By Tara Breiding, The Arnold Group

It’s rarely a good thing for a company to lose an employee, but when that employee is one of your top performers, it’s like rubbing salt into the wound. On top of the blow of that person leaving, there are costs incurred because of their departure as well: now you have to find and train a new employee. And don’t forget to take into account the lost productivity during the transition period. If the employee who left has always been a fantastic worker who seemed to love their job, it might be a sign you need to look within your organization to figure out what went wrong. Before you are handed another resignation letter, consider a few of the top reasons good employees leave a job they love:

Unnecessary Rules
Does your employee handbook boast unrealistic attendance policies, unnecessary dress codes or unreasonable schedule requirements? While rules and guidelines are important to have forany business, unreasonable or unnecessary ones are a great way to put off even the best employees.

Not Basing Incentives on Performance
If a hard-working employee who goes the extra mile in their work received the same reward as a lazy employee who scrapes by with minimum effort, what is the incentive for the hard-working employee to continue going that extra mile?

Not Offering Opportunities for Growth
No one wants to get stuck doing the exact same work for their entire career; employees desire professional growth opportunities that will allow them to expand their expertise and continue learning new skills. Not offering opportunities for professional development will not only demotivate your employees, but affect the overall morale of your company.

Overwork
When managers see an employee going the extra mile to get things done better, it makes sense to ask that employee to work more, or on more complicated projects. While a great employee will love the challenge, overwork may make them regret performing so well in the first place. Rather than overworking a great employee, delegate tasks of lesser importance to other employees, and use that great employee’s efforts for the most important tasks.

Employees must be treated with appreciation and respect in order to retain them. It is more cost-effective to work on creating a better work environment and opportunities for your existing workforce than it is to recruit and train replacements for the great employees you lost.