How to Avoid Being Part of The Great Resignation

There is definitely hope in the air that we are close to returning to a more permanent sense of normality; however, this brings the future of jobs into question more than ever. Increasing numbers of businesses are expecting their employees to return to the physical office, but the problem is:

They don’t want to go back!

According to recent research from Forrester, 60% of employees would be willing to take a pay cut for more flexibility, and 83% would stay with their current employer if they could keep the flexibility. Businesses that are reluctant to offer a level of flexibility to their employers may start to find talent retention a real problem.

So what is The Great Resignation?

Well, simply put, if employers don’t start offering what their employees want in terms of flexible working options, then those employees will take their talent elsewhere. And, due to the reported figures (some as high as 95%, although this is unreliable), it is being dubbed as The Great Resignation. A more reliable source, The Work Trend Index, reports approximately 42% of employees will resign from their positions this year.

Furthermore, with the increasing number of jobs available coupled with geographical barriers becoming less of an issue, we are very much in a candidate-driven market.

So, what can you do to not become victim to The Great Resignation?

Talk to your employees

Before you make any decisions, talk to your employees. Create an environment where employees can speak openly and honestly without fear of repercussion and ask them what they would like the future of their role, work environment and options to look like.

If you think someone from outside the business would best facilitate this to encourage more open conversation, Career Voyage can help.

Trust your employees

If your employees have been working from home for the last year or so, then why not trust them to continue? If there have been performance issues from individuals, then deal with this on an individual basis rather than reject the option of flexible working entirely.

With new employees, if your recruitment process is robust, you should have no concerns about offering flexible working.

Reimagine job roles

Traditionally, the recruitment of staff was built around budgets and organisational structures. However, this is an outdated practice. Before deciding where you need to recruit next, align your current talent against your business goals and then look at skill gaps.

Could job roles be redesigned to give existing talent more flexibility and responsibilities that cover your current skill gaps? We understand this is a significant piece of work; however, if it saves recruitment costs and improves talent retention, it’s worth investing the time. We specialise in re-engineering roles and assessing current talent and skill gaps at Career Voyage, so please get in touch with us today for a no-obligation chat.

The Future

There are so many variables that no one can predict what the future of work will look like, both short-term or long-term. However, what we do know is that employees value choice and employers that continue to force staff to be in the office full-time will find it challenging to hold onto their top talent. Whereas, forward-thinking, flexible businesses will undoubtedly win in the fight for top talent.

Here at Career Voyage, we are specialists in talent attraction and retention, so if you would like support to become an employer of choice in this emerging world of work, please do not hesitate to contact us.

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