Across social media, there is a trend referred to as "quiet quitting".
Employees who are disengaged with the job are only putting out the minimum exception of their role before moving on to something else. Disenfranchised employees are nothing new, but with the jobs market squarely in favour of candidates, now is the time for businesses to evaluate what they are offering as a company to retain and attract the best talent.
At C4S, we have put together five things businesses need to work on to keep attraction and retention high.
Company Culture
One of the key issues brought up with quiet quitting was around job expectation, value and reward. Creating a working culture which focuses on respect, communication and opportunity. 67% of professionals say they experience moderate to high-stress levels due to work and employees being more aware of what toxic work environments look like; a lot can be done to ensure this is not the case in your business.
Create transparent communication lines so that people know what's going on honestly. Using internal satisfaction surveys, such as eNPS scores, not only gives businesses an insight into what their employees care about at work but creates the opportunity to focus on implementing and improving what really matters to your staff.
You can also plan social events which enable staff to get together outside the workplace environment. This fosters better connections and friendships, which improves collaborative working across the board.
Recognition
Showing employee gratitude needs to extend beyond a salary.
Creating a recognition scheme and even just making an effort to notice and point out good work increases employees' output as they feel more valued by the business.
Creating the opportunity to be recognised by not just management but also by peers helps foster a culture of motivation and keeps up good performance levels.
Flexibility
Life happens to everyone.
Employees should not be fearful of their job when needing to take care of emergencies and other responsibilities outside of work.
Working with employees to find a way to compromise, which enables them to be productive at work while allowing them to do what they need in their personal life, is valued highly by staff.
Showing accommodating behaviour fosters respect, but 88% of candidates have said they would consider a lower-paid job if offered more flexibility in hours.
Promote and Train
As part of a good company culture with transparent communication, having transparent and clear routes to promotion allows employees to know how to move up and the expectations to do so.
As well as individual options, creating clear goals with departments creates better teamwork.
This often means quicker problem-solving within departments and increased productivity.
Giving employees opportunities internally creates long-term ambition within a business and closes internal skills gaps when possible within the company.
Inclusion and diversity
It is no secret that a diverse workforce creates more opportunities within a business.
By encouraging and celebrating differences, using inclusive language creates a positive environment.
Creating committees of employees to celebrate and communicate different diversity initiatives allows people to feel more themselves at work, increasing respect and inclusion within your workforce.
We have worked with businesses over the last ten years, consulting them and helping build compelling Employee Value Propositions so that they can help retain and attract the best talent to their business. If you are looking to improve your employees' happiness at work, speak to us and we would love to help you too.
