How to Stop the Revolving “Office Door”

September was another record-breaking month. 4.4 million people quit according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The revolving “office door” does not show any signs of stopping. Why?

In a new working paper, the UC Berkeley economist Ulrike Malmendier suggests there is something existential behind the Great Resignation: The pandemic and the rise of remote work have changed the way we view our lives and the world.

Malmendier is not the only scholar who has suggested that soul-searching during the pandemic fueled quitting. Texas A&M psychologist Anthony Klotz, credits?"pandemic epiphanies" with motivating many workers to depart their jobs for greener pastures.

However, the pasture is greenest where it is watered.

To retain your talent, it’s imperative that you develop your managers as coaches who motivate and inspire your team members and equip your employees to clarify what they need to be professionally fulfilled.

Empower your managers to be coaches.

According to Gallup, only one in five employees strongly agrees that they are managed in a way that motivates them. If your team members are experiencing “pandemic epiphanies” and want to be inspired, motivated, and developed, your managers need to become coaches.

Managers tell people what to do. Coaches ask open ended questions to spark thinking, insights, and potential action steps that support individual growth, development, and self-discovery. Managers focus on past performance. Coaches focus on the future. Managers set expectations and inform the team. Coaches use active listening and individual feedback to co-create goals and performance expectations.

The shift from manager to coach can begin immediately. Challenge your leaders to ask any or all the following questions in their next one-on-one with each of their team members.

• What did you gain professionally during the pandemic that you want to retain and bring with you to work now?
• What did you lose professionally during the pandemic that you want to reclaim and bring with you to work now?
• How do you define the value of your work on our team? In the company?
• What was your “best day” at work? What made it your “best day”? What ideas do you have to create more of these days?
• How do you want to celebrate your personal and professional success in our work environment?
• How can I support your social, physical, and emotional wellbeing needs?

Coaching is not a one and done. It is an ongoing, continuous conversation with each team member. Encourage your leaders to prioritize coaching and schedule a weekly 30-minute one-on-one conversation with each of their direct reports.

Engagement, performance, and development are interlinked and interdependent. Coaching is the catalyst that fuels all three.

Equip employees to clarify what they need to be professionally fulfilled.

It takes two, employers and employees, to create a fulfilling, reciprocally constructive, and meaningful professional relationship. A team member’s engagement and satisfaction at work is a shared accountability between the employer and the employee. This is not possible if employees are unclear on what they need to be satisfied in their jobs.

Ask your team members to identify what they need in the each of the Five Essentials for Professional Fulfillment:?

• Admit – What do you need to admit your need for acknowledgment and praise? How do you want to be recognized and appreciated in exchange for your contributions?
• ?Align – What are your strengths and unique skills? How can you align and leverage them to support the accomplishment of the company’s strategic goals?
• ?Develop – What skills and knowledge do you want to develop that will motivate and inspire you and help you advance in your career and within the organization?
• ?Cultivate – What relationships do you want to cultivate and develop with team members and leaders so you can advance your career and enjoy your work? What are your connection and social wellbeing needs? How can you get these met both professionally and personally?
• Design – How do you define meaning? What aspects of your work are significant and purposeful for you? What do you want more or less of in your job so that it is meaningful to you?

Once your employees have clarified what they need to be gratified at work, invite them to participate in a conversation about how to create a mutually beneficial way to work that supports both of you in achieving your goals, elevating the employee experience, and creating a culture where everyone can thrive.

The massive exodus of talent from companies is real. It will continue into 2022 and it may get worse before it gets better. However, you have a powerful opportunity to “water your pasture” and stop the revolving “office door” when you empower your managers to be coaches and equip employees to clarify what they need to be professionally fulfilled.

When your employees thrive, your business thrives.

For additional tools and strategies to engage your team members, click here to download Employee Engagement THE Competitive Advantage Guide.

If you are ready to magnify the effectiveness of your leaders, develop them as coaches, and engage your employees to retain your talent, we can help. Click here to schedule a time to talk.