On tactics and tricks of retention

I am a little sceptical always of these so-called "strategies" for things like attraction and retention of people to an organization.
I believe that the best employers are firms that build processes and policies around people and not vice versa. These are practices that view the people who work not as a faceless nameless mass of "Human Resources" but as live, real people who have live real issues.
Whether senior or junior management, blue or white collar, the best way to retain employees is to respect them and care for them. It is when HR people try to be 'extra smart' and end up being manipulative that people see through it and that breeds cynicism of the HR function.

Folks who have stuck to their organizations tell me its because they feel valued there, and the organization goes out of its way to accomodate their desires for growth and learning. They also accomodate personal needs for transfers easily and these people have also been open enough to look at cross functional moves when the company has given them an option.
Of course there have been people who have left these firms, and yet even the disengagement process has not left them with a bitter taste in the mouth.
The underlying theme for a great relationship between any employee and employer ? Mutual respect and acknowledgment of the tacit psychological contract .