Engaging high performers means giving top contributors the recognition, feedback, flexibility, and growth opportunities they need to stay motivated over time. The best strategies for retaining high performers focus on visible appreciation, meaningful development, and support systems that help leaders act before strong employees become disengaged or, even worse, leave. 

Here’s a closer look.

What makes someone a high performer?

A high performer is an individual who consistently delivers exceptional results, both in their individual work and team efforts. Some of the most essential traits of high performers include:

• Innovative: Contributes fresh ideas and creative solutions
• Proactive: Anticipates needs and takes action before being asked
• Accountable: Takes full ownership over outcomes without making excuses
• Supportive of others: Lifts the performance of the entire team by collaborating and helping co-workers succeed
• Consistent high-quality work: Maintains a standard of excellence in every task they complete

While the exact definition of a high performer may vary across organizational cultures, the challenge of learning how to engage and retain high performers is quite similar across all teams.

Why high performers disengage

High performers are often assumed to be fine because they’re already achieving success with very little friction. Though it’s surprising when these employees disengage, they do so for several reasons:

• Insufficient recognition: Feeling unseen, especially when their heroic efforts are treated like an expected standard
• Lack of growth: Stagnating in their roles because there are rarely any new challenges to conquer or promotions to obtain
• Poor support: Lacking the necessary resources, tools, or encouragement from leadership to take on new challenges
• Slow Momentum: Facing too much red tape due to bureaucratic processes, a lack of autonomy, and slow decision-making

Engaging the retaining high performers is different than doing the same for performers at a lower level. When you don’t know how to engage and retain high performers, you can run the risk of losing valuable contributors to your closest competitors. 

How to engage high performers

Many managers ask the question, “How do I engage high performers?” It’s important to recognize that their key goal is always to keep improving, never to rest on their laurels. High performers enjoy the challenge and aren’t satisfied with settling. 

Sustaining motivation requires building an environment centered around several key pillars:

• Frequent, actionable feedback: Provide them with real-time coaching, and challenge them to refine their strategies and skills
• Flexibility and autonomy: Trust them with as much ownership over their schedule and decision-making as possible
• Visible recognition: Publicly recognize their exceptional contributions, and link recognition to rewards they actually want
• Growth and development: Create clear pathways for them to move up the ladder, as well as opportunities for continuous learning

Learning how to engage and retain high performers also means providing them with access to the right tools and resources. Work on getting rid of any bureaucratic hurdles they may face and supply them with the technology and budget they need to execute their work quickly and efficiently. 

How to retain high performers

Retaining high performers requires shifting your focus from employee engagement to long-term retention. To do this, you’ll need to ensure you make their professional growth a critical priority. Additionally, work on giving them your deepest trust, handing over ownership of important strategic decisions and goals.

In figuring out how to engage and retain high performers, you’ll also want to surround them with a team that’s just as motivated as they are, which will keep them excited about collaborating and sharing creative ideas. 

Finally, make sure your high performers see a future within your company by mapping out their career trajectory and aligning their personal ambitions with broader company goals and objectives.

Recognition and support for high performers

If you’ve wondered, “How do I support high performers?” here’s the truth: good work must always be acknowledged, even when it comes from employees who consistently perform at a high level. When you allow excellence to become the baseline, it becomes too easy to overlook those who are going above and beyond to produce exceptional results.

However, true recognition isn’t about celebrating occasional outcomes. To learn how to engage and retain high performers, you must treat recognition like a vital tool that helps maintain engagement. When your top performers feel seen and acknowledged, they’re much more motivated to keep putting in the work and improving their skills. 

Awardco supports these efforts by providing seamless tools for recognition from all angles, including managers, coworkers, and third parties. Our platform offers you the ability to design custom incentives for specific behaviors that align with your unique company culture. Global rewards and A-Pay™ flexibility provide instant spending power on incentives and experiences that your employees actually want.

Better Together: Feedback plus recognition for top talent

In learning how to engage and retain high performers, it’s easy to fall into the trap of distributing and reviewing surveys, thinking that simply seeking feedback is enough. However, your best employees don’t just want you to ask for their ideas. Feedback and action are always better together.

The Awardco ecosystem combines robust employee listening with advanced recognition tools. You’ll have the ability to use real-time feedback data to identify where your high performers feel most strained and how you can use specific rewards to support them in those areas. 

When your high performers share creative solutions, Awardco ensures you can publicly recognize that initiative. This, in turn, builds a culture of psychological safety and ensures your best employees feel valued.

How Awardco approaches engaging high performers

Awardco approaches high-performer engagement as an action problem, not just a recognition problem. Leaders across your organization can collect feedback from high performers, and then use visible recognition, incentives, and flexible rewards to help them feel seen, challenged, and supported over time. 

This way, you’ll never have to lean on inconsistent manager habits to improve talent retention. Awardco helps you operationalize what high performers need so you can hold on to the employees that are building the future of your organization. Learn how Awardco helps recognize and retain top performers.

FAQ

How do I engage high performers?

To engage high performers, provide frequent and actionable feedback, deep autonomy, visible recognition, and clear growth pathways.

How do I retain high performers?

You can retain high performers by paving the way for career growth, granting trust, and surrounding them with like-minded peers.

What do high performers need from managers?

High performers need strategic coaching, clear expectations, recognition of daily impact, and opportunities to tackle complex projects.

How do I support high performers without treating them unfairly?

Make sure to reward their impact based on objective performance metrics to avoid bias.

Does recognition help retain high performers?

Yes. Regular recognition ensures high performers’ exceptional efforts aren’t treated as the standard.

How can companies keep top talent engaged over time?

Listen to your employees and take immediate action on that feedback. Additionally, help your top performers align their career goals with company growth.

Take your retention and recognition strategies to the next level

Retaining your most valuable assets requires moving beyond passive listening to taking more decisive action. By combining coaching and goal alignment with intentional recognition, you can build a workplace culture where talent thrives long term. 

Are you ready to learn how to engage and retain high performers? Explore Awardco employee recognition today.