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How To Retain Employees During the Great Resignation

How to Retain Employees Efficiently During the Great Resignation

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Is your company caught up with the great resignation? Are your employees quitting so often? It means you are not doing enough for them. Or maybe you have got some problem in the retention process. Let us give you some advice about how to retain employees efficiently during this great resignation.

Currently, every industry is going through a tough time. So many employees are leaving one company after another. And there is nothing to be surprised about because it is a common phenomenon in today’s workspace. But have you ever asked yourself, why are they quitting?

There are several reasons behind this nightmare that we are calling the great resignation. In this blog, we are going to cover why the great resignation and how to retain employees efficiently.

hat is the Great Resignation?

What is the Great Resignation?

The term Great Resignation is attributed to Antony Klotz, an associate professor of management at Texas A&M University. In general terms, Great Resignation is a phenomenon developed in the United States that consists of employees from all industries and professions massively resigning from their jobs.

In other words, it is an economic phenomenon where a vast majority of employees voluntarily resign from their position for some obvious reasons. Though this trend started in the United States, now it is taking place everywhere.

According to the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics, more than four million employees quit their jobs just in July 2021.

On the other hand, the great resignation has an even bigger effect in the U.K., with a quarter of employees being highly active in switching jobs. If we look into the Asian job market, we will also find higher numbers on the page of the great resignation.

Why is The Great Resignation Happening?

There was a time when we were in the industrial revolution. After that, we got the information revolution. And now, we live in an era of social revolution where people think about freedom, flexibility and the value of their work.

On the other hand, the recent COVID-19 pandemic has forced us all to see our lives differently. More importantly, employees came to understand that salary is not everything. There are many other things to think about.

The unfulfilled expectation is one of the first and foremost reasons for the great resignation. Employees leave their present job mostly because they don’t get what they expected. For example, you have been working for a company for two years. You don’t get promoted or see a salary increase despite your performance. What would you do? You will leave for another company for sure.

Why is The Great Resignation Happening?

This situation got even worse due to the pandemic.

Job exhaustion is another reason people quit. And it happened during the pandemic even more, no matter if you were home. During the pandemic, most companies saw a revenue drop. As a result, employees had to be more active to bring some more work. Besides, they also had to take care of household work and children. This situation put the employees to job exhaustion.  

Due to the pandemic, many employees have had to work from home. And many of them do not want to go back to the office. In short, they like to have some flexibility in their work environment.

According to research done by Microsoft, 70% of the employees who worked at home during pandemics like to have a flexible remote work option. Even 45% of the employees who worked remotely would like to shift to a new place, thinking they don’t have to go to the office. So, those already thinking about staying in the remote work environment are highly likely to quit their jobs if told to join the office physically. (Source: Microsoft)

Lastly, the bad office culture is making people quit their job. Again, the pandemic has taught people to see their careers upside down. Unless someone is forced by their financial condition, no one wants to work in an office with bad company culture.

How to Retain Employees During the Great Resignation

There is no option to avoid the fact that employees need to be recognized for their loyalty. Therefore, in today’s world, employers need to reconceptualize the workspace and have to understand what people value at work. In the retention process during the great resignation, you need to follow so many things to improve your organization’s culture. Let’s see some of the points on how to retain employees during this crisis.

Offer Incentives for better retention of your employees during the great resignation

1. Offer Incentives

Do you know why people work for your company? They work because of money. So, the first piece of advice on how to retain employees efficiently is to increase the payment.

It is not about the salary anymore; employees also look for companies where they will get a yearly compensation package. It is one of the best ways to retain your employees during this great resignation.

You might think they are getting salaries and festive bonuses; what else? We are talking about a profit bonus. It is a very effective motivation for employees, which works better than increments.

The psychology behind a profit bonus is that it makes your employees feel that they are part of the company. In this process, they work harder to make your company more profitable. Moreover, a loyalty incentive can keep the money issue off the table.

Because more and more companies are following this trend, employees are looking for opportunities to switch to those companies. Therefore, an incentive can help you retain your employees even during a great resignation.

2. Flexible Work Environment

The world has come a long way from the traditional work culture. And more and more companies are embracing flexibility. We can even say that for many people, work from home option is more lucrative than an increment.

Though the remote work environment was on the rise, the pandemic made it necessary. After working from home during the pandemic, employees and many companies worldwide find it convenient. Besides, working from home helps your employees save energy from travelling to the office daily.

On the other hand, you must loosen up on qualifications. It is better to look for skills than a college degree. Nowadays, technology giants are looking for people with skills than degrees. So, if your employees come a little short on paper quality, it doesn’t matter. They can still be valuable assets for your company. So, it is time to take decisive action on the flexibility issue.

Opportunities for Career Growth

3. Opportunities for Career Growth

Would you like to see someone do data entry than move to their skill zone? You must. Many employees start their careers with data entry and learn something more important on their own. For example, if someone is doing data entry and learning graphic design, you must promote them to a new position if they are good enough.

Besides, your company should always provide training for growth. This way, you will be able to find many talents on-site. This practice also helps your employees stay in your company more than others.

The best thing to do is to conduct a retention interview every six months. It would help if you asked your employees what will make them stay there. It will not only make them believe in them; rather, it will make them believe in your company as well. And, no doubt, this is how to retain employees during this great resignation.

4. Improve Office Culture

A better office culture boosts productivity among your people. And a toxic office culture will make them leave. According to research, a bad company culture significantly affects your company’s productivity. And it is one of the biggest contributors to the great resignation.

Think, if you are working hard enough to do something for the company you work for. But at the end of the day, you hear you are not doing enough. How would you feel yourself? No doubt, you will feel discouraged. It is the way how most of your employees feel.

Besides, many companies argue with employees when they ask for a day off despite having many casual leaves left. Normally, your employees will take the leave when needed, not when your office approves. It is the reason your organization has offered different types of leaves. So, make sure you be careful about their rights.

Along with the above issues, many other things are connected to office culture. And you must take care of them all if you want to retain your employees during this great resignation.

Digitize Employee Management- How to retain employees during the great resignation

5. Digitize Employee Management

The old days are gone, and there is a new horizon where people love to access their H.R. information whenever they want. Moreover, your employees want everything automated, from onboarding to retirement. The traditional H.R. to-employee conversation is old enough to make people leave your organization.

Think for a minute, would you prefer to stand in front of the H.R. for leave for 20 minutes? Or, you would prefer a digitized application process where you can just apply without any consent. I would definitely go with the digitized process.

With digitized employee management, employees can see their leave balance, late arrival, extra work hours, and more. It makes people more satisfied in every way. An HR system, on the other hand, can help you avoid common employee recruitment mistakes for better retention. Therefore, we would say H.R. automation is an important step on how to retain employees during the great resignation.

In short, Great Resignation is a trend in every industry where employees resign voluntarily. But there are ways you can improve your employee retention. Take decisive action right now. You can offer incentives and improve company culture, along with a flexible work environment and digitized H.R. operations.

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