HR-inzichten • 10 MIN. LEESTIJD
How to Improve Your Employee Retention Rate
JUN 12, 2026
Goede mensen verliezen is duur. Hier is een praktische, evidence-based aanpak om het retentiepercentage van uw organisatie te verbeteren.
Wat uw retentiepercentage u eigenlijk vertelt
Retention rate measures the percentage of employees who remain with your organisation over a given period, typically a year. A high retention rate does not automatically mean a healthy organisation: if poor performers are staying and high performers are leaving, your headline number flatters the reality. Always segment retention data by performance rating, tenure, department, and role level to identify where the problem actually sits.
De meest voorkomende drijfveren van vrijwillig verloop
Exit interview and leaver survey data consistently identify the same root causes: a poor relationship with an immediate manager, limited career progression opportunities, compensation that has fallen behind the market, a mismatch between stated values and day-to-day reality, and excessive workload without adequate recognition. Note that these are rarely about money alone: pay is usually a threshold factor rather than the primary driver. Addressing management quality and development opportunities typically has a larger impact on retention than a pay increase.
Een retentiestrategie opbouwen
A retention strategy should address the root causes identified in your own data, not generic best-practice lists. Common high-impact interventions include: structured career development conversations twice per year (beyond the annual appraisal), targeted retention conversations with high-potential employees before they reach the stage of looking, manager quality improvement programmes, flexible working options for roles where they are feasible, and regular pay benchmarking to prevent compensation from drifting below market.
Voortgang meten en rapporteren
Stel voor elk segment een retentiedoel vast en rapporteer hier elk kwartaal over aan het senior management. Volg niet alleen het headlinepercentage, maar ook het 90-dagenretentiepercentage (hoeveel nieuwe medewerkers na drie maanden nog blijven), het retentiepercentage van toppresteerders en retentie per afdeling en manager. Door de prestatiebeoordelingen van managers te koppelen aan het retentiepercentage van hun team ontstaat verantwoordelijkheid en wordt gesignaleerd dat goede mensen behouden onderdeel van de functie is.
