What every employee wants
During the pandemic, I examined my career, the skills I developed, and my trajectory within the organization. Despite how much I loved my job and employer, I deeply desired to explore different ways to use my skills and have a more active work life.
Admittedly, I'm statistically contributing to "The Great Resignation."
57+ million people quit their jobs within 14 months between 2021-2022. However, unemployment was lower in March 2022 YOY.
If "quitters" aren't unemployed, where are they going? It turns out that the mass exodus is leading people to other jobs and better opportunities.
In a recent Harvard Business Review article, Keith Ferazzi and Mike Clementi recommend that organizations consider seeing this as an opportunity.
"Pandemic life forced people to reexamine their personal and professional priorities. Remote work alerted us to the possibility of decoupling jobs from geography. And a seller's labor market empowers us to pursue it. Together these forces have been called the "Great Resignation." Still, the authors argue that the "Great Exploration" is a better term because it allows leaders to capitalize on the moment's deep potential. If you embrace the exploration with empathy and support, you can position your company and its most valuable resource — your people — for personal and professional renaissances."
When people asked me about my leaving after 14 years, I politely said I was amiably decoupling to explore new ways to grow. It seems I'm not alone.
So, what do employees want?
Unfortunately, answering that question will disappoint the up-and-to-the-right thinkers who focus most of their efforts on metrics, strategy, and results.
Employees are bringing their skills to growing companies and care about their employees' well-being.
Hybrid work environments allow people to orient their work day around when they're most productive while incorporating more time to focus on their well-being.
Encouraged self-care isn't all their looking for. Employees are looking for their employer to play an active care-taking role, too.
Adam Grant, an organizational psychologist, recently released an interview with Satya Nadella on his podcast with Ted called Taken For Granted (within the podcast series Work Life).
Nadella is well-known for his pedigree in technology, but he's also one of the highest-rated employers on Glassdoor. He somehow manages to see results and retain high-quality talent.
In Microsoft's research, interpersonal, one-on-one care is a critical variable Nadella and his team has found.
A key factor in Microsoft's onboarding process is a new employee's connection with their boss. Beyond setting expectations, bosses must deeply care about the individuals they lead.
"We need to learn the soft skills… it's not about a tool. It's good old-fashioned good management practices that we need for people's well-being is taken care of." - Satya Nadella.
The lost art of "good old-fashioned management" is what people are looking for in an employer.
Soft skills - communication, attentive listening, interpersonal skills, and empathy - are underlying qualities that don't directly drive results and are often overlooked and under-developed.
Yet soft skills catalyze innovation, creativity, trust and healthy cultures.
"The Great Exploration" can be an asset to companies who are committed to prioritizing their people’s needs and are open to new ideas. Now is the perfect time to ask employees questions about what motivates them, where they want to grow, and offer insights on how they can explore more mutually-benefitting opportunities within the organization.
