WORKFORCE ATTRITION AND SUSTAINABLE RETENTION STRATEGIES IN MICRO, SMALL AND MEDIUM-SIZED ENTERPRISES: TRENDS AND INSIGHTS FROM THE LITERATURE

Abstract

Globally, retaining competent and experienced employees has been challenging for all forms of organisations and this has far-reaching implications for both the sustainability of organisations and economic growth. Tackling this issue is an urgent matter that the United Nations (UN) reiterates in their 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially under SDG 8 (decent work and economic growth) and SDG 16 (peace, justice, and strong institutions). This paper therefore adopts an exploratory research design to review workforce attrition and retention strategies in the context of Micro, Small and Medium-scale Enterprises (MSMEs. The aim is to provide synthesise insights from previous studies to identify patterns, trends, and themes to generate a comprehensive understanding of factors influencing employee retention and also applicable retention strategies for MSMEs. The study reveals that workforce turnover increases operational expenses and curtails organisational sustainability, which is particularly daunting for MSME with fewer resources. The findings highlight the increased exposure and vulnerabilities of MSMEs, due to their lack of capacity to deploy real retention strategies thus resulting in disadvantaged competitive positioning in the industries where they operate. Identifying attrition trends and the costs associated with them is critical to achieving sustainable retention, concludes the researchers. The study therefore advocates for the formulation and periodic review of policies by policymakers at all levels, with a particular focus on leveraging data analytics to support MSMEs in building the capacity required to retain a talented pool of manpower and enhance their Human Resource Management practices. Implementing these recommendations will strengthen MSMEs’ resilience and also improve their ability to retain skilled and experienced employees, align their practices with global developmental objectives, and ensure holistic and sustainable growth.