Case study · Attrition and retention
Strengthening Retention Through Better Manager Experience
Over nine months, we helped the organisation connect attrition patterns with manager capability, career conversations and earlier action on retention risks.
Reference case · Illustrative figuresThe impact
Fewer exits accompanied stronger management and career indicators
These reference measures show the movement from the starting condition to the outcome the intervention was designed to strengthen.
The figures are illustrative reference values from the Impact in Action portfolio; they are not independently verified client results.
- Duration
- 9 months
- Focus
- Voluntary and regrettable exits
- Review rhythm
- Quarterly retention reviews
The change in numbers
Before and after.
Each indicator has its own scale and unit.
Changes are shown in plain language.
A reduction of 5.2 percentage points in the reported attrition rate.
Lower is betterIndexed volume: baseline = 100. This is not an employee count.
Lower is better · Index, baseline = 100Manager effectiveness increased by 22 percentage points.
Higher is betterConfidence in career growth increased by 19 percentage points.
Higher is betterThe figures are illustrative reference values from the Impact in Action portfolio; they are not independently verified client results.
How to read these figures
The source supplies before-and-after attrition rates and an indexed measure of regrettable exits. It does not specify the reporting window or employee denominator, so the charts do not imply a headcount or annualised rate.
Exit data showed a problem but did not explain where to act
Leadership could see that people were leaving. Exit interviews mentioned pay, management, growth and workload, but the mix of explanations made a focused response difficult. A single attrition rate also concealed important differences. Losing a new joiner and losing an experienced person in a critical role called for different questions.
The diagnosis traced patterns across tenure, roles and managers
The diagnosis segmented attrition by employee population, tenure, manager, role and career stage. This made it possible to examine whether particular groups experienced the same difficulty. Stay interviews added the perspective of people still in the organisation, who could describe what made staying attractive or uncertain.
Retention became a regular management conversation
The response combined manager capability building with stay interviews, career conversations and clearer visibility of internal mobility. Managers needed to listen, recognise an emerging concern and agree an action they could follow through. HR needed a consistent way to bring recurring issues back to leadership.
- 01
Locate the risk
Segment exits and listen to employees who remain in the organisation.
- 02
Improve the experience
Build manager conversations and make career and mobility options clearer.
- 03
Review action
Use quarterly reviews to track patterns and follow through on agreed responses.
Fewer exits accompanied stronger management and career indicators
The reference figures show voluntary attrition moving from 14.8% to 9.6%, a fall of 5.2 percentage points. Regrettable exits are presented on an index, with the starting level set to 100 and the final level at 65. That represents a 35% reduction; it is not a count of 100 employees.