Post-Tet turnover is a common phenomenon in many Vietnamese companies, especially during the first quarter of the year. This situation not only creates workforce shortages but also disrupts operations and increases rehiring costs.
To respond proactively rather than dealing with consequences afterward, businesses need a structured employee retention strategy that combines internal policies with HR technology solutions to predict and reduce turnover risks early.
How Does the Post-Tet Turnover Trend Affect Businesses?
The wave of post-Tet turnover puts direct pressure on both human resources and company finances. Below are the three most significant negative impacts organizations typically face:
Increased Recruitment and Training Costs
Post-Tet turnover increases recruitment and training expenses as companies must replace employees within a short period of time. Specifically, when an employee leaves, businesses must allocate budget for job postings and resume screening, interviews and candidate assessments, onboarding, and retraining from scratch.
Beyond direct recruitment costs, companies also incur opportunity costs due to vacant positions or new hires not yet reaching optimal performance levels. According to the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), the cost of replacing an employee can range from six to nine months of that position’s salary, depending on seniority and specialization.
Declining Team Performance and Morale
Staff shortages force remaining employees to take on additional responsibilities, often outside their core expertise. Sudden increases in workload can lead to burnout and reduced output quality.
If prolonged, this situation may trigger a domino effect, causing other key employees to consider leaving. Particularly when high-performing or core employees resign, the impact on team morale becomes even more significant.
Operational Disruptions
Post-Tet turnover can disrupt operations, delay project timelines, and interrupt workflow continuity. Coordination between departments becomes fragmented due to missing key personnel, affecting Q1 business plans.
This not only leads to revenue loss but may also damage the company’s credibility with partners. Since Q1 is typically when annual strategies are launched, workforce instability immediately after Tet can directly impact full-year business objectives.
Why Do Employees Often Resign After Tet?
A Period of Career Reassessment
The Tet holiday provides a rare pause for employees to reflect on their past year at work. During this time, many ask themselves:
- Am I still satisfied with my current job?
- Are my career development and promotion opportunities clear?
- Does the company culture align with my personal values?
- Is this job helping me move closer to my long-term goals?
After rest and mental “reset,” employees are more likely to make major decisions. In many cases, the intention to resign had already formed earlier but is only acted upon after Tet.
From a management perspective, this is a psychological and strategic factor rather than a spontaneous reaction. If companies fail to maintain regular recognition and communication throughout the year, resignation decisions are more likely to occur during this reassessment phase.
Gap Between Career Expectations and Reality
Tet is also when employees compare their initial expectations with actual achievements over the past year. When core expectations are not met, resignation becomes a way to realign career direction. Key triggers include:
- Unclear promotion opportunities, leading employees to feel stagnant without visible career advancement.
- Compensation and benefits not keeping pace with market standards.
- Increased workload without proper recognition or Tet bonuses that do not reflect actual performance.
From a management standpoint, this disconnect reveals weaknesses in performance review transparency and internal equity. If action is only taken after a resignation letter is submitted, it is already too late. Monitoring satisfaction levels, performance trends, and turnover risks must be conducted throughout the year—not just after Tet.
A Booming Post-Tet Job Market
After the holiday, the labor market typically enters its most dynamic period of the year. As businesses activate new annual plans, recruitment demand surges—especially for experienced professionals.
Common activities include:
- Organizational expansion with mass hiring to fill new structures.
- Budget adjustments to offer competitive salaries and bonuses.
- Launching new projects requiring specialized talent early in the year.
As external opportunities increase, employees who were previously undecided find it easier to switch jobs. In other words, post-Tet turnover is not solely an internal company issue but also a result of supply–demand dynamics in the labor market.
If businesses fail to communicate clear career roadmaps and new-year strategies, employees may be easily attracted by outside offers. Instead of letting employees search for opportunities elsewhere, companies should proactively reinforce their value and future within the organization.
5 Employee Retention Solutions After Tet
Transparent Performance Recognition and Rewards
Fair and transparent recognition is a core element of effective HR management. Companies should build clear KPI/OKR performance systems with measurable criteria and consistency across departments.
Recognition should not be limited to monetary rewards. Public acknowledgment and timely communication of individual contributions also strengthen engagement. When employees feel properly recognized, their commitment to the organization becomes more sustainable.
Improve Compensation and Benefits Policies
Compensation and benefits play a decisive role in workforce stability. Businesses should regularly review salary, bonus structures, and benefits to ensure market competitiveness.
Beyond base salary and performance bonuses, employees increasingly value additional insurance, healthcare programs, training support, flexible work policies, and family-oriented benefits. These factors not only retain talent but also enhance employer branding.
Transparent communication of total compensation value is essential so employees understand the full package rather than comparing nominal salaries alone. Companies should combine market data with internal metrics (satisfaction, turnover rates, replacement costs) to build sustainable compensation strategies instead of reactive adjustments.
Invest in Long-Term Training and Development Strategies
A long-term learning and development strategy reduces post-Tet turnover risk by providing clear career pathways and continuous growth opportunities. When employees see a defined future within the organization, they are less likely to seek external options.
Key focus areas include:
- Establishing clear career paths with promotion criteria, required competencies, and timelines.
- Designing competency-based training programs that integrate internal training, mentoring, and external professional courses.
- Aligning training programs with business objectives to ensure strategic relevance.
- Evaluating post-training effectiveness through performance improvements and satisfaction levels.
When development initiatives become part of a long-term HR strategy rather than short-term activities, companies can narrow the gap between employee expectations and organizational reality—thereby reducing post-Tet turnover.
Maintain Post-Tet Employee Engagement
Companies should proactively reconnect with employees through:
- 1:1 check-ins between managers and employees to discuss new-year goals, career aspirations, and current challenges.
- Short pulse surveys within 2–4 weeks after Tet to measure engagement levels.
- Clear communication of annual plans so employees understand their role in the broader strategy.
Early listening helps detect resignation signals such as decreased interaction, declining performance, or reduced participation in activities—allowing timely intervention instead of waiting for resignation letters.
Monitor and Predict Turnover Rates
To effectively manage post-Tet turnover, companies must shift from reactive responses to predictive prevention. This requires systematic workforce data tracking.
Key metrics include:
- Turnover rates by department, level, and tenure.
- Performance fluctuations prior to resignation.
- Satisfaction and engagement scores by employee segments.
By combining historical data with current trends, organizations can identify high-risk groups and proactively adjust career pathways, workload distribution, or compensation policies. A data-driven approach reduces replacement costs and ensures operational stability in the early months of the year.
Proactively Assess Workforce Risk with SunFish HR Analytics
To minimize post-Tet turnover, businesses must assess workforce risk based on data rather than intuition. SunFish HR Analytics enables analysis of turnover trends, performance metrics, and engagement levels to support more accurate and timely decision-making.
Instead of waiting for resignation letters, the system tracks key indicators such as turnover rates, internal talent movement, performance levels, tenure, salary, absenteeism, and demographic data. This allows companies to identify high-risk employees early and implement appropriate retention strategies.
Key features include:
- Predictive Insights: Uses machine learning to forecast attrition risk based on historical and current data trends.
- Smart Alerts: Sets threshold-based alerts (e.g., performance drops, absenteeism spikes) for proactive HR intervention.
- Interactive Dashboards: Real-time performance tracking at team and individual levels.
- Ad Hoc Reports & Report Writer: Enables custom report creation while ensuring data governance compliance.
- AI-Powered Executive HR Reports: Automatically generates strategic insights and recommended action plans for leadership.
The system also supports flexible export options (PDF, spreadsheets), automated email scheduling, and in-app analytics—allowing managers to gain quick insights without complex BI tools.
Conclusion
In summary, post-Tet turnover is not merely a seasonal fluctuation but a reflection of employee engagement levels and organizational HR management effectiveness.
When businesses clearly understand root causes, identify impacts early, and implement systematic solutions—particularly by leveraging HR technology to monitor, predict, and control turnover risks—they can proactively maintain workforce stability and secure sustainable growth in the new year.
