Moving On… Why would one Quit?

“For days, indeed weeks, this decision had weighed on me, I have wrestled the pros and cons, the issues and the counterbalancing arguments, and after a lot of reflection I am resigning”

Some resignations are expected, others come as surprise; but why do employees really leave? There are countless reasons, and these differ for every individual. Because of this, they can be difficult for leaders to address. Employee retention is mainly in the domain of company leaders, and the majority of employees quit their jobs for reasons within their leaders’ control.

It is tough to hold on to good employees, but it shouldn’t be. Most mistakes companies make can easily be avoided. When mistakes are done, your best employees are the first to go, because they are good and they have the most options available.

So what is exactly driving good employees to seek their fortunes elsewhere? A desire to switch careers, big life changes, or maybe a cannot-miss opportunity. For many people, quitting has everything to do with the job itself. From salary concerns to bad leadership, I will be going through what I think are the main reasons why employees leave are.

British philosopher Alan Watts often asked: “What if money was no object?” Watts would try to encourage people to ignore the trappings of money and instead follow their hearts and passions as if money was indeed no object. But in reality stagnant wages are the number one reason people quit their jobs.

People often start looking at revamping and dusting their CV when minimal or non-existing wage increases would come their way. With the sense of receiving also come rewards and benefits; no one would want to work long hours without being recognised or compensated well. When an organisation has no reward and recognition structure in place, loyalty is significantly reduced.

It is important to celebrate success and be there for your employees. People who feel appreciated and recognised become more productive. However let’s face it, money matters, money talks, it pays the bills and everyone has to think of their personal financial situation. I am a true believer that if employees are truly committed to what they are doing, give their all, then the money will come, so sometimes patience is really a virtue.

In most research one would find bad management as one of the top reasons causing employees to leave. Many organisations make the mistake of promoting the wrong people into managerial positions; sometimes employees are promoted irrespective of their skill level; this is a big mistake, as management is a leadership role and therefore requires leadership skills as well as the technical skills.

In most cases, internal promotions in growing companies happen out of necessity; normally the person with the greatest technical skills is promoted without having the right leadership skills or given the time and/or the right training to acquire them. Lacking the capability of coaching and giving feedback defeats the purpose of having a manager, the least a boss should do is guide and set expectations as lack of them can leave employees frustrated and make them want to leave.

Tolerating poor performance, is another reason why employees leave, it frustrates those working hard. As the saying goes the team is only as good as the worst player and no matter how great some employees are, everyone notices the worst player. If weak links are permitted to exist without consequences, top and loyal employees will feel that anything goes and their attitude and good performance will die - until they feel they need a new challenge and leave.

So what could be the game changer? Nowadays people are interested in having private medical services, gym memberships, free lunches and being allowed to take their pet to work, but in reality all that matters is having a GREAT COMPANY CULTURE. This will surely beat any good benefit. Some people tend to go for job security rather than the cool benefits and amazing office environment. On the other hand some people see salary as the main motivation.

Bringing it all together, managers tend to blame their turnover problems on everything under the sun, whilst ignoring the real reasons. In reality people don’t leave jobs, they leave mangers, the environment and bad vibes.

If employees do not trust management to lead them in the right direction, they lose respect for them and will eventually leave. If you want happy employees, I urge you to recognize their work and invest in them. They could still leave for any number of reasons’, but if you are not investing in them, they will most certainly leave for sure. Yes, the reasons for leaving a job can vary wildly, but sometimes the reason is very simple.

This article only reflects my personal opinion and not that of my employer.