The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave: How to Recognize the Subtle Signs and Act Before It's Too Late

Leigh Branham. The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave: How to Recognize the Subtle Signs and Act Before It's Too Late. New York: AMACOM, 2006, 238 pages, $24.95 hardcover.

Employee attrition is both a straightforward and complex issue. More frequently than not, employees leave due to factors within the manager's control. Or, as the saying goes, employees join organizations and leave managers. However, understanding the factors that lead to employee attrition in a particular organization, and bringing managers to a point where they can effectively deal with those factors, is another matter. The 7 Hidden Reasons Employees Leave addresses this challenge.

The topic has certainly been addressed elsewhere for the target audience, executives, managers, and HR practitioners. After all, employees have been leaving organizations for a very long time, and many, if not most, of the practices recommended will be familiar to the seasoned manager and HR professional. This book is a full package, however, that is of value to the intended audience for several reasons.

The book begins with the business case for employee retention, built solidly with quotes from exit interviews, research conducted with the Saratoga Institute, and other research. If the talent walking out the door doesn't persuade you to act, the financials of turnover and the shrinking labor market will. The research is presented with clear linkages to business processes and results (e.g., dollars, safety records, customer ratings). Simple graphs and other visuals are used to maximize the impact of the information. The first figure is a great reminder of the visceral effect visuals can have, even when that same information can easily be communicated in words.

The business case is a helpful way to start, preparing the reader to build an argument for action within their organization. My only wish was for a pop-out box with the details behind the Saratoga Institute's estimated cost of losing an employee. In my experience, managers rarely accept cost estimates for...