Microsoft’s Work Trend Index found that 40% of workers plan to change jobs this year, while similar surveys in the UK and Ireland put the figure at 38% and 26%, respectively.
While more offices are set to reopen, there is still a lot of uncertainty about what the new working week will look like.
The head of research at Gartner HR Practice, Brian Kropp, sees two possibilities for corporate management to respond to the worries of the hybrid approach.
- We know this approach is right so let’s learn from this and get better.
- This is too hard, and we’re going back to what we’re familiar with.
The danger is that management may decide that the definition of a hybrid workplace is too difficult, which could lead to a return to old habits.
This is a bad move since all the current data from surveys and related studies show that employees tend to perform better in a hybrid work environment.
The latest report, published in March 2021, shows that the number of workers voluntarily giving up their jobs has increased in two sectors – hospitality (+63,000) and information (+16,000).
In a 2019 report, the Work Institute found that the three most important reasons for leaving the job were career development, work-life balance, and the behavior of managers.
In 2021, Forrester data showed that 53% of employees want to continue working from home, and while the same study showed that 70% of companies will adopt a hybrid work plan, not every organization will, as not all jobs will qualify for such an arrangement.
The pandemic has created two very different financial realities for workers: one group is unemployed and behind rent payments, while the other group has employees who have higher savings because of their reduced mobility. The latter group can take advantage of this financial convenience to pursue a career or change location.
Kropp sees the pent-up demand for changing jobs after months of economic uncertainty, coupled with the hiring that will occur as the economy recovers, as two main factors for higher turnover rates.
Regarding employee retention, Kropp said that the first thing employers should do is remove as much uncertainty as possible about the rules of flexible working time.
Most importantly, managers need to think about what makes for a great employee experience, because this plays a very important role in retaining employees.
For more information, read the original story in Tech Republic.