By Simon Gluyas

India's booming labor market puts it in an enviable position.

Since the beginning of the year, Indian companies have stepped up their hiring of managers and other professionals. In one recent survey of 5,371 employers in India, 44% said they were expecting an increase in headcount. The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey said that only 2% predicted a decrease. This is in sharp contrast to what's happening in developed countries like the United States and the United Kingdom, where there is hardly any employment growth.

India's current position is a win-win for everyone. Job-seekers are happy and organizations are happy because their businesses are growing. There's just one problem. It's more challenging than ever before for Indian companies to manage and retain their key talent.

In a buoyantemployment market the balance of power tips towards employees. They know there are plenty of opportunities outside their organizations and the ambitious ones are not afraid to scope them out.

This could be good news for companies because it gives them a chance to open their doors to in new talent. However often, in my experience, the back door is also left open and key talent goes wandering.

When speaking to organizations about retaining talent, I often point out the 'dark side' of talent. By this, I mean that talented individuals have higher expectations than average performers. If their expectations are not being met, they are more likely to leave the business than the average employee. So, ironically, organizations that are doing a good job of hiring the best talent are often creating another challenge, the retention of that talent.

So what can companies do to try to hold on to their best people during these times? A frequent answer is: 'Well, I suppose we could pay them more.'

Certainly, some people are stronglydriven by financial rewards. But the size of this group of employees is often vastly overestimated.

Every year, Kenexa surveys thousands of employees around the world through our customers and the Kenexa Research Institute. This data shows that 'employee rewards' (pay and benefits) are not consistent drivers of employee loyalty to a company.

Instead, employees rank 'recognition from managers' as one of the most important factors that drives their commitment. I think most of us have heard the phrase 'People don't leave jobs, they leave managers.'

Therein lies a big part of the answer for organizations to address the challenge of attrition. You have to train managers to be better managers.

Here are some factors that make employees more committed to their jobs and organizations:

1. When their jobs makes good use of their skills and abilities.

2. When there are clear performance standards which have been communicated to them.

3. When employees get the training they need to perform their jobs effectively.

4. When they are given clear career paths

5. When their managers treat them with dignity and respect.

All these factors are, to a large degree, within control of the employee's immediate manager or supervisor. Thus, organizations need to equip supervisors with the tools to manage and retain their subordinates successfully.

Some companies organize training courses for upper management but these courses are typically very generic and make the assumption that one management style will work for all employees. Each individual is unique. Managers need to find out what is important to each of their direct employees and adapt their management style accordingly. There are however some common behaviors that all managers should display.

One excellent way to figure out what these behaviors should be, is to learn from your very best managers.

Form a focus group of your high-performing managers and ask them what they do that makes their subordinates so engaged, satisfied and committed to their jobs and the organization. If you can bottle these behaviors and get other managers to use them, then you can go a long way to closing the back door and throwing away the key.

For some managers it comes naturally to proactively manage talent. But others might have to work at it. This does not necessarily require a major overhaul. Simple changes can make all the difference.

Ensure that your managers are doing the following:

1. They should have a personal approach to each employee, treating them as individuals rather than just subordinates.

2. They should frequently ask their subordinates 'How can I help you?'

3. They should frequently provide employees feedback and recognition. It could be as simple as a pat on the back of the employee, or saying 'job well done.'

4. Let employees know that management is there to support them.

5. They should have ongoing career discussions with their subordinates.

Essentially, the manager should be asking 'Is the company meeting the subordinate's expectations?' Often, to do that, they have to pay attention to the soft, people issues that employees care most about.