The Great Resignation is a real issue. Let’s begin with a few quick facts from Who Is Driving the Great Resignation by Ian Cook in the Harvard Business Review:
● 4 million Americans quit their jobs in July 2021
● Employees between 30 and 45 years old have had the greatest increase in resignation rates
● Resignations are highest in the tech and healthcare industries
Fortune magazine recently surveyed 117 CEOs and found that 73% say a labor/skills shortage is the most likely external issue to disrupt their business in the next 12 months.
Common wisdom has it that the pandemic is causing people to rethink work due at least partially to substantive shifts in the practical demands each of us face. Childcare options may have disappeared or doubled in price. Some of your employees have moved; others have decided that they no longer can stomach their previous commute.
This, I’d argue, is not just a problem. It is an opportunity for any company that wants not only to retain their best employees, but also to recruit other talented individuals.
The nature of work HAS changed. Companies that realize this are best positioned to thrive in this environment. Employees need more flexibility, not because they have become “soft” or “overly demanding,” but because their lives have changed in substantive ways.
I heard of one executive recruitment firm that is lifting entire investment teams out of their current employer and placing them in other firms that are happy to offer proven investors more flexibility regarding where and how they work.
Think: what can we do to not only retain our best people, but also attract the best people from other firms? What levers can we pull?
The best place to start is by talking to your top performers and asking them very specific questions, such as:
● What was most frustrating for you this week at work?
● What could we do next week to make you more effective at work?
● What help would you most need if we returned to the office next week (even if only a couple/few days per week)?
These questions have a couple of things in common. They are rooted in the short term, and they are quite specific. They are designed to reveal the “minor” issues that drive employees crazy, such as meetings that begin before child care arrives or policies that require employees to work at a certain time or manner (for no apparent reason).
Instead of accepting the Great Resignation as an unavoidable problem, try reframing it as a chance to become more connected to—and in synch with—your employees and top talent.