In what has been termed the Great Resignation, employers have seen unprecedented rates of employees leaving their jobs. Not only are employees leaving their jobs, but higher percentages are leaving their professional fields for unrelated work.
As many as one-third of US employees planned to leave their jobs in mid-2022 (end-of-the-year numbers aren’t out yet). Worldwide, around 20% of employees planned to quit (source). The 2020 Covid crisis was blamed for the Great Resignation. Articles often blame employees for refusing to return to a 5-day office week.
Covid-19 is not the cause but the catalyst for the Great Resignation. A Harvard Business Review study shows that the Great Resignation may have started as early as five years ago. Check out 2 Reasons Why the Great Resignation Didn’t Start with Covid-19
What the Covid-19 pandemic did to workers was to dramatically and instantly change the face of work, causing many workers to reevaluate their employment happiness levels. Workers found themselves without a job as they were deemed “non-essential.” Others, essential workers, became overworked, felt sustained stress levels, and faced increased risks at work. Office workers also felt increased stress and isolation but found more autonomy with their jobs working remotely- something that many have been unwilling to relinquish.
The employment changes varied across these employee segments, but many employees across all areas were forced to reevaluate their relationship with their employment.
The Great Resignation Meet’s Its Match!
One of the reasons the Great Resignation has continued to gain momentum post-Covid is that employers don’t fully understand why employees are leaving. Many employers are raising wages and adding benefits to retain employees. But those efforts are falling short.
McKinsey & Company found that the top three reasons employees leave are they don’t feel valued by their company (54%), their managers (52%), or feel a sense of belonging at their employer.
The good news?
The three most significant reasons for the Great Resignation are entirely within employers’ power to correct. A strong company culture can overcome attrition resulting from the Great Resignation and create greater employee happiness. When employees feel a strong sense of community and feel they contribute and are appreciated for their work, they are much more likely to stay at an employer.
Building a Strong Work Community
Three-quarters of employees view their work as a community, and 72% of workers consider work community very important. The top advantage employees cited for returning to the office was an increased connection. Lack of connection initially caused increased stress levels in the early days of remote work during Covid.
While employers have improved company culture since early 2020, many still need help to balance company culture with a hybrid work solution.
Kristie McAlpine, professor at Rutgers University School of Business, explained, “Of course, people want to be compensated fairly, but they’re also looking for some connection and meaning in what they do.”
Purpose Creates Community
Workplaces with a strong sense of purpose and goals create stronger communities. When each individual of the team has a strong sense of purpose and contribution, they feel a connection with the team and feel a part of the work community.
When employees have a strong sense of workplace community, there is a 785% increased chance that they will also feel that they belong.
Leaders must remember to connect employee efforts to the organization’s larger purpose. Not only should employees know how they contribute to the company’s greater good, but they should also understand how their efforts improve their communities.
Never before has an employer’s mission statement, goals, and a sense of purpose been more critical than it is now. Employers must have great leaders in place who can do this.
Quality Recognition Battles The Great Attrition
The increasing trend for employee resignations highlight the need for quality recognition. Two of the three most prominent reasons employees quit revolve around their not feeling valued by their manager or employer.
According to Gallup, only 30% of employees strongly agree that they have received recognition in the last 7 days. Employees need personal credit frequently because it builds community, connects them to the organization’s (opr their team’s) purpose, and increases connections at work.
Employers with a strong company culture, which only happens with quality recognition, have found that the Great Resignation is more of a Great Attraction as workers flock to organizations with a strong community, including those with good leaders and greater autonomy.
Recognition Tools That Strengthen Team Community
Although recognition can be a simple “thank you,” employers with effective recognition have solidified recognition programs that are integral to their company culture.
Recognition software can improve the community, especially among remote and office workers, as long as it provides crucial elements.
Recognition software contributes to and builds community when it has seven crucial elements.
- Fosters collaboration
- Increases frequency of communication
- Makes it easier to share ideas
- Makes it easier to track work progress
- Makes it easier to connect with leaders
- Makes it easier to connect with mentors
- Provide greater access to workplace events
Thanks Software Builds Community
If you are still determining where to start regarding software, consider a demo with a Thanks recognition leader. Thanks Ideas improve collaborations between employees who can share ideas, communicate, and improve upon the idea without needing all the members to be in the same location.
Through Thanks, employees can connect with leaders, colleagues, and mentors. Special occasions are remembered, and emotional connections are grown through Celebrate and Say Thanks. Peers can share redeemable points, recognize each other, and highlight others.
Recognition becomes a game through the gamification feature, while insights provide critical reports to managers and leaders. Memories provide an avenue for colleagues to share special moments with a celebrated employee with them.
Schedule your demo today!
About Thanks
Thanks is a leading provider of a recognition-based platform that increases communication, builds teamwork, and makes recognition a part of company culture. Fast, easy and simple Thanks makes it easy to bring data-driven employee recognition to your entire organization. O.C. Tanner purchased the Thanks platform in 2019 to fulfill the recognition needs of smaller businesses.
Thanks customers benefit from the same decades of research in employee motivation and company culture that O.C. Tanner enterprise clients enjoy, but in a product that is geared for fast, easy and simple deployment. Whether you’re starting a recognition program or improving and expanding on what you already have, Thanks has everything you need to engage your people with effective, scalable recognition.