A closely related phenomenon is “Rage Applying.” This refers to employees who are aggressively sending their resumes to hundreds (even thousands) of companies, hoping to find a new job with a hefty pay increase. Reasons for this vary, but tend to be the result of employees who may feel overlooked, underappreciated, unfairly compensated, or unjustly passed over for a promotion.

Of course, looking for greener job pastures is nothing new. However, GenZs and younger Millennials are particularly susceptible to this behavior. Inflation is high, pay raises have been small, and borrowing rates continue to rise. Young workers often have little discretionary income and high student loan payments. Many have already accepted that they will be the first generation to be less financially well off than their parents.

Further, these employees tend to be less socially mature than previous generations, especially as it relates to initiating and developing a comfort level discussing important issues with their managers. They shy away from phone and face-to-face conversations. They spent years on their devices, whereas previous generations had much more experience in real time social settings.

As a result, rage applying — which is essentially a passive aggressive action — can occur. Rather than raise their concerns with their managers, many prefer instead to just look for the exit. For managers, this poses an opportunity to initiate contact — before employees start looking to leave.

I recommend that managers have a weekly, 30-minute (at least) conversation with each employee to find out how they are doing. What’s working or not working? How is their family doing? What do they do in their spare time? How can you help them increase their engagement at work?

These types of questions, while sometimes uncomfortable, can have a significant impact in preventing employee turnover (and the extraordinarily high replacement costs that follow). It is so much easier, rewarding, and enjoyable to retain an employee than to replace them.

The shock of Covid was both sudden and massive. It’s no wonder that employees and managers would form different perspectives about what it means and what should occur going forward. Of course, there are many nuances and layers to these differences. But the headline is that managers believe work from home (WFH) decreases productivity, while employees believe the opposite.

Some of this difference in perspective relates to commuting time: employees include it in their mental calculation, whereas managers do not. In response, some employers have started to “count” commuting in calculating employee work hours. Others have begun reimbursing employees for their commuting costs.

They also have differences in perspective regarding appropriate consequences for not coming to the office on “workdays.” Employees tend to think there should be no consequences, whereas many employers think it risks possible termination.

As is often the case, there is no pat solution that will apply everywhere. Here as well, managers need to initiate these conversations and openly discuss the different points of view. That doesn’t mean everyone will agree on everything. However, it will ensure that when concerns are raised the manager and employee are comparing apples to apples.

The term “value proposition” is usually used in reference to what a company can offer to its customers and potential customers. An employee value proposition refers to what a company can offer its employees. There have been so many issues discussed over the past three years; I found these four comprehensive components to be a succinct way to view what a company can offer its employees.

1. Material offerings. Compensation, physical office space, location, commuting subsidies, computer equipment, flexibility, schedules, and perks.
2. Opportunities to Develop and Grow. Training in new and upskilling development, new roles, and promotions.
3. Connection and Community. Appreciation, feeling valued, mutual accountability, social relationships. An energized culture that allows employees to express themselves candidly and engenders a sense of belonging.
4. Meaning and Purpose. The company’s values, purpose, and reasons for existing. These need to align with employees’ desires to improve local and global society. This speaks to the core question of why employees do the work they do.

To improve recruiting and retention, companies need to create an attractive, integrated, and flexible employee value proposition. An example of this is Herbert Joly’s turnaround of Best Buy after becoming CEO. He deliberately put purpose first — “enriching customers’ lives through technology.” As he explained, “We achieved this turnaround by pursuing a noble purpose and treating profits as an outcome, not a goal.”

Joly further emphasized how a noble purpose aligns with employees’ own thirst for meaning, creating a virtuous cycle of “human magic” that gives rise to an energized community focused on delighting customers. Yes, Joly also gave workers better perks and reorganized store floor plans. But critically, he did not cut staff or wages (the conventional approach to turning a company around) and instead invested in culture and training.

Overall, the employee value proposition serves as a tool for keeping both job candidates and current employees on the same page regarding what matters most in the company and to employees.

Quiet quitting is the opposite of what any company wants. It describes a phenomenon in which employees feel disconnected from their company and from their work. They do the minimum but do not go above and beyond. They have reduced productivity, lack of drive and motivation, and less emotional investment in work.

Quiet quitting has replaced the massive resignations seen in the recent past, as the economy has slowed down and the economic future is more uncertain. While the term may be new, the behavior is not. Organizations will continue to lose talent if they do not prioritize employee engagement, fail to understand their employees’ needs, and do not encourage and provide benefits for a healthy work-life balance.

The first step to address quiet quitting is to directly uncover the factors that fuel employee disengagement. Studies show that 56% of employees remain disengaged. Leaders need to inspire employees to be their best, take time to understand employee priorities, and create a culture that reflects those concerns.

McKinsey’s research finds that career development and advancement are top-rated elements of great employee experiences. By offering learning opportunities such as training and development, upskilling, reskilling, certificates, degrees, etc., companies demonstrate to employees that the company cares about their future and is willing to invest in them. Opportunities for growth and advancement have become almost mandatory for GenZs and many Millennials.

No one knows for certain what the future will bring. However, we do know that it will be significantly different from the present. The best strategy for employees and companies is to keep their employees’ skills sharp and current and make employee growth the heart of your organization’s culture.

A client asked me recently, “Do you think remote work is here to stay?” I responded with an unequivocal yes. It may become more or less desirable in the future, but it will always be an option.

Why? Pre-Covid, most employees had no idea that there might be a way to work that did not involve being physically present in an office. When Covid arrived, and while most people found it initially challenging, as time passed, they gained an appreciation for its many advantages: no commuting and its associated expenses, more free time, more flexibility, more productivity, and more time with family (and pets!).

Overall, employees value autonomy over their work, and that involves where and when it occurs. They may not have 100% autonomy, but the more you can offer, the more engaged, emotionally invested, and productive they will become.

Consider the example of HubSpot, which decided to offer mental health benefits to its employees, something that fewer than 10% of companies nationwide make available. Less than two years later, more than half of them had elected to work with a coach or therapist!

Furthermore, the company launched “psychological safety training” for its managers to better support their employees. Says Senior Director of Culture, Eimear Marrinan, employees need to see their leaders talk about mental health, see them vulnerable, and acknowledge they are struggling.

HubSpot wanted to normalize and destigmatize mental health and make sure employees felt psychologically safe to talk about mental health in the workplace. They started by having both their CEO and Chief People Officer share about their own mental health struggles and how the training had helped. Over the next 18 months, the company saw a 50% reduction in burnout.

As a recent Fortune article emphasized, if talent remains the #1 issue on CEOs’ minds, the need for mental health resiliency will not be far behind.

It is time for all companies to proactively address the underlying causes of Quiet Quitting. If not, they will learn the more painful and expensive way. With the eventual exodus of employees, companies will be forced to keep replacing them until the companies adjust their priorities and place their employees’ growth and well-being at the heart of their business.

The Chief Medical Officer of Salesforce, Geeta Nayyar, summed it up this way: “Employee wellness is really about the future. What does health and safety need to look like around mental health, and frankly productivity, and employee retention, and acquisition?”

Employee autonomy permits employees to work in a way that is right for them. It is about having the trust and confidence that most employees know best how to excel at their work — we have just never thought to ask them.

One-size-fits-all, on the other hand, radically reduces energy and creativity, making employees behave more like robots than as the smart, experienced, and talented humans they are. They cannot thrive unless they are given more control over their work.

With increased control, employees have ultimate responsibility and accountability for their work. This is especially important in a hybrid environment, as managers have much less direct oversight. Indeed, many managers report that they have found it exhausting and/or impossible to work with employees the way they did when everyone was together in the office.

Is increased autonomy a steppingstone to thriving? Maybe. Autonomy, defined as the “desire to be the causal agent of one’s own life,” is an indispensable component of well-being and motivation and a key driver of performance. It leads to higher satisfaction, fulfillment, and engagement at work because the outcomes are generated by one’s own, inherent ability. And isn’t this what we all want — to empower employees to drive themselves to reach their highest and greatest potential?

Yet, many managers still believe that they know (or are supposed to know) how to get the best from their employees. Or course, some are truly gifted with excellent managerial skills and do know how to bring forth the best in others. Still, fully two-third of employees report that they feel disengaged.

As we (hopefully!) move beyond Covid, things have gotten even more complicated. In addition to having to strike a balance among employees with different levels of introversion/extroversion and different desires to work in teams/independently, we now have the added element of a hybrid workforce. With this new and unstable configuration of employees, now is the best time to embrace autonomy — it is the most reliable way to unleash creativity, ingenuity, and raw talent.

Autonomy lightens the management workload by allowing employees to decide where, when, and how they will do their work. This may include having employees set deadlines, determine work pace, choose the order of task completion, and have more control overall.

Ultimately, increased autonomy creates a cohesive and united team, paving the way for accelerated business success. It leads to employees that are more engaged, motivated, creative, productive, happy, trusting, team-oriented, and eager to learn and grow.

High performers don’t like to be micromanaged. That’s why the job of the 21^st century manager is to observe and increase what supports the employees and remove what burdens them.

Greater autonomy allows employees to uncover unique and creative solutions. They are happier, leading to greater retention. With higher employee retention, the workplace is less disrupted, and the team is likely to be more efficient, effective, and productive. Clients are happier as there is less turnover and the relationships between employees and clients become stronger and more loyal.

Overall, there is higher trust, fewer internal conflicts, and a greater sense of resiliency and self-reliance. Everyone is optimally working. This sure sounds like thriving to me!

1. They prioritized. They placed employee wellbeing above all, fostering cultures of inclusion, purpose, listening, caring, and empathy. They offered workplace experiences that were as strong as they had been prior to the pandemic.

2. They cared. They participated in candid listening sessions to make everyone feel included and learn what they needed to support themselves and their families through the pandemic.

3. They stayed flexible. They allowed for a wide range of work schedule options as well as expanded and transformed mental health assistance, including childcare, elder care, and isolation support resources.

4. They took action. They did not wait to see what would happen, how long the lockdowns would last, what safety protocols they needed to follow, etc. Unlike many other companies that only eventually realized the need for support, these top companies acted immediately and before they had complete information.

5. They communicated. Relying on strong and transparent leadership, these companies sent clear weekly communications to all employees. They understood that when formal communication channels are strong and reliable, the informal channels decrease. Since everyone knew what was decided at the same time, there was little need for gossiping, wondering, hoping, etc.

The consistency of their messaging decreased anxiety among employees regarding when they would hear again from management. The communications were clear, so there was no room for interpretation or analysis. They were transparent, so there was no need to wonder about hidden agendas or other motives.

#6. They invested. They saw the need to invest even more in their employees’ careers and skill development and stayed true to their commitment to help their people grow. They offered a wide variety of training and development options, both in-house and at other educational locations. They wanted their people to be the best, to feel secure in their career advancement opportunities, and to stay with the company.

How well did it work? The statistics below demonstrate that they accomplished their goals and more.

Among their employees…

… 80% look forward to coming to work every day

… 80% find meaning in their job

… 90% felt cared for, compared with just 52% among “average” companies

… 90% said it’s a great place to work, compared with just 57% among “average” companies

Overall, these companies’ employees are six times more likely to recruit talent for their companies than are their peers.

These top companies had healthy cultures that incorporated trust, respect, purpose, growth, and community. During the pandemic, they continued to build on these values. If your organization does not have these as part of its culture, now is a perfect time to begin incorporating them.

Trust is probably the most important quality, so start there. Ask your employees what the company needs to do to demonstrate trust. Ask deep and probing questions so that you are crystal clear on what exactly the company needs to do, how often, for whom, when, how best to communicate, etc.

Then decide which activities would provide quick wins. You will need them as you work to build momentum. Keep asking for feedback from your employees to see if the actions have been fruitful. If so, great, continue with these actions. Then select the next most important quality and use the same process.

Above all, remember that establishing a strong and resilient company culture takes time. Brick by brick you build a foundation that will allow your company to be in the best possible position to respond positively and quickly when the next disruption inevitably occurs.

Sources: USA Today, Glassdoor, Fortune Magazine