Seven Tips to Attract and Retain Employees During the Great Resignation

Companies across all industries are experiencing the impact of the Great Resignation, where employees are leaving their jobs at record rates. The number of employees who voluntarily quit their jobs in December 2021 alone was 4.3 million people, or 2.9% of the national workforce.

What Triggered the Great Resignation?

The Great Resignation started shortly after the implications of the COVID-19 pandemic were beginning to be realized. Forced to stay home and school or work virtually, people began to deeply ponder previously unasked questions. As they did, many began to realize that their jobs, or line of work, were not suitable to the lifestyle they wanted. And, as the “post-pandemic world” has begun to shift to “living in an endemic world,” the search for opportunities that better suit the realities of their lives has become commonplace. While resignations have been more prominent in some sectors, they span the workforce from executives to professionals to skilled laborers.

Some of the top reasons cited for employees leaving their jobs include:

• Burnout
• Higher pay
• Toxic culture
• Poor response to COVID-19
• Job insecurity or reorganization
• Desire for better work-life balance
• Career change
• Work that better aligns with their values

This upheaval has placed great strain on employers and left them scrambling to determine new ways to attract and develop top talent and incentivize current employees to stay. While many employers initially responded by increasing pay and improving benefits, they have realized a need to expand tactics to gain a competitive edge and thrive in the post-pandemic job market. Below we offer a few suggestions that might help you gain a competitive edge in attracting and retaining talent so you can thrive amidst these new realities.

Tips to Attract – and Keep Employees

• Remain flexible if employees prefer to work from home
  Many businesses have discovered alternative ways of working without in-person gatherings, and productivity has actually increased. Employees tend to be more productive with reduced commutes, less or no office small talk, fewer distractions, and appreciate more time for family, space for exercise and better work-life balance.
  
  Employees have found advantages to working from home and many want to remain at home or adopt a hybrid model. In fact, 77% of remote workers say they’re more productive when working from home and 74% of workers say that having the option to work remotely would make them less likely to leave a company. As options to work remotely increase, otherwise satisfied workers could be tempted to go elsewhere if their employer does not have flexibility for remote work.
  
  At the same time, the lack of social interaction may eventually impact the mental health of employees. This could lead to decreased employee satisfaction and start to hinder productivity over time. Employers should work hard to foster community and create opportunities for connection to counteract isolation and lack of engagement.
• Create a two-way dialogue with employees
  Creating a means for having a two-way dialogue with employees can facilitate trust and loyalty, and help leaders see around corners they would not otherwise be able to. A top-down model of communication alone will turn employees off. Just like outside of work, people want their voice to be heard and to be treated with respect. It’s important that you know what employees are feeling and thinking and provide a space where they feel heard. Doing so will allow you to respond to their input and adapt to their needs. Find ways for employees to share their thoughts, suggestions, and questions regardless of where they sit within your organization. Tools such as focus groups, anonymous emails/text platforms, and open-floor Q&A with leadership are some of the ways this exchange can be created. Address and answer the questions and concerns. Be sure to show that you are acting on their input.
• Communicate with transparency
  Organizational transparency accelerates information gathering, helps unite and coordinate endeavors, and makes leaders more accountable. Communicating with transparency means that information is shared regardless of its quality. When employees know they can rely upon leadership to speak with candor – delivering news in good times and bad – it deepens trust and forges stronger bonds to leadership and the company. Without a strong foundation of trust, employees often feel uncertain, or worse – afraid. The costs of a workforce operating from fear are numerous – employees are unmotivated, less engaged and unempowered. This often means you receive lackluster support for key initiatives, diminished productivity, and fewer innovative ideas to propel your organization forward. Ultimately, it leaves you more susceptible to attrition.
• Consider developing policies that address the burden of childcare
  Women are quitting their jobs at consistently higher rates than men due to the burden of childcare. If you have children or know people who do, then you are likely aware of the challenges presented with COVID-19 policies for sickness, testing and quarantining at schools and daycares which often require kids stay home anywhere from 5 to 10 days, unexpectedly. Typically, the mother is relegated the responsibility of staying home with their children.
  
  Flexibility must be allowed for these employees in these unprecedented times. One way to do this is to allow caregiver employees to take time off that does not count toward PTO. This demonstrates that you care about them and surely will be remembered as a meaningful helpful gesture. Measures such as these will draw mothers back to work and retain women who are still working but struggling with the reality of school and daycare closures.
• Encourage and support mental and physical well-being
  Stemming from the pandemic aftermath and the spotlight on diversity, equality and inclusion in the workplace, mental health has been catapulted into national discourse. For good reason, we seem to have reached a collective realization that feeling well includes physical and mental health.
  
  Employers who provide holistic wellness support tend to find employees are more loyal and happier. In fact, the 2021 Mental Health at Work Report revealed that respondents who felt supported by their employer with their mental health were 2.7 times more likely to be satisfied with their job and 2.5 times more likely to intend to stay at their company for two years or longer, compared to those who didn’t feel supported.
  
  Beyond providing discounts to fitness options and mental health providers, employers can do simple things like encourage managers to give recognition and gratitude so employees feel appreciated, especially when they might be feeling overworked or burned out. Also, providing a safe space where mental health issues are normalized through open dialogue will go a long way in facilitating well-being.
• Focus on your company’s higher purpose and building the culture
  A purpose explains why your business exists and articulates the wrong you want to right in the world. It is the lynchpin for building and engaging an enduring culture. It provides all stakeholders an opportunity to forge an emotional connection with your company. In Larry Fink’s recent letter to CEOs, he touted the importance of focusing on companies higher purpose to retain employees: “Those who show humility and stay grounded in their purpose are more likely to build the kind of bond that endures the span of someone’s career.” He goes on to point out that companies that forge these bonds with employees face lower levels of turnover and increased employee engagement. If you haven’t unearthed your company’s higher purpose yet, consider how your leadership team can coalesce around an igniting core. If you already have a defining purpose, focus on building your culture around it and deepen employees’ connection to it through meaningful experiences.
• Should employees leave, treat them with kindness
  Your reputation extends beyond your current employees, customers, suppliers, investors and communities. How an employee feels when she or he leaves your company will be carried out into the world, so it’s important that they are treated with respect when the time comes for separation. Turnover is evitable in the business world. Treat them with kindness, professionalism and inquire openly about their reasons for leaving – you could learn something valuable that can be applied to the rest of your employees or culture.