The workplace today is highly competitive as companies look to be more attractive than the rest. The willingness to add perks and benefits is still a fairly new concept and a stark change from the thoughts and approach of yester-year, where companies looked at their employees as though they were lucky to work there. It is not only millennials who will not put up with a toxic or over-demanding culture, even if they started what can be considered a revolution of sorts. Once the toothpaste left the tube of what good culture, employee engagement, and opportunity should look like, there is no going back – and that’s a great thing for the workforce of today and includes all working generations. Anyone still holding on to those thoughts of how ‘needy’ our millennial workforce is needs to look more closely and simply say ‘thank you’.
Whether by force or forward-thinking, most employers have gotten on board with developing employee-centric strategies to attract and retain employees. Those late to the game have seen employees leave sooner than expected, and certainly find hiring much harder to do. Social Media plays a big part in attracting employees, as nearly every job-seeker can quickly and easily do a deep dive on a company, and review direct feedback from current and former employers of a company they may consider applying to. Here are the top reasons that people begin looking around for something better, believing that not only will they achieve their career goals more quickly, but will enjoy their journey in the process.
Consumer Affairs reports statistics based on their survey and research of the top reasons people seek and move to something they believe is better than the job they have currently: ‘Financial Plans amid the Great Resignation’ – July, 2023
https://www.consumeraffairs.com/finance/financial-plans-amid-the-great-resignation.html
- Unchallenged
- LinkedIn has many articles on what drives people to and from companies, including a ‘Talent Trends’ report, that details some of the companies doing better than others in attracting and retaining employees, as well as those whom are struggling to hang onto their people. The cost to those companies constantly in a state of hiring are also in a state of missing and lower productivity which, if not improved, will see the business fail in the short-term. Strategizing how to put people in position to find stimulation and engagement in is paramount to avoid the monotony that some find and a huge factor in why people leave. A personalized approach, and strong leaders who are willing to understand and tap into what motivates people is the first step in building company and team spirit, which keeps people moving and satisfied in the workplace and far more likely to remain loyal when outside opportunities arise.
- Money Matters
- 37% of Americans cite insufficient pay as a major reason they started, and ultimately left a company. While many companies choose to turn a blind eye, citing other studies on employee engagement, suggesting that compensation is not among the ‘top five’ or ‘top ten’ factors that impact attrition, they are kidding themselves. No one goes to work if it does not lead to making ends meet, and even if there, they will be the first to go when another company delivers a better compensation package commensurate with what the employee feels they are worth.
- Lack of Inspiration
- There is a difference between Motivation and Inspiration. Generally speaking, people are motivated to work hard enough to maintain employment to keep continuity at home, pay the bills, and have enough left for entertainment and the ability to enjoy some of the finer things in life. That does not always take it to the next level, where employees feel passionate about their work, invested in a company’s mission, believing a company truly brings something meaningful to the table. Motivation will suffice in the short-term, but strong leadership and intentional employee engagement, will show a company that they need to strategize on what it takes for their workforce to feel inspired about what they company does and the important part the employee him or herself will play.
- My Overall Value
- Do your employees feel like they are considered ‘people’ or ‘just a number’? The answer will be a telltale sign whether a company has people who love being there, or simply accept it for the moment until something better comes along. As companies have largely stepped up to provide better, newer perks and benefits to their employees, caring for the overall person as much as those that everyone receives. People are all different and have different needs at different times. Providing benefits like ‘Zen Space’ for employees to step away and decompress in the middle of a workday, Financial and Investment advice, Employee Assistance Programs to give employees a third-party resource to deal with challenges in their persona lives, are just a few examples of creating an atmosphere and culture that a company cares about the overall well-being of its employees, not strictly giving them tools and resources to do their work.
Article from a FlexJobs survey from 2022 shows similar trends and top factors for why people leave their job in the ‘Great Resignation’ period we find ourselves in
- Leadership Connection
- ‘People don’t leave companies; they leave leaders’ is a phrase that has been around for decades because it is true. There can be many factors that impact an employee’s desire to stay with a company, but their relationship with their manager, and overall leadership team is often the biggest driver. If an employee feels they are continually being given poor feedback under the guise of ‘constructive feedback’, yet seldom receive positive feedback that assures them they are overall doing good work and are having the impact a company needs them to, the employee-management relationship is on shaky ground. To retain employees and earn high marks from the many employee satisfaction surveys companies use in recent years, every level of leadership should be inspecting and coaching to the relationships their leaders have with those whom report to them. If an organization is afraid to coach its leaders or simply assume that all leaders do a good job of building relationships with their teams, rest assured there are poor or fractured relationships that will see unhappy, disengaged employees who will find new opportunities elsewhere before long.
- Growth & Opportunity
- Some employees do not look far beyond the paycheck and the benefits as their primary needs and reasons to be with and stay with a company. Increasingly however, people need more. They need to believe that their job will lead to something better, higher level, and more impactful to the mission of the business. Sharing with employees what the career growth plan is(which begins with having one!), and demonstrating how it has worked for others in the organization can be the right motivator to attract and keep good people. Employees who see only outside hires, or there is nepotism in a workplace, will not only leave for greener pastures, but may develop strong negative feelings about the workplace that greatly impact the team, which can spread like wildfire.
- Feedback is a Gift
- Good culture is one built on its belief in Coaching. Not one that where coaching is only for its individual contributors, but one that demonstrates that every, at every level, gets coached. Having, or building this type of coaching culture can be a forward-feeding foundation of the health and success of a company and each organization within. It need not take away from the many tasks and responsibilities every employee is charged with, but become part of those responsibilities. With most businesses dedicating time for things like employee meetings and one-on-one discussion with their leaders, simply reallocating as much of that time specifically for coaching is all it takes. Most companies who do so see the return on such investment that they begin to build in even more time. Such a culture builds employee loyalty, motivation, and drives increased productivity as employees at every level see what their leaders see from a different angle, know real-time how to improve and perform at their best, what the big picture goals are that they can work toward and begin to feel more a part of. The coaching culture keeps everyone engaged and bought-in through the many things that happen in a dynamic work environment, from the launch of new services or products, organizational restructures, changes in leadership to name a few.
- Dare to be Different
- We talk a lot about dynamic work environments, which is typically about how companies are ever-evolving, knowing how critical it is to be aware of, keep pace, and ideally to stay ahead of the competition. That is generally expected from a company’s people. But how does a company think of its people? People are nothing if not dynamic. Like companies, people change in many, if not every, way. An employee may begin with a company just out of college with a degree in marketing only to realize years in that their passion is for human resources. Having strong, interested leadership who recognize and support such desire from their people, will see their employees work even harder to achieve their goals. Beyond the work, we all experience significant life changes, getting married, or divorced, having children, becoming empty-nesters, paying for a child’s college tuition, going through familial loss, or their own serious health challenges. What an employee needs today won’t be the same a year from now, and companies that show the interest to accept it all and support their people through a flexible work environment that welcomes such change, provides a safe, comfortable workplace that people are happy to work in, and look to stay long-term.
Taking a job, leaving a job, building a career, changing a career path are all personal decisions, and ones that no company can truly anticipate and accurately respond to for everyone, every time. But companies can be Open, Curious, Accepting, Supportive, and Flexible. With a foundation built upon these attributes, the workplace and overall business is far more likely to see a satisfied, positive, motivated, and loyal workforce that believes the ROI-Return on Investment- they receive for their hard work and effort is more than enough reason to give their all to their company and the leaders.
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