By Diana Siguenza · Founder & CEO of SEE Talent · 5 min read
Let me ask you an uncomfortable question: how many employees have you lost this year… without noticing? And I'm not talking about those who formally resigned. I'm talking about those who are still on the payroll, get paid at the end of the month, show up on time… but who mentally checked out months ago.
That's called quiet quitting. And according to Gallup, it affects 70% of the world's talent. In Central America the number is even higher. The worst part is that most companies don't detect it until it's too late: the star employee leaves for the competition, the team falls into crisis, and your cost of replacement, for a key position, can reach the equivalent of 9 months' salary.
The world changed. So has the way to attract and retain talent.
If your company still hires like it did in 2018 —post the job, wait for applications, interview, hire, and assume the person will stay— you're already losing. Not because you're doing something wrong, but because the talent of 2026 thinks, decides, and stays for radically different reasons than they did five years ago.
Today:
- 75% of talent researches your company on social media and Google before applying (LinkedIn Workforce Report).
- 40% of the talent that resigned in 2024 didn't leave over money, but over a lack of purpose and poor middle management (McKinsey).
- Voluntary turnover in mid-sized companies in El Salvador rose from 8% to 14% in five years.
- Generation Z, which will soon hold 30% of professional positions, prioritizes purpose and flexibility over a 20% higher salary.
Uncomfortable conclusion: hiring well is no longer enough. Today you have to attract, win over, and retain. And that requires a method.
How is your talent attraction and retention function doing today?
After 10 years supporting companies in their talent selection, retention, and development processes at SEE Talent, I designed a free self-assessment based on my SEE 3.0 Method — Tune In, Win Over, Take Root.
It's 20 questions. 4 minutes. And at the end you'll know exactly:
- Which band your company is in today (out of the 4 you'll see below).
- Where your biggest talent leak is.
- What your 3 priority actions are for the next quarter.
It's the same tool I use with my corporate clients, now open so that any business leader can apply it to their own company.
What does the SEE Talent self-assessment evaluate?
The test is organized into 4 areas that cover the full talent cycle in your company, from before they know you to the years they decide to stay:
1. TUNE IN (Attraction and employer brand)
Before you look for talent, tune in to what today's talent is looking for. Like a radio station: if you're not on the frequency where your talent is, they won't hear you. This section evaluates how visible and desirable your company is to those who don't yet know you.
2. WIN OVER (Selection and onboarding)
The selection process and the first 90 days are the honeymoon. If the honeymoon is a disaster, no salary can save it. Here we evaluate whether your process wins over or scares away the best talent.
3. TAKE ROOT (Retention and culture)
Attracting is marketing. Winning over is romance. Taking root is agriculture: water, sun, and time. This section reviews culture, middle management, and the conversations that most companies never have with their key talent.
4. MEASUREMENT & LEADERSHIP
What isn't measured can't be improved. This section reveals how strategic your talent management is and whether your leadership is reviewing the right indicators.
How to interpret your results
When you finish the 20 questions, you'll receive a score from 0 to 20. Each 'Yes' answer adds 1 point. Your score will place you in one of these 4 bands:
0 – 5 points · 'Silent crisis'
Your company is bleeding talent without noticing. You're losing valuable people, and those who stay are probably emotionally disconnected from the project. The good news: you're at the best point to transform. We've supported companies that go from here to the magnetic zone in 6 months. It's not magic: it's method.
6 – 10 points · 'Central American average'
You're right at the regional average. And here's the uncomfortable truth: the average in Central America is losing between 10% and 14% of your talent each year to avoidable causes. The average isn't safe. It's the zone where the competitor who makes the right move will steal the best of your team.
11 – 15 points · 'You're on the right track'
You're doing several things well: your employer brand, your onboarding, or your culture are above the Central American average. Your challenge is no longer to solve a crisis. It's to go from 'good' to 'magnetic'. And that requires precision, not more effort.
16 – 20 points · 'Magnetic company'
That places you in the top 5% of the region. Your company is magnetic: talent comes to you, falls in love, and stays. What you do deserves to be studied, shared, and replicated. Your next challenge is to systematize what works today, so it doesn't depend on individuals and can scale.
Why take 4 minutes to do it today?
Because every month that passes without knowing where your talent leak is, is a month in which you're losing money and reputation without it appearing in any financial report.
The invisible cost of not acting:
- Between 6 and 9 months' salary for every key employee who leaves.
- Burnout of the team that stays doing the work of the one who left.
- Loss of accumulated technical and relational knowledge.
- Damage to your external employer brand (what your former employees say precedes you).
The talent of 2026 isn't hired, it's won over. And you don't go into the conquest with a résumé — you go with a purpose. — Diana Siguenza
About the author
Diana Michelle Siguenza Ortiz is founder and CEO of SEE Talent, a firm specialized in talent attraction and retention in El Salvador and Central America. With 10 years of experience supporting companies in their talent management, she is a speaker at the 22nd Women and Leadership Congress of the El Salvador Chamber of Commerce and the creator of the SEE 3.0 Method.
