Business leaders confront a variety of challenges on a daily basis. They rely on their network, consultants, lawyers, and process servers to help them understand and address a variety of operational problems or gaps in work strategy. At the same time, they should also consider things lawyers and process servers cannot do to preserve the integrity and confidentiality of their business.
It was only recently when the business world suffered huge setbacks from the economic fallout caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. It was also when the global crisis tested workplace relationships, as employees relied on their employers for support during those uncertain times.
As the world slowly returns to normalcy, companies and industries of all sizes remain to witness more job changes than ever before. In the U.S., over four million employees left their jobs during the first half of 2021. The figures remained abnormally high in 2021, dubbing this year as the ‘great resignation.’ There are plenty of factors that accelerated the voluntary mass turnover, besides the pandemic. These include overwhelming feelings of burnout, desperation to leave dead-end jobs, inability to achieve work-life balance, and bad managers, being the most favorite reason.
The unexpected wave of resignations is forcing employers to ask themselves: What can we do to stop employees from leaving? This article will take a deeper look at the real causes of the Great Resignation and what companies can do to make employees stay.
Extend flexible work arrangements
Since the pandemic, companies are reconciling the new work setups: remote, on-site, and hybrid work variations. This phenomenon proved that employees don’t have to be in the office all the time to stay productive. Still, the transition to remote work has met a variety of responses. Some are eager to return to on-site working, while others prefer to work from home permanently. In fact, the younger generation, particularly millennials and Gen Zs, is willing to quit their jobs if their employer doesn’t extend remote work options.
Experts say the rise of remote work has made employees more decisive to work from home forever. In this case, one way to combat resignations is to allow more flexibility about remote work. This means assuring the workforce they don’t need to return to the office if they don’t want to.
Companies that take too long to decide about workforce plans are risking something greater. If employees suspect a greater chance of returning, they will likely switch jobs offering permanent remote work as a preemptive response. That’s why it’s essential to finalize permanent work setups and provide assurance to employees before they start leaving.
Prioritize employee well-being
Another root cause of why people are disengaging from their jobs is burnout. Although this isn’t entirely a new phenomenon, the anxiety and pressure of the pandemic have further compounded the feelings of loneliness and isolation, which hasten work burnout.
Despite the gradual reopening of cities, the risk of burnout has become even greater compared to last year. Experts believe the transition to remote work has something to do with this. Employers are assigning heavier workloads, causing employees to lose their balance between home and work life.
Giving employees more time off and expecting them to grab it isn’t enough to beat burnout-fueled resignations. Traveling remains limited, so there’s no reason to go on vacations. Plus, remote work has also promoted always-on behavior, which made it difficult to detach from work.
Big companies are encouraging their staff to make time for themselves by having company-wide, week-long shutdowns. This mandatory time-off removes the stigma around long work leaves and shows that employees and leadership teams need and deserve it.
Inspire and motivate
Employees today are looking beyond salary raises and company perks. They need employers who can help them establish their career path within the organization. The world-changing event has made people reassess what they really want in this life. Most of them want to pursue their dream careers or a job that feels quite right for their skills.
Although you have no control over the career trajectory of your employees, you can take significant measures to support their lateral moves. The best you can do is to play a proactive role in your employees’ professional development by providing training programs and learning resources. Employees want to feel valued, and they’d rather stay at a company that can help them drive their careers in newer directions.
In these tough times, employers should be even more mindful of how they treat their employees, whether inside or outside the physical workplace. As the talent war rages on, the pressure you’re feeling now will be even greater in the years to come. In the meantime, make sure to invest with the right leaders and employee engagement strategies.
