As a recruiter I might get scolded for telling people this but I'm also a business man so here goes... Bad economy? Can't afford to hire new people? Repeat after me, retain and retrain is cheaper than recruiting!

In the good old days when business was good, if you lost an employee you'd just replace them. Even if the position was hard to fill you could hire a recruiter and more than likely find that person. Now, there is way more on the line.

If you lose an employee to a competitor, you can not afford to make a mistake in hiring the wrong person. Sure with the economy the way it is, there are plenty of talented people looking for a job but the true gems are working right now. In an uncertain economy they are reluctant to make a move because if it does not work out, it is much harder to find somewhere else to work.

So, what is a company to do? I say retain and retrain. Keep your workforce focused on the future and engaged in the company. Think about the cost of replacing a productive employee. Everything from recruiting costs, on-boarding and training that new person. What is the cost if it does not work out and you have to do it again?

Compare that cost and risk profile to retaining or retraining an existing employee. Hands down the finance people will say retain or retrain!

There are lots of good sites out there on retention like at Staffing and Recruiting Essentials where you get some insights to what they call the SAM approach to retention.

Retraining is often an internal matter where you have an employee that you want to promote to a vacant position and update the skills to handle the new position. Sometimes it involves external resources and classes but either way it is cheaper and a better risk in this economy than the direct hire recruiting route.

So I'll leave you with this mantra, retain and retrain, retain and retrain....