From the Great Re-evaluation to the Great Conversation…

Cast your mind back to March and April 2020 when the pandemic turned ways of working on their head within days. Previous norms were completely wiped out; long-held beliefs by some organisations that remote working was impossible were blown away, as they invested in making it happen almost overnight. Lengthy, hard-going commutes had gone. Video calls with dogs barking and kids shouting in the background were no longer issues because everyone was experiencing the same thing. And as the weeks and months went by, a lot of employees began thinking and questioning…?

“What do I need from work… what’s important to me… what other things do I want to do in my life… what do I want work to enable me to achieve… where do I want to work and when… what are my values and does my work match them...?”???

There’s been a collective shift of expectations…

The pandemic kicked off a collective shift on a huge scale. Expectations have been changing and employees are increasingly being driven to make choices in line with them.??

It’s hardly surprising that reports such as Microsoft’s Annual Work Trend Index 2021 predicted that the era of the Great Resignation would be upon us. But resignations haven’t been the only outcome.??

While some employees did quickly decide to quit their jobs, others were taking a long hard look at their lives. They were reflecting on the things that really mattered, and concluding it was less about balancing ‘work’ versus ‘life’… and more about creating the life they wanted, with work playing a positive and fulfilling role within it. The Great Re-Evaluation had begun.??

Since then, with mounting financial pressures and increasingly uncertain times, it’s been suggested that rather than leave their jobs, some employees have started to ‘quietly quit’. Some argue quiet quitting is simply another name for disengagement while others hold a different view, seeing it as an acceptable way for employees to set clear boundaries and protect their overall wellbeing. But either way, the fact that some employees could be choosing to withhold discretionary effort could have a real impact on many organisations.?

The answer is in meaningful conversations…

There are however a lot of organisations just setting out on the journey to get their culture right - and many who are well on the way. For those companies and their employees, this turbulent period could turn out to be a positive affirmation of everything they’re already doing. We know from ongoing research that the way employees were treated during the pandemic has had a huge impact on how they’ve ended up feeling about their organisation. So where are your employees at right now???

Are your leaders and managers having meaningful conversations and asking employees about what the last few years have meant for them, and what they now find more important as a result? Are your employees’ working experiences matching what they really want and need??

It's the era of the Great Conversation

The great everyday conversations you get within a coaching culture are key for exploring these kinds of issues.??

Empathic coaching conversations help leaders and managers understand what’s grown in importance to employees both at home and at work. How have the last few years affected their wellbeing? What are their expectations about what they want to achieve? What do they need from your organisation to make that happen? Through these conversations, managers can help employees access their innermost thoughts, and then explore how best to support them to achieve their goals.??

What’s your cultural brand?

Not only does a culture of great conversations help you retain your people; it also attracts them.??

Potential candidates want to be part of a supportive culture; as we highlight in our Coaching Culture framework, that’s the kind of culture where an ‘ask, don’t tell’ approach is taken; where in-the-moment feedback is the norm; where wellbeing’s put first and careers create a real sense of purpose. If that’s the kind of culture you have, highlight it throughout your employer brand - and shout loudly about it!?

A lot of the power of the process of re-evaluation is that it doesn’t require potential recruits to be actively looking… many are constantly ‘re-evaluating’. You can no longer purely rely on job adverts to speak to them. Thanks to the accelerated evolution of certain types of working over the past few years there are many choices out there. People aren’t just leaving jobs for other jobs… there’s more at play.??

What does your cultural brand look like outside your organisation? Are your own employees talking about it and acting as advocates for it? That’s a sure sign of a great culture and it’s going to catch the eye of potential new talent. At Coaching Culture we’ve experienced this for ourselves – with people being drawn to what we stand for, connecting with our purpose and wanting to become part of our organisation.??

Are you future-proofing your organisational culture?

As the pandemic unfolded, we all talked about wanting to ‘go back’ to normal – but nothing ever goes backwards. Organisations must look forwards.??

Even if the Great Resignation’s affecting your organisation with some employees choosing to leave, leaders and managers should be adopting a coaching style right now. Powerful questions reveal what it is those employees want to achieve and why your organisation isn’t providing it. For organisations that are prepared to listen, reflect and learn, the feedback and insights from those conversations will be gold dust.?

Employees and employees-to-be want to be part of a culture where there’s empathy, compassion and where they can be themselves. So use coaching questions to hold up the mirror – because it’s more vital than ever to equip your leaders and managers with the skills to deliver that culture.?

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