The resignation crisis has impacted businesses in almost every field. In reaction to the unprecedented number of employees leaving their jobs before their contracts are up, companies have devised several strategies. Here are some of the most effective.
Focusing on the Employee Experience
In recent years, experts in human resources have encouraged businesses to take an employee-centric approach to manage their workers’ journeys. Traditionally, businesses have based their management of employees upon the target that they need to achieve – hoping that a form of meritocracy will sort the wheat from the chaff. This is no longer entirely practical in the age of the great resignation. Companies now need to take a more active role in the cultivation of rewarding employee experience. Actively listening to the needs of their employees through every stage – from onboarding to termination of contracts – can lead to the development of an environment where workers feel as though their voices are heard and their concerns are met. To cultivate this environment, companies need to offer ample resources and channels of communication.
Some companies have turned to tech-based solutions, like those offered by Simpplr, to help them in the optimization of the employee experience. Digital platforms can help to grease the communicative gears within a company and give employees easy access to the resources that they need to have a fulfilling workplace experience.
Promoting Internally
Nobody likes to work at what could be considered a ‘dead end’ job. Employees are likely to leave a business if they do not see any opportunities for progression within an organization. Employees switch jobs more freely in the 21st century – partially because their jobs allow very little room for internal promotion. Promoting internally has several massive potential benefits for organizations looking to retain their best workers.
If employees can work towards promotion within an organization, with a reasonable expectation of success, they will be more motivated to work proactively towards achieving company aims. They will be less likely to seek greener pastures at a different company where they can be offered a more senior position. The best workers will rise to the top – displaying their ability to learn new skills in part because they hope to climb to a more senior position. Internal promotion also decreases the amount of time that needs to be spent onboarding new senior personnel – employees promoted from within will already be familiar with the structures, expectations, and workplace cultures within a company. They will have inside knowledge of the things that need to be improved if a company is to thrive and grow.
Hybrid Work
The Covid-19 pandemic opened people’s eyes to the possibility that the office environment’s days were numbered. Companies scrambled to create infrastructures suited to remote work, and largely succeeded in doing so, thanks to the adoption of cloud computing and video conferencing services. Unsurprisingly, many employees expressed a desire to remain remote even after the main wave of the dreadful pandemic had subsided. Although full remote working models do not suit businesses that want to have a personal connection with their employees, many have offered their workers a compensatory arrangement: hybrid working. Hybrid working models enable employees to spend less time in the office, while still having access to all the resources that the office may provide. Employees that would be reluctant to return to the office full-time can be retained by companies offering them the opportunity to work from home for most of the week. Hybrid models are widely considered to be a successful way of retaining staff in a post-pandemic working world. While the proportion of people working exclusively from home is dropping, hybrid working seems to be here to stay.
Much Needed Pay Rises
Although employee wages are steadily rising in the United States, these rises are happening against a backdrop of massive inflation. This means that the money received by employees is worth less in real terms. This, understandably, has led to many employees questioning whether their employers value them enough to pay them a decent wage. Even employees with stable work have found themselves experiencing tight financial squeezes. Some companies have decided to take the hit and give employees pay rises in line with the rate of inflation to retain their precious workforces. While this may involve short-term losses caused by paying out more money, businesses have calculated that the price of mass resignation and employee disgruntlement will be much higher in the long run.
Hiring for Values and Character
While the skills and experience of potential hires are still given the most thought by HR professionals, companies have increasingly started to assess the values and character of candidates, in the hope of hiring people that will want to stay and work for them for the long run, instead of heading for pastures green at the first opportunity.
