When I left my job, no one bothered to ask me why.
If they had, and if they had acted on my responses, I might have stayed.
A Gallup study found that over 50% of the employees they surveyed said no one, including their manager, had asked them how they were feeling during the last three months before they quit.
That was too bad because 52% of the exiting employees said that their manager or organization could have done something to encourage them to stay.
Meet Employee Needs
The study also found there were a number of employee needs that managers can meet to improve employee engagement and retention. None of these needs were met for me.
Let’s consider why meeting these needs is so important.
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Prioritizing employee development.
I had no opportunity for professional development. My work consumed all my time. It didn’t matter, because my organization didn’t fund or provide time for classes, webinars, or conferences for employees.
A Conference Board survey found that 58% of professionals were likely to leave their company without professional development or continuing education opportunities. There were even higher rates among women, people of color, Millennials and Gen Z.
In fact, 74% of Millennials and Gen Z will leave their jobs if development opportunities are insufficient.
A 2024 survey noted that 46% of new employees said their manager lacked the ability to support their career development, contributing to dissatisfaction and turnover. As a result, 25% indicated that they are likely to quit within six months due to lack of support.
This makes investing in employee development critical for retention.
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Facilitating a sense of purpose.
I worked my butt off and received no recognition, commendation or acknowledgment of any kind. It’s as if all my expertise and efforts were invisible! It’s hard to stay motivated and engaged when you lack a sense of value and purpose.
A McKinsey study revealed that 54% of employees who quit their jobs left because they didn’t feel valued by their organizations.
Research shows that 67% of employees feel actively disengaged, mainly due to a poor connection to organizational purpose.
Having a sense of purpose at work is vital to the job satisfaction of 86% of Generation Z and 89% of Millennials. Nearly half of Millennial employees consider quitting within two years if they don’t have it.
These generations represent the majority of the current workforce. Ensuring that they feel valued and have a sense of purpose is critical for their retention.
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Caring about employees.
No one cared about how I felt or what I thought. I literally lost the use of my left arm because of the stress I was under, and not one manager asked how I was or what I needed.
Caring managers are concerned with their employees’ well-being. As part of that, they support work/life balance.
To the contrary, my manager frequently called me back to the office, regardless of whether it was evening or the weekend, negatively affecting my home life. By the way, I wasn’t IT!
The lack of work/life balance adversely impacts employee retention by increasing burnout, reducing job satisfaction, and prompting employees to leave in search of better conditions.
A lack of managerial care or support plays a significant role in employee turnover.
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Focusing on employee strengths.
My manager was unwilling to delegate and enable me to use my strengths and make the decisions I was fully capable of making.
A Gallup study found that employees who can use their strengths daily are six times more engaged, while those who feel their hands are tied (lacking autonomy) are 28% more likely to consider quitting.
In addition, nearly 70% of employees who experience micromanagement—which restricts use of their strengths—consider changing jobs and 36% actually leave.
Another 12% of employees leave because they want new challenges or career development. This indicates that they don’t feel they can use their skills and strengths in their current jobs.
Altogether, these findings suggest that an important number of employees leave because they cannot use all their strengths or skills at work.
Conclusion
Companies are liable to lose a large number of valued employees if they don’t meet their needs for development, a sense of purpose, feeling valued and cared about, and opportunities to use their strengths in their positions.
This is particularly relevant for Millennials and Gen Z employees, who are particularly keen to leave if their needs aren’t met.
P.S. Which need is most important for you? Is it sufficiently met in your current job?
If your organization is experiencing a lot of unexpected resignations, please schedule a free 30-minute strategy session with me: http://bit.ly/44yLO5l
May your learning be sweet,
Deborah
#employeeturnover #management #laurelandassociates
