What if the Keeper Test worked both ways?

I hear some organisations and leaders use it when reviewing talent, performance or even when thinking about who should stay and who should go when jobs are cut.

It involves asking two simple questions:

1. If this employee wanted to leave for a similar job at another company, would you fight hard to keep them?
2. Knowing what you know today, would you hire that employee again?

If you sat down and asked yourself these two questions about your immediate team, I am fairly sure you would learn something about who you have around you. Powerful, isn’t it? Useful – sometimes. Narrow and a little one-dimensional – always.

So, if employers are potentially thinking in this way, it is only right that employees should do the same – right?

What if the Keeper Test worked both ways?

Flip it on its head and ask yourself two similar questions:

1. If another organisation offered me a similar role today, would my current employer give me compelling reasons to stay?
2. Knowing what I know today about this organisation, its leadership and its culture, would I choose to apply to work here again?

If you answer ‘no’ to both questions, then it may well be time for a change…

“Life’s not that simple,” “the job market is too febrile,” “it’s not that bad here” – are all perfectly valid reasons to stay put currently, but how likely is that to change in the short to medium term?

If you’re a senior leader considering a career change or a complete shift in focus or purpose, message me at rupert@strongerhumans.com to see how I can support your journey.

#strongerhumans