employees] derive from work” also impacts retention. According to Berg and Chamorro-Premuzic, purpose is what separates a job from a career. To retain talented employees, Berg and Chamorro-Premuzic write that small business owners must “act as agents of meaning and purpose.”

Writing for HBR in their article “6 Strategies to Boost Retention Through the Great Resignation,” Frank Breitling, Julia Dhar, Ruth Ebeling, and Deborah Lovich agree. Breitling et al. write, “Purpose is the timeless reason that your organization exists.” In fact, it is the main reason “people join and choose to stay.” This is especially true of non-profits, but it is also relevant in creative industries like interior design businesses, architecture firms, and the arts.

Employees who feel that their work is meaningful and makes a true contribution to the company are more likely to stick around. Quoting Atlanta designer Susan Ferrier in an article for Architectural Digest, Kyle Hoepner elaborates. Ferrier tells Hoepner that her employees look for “a sense of place and ownership in the office.'” With this in mind, she tries to provide each employee with the sense that they’re “‘not just working for [her].'” Instead, they are “‘working for [the studio] and their clients.'” They are part of a “‘bigger picture.'”

#11 Delegate Effectively and Avoid Micromanaging

Next on our list of tips for retaining creative employees as a small business owner is to delegate effectively and avoid micromanaging. This is key to general business success, too. Susan Ferrier’s suggestion to provide employees with a “‘sense of place and ownership in the office'” touches on this point. Employees are more productive and fulfilled when they can work in ways that make sense to them and best suit their approaches to problem-solving.

Quoting winery-owner Lawrence Sharrott in an article for the US Chamber of Commerce, Andrea Forstadt explains. Sharrott tells Forstadt that “‘engagement starts with empowerment.'” To empower his employees, Sharrott gives them permission to make “‘everyday decisions that get the job done.'” Sharrott and other successful business owners trust employees to deliver results. After all, you hired each employee in your firm because of their creativity and unique insight.

#12 Celebrate Success as a Team

Next on our list of creative employee retention strategies is to celebrate your firm’s success in the interior design industry as a team. In an article for Houzz Pro, Stephen Rabimov notes that data actually supports this recommendation. According to Rabimov, one study found that companies with a“’recognition-rich culture’ had 31% lower voluntary turnover rates.”

To boost retention, publicly recognize each worker’s contributions and gather together to celebrate major wins as a team. Throw a party for all team members — from your procurement manager to your design assistant — after wrapping up a major project. Avoid attributing all success to senior designers and team leaders. Make sure every employee knows that their contributions are valued. The company’s success is its success, too.

#13 Update Employees on Upcoming Changes

Keeping employees “in the know” is also important for employee retention — especially in small creative firms. Alert employees to upcoming changes — like an expansion into new markets or a second studio location. Informing interior design professionals on your team not only makes them feel more comfortable and secure.

Bringing employees in on major decisions also fosters connection and makes work feel more purpose-driven. This Bank of America resource notes, “’employees have a greater sense of purpose [when informed about] the business’s key goals and initiatives.'”

#14 Find Ways to Support Initiatives Your Employees Care About

Another way to retain employees is to find ways to support initiatives and issues they care about. Set aside time during the year to volunteer for an organization that means something to each employee. Consider hosting a fundraiser if several team members care deeply about the same issue. Just make sure that these initiatives support your company’s mission and core values.

#15 Stay True to Your Mission

Lastly, stay true to your mission! Employees joined your company because of your specific approach. You will attract and retain the right employees by staying true to your company’s values.

Still Have Questions About How to Attract, Inspire, and Retain the Right Employees?

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