Teller Turnover: Why It Happens and What to Do About It

Mary White
August 2, 2010 | COMMENTS

Is teller turnover a fact of life that we can't do anything about? No it's not! Are the answers simple? No they're not but managing teller turnover should be a strategic initiative, and here's why: 

1. According to the Workforce Research Institute the cost of turnover is 150 percent of a person's annual salary!
2. As substantial as this 150 percent cost is, the impact to the delivery of service to our members is immeasurable. Tellers are the credit union to the members.

Tellers may be the only credit union person a member regularly sees. Tellers are the ones who members turn to for advice, to listen to their needs as well as their complaints. Members want to see the same faces and hear the same voices when they need service from the credit union. New tellers can't be expected to know the names let alone the idiosyncrasies of members, but members expect and want them to.

What are some of the causes of teller turnover?

• Lack of genuine acknowledgement by the credit union of the importance of their roles
• Lack of consistent, quality training
• Typically lowest position organizationally, and almost any other position in the credit union is considered a promotion
• Lack of feedback and coaching from their boss
• Bosses who don't ‘walk the talk'
• Limited career options
• Fear of robbery
• Team conflicts
• Low salary
• Poor performance
• Returning to college

 Of course, all teller turnover isn't necessarily bad. To be an outstanding teller takes the right blend of relationship building skills and task oriented behaviors, and not all tellers have this blend. When that's the case then as Jim Collins says in his book, Good to Great, we need to get the “right people on the bus and in the right seats.” Does your credit union have the right people in the right seats on the bus when it comes to your teller line? If you don't, then those tellers who are in the right seat may just be waiting to leave because of their frustration with the credit union allowing non-performing tellers to stay. They rightfully ask “Why am I working so hard to do a great job when others are being allowed not to?” 

Realizing reducing teller turnover should be a strategic initiative, what can a credit union do to reduce this rate of teller turnover?

• Redefine teller roles
• Conduct “stay” interviews 
• Offer flexible hours
• Enhance training opportunities
• Conduct employee surveys

Originally published in LoneStar Perspectives, a publication of the Texas Credit Union League. Reprinted with permission.