The quality of the supervision an employee receives is critical to employee retention. People leave managers and supervisors more often than they leave companies or jobs. It is not enough that the manager is well-liked or a nice person. Sure, a nice, likeable manager earns you some points with your employees. A draconian, nasty or controlling manager takes points away from your organization. So will below market benefits and compensation but a manager or supervisor, who is a professional at employee retention, knows that the quality of the supervision is the key factor in employee retention.