How to Reduce Employee Turnover (7 Strategies)

Employee turnover doesn’t just cost money. It disrupts your team, slows progress, and puts pressure on the people who stay. When someone leaves, you lose the experience and knowledge they carried with them. And frontline teams often feel the impact first.

Supply chain organizations are especially affected by the strain. According to Gartner, 31% of supply chain employees surveyed in the second quarter of 2024 intend to leave their organizations within the next year. This marks an increase from 29% during the same period last year. The numbers are moving in the wrong direction, and the pressure on teams is increasing.

Retaining employees starts with creating the right environment. People stay where they feel connected, supported, and in the loop. Retention becomes easier to protect when your office and frontline teams are aligned and informed. These seven strategies will help you create a workplace where people stay for the long term and thrive.

1. Strengthen Onboarding Processes

Turnover often starts early. When onboarding is rushed or disconnected, new hires usually feel unsupported and unsure how to succeed. That’s especially true for frontline workers who may be expected to hit the ground running in a hands-on environment with few places to turn for support.

A strong onboarding process sets the tone. Give every employee a clear view of what’s expected and where to find support, regardless of their role. Use knowledge hubs, how-to guides, and checklists that are easily accessible on any device. Pair new hires with mentors or leads who provide early support and regular check-ins.

Consistency matters. Office staff and frontline teams should have the same foundational knowledge, tools, and communication. When onboarding is thoughtful and accessible, and conducted through standardized, intuitive digital tools, new hires feel confident faster.

2. Encourage Open Communication

If people don’t feel heard, they’ll eventually stop talking. And when communication breaks down, so does trust; that’s when misunderstandings grow, and employee morale begins to slip—particularly in frontline environments, which are already physically disconnected from the head offices.

Everyone should feel comfortable speaking up. Whether at a desk, on the shop floor, or in the field, people need a way to share feedback and ask questions. Short huddles, quick surveys, and regular updates keep everyone aligned and included.

The right tools help make this easy. Choose an intranet platform that gives your whole team a place to connect, no matter where they are.

Learn how to foster collaboration and communication between teams →

3. Recognize and Reward Contributions

People want to know that their work matters. Acknowledging a job well done builds pride, motivation, and loyalty. Recognition doesn’t need to be big or expensive to be meaningful.

Start with consistency. A simple thank-you from a manager can go a long way. So can peer-to-peer shout-outs or team celebrations for hitting a milestone. Make it easy for employees to recognize one another across roles and locations.

Build culture across teams and locations →

For frontline workers, timely and visible recognition is key. A quick post on a team board, a message in your comms. tool, or a moment of recognition during shift change all count. When people feel seen, they stay engaged. And engaged employees are more likely to stick around.

4. Offer Career Development Opportunities

If employees see a lack of career growth at your organization, they’ll start looking somewhere else. Growth doesn’t always mean a promotion. Sometimes it means learning a new skill, moving into a different role, or just feeling like progress is possible.

Career advancement opportunities should be available to everyone, not just those at a desk. Offer training that works on mobile. Share internal job openings where everyone can see them. Make it clear how someone can grow within your organization.

Support matters, too. Encourage managers to discuss goals during check-ins. Give people the time and tools to learn. When employees feel invested, they’re more likely to stay.

5. Promote a Healthy Work-Life Balance

Employee burnout is a slow exit. It builds over time, often without warning. When people don’t have space to recharge, turnover is just around the corner.

Work-life balance should be more than a buzzword. Offer flexible scheduling where you can. Give employees tools to swap shifts or request time off without jumping through hoops. Be transparent about expectations and encourage managers to respect personal time.

This matters everywhere. Office workers need breaks from the screen, and frontline staff need time to rest their bodies and minds. When people feel like their time is respected, loyalty grows.

6. Gather and Act on Employee Feedback

Feedback without follow-through doesn’t build trust; it breaks it. Employees want to be heard, but they also want to see that their input matters.

Start with simple steps. Collect team feedback using pulse surveys, one-on-one conversations, or anonymous forms. Make it easy for frontline and office staff to speak up, even if they’re not in the same room. A centralized frontline/desked intranet makes collecting, segmenting, and actioning this feedback easier than you’d think.

What happens next is what really counts. Share what you’ve learned. Be clear about what’s changing and why. Even small improvements show people that leadership is listening.

Find more ways to engage your workforce →

7. Leverage Internal Communication Tools

When communication lives in too many places, things get missed. That’s a problem for any team, but it hits frontline employees hardest. They don’t always have easy access to updates, resources, or announcements.

Intranets give everyone from corporate offices to the loading dock a clear line to their needs. Use it to improve internal communication, and share updates, policies, recognition, and feedback in one spot. Make sure it’s mobile-friendly so every employee can stay in the loop.

When people feel connected, they stay engaged. And when they’re engaged, it’s easier to retain them.

Empower frontline workers with a tailored intranet for mobile →

What are the Benefits of Reducing Employee Turnover?

Reducing turnover does more than improve your bottom line. It helps protect your teams, your momentum, and your culture. The benefits go beyond numbers. They show up in better communication, stronger collaboration, and higher morale. And when your frontline and office teams feel secure and supported, they do their best work.

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Here’s what happens when people stay.

Save Time, Budget, and Resources

When employees stay, your organization avoids the costly cycle of hiring, onboarding, and retraining. That frees up time, reduces recruitment costs, and allows HR and managers to focus on strategy, not back-filling roles.

Download: Building a Case for a Digital Workplace | The ROI You Won’t Want to Miss →

Keep Knowledge and Experience In-House

High turnover drains institutional knowledge. People build expertise, share best practices, and train others when they stick around. This is especially valuable for frontline workers whose knowledge is often in their day-to-day tasks, not just documentation.

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Build a Stronger, More Consistent Culture

Retention brings stability. It helps create a culture based on trust, teamwork, and shared values. Long-term employees strengthen relationships with peers, managers, and customers. That stability improves employee engagement and performance, and leads to a more productive workforce.

Attract Talent by Becoming a Place People Want to Work

When word gets out that people stay, others take notice. Strong retention sends a message to future candidates: this is a place where people grow, not just work. That kind of reputation helps you attract and keep great people.

Start Retaining Employees

You don’t need to overhaul your entire organization to improve employee retention. Small, focused changes like better onboarding, clearer communication, or more visible recognition can make a real difference. The key is consistency and follow-through.

Every employee, whether they’re at a desk or on the frontline, deserves to feel supported and included. That’s where Igloo Software comes in. Our intranet platform gives your frontline and corporate teams the tools they need to stay connected, informed, and engaged. Start with one strategy and build from there. With the right support in place, a more stable, loyal workforce is within reach.