History Repeats Itself. The Great Resignation Has Happened Before...but Why Now?

I took a call last week from someone who complained about her company’s inability to find and keep employees. “There must be another resource for candidates. We can’t find people,” she said. ??

“Well,” I said, “you all have the same pool, you just have to do things differently in this environment.”?

By this “environment,” I was referring to the “Great Resignation,” as it’s called. The Great Resignation refers to the rate at which people voluntarily leave their jobs (the “quit rate”). Since 2021, the quit rate is the highest it’s been since the Bureau of Labor Statistics first collected that data in 2000.?

But we have seen high resignation rates before. It also happened in the 1970s, specifically in 1973.?

But why is it happening now?

Certainly, as the effects of the pandemic lockdowns lessened and companies started ramping up operations, more job positions became available. But, to survive today, companies should take a long-term perspective on hiring and keeping employees.

• First off, employers should recognize that today’s employees typically have three areas of concern about working at a company.?

What’s the communication system in this company? Do managers want input from me on how I do my job? Do they tell me exactly what they expect from me so I know how to do my job?

• Next, do you care about me as a person? Will you help me grow professionally and personally? Will you give me a chance to learn new skills?

• Lastly, employees want to know if you will pay them well.

When a company is well-managed, with competent leaders at varied levels, the concern about pay is third and employees prioritize the first two.??

However, if a company is poorly managed, pay becomes the top concern. And if workers don’t believe they are being paid adequately, well….?

Instead, it takes a secure company to keep employees. When the company’s leaders are secure, they’re shifting and adapting to what their employees need. The employees then say, “You care about me. I’m going to stay where people care about me.”

Lois Sonstegard is the Chief Executive Officer of Build2morrow in Minneapolis-St. Paul, MN. She is a management consultant, executive coach and advisor to C-suite level executives. Lois is a strong proponent of collaboration in the business world. She sees it as a positive and necessary model for modern companies.?

In fact, she acts as a neutral advisor to companies in collaboration ecosystems. She helps members of the ecosystem to collaborate, working together for the collective good of the group.?

If you would like to know more about collaboration ecosystems, call Lois at 952 200 6539 or visit her website here .