Retention of newcomers and factors influencing turnover intentions and behaviour: a review of the literature

PurposeRecent graduates are an important source of talent among hired employees as they bring up-to-date knowledge into the organisation. Yet, organisations have difficulties retaining them and recognizing factors influencing their voluntary turnover, which may differ from those influencing voluntary turnover among tenured employees. For example, graduate employees need to adjust to a completely new context and develop their identity as professionals. Therefore, the current study presents a review of the factors influencing newcomers' voluntary turnover and turnover intentions.Design/methodology/approachTo explore the factors influencing the turnover intentions and behaviour of recently hired employees, we conducted a literature review of 57 articles from several databases for different disciplines.FindingsOur review identifies factors that influence turnover intentions and behaviour among recently hired employees and presents them in a model. The model identifies five categories of factors influencing turnover intentions and behaviour: pre-joining expectations, person-environment fit, the role of the supervisor, human resource (HR) practices and person-related factors.Practical implicationsThe model enhances the understanding of why new employees leave an organisation and shows how supervisors and HR practices play an important role in reducing voluntary turnover among newly hired employees. The article concludes with practical suggestions on how to retain these employees.Originality/valueWhile employee turnover has been studied extensively, this review focuses specifically on factors that influence the turnover intentions and behaviour of newcomers. We present these factors in a model that can be used to inform managerial practices to reduce turnover among newcomers.