Attracting and Retaining Employees During ‘The Great Resignation’
Organizations should be interested in benefitting its people, communities, and society at large
Today’s workforce looks a lot different than it did ten years ago, and it’s continually evolving. Even over the past year, more social factors have risen to the surface and demanded our attention, not to mention how the COVID-19 environment has completely changed how we work.
The pandemic has made employees from all over the globe reevaluate their lives—especially as it comes to work—causing massive labour shortages and unfilled positions. Dubbed ‘The Great Resignation,’ the exodus of workers has created hiring challenges for companies and left millions of jobs unfilled.
Today’s employment scene is a sellers’ market, so what’s the best way for companies to attract and retain talent? It goes far beyond just supplying a paycheque since today’s employees want to be seen, heard, and truly valued at their workplace. And to do that, it starts by looking at the core of your company and fixing culture from the inside out.
Revisit Your Policies and Practices
If you’re finding it difficult to attract and retain employees, revisit and restrategize your policies. What kind of formal diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) policies does your company have? If the answer is none, that’s a huge red flag to prospective employees. Companies need to incorporate social factors—such as DEI and environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG)—into their HR policies.
Today’s employees hold organizations to higher standards by looking at if they are people-first and want to help the world around them. Culture is crucial to your company, so ask yourself and your leadership team: What’s the language around the office like? Do you do things that celebrate diversity or highlight inclusiveness? How are you including people who are unable to participate in the same way as everyone else in work or social events? Are you addressing the climate change and other environmental questions your team is concerned about?
In Deloitte’s “Unleashing the power of inclusion: Attracting and engaging the evolving workforce” paper, they measured these significant figures on inclusion in the workplace:
80% of respondents indicated inclusion is important when choosing an employer.
39% of respondents reported that they would leave their current organization for a more inclusive one.
71% of respondents valued working for an organization with leadership that consistently demonstrates inclusive behaviors over one with mixed quantity or quality of inclusion initiatives offered (as opposed to working for an organization with high-quality inclusion programming, but inconsistent inclusive leadership behaviors).
23% of respondents indicated they have already left an organization for a more inclusive one—including 30% of millennial respondents.
The glaring takeaway here is that to attract and retain today’s top talent, organizations should remain laser-focused on fostering an inclusive culture while being responsive to the needs and priorities of today’s workforce.
Plan for the Workplace of the Future
Organizations across industries are making DEI a priority—with 79% planning to allocate more budget and resources in 2022. But just having these policies in place isn’t good enough; companies need to put action behind their words. Oftentimes, organizations have cultural statements that are aspirational rather than actual, so listening to your employees and gauging their sentiment around things like well-being and productivity can help identify areas of support that are needed to form a realistic strategy.
Because employee engagement is much more prevalent today, they want to know the inner workings of your company and be proud of who they are working for. Once you’re lucky enough to attract talented employees, it’s just as important to plan how to retain them. Having a strong culture and formal policies are great, but what else are you doing to treat your employees as humans rather than machines with a heartbeat?
Considering the pandemic environment and working remotely for months, it’s essential to retrain employees to be more technologically aware and able to participate in the digital workforce. In our fast-paced and innovative world, employees want to leverage these digital possibilities and have flexibility in their workplace. But on the flip side, they also want to be reassured that advancements such as automation and artificial intelligence (AI) won’t make them obsolete and take over their job. One active example of how an industry is combatting this issue is Canadian banks that have a strategy to upskill the workforce and proactively address worker challenges due to automation. We need to invest in continuous training and engagement of our employees to ensure they can continue to participate in the workplace of the future.
Treat People Like People
After an exhausting two years, we can’t ignore the support that employees and prospective employees are looking for regarding health and wellness. Everyone’s mental health has taken a toll during COVID—many workers have reached a breaking point after months of high workloads, hiring freezes, and other pressures, which has been a key driver in ‘The Great Resignation.’
What has come to light is the unique human aspect, in that all people work differently, so policies need to reflect this need for flexibility. One study measured why employees quit their workplace and found some of the main reasons being due to burnout (40%), lack of flexibility (20%), and well-being not supported by the company (16%). Working from home during the pandemic has created a whole new definition of work-life balance that employers need to accommodate and provide options for.
With that callout for work-life balance and employees burning out and reaching breaking points, consider what your company’s mental health policies are. Do you uphold a mental health practice within your business? Do you have appropriate fatigue management in place so your employees can be productive members of society?
Adopt Pay Ratio Disclosures
From sharing your ESG, DEI, health and wellness, and other policies, something that is clearly obvious is this: employees appreciate transparency. Leaders who dare to be vulnerable pave the path to creating deeper engagement and loyalty from all stakeholders—peers, colleagues, partners, investors, and current and prospective employees. A hot topic in this area is the commitment to fair pay and compensation.
Employees want to know that they are paid their worth and valued as an individual in the organization. People shopping in the current job market are looking for employers who provide pay transparency and share the salary in job postings.
Furthermore, there’s pressure from outside stakeholders for greater disclosure around median employee information and related workforce demographics. The SEC-required CEO pay ratio disclosure—which compares CEO compensation to that of a median employee—are included in proxy statements that are scrutinized from every angle.
It’s a trend that CEO pay is rising while average pay is stagnating—CEO compensation has grown 940% since 1978, while typical worker compensation has only increased by 12% during that time. This ridiculous gap is a major contributor to rising inequality which requires policy solutions to change. Some extreme examples include the head of McDonald’s earning a shocking 1,939 times more than the company’s median worker, or Mark Zuckerberg of Facebook earnings being 94 times higher than that of his typical employee.
It should be no surprise that current and prospective employees want equitable and fair compensation. By fostering an environment where pay ratios are disclosed, employees are comfortable discussing pay, and employees receive the same information your company leaders have, you build trust and strengthen the foundation of a healthy culture.
Think about the DNA of your organization: if the old ways of doing things no longer serve the organization and your people, you need to figure out what will. If you’re not attracting the right people and losing great employees, you need to rethink your policies and practices.
The job market is incredibly competitive, especially during 'The Great Resignation.' Organizations need to provide flexible working conditions and meaningful benefits and policies that employees take pride in and want to be a part of. Remember: today’s employees—prospective or current—are actively seeking organizations that have a deep interest in benefitting its people, communities, and society at large.
Let’s talk strategy and ensure your plan meets new employee expectations to secure and retain the best talent for your organization.
Karri Howlett Consulting provides customized trusted advisory services to support your organization as you prepare aligned, powerful, and purposeful business plans. With over 20 years of experience working with and leading organizations creating new businesses or business expansions, or embarking on ownership transition, Karri Howlett, CFA, C.Dir. provides governance, strategy, and financial expertise to support and enhance your business.