- Retention Audit — detect risks before they surface
Executive Summary
Most tools measure what is easy to capture — opinions, traits, survey scores — but not what actually drives whether people stay. The Retention Audit examines the present moment: credibility, trust, and alignment as they are lived day to day. It reveals red flags months before KPIs or dashboards register concern.
What a Retention Audit uncovers
- Early disengagement masked as “everything is fine”. KPIs still look stable, but energy feels flat. Staff do the minimum, avoid taking initiative, and stop offering ideas. Leaders sense something is off — yet surveys return “satisfied.” This is withdrawal in disguise, and it rarely shows up until people leave.
- New hires drift silently in the first 6-12 months. A new colleague settles in politely, learns the tasks, but never integrates fully. They skip optional training, keep a low profile in meetings, and after probation, motivation drops. By the time anyone notices, they are already planning their exit.
- Leaders are accepted, but not trusted or followed. Employees comply with instructions, but there is no real buy-in. Projects move only when pushed, decisions are met with quiet hesitation. What looks like respect is often only surface-level acceptance.
- Credibility cracks that no dashboard will show. Officially, everything runs. But in corridors and side calls, staff question whether leaders mean what they say. A gap opens between message and interpretation: people follow the rules, yet trust in leadership slips. No metric shows it — until disengagement or turnover makes it visible.
How we work — in four steps
- 1. Scope. Define roles, teams, consent, and boundaries together.
- 2. Conversations. Respectful interviews held outside internal power dynamics.
- 3. Signal Map. Identifies what's stable, what's shifting, and where credibility is at risk.
- 4. Action. Clear recommendations — leadership check-ins, growth pathing, or onboarding adjustments.
Why this method is different
Organisations often trust the familiar: engagement surveys, dashboards, 360-degree feedback, or personality tests. They all generate charts, benchmarks, and a sense of control. But their weakness is structural: they measure what is easily captured, not what actually drives whether people remain committed.
Surveys record opinions at a single point in time, but answers are shaped by caution and social desirability. Many firms report high “satisfaction” internally, yet Gallup's State of the Global Workplace 2023 found that only 23 % of employees worldwide are engaged. The gap shows how survey reassurance can mask advancing disengagement.
Personality tests and 360 tools measure traits and peer perceptions — not behaviour under pressure. They are valuable for development, but they do not predict whether someone will remain credible when trust falters, nor whether early disengagement is already underway.
The Retention Audit does not speak the language of popularity or surface impressions. It examines how people communicate intent, how credibility is read in daily interaction, and how alignment is actually lived. Warning signs appear in hesitation, interpretation gaps, and the distance between message and belief.
Grounded in more than 20 years of executive search and a UK-accredited MSc in Communication, Behaviour & Credibility Analysis — the only MSc worldwide dedicated to this field — this method looks where other tools cannot.
It reveals the human signals that explain why turnover risk is rising, long before a dashboard suggests concern.
The outcome for your organisation
- Detect disengagement months before it becomes visible.
- Strengthen onboarding and prevent early turnover.
- Reduce the cost of mis-hires and failed succession.
- Protect leadership credibility and team stability.
Let's talk in confidence
Retention risks are rarely loud. They are quiet, subtle, and often missed until it is too late. A confidential 30-minute conversation can clarify what signals you may already be seeing — and what a Retention Audit could reveal.