The Great Resignation or Disconnect?

There has been a lot written about The Great Resignation. We have analyzed, surveyed, and hypothesized at length, but something is still missing. After talking with so many colleagues, leaders, and friends in the business community, it was clear to us at Conversate Labs an in-depth conversation just might be the key to finding out what’s really going on.

We recently hosted two focus groups where we talked to professionals across the country who changed their jobs in the past two years. There is no survey alone that could get to the real answers of why people are leaving their jobs, and therein lies the problem. What we are now calling “The Great Disconnect” is a multi-faceted issue that requires intense understanding and listening with the people impacted the most so we can begin to work together on solutions for retaining talent and improving the work experience. Our conversations focused on these main questions:

What factors led to your decision to change your job?

What were you looking for in your next opportunity?

What can managers do differently?

What is one word to describe your new company’s culture?

What advice would you give CEOs about improving the employee experience?

What CEO messages resonated most?

We heard stories about people re-thinking their work and their lives. Some described moving across country and some just wanted something new. But what is really driving their decision to leave, a job they worked so hard to achieve, is much more complex than higher pay or flexible work.

The stories of workers across the country had three simple truths in common: 1) “to be heard”, and 2) “to be treated like humans”, and 3) “the growing disconnect from senior leadership”. Being “human” to them means treated with respect, appreciated for hard work, caring about them, and knowing that their opinions and ideas matter. What we heard from workers across the country should be a wake-up call for all companies.

A Director of Cyber Security from Georgia describes a tender moment when he was tucking in his children at night and realized he wanted to be there more for them in his next job with less travel.

Or an Economics Analyst from Tennessee who had a job that required her to be available 24/7 and “perfect “at all times, which she knew wasn’t possible.

Or a Project Manager in Texas who felt pressure stepping away from the office and he now works remote where he can take his kids to/from school stress-free.

Or a Media Editor from Florida who worked in retail and eventually got sick for months, which prevented her from fulfilling her dream job.

Or a Human Resources Director in Texas who knew the policies being created at her company were not aligned with her values.

We are arguably in one of the most challenging times in American history and if there is anything we can do right now, it is to take care of the people we care about most at work and at home. From the front lines to the home offices across our country, these are the stories of resilience that people will be passing down for generations. The tragic events of the COVID-19 pandemic has turned out to be an opportunity for workers to improve their lives and find new opportunities at companies where they could “be seen, heard, and acknowledged” for who they are as humans.

So, we asked them “What is one thing CEOs can do in 2022 and beyond to retain their workers?” Conversate Labs can help your company avoid The Great Resignation and Disconnect. Schedule your preview of results with Abbey Eisenlauer at abbey@conversatelab.com or (224) 500-7423.