Lever Report Reveals New Motivators for Retention During the Great Resignation

• Nearly Half of the Workforce Plans to Quit in Less Than a Year and Motivators to Stay Move to Compensation, Benefits, and Internal Mobility

Lever, a leading Talent Acquisition Suite, released the 2022 Great Resignation: The State of Internal Mobility and Employee Retention Report, uncovering how employers can best attract and retain workers during the Great Resignation, specifically looking at the impacts of internal mobility. While two in five (40%) of employees plan to stay at their current jobs for less than a year, attrition rates for Gen Z are much higher—with 65% of employees planning to stay for less than a year.

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The report revealed that the biggest motivator for employees planning to stay in their position is salary and/or potential bonuses (46%), followed by good paid time off and flexibility (21%), and internal mobility (13%). While culture is important to employees, it’s no longer the number one factor determining whether they stay or leave. However, of the employees staying at their company, nearly half (41%) will ask for some sort of role change in 2022. Employees are so invested in creating a new role that nearly a third (31%) would take a pay cut to change positions, and three in five (61%) would start searching for new jobs if their company didn’t allow them to switch roles.

“As we enter another year of the Great Resignation, our report found employees are asking for a few simple things in order to stay at their companies,” said Nate Smith, CEO, Lever. “Through much of the pandemic there was an immense focus on culture and perks, but as we navigate today’s normal,  companies should focus on competitive compensation, more personalized working plans, and PTO that can provide needed flexibility. These focuses will define employers with top retention in 2022.”

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Additional findings from the report include:

Opportunities for Internal Mobility Are Critical For Talent Retention in 2022

• More than one in five (21%) employees don’t feel they can openly discuss moving roles or departments with their managers (including 37% of Gen Zs), and one in eight (13%) employees don’t even know who within the company to discuss this role change
• This could be because a third (33%) of employees believe their company does not encourage changing roles or departments within the organization
• A lack of encouragement from companies and managers may contribute to more talent loss this year, as over two-thirds (67%) of employees would leave their job if their company didn’t allow internal mobility
  • This is particularly true for women as 73% would leave their job if their company didn’t allow internal mobility, compared to 63% of men

Upskilling Can Help Employers Increase Retention & Employees Make the Case for Role Changes

• More than two-thirds (70%) of employees say their company provides opportunities for upskilling or reskilling – an offering that motivates nearly one in 10 of all employees, but nearly one in five (17%) Gen Zs, to stay at the company
• At companies that provide upskilling or reskilling, 61% of employees have taken courses to grow in their current role while 23% have taken courses to grow into a new role
  • Gen Zs are the most likely to have taken courses to help them grow into a new role, proving the need for career flexibility with this younger generation of workers

Gen Zs and Millennials Have Differing Priorities When Exploring New Roles

• More than half (52%) of employees would consider returning to a former employer, with most returning for better benefits (29%), more room for growth opportunities (22%), and more opportunities for upskilling/reskilling (16%)
• For Gen Zs, highlighting a sense of purpose in the role is critical, as 42% would rather be at a company that gives them a sense of purpose than one that pays more, while Millennials (49%) and Gen Xs (56%), who would rather work for a company that pays more than gives them a sense of purpose

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