There's a nice read over at DeveloperDotStar entitled Software Team Turnover: Why Developers Leave (And What You Can Do About It). It's really a topic that I still find myself fascinated with, months after having left my previous job. So many of these things hit so close to home....
Unfortunately, most developers are painfully aware that the best way to get a raise is to simply get a new job. A developer might be happy in all aspects of her job, but if she knows that her company is paying her below market rates, that fact might outweigh all the good.
Sad, but true. And unfortunately, the "perks" that he goes on to discuss below that only are effective for so long.
I believe the biggest morale-related factor that causes good developers to look elsewhere boils down to the need for a new challenge.
Especially at this point in my career, where I'm constantly striving and longing for growth and challenge, this was probably the single largest determining factor. It's the reason why I want to work for the Google/Microsoft's of the world. At some point, as the graph displays, your ability to aquire new technical skills in a given position dry up.
The biggest thing that managers need to be able to do in order to prevent burnout is to allow their employees to have fun.
If there's one thing at Genesis that stood out above all the rest, it was certainly a FUN place. I can't exactly say that my current place of employ is FUN, at least not in the same manor. No video game & dart breaks, which were excellent for winding down a little.