Why are employees quitting?
This spring and summer saw an unprecedented wave of employee resignations, leaving many employers feeling helpless, watching critical open roles remain unfilled as competition for top talent intensified. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, nearly four million people quit their jobs in April — a record number that was already surpassed by both July and preliminary August data.
In many ways, this is a surprising turn of events. The economic dislocations from COVID-19 left many concerned about job stability and employment has still not returned to pre-COVID levels. Yet, many employees also took the disruption created by the pandemic as an opportunity to rethink their next step: nearly half of US-based employees say they are reconsidering the kind of work they do because of the pandemic. And as the economy opened back up and businesses fought to make up for lost time, competition for talent in key industries and roles reached new heights, prompting millions of Americans to move on to new opportunities.
Findings From Latttice’s Global State of People Strategy Also Found HR Teams Under Enormous Strain Trying to Retain and Recruit Quality Employees While Over Half of Their Employees Look For Another Job. Source
With this amount of pressure on retention, it is more important than ever before that business and HR leaders understand the key drivers that push employees to consider quitting. While different people will each have personal motivators, one factor consistently rises to the top: career progression and transparency on future growth opportunities. We surveyed more than 2,000 US employees at medium to large enterprises and found that over half (54%) of employed Americans are looking to change jobs in the next 12 months in favor of more meaningful work and the opportunity to see a clear path forward in their careers.
While plenty of uncertainty remains in the post-COVID workforce, one thing is clear: if you want to hold on to your best people, you must take steps now to show them a path forward within your organization, and give them the tools and support they need to develop.
Employees want to see a clear path forward in their careers, but many feel stuck
43% of employees say that their career progression within the company they currently work for has stalled or actually decreased over the course of the pandemic. And of employees considering or actively looking to move on, 47% cite stalled career progression as a key motivator. Many of these employees are feeling stifled in their current role, and don’t see a future for themselves within their current organization.
This sense of stalled momentum is clearly having an impact on what employees prioritize in searching for a new opportunity as well, especially among younger generations: 38% of Gen Z and 26% of Millennial respondents noted they are actively seeking new roles that offer career progression transparency, compared to 8% of Baby Boomers.
Millennials officially outpaced Baby Boomers as the nation’s largest adult population in 2020, and with many serving in key middle-management positions, it’s no surprise they are looking for clarity around future prospects.
How to prevent employees from quitting?
Managers and mentors remain key to employee engagement and growth
For employers to actually address these challenges, however, they should first take a closer look at why current employees feel that their job growth isn’t meeting their expectations. While managers can and should be critical partners in helping employees navigate their career, 26% of employees say they don’t speak to their manager directly about their growth.
Many employees also report lacking facetime with their direct boss, with almost one-fifth (16%) of employees noting that their careers are suffering from a decrease in one-on-one meetings with their supervisors and managers. This challenge has likely only been exacerbated by the pandemic.
Nearly one-quarter (24%) of employees also say that a lack of accessible mentorship has caused them to fall behind. These employees are much more likely to look outside your organization to fix that: Deloitte found that among Millennial employees, for example, those intending to stay with their organization for more than five years were twice as likely to have a mentor than not.
New tools and increased transparency are needed, but many employers fail to deliver
Importantly, in addition to challenges with manager and mentor relationships, we found employees struggling with technology and tools as well: Nearly one-quarter (21%) of employees cited a lack of available tools available to clarify their path towards career progression.
18% of employees say they do speak regularly to their managers about their careers, but that there are no adequate tools to enable and monitor their growth progression or track their career growth within the company — giving employees little agency to take action on these discussions and monitor progress.
Overall, our survey found that nearly one-third (29%) of employees lack a clear view of the career progression opportunities within their company. Of this segment, 40% reported it was because their company is not transparent about the kinds of growth and career progression opportunities available to them, while 33% said their company doesn’t provide any opportunities for career progression.
One-third (33%) of employees say that more feedback about career progression and learning tools would encourage them to grow with their current company, rather than leaving the organization behind. Without these components in place, many employees will continue to feel stalled with their current employer and may end up looking elsewhere.
Employee wellbeing remains critical
While career growth is central to retention, employers also should be embracing a holistic employee value proposition and support for employees. The last 18 months have both intensified the need for a focus on overall wellbeing, while also fraying the bonds between many companies and their employees.
A recent survey of over 125 CEOs identified employee wellbeing as the top area where their companies have struggled the most during the pandemic, with 90% saying they had taken action to address the problem in the previous six months.
Unfortunately, our study found that many employers are still falling short. 38% of employees report that their manager has not asked how they are feeling in their current role since the pandemic began — even as stress and anxiety reached all-time highs among US workers and especially younger generations.
One of the lessons I hope we all can take forward from this pandemic is to remember that we are all human, with loved ones, challenges and passions beyond the Zoom windows and conference rooms we share with our colleagues. Take time to really talk to your people, ask how they’re feeling and understand their struggles, whether in their professional or personal life. Truly human relationships are the foundation for not only stronger cultures, but also more meaningful work together.
Provide the tools and support your employees need to excel, and they will grow with you
Employers can’t predict the exact course of the Great Resignation and whether it will intensify or we’ll return more quickly to pre-COVID labor market dynamics. Still, the durability of career growth as a driving motivator for employees should not be underestimated.
From tools highlighting career progression to mentorship and ongoing conversations with supervisors and managers, these critical factors cannot be overlooked. employers must remember the importance of going the extra mile for your employees, and the steep cost if you don’t.