The Great Resignation: What are the facts, and what are the myths?

The phrase “the great resignation” has been spoken about extensively since the beginning of the year, with many Founders, and Headhunters alike citing a talent shortage like no other. Harvard Business Review commented on this back in September 2021, stating that “Employees between 30 and 45 years old have had the greatest increase in resignation rates, with an average increase of more than 20% between 2020 and 2021.” These statistics are echoed across multiple articles highlighting that the jobs market presents more choices now than it ever has before. 

But, instead of seeing this seismic shift as an opportunity to hit the panic button, it’s time to look at this through a positive lens and understand the reason why people are leaving, and equally how employers can future-proof their businesses and continue to attract high-quality talent.

People are exhausted

With the majority of resignations occurring at mid to senior level, it’s clear that leaders, senior executives, and even CEOs are fatigued from the past two years. 

NBC News produced an article on this, stating “CEOs and other executives have spent the past two years juggling work-life balance like everyone else — and just like employees on lower rungs of the corporate ladder, a growing number are walking away.” It can be easy to assume that senior leaders and CEOs are absolved of resignation due to status or even total package, but burnout and exhaustion don’t discriminate, and it’s understandable that individuals at this level are taking extended leave to recharge. 

Priorities have changed

The pandemic, isolation, and multiple lockdowns left a lot of us to reflect on our personal and professional lives, and many of us have thought about what we wish to prioritize. This could be a better work-life balance, or it could be spending more time with our families. For some, it’s triggered choices to completely abandon their current career path.

Mental health has been affected

Anxiety and depression spiked exponentially in 2020 and 2021, and many individuals who had never dealt with poor mental health in previous years were faced with the challenges that anxiety, depression, and other mental health illnesses and disorders can bring. 

Peoples’ psychological safety was impacted globally, with rules consistently changing, redundancies, and financial aid being difficult to obtain in some circumstances. However, we are now entering a time period where mentally, individuals are feeling less fragile. This, coupled up with hiring freezes being lifted and the economy falling back into a stable pattern, are all triggers for people to resign or move into a new role.

So, what does this all mean?

The most prevalent thing that we’ve deduced from this phenomenon over the past 6-8 months is that it’s nothing personal. It’s important for business owners and hiring managers to take comfort in this, and know that the great resignation isn’t because their business or team is terrible to work in. Although teething problems and toxic workplaces will always be triggers for people to leave, there are bigger elements at play here that must be considered. 

What this does, however, present, is an opportunity for businesses to review their retention strategies and start to future-proof their businesses from future mass exoduses, which are inevitable, pandemic or no pandemic!

What steps can you take?

Implement initiatives that tackle workplace burnout

Whether this is adding mandatory time off for all employees, or investing in services to help with mental health or stress management, collect internal data from your current employees to find out what would add the most value to them. You can do this using surveys or even ask for opinions in one to ones or team meetings. The most important thing is to act on the feedback as quickly as possible - employees need to feel heard. Sometimes, it’s the smaller initiatives and changes that make the most significant difference.

Can you change it from a resignation to a sabbatical?

If someone is looking to leave your organization, it’s crucial to have an open conversation and/or exit interview which highlights the reasons why they’re looking to leave. If it’s burnout or mental health-related - rather than them yearning for an opportunity more aligned to their professional goals; could you offer them a sabbatical or extended leave for them to recharge and recover? 

Improve your exit interview process

As mentioned above, exit interviews allow you to uncover a 360-degree understanding of why someone is leaving your organization. When was the last time you reviewed your exit interview process and questions? Additionally, are you implementing feedback given to you by individuals who have left?

If you wanted to take things one step further, you could implement “stay” interviews, which would comprise regular meetings with employees to understand the dynamics within their role and company, as well as other factors that will keep them in the organization. 

For employers who are continuously thinking about different ways to foster an inclusive environment to improve retention, reach out to us directly for our resources and programs around this!