It’s been coined the ‘Big Quit’ or the ‘Great Resignation’. Referring to the significant trend of employees voluntarily leaving their jobs in large numbers, this mass exodus began in around 2021 and has continued through the following years. It is understood to be driven by changing work conditions due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led many to reassess their work-life balance, job satisfaction, and career priorities. Workers are seeking better opportunities, higher pay, and flexible working conditions, or simply no longer willing to put up with unsatisfying jobs.
While the economic climate can make people hesitant to leave their jobs, staff turnover remains a pressing issue. In fact, Anthony Klotz, who coined the term the Great Resignation, highlights that resignations continue to far outnumber layoffs, with people quitting at three times the rate of reductions.
Now more than ever, businesses must focus on building a positive, engaging company culture to retain their talent and reduce turnover.
Statistics, statistics…
A recent report by Hays revealed that 56% of employees are willing to accept a lower-paid job in exchange for a better work-life balance. It found that 1/3 of workers consider work-life balance to be the most ‘crucial consideration’ when looking for a job.
But that’s not all. A report from Aviva last year found that 41% of employees were attracted to their current role because of the work-life balance – 5% higher than those who specified salary.Interestingly, the Aviva research also found that, before the pandemic,employees valued pay over work-life balance!
According to the CIPD’s latest Labour Market Outlook (LMO), staff reductions remain a concern, with 18% of employers planning to make redundancies in 2024. However, 38% also reported hard-to-fill vacancies, underlining the importance of retention in today’s challenging hiring landscape.
Work-life balance: the ‘gain spiral’.
Achieving and maintaining a sensible work-life balance is a challenge and the CIPD’s UK Working Lives survey, found that many UK employees felt their job made it ‘hard to switch off’ at the end of the day.
The pandemic reshaped how we work. As so many more people began working from outside of the office, it blurred the line between work and personal life. Historically, the workplace fought against home lives, but now the most successful employers recognise that there is a ‘symbiotic relationship’ between work and home. Something called the ‘gain spiral’ sees the workplace as being able to create and nurture better home lives. Consequently,a better home life creates more engaged, productive and innovative employees,”says Gethin Nadin (psychologist and chief innovation officer at Benefex).
A philosophy.
A recent edition of the Harvard Business Review stated that workforce change philosophy serves as ‘a compass for senior leaders’- building on a company’s values, commitments and priorities.
A philosophy helps leaders answer the following questions:
· What value do employees contribute to our business and its success?
· What expectations do we have for employees’engagement, loyalty, flexibility, and ability to adapt and grow?
· What do we owe employees as a fair exchange fo rwhat they have given us?
· How can employees help us develop and implement workforce change?
For example, the philosophy of the French tyre maker Michelin includes hiring people for their potential rather than the job itself. Each employee is assigned a career manager who oversees their development and helps ensure it aligns with Michelin’s needs. The company also dedicated €2million to programmes for improving the quality of management and work-life balance and continues to embrace transformations as part of its workplace strategy.
At BAD, we recently worked with a major financial institution to promote Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) throughout the organisation. Different digital interventions were used to encourage inclusive behaviours and help them tackle DEI challenges. By tapping into the company culture to understand the audience, this intervention gave employees a range of easy and concrete actions - all underpinned by the key behaviours the training was designed to support.
Respect, recognition and reward.
To improve the retention of their staff, employers need to look at the data to determine what factors are driving turnover and retention. For example, employees who are offered learning opportunities on the job are likely to be more motivated when they see the company cares about their individual growth and future within the business.
Key ingredients for employee retention include:
1. Fair remuneration
2. Opportunities for development
3. Recognition for hard work
4. A good company culture
5. A supportive and engaging working environment
It simply boils down to the 3 Rs of Respect, Recognition, and Reward…
Retention strategies should be tailored to each company's unique culture and needs, so it’s important to adapt and evolve your approach as circumstances change and your workforce evolves. Ultimately, investing in employee retention is an investment in the long-term success of your organisation and its people.
Michelin’s example shows that employees can and should be trusted to perform well, even when they know they might lose their jobs. For all companies, planning sympathetic workforce change instead of automatically resorting to layoffs is a better way to address the challenges of technological transformation and intensifying competition.
To have and to hold.
One of the biggest questions organisations face as they grapple with a constantly shifting economic landscape is whether their current workforce can help them make the transitions necessary for their success. Employees are the lifeblood that enables a company to keep delivering the products and services that ultimately lead to sustainable growth and success.
So, ‘work-life balance’ is not the latest buzz phrase. With each year and each new generation, people are demanding more from their employers. By prioritising work-life balance and offering employees the right support, organisations can not only create a happier and more engaged workforce but also attract and retain top talent.
