How to Hire and Retain Talent in the Post-Pandemic Era

We’re never going back to how things were in 2019, as there’s been a fundamental shift in workers’ mentality post-pandemic, and their willingness to prioritize other things in their life beyond whatever job they hold.

Recently, McKinsey surveyed more than 12,000 workers located in the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Australia, India, and Singapore to determine why people are resigning and what factors would sway them to remain in their positions.

40% of the people in the workforce are unhappy and unsatisfied in their current jobs and are seeking better, more fulfilling employment opportunities, suggests a McKinsey report.

Among those workers who have recently resigned from a job, 41% said lack of opportunity for upward mobility and no pay or benefits was the top reason they quit.

McKinsey cited three repetitive occurrences that lead to the Great Resignation and Great Attrition:

• Reshuffling: Workers are resigning and taking positions in other industries, which is causing some industries to disproportionately lose talent.
• Reinventing: Workers are vacating traditional employment and choosing nontraditional roles, such as temporary, gig, or part-time work, or they are opting to start their own businesses.?
• Reassessing: Workers are leaving the workforce entirely to focus on other priorities, such as taking care of children or relatives, concentrating on self-care, or pursuing other interests.

Focus on Five Unique Personas

As there is a shift in employees' perspective towards work, it is suggested that companies should focus on Five Unique Personas or hiring new talent and retaining existing staff.

1. Traditionalists: Career-oriented individuals who are the mainstay of the classic labor pool. They are easier to find through common recruitment strategies, according to McKinsey, and are motivated by compensation, benefits, job titles, status, and opportunities for career advancement.

2. Do-it-yourselfers: These workers are typically 25 to 45 years old and value flexibility above all else when choosing jobs. They want autonomy to establish their own hours and the type of duties they will perform. This includes gig, part-time, and self-employed workers as well as full-time employees in nontraditional roles.

3. Caregivers: Workers who are at home due to other priorities, but who may be looking for an opportunity to re-enter the workforce. People in this group desire companies that are willing to work around their personal schedules. They could be coaxed back into the labor force with part-time options, four-day work weeks, flexible hours, and work-at-home positions.

4. Idealists: These workers tend to be in the 18- to 24-year-old age range, maybe working part-time, or may still be students. These individuals value being part of a community and are most easily swayed by companies that have a strong organizational culture with an emphasis on meaning and purpose.

5. Relaxers: People who are not looking for work, but who could be convinced to return to the labor force under ideal circumstances. This group is mostly comprised of early- and natural-age retirees who still have productive years left. They represent the largest percentage of the latent workforce, McKinsey noted. Companies should consider seeking out these seasoned workers who may be more interested in meaningful work than a big paycheck.

Four Strategies for Retaining Workers

There is a dire need that organisations get into action and begin looking at the shifting economic scene as an opportunity to restructure workplaces and create a better model to avoid resignations and retain workers.

McKinsey offered four strategies that companies can focus on to retain their existing talent and avoid resignations:

1. Sharpen traditional employee value status through compensation, benefits, career advancement potential, reputable job titles, and the overall prestige of the organization.

2. Build creative, nontraditional, value propositions revolving around flexibility, a strong company culture, and more personalized methods of career progression.

3. Expand and tailor talent-seeking approaches to woo nontraditional workers.

4. Invest in more meaning and belongingness in the company’s culture to build stronger teams and relationships among workers.

Covid could be over but it has left a lasting impact on how people look at work-life balance.

The shift in the labor market isn’t just a passing trend or a pandemic-related change, every organisation needs to relook at its hiring strategies and devise a new approach to retain employees.

If you have implemented some more ways of hiring and retaining talent, do share them in the comments below.

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