<h3><b>What Would It Be Like to Work for a Company that has Soul?</b></h3> <b>At a time when job dissatisfaction is at an all time high, creating a better ‘employee experience’ could be the key to attracting and retaining better employees.</b> For years people scrambled to find a job. So why are employees suddenly quitting? While what is being called the ‘Great Resignation’ is likely an exaggeration of what’s actually happening in the workforce, there is a growing level of dissatisfaction - and disengagement - across workforces in many countries. Consider these recent statistics: <ul> <li>In the U.S. more than 24 million quit their jobs in April to September 2021, and many say they plan to stay out of the labor force.</li> <li>A study from Microsoft found that 41 percent of the global workforce is considering leaving their job in the next year.</li> <li>The U.K. saw an all-time high of one million job vacancies this past July. </li> <li>In Germany, more than a third of companies report that they are lacking skilled workers, according to an ifo Institute survey.</li> </ul> So what’s wrong with work today? It used to be that people were grateful to have a salary and benefits. What is it that people want now? <blockquote> “Leaders need to take this very seriously and need to ask themselves, 'What's my role in improving this situation?' ” <footer> <cite>Ralf Specht, author of 'Building Corporate Soul'</cite> </footer></blockquote> <h3><b>New Era, New Values</b></h3> “It's not so much resigning from work as it is resigning from employers and looking for employers that actually are a better fit, and a better partner for the ambitions that people have,” said Ralf Specht, author of “Building Corporate Soul” and founding partner of Spark44. “I think what we're seeing is something that has been brewing for probably the last decade. I think the pandemic has basically helped to get it above sea level. McKinsey Research looked at the reasons why employees are leaving, and contrasted them with what employers <i>think</i> the reasons are. What they found was a disconnect. The most important reasons that employers think why employees are leaving adequate compensation: they're just looking for a better job, or they're poached by another company. But when you ask employees why they're leaving, the number one reason is they're not valued by the organization or not valued by their manager. They want to do something about their work / life balance, and want to find some sense of belonging. If you understand what's happening there, then I think you really understand what's happening with the great reshuffle or the great resignation.” <blockquote> Over the last 40 years, the workplace has been evolving from one focused primarily on driving productivity and efficiency towards one centered around fostering engagement, well-being and inclusiveness.</blockquote> <h3><b>Do You Care?</b></h3> Part of being valued is feeling that the company cares about you. To compete in the modern workplace, organizations need to demonstrate to their workers that they not only support them in their work tasks, but that they also genuinely care about them as people, according to Limeade Institute. Over the last 40 years, the workplace has increasingly shifted from one focused primarily on driving productivity and efficiency towards one centered around fostering engagement, well-being and inclusion. Limeade believes that in order to attract and retain the best talent, foster engagement and maximize productivity, organizations must focus on enhancing the employee experience. <img src="https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-1024x806.png" alt="" loading="lazy" srcset="https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-1024x806.png 1024w, https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-300x236.png 300w, https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-768x604.png 768w, https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-750x590.png 750w, https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture-1140x897.png 1140w, https://insidefashionlive.net/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Lq4Vn-the-advantages-of-creating-a-caring-corporate-culture.png 1240w" sizes="(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px" width="1024" height="806"> <h3><b>From On Fire to Burnt Out</b></h3> It’s not only a matter of feeling unrecognized or being overworked and underpaid. For many employees it's a matter of burnout. The stress was already there but the pandemic shone a brighter light on it. Typically it’s the best employees, who throw themselves relentlessly into their work, that end up hitting a wall where suddenly they just can’t face another day on the job. For many executives the demands of grueling commutes or relentless travel schedules were something they accepted as part of the job. When 2020 halted travel and ushered in the work-from-home era people realized just how taxing life had been. Burnout was the top reason that U.S. employees are leaving, according to a study by Limeade Institute. While Gen Z and Millennial employees typically switch jobs for better pay, mental health and burnout also weigh in for them as well. In Europe mental health was the second ranked reason why younger employees quit their jobs, followed by a lack of healthy work/life balance, according to YPulse data. Seventy-two percent of young Europeans say they’ve experienced work-related burnout (e.g. mentally & physically exhausted, overwhelmed, stressed out, etc.), and 50% say they’ve changed jobs or are interested in changing jobs to combat stress/anxiety, said YPulse. <h3 style="text-align: center;"><b>3 Top Reasons Employees Leave - and how to make them want to stay</b></h3> <b>BURNOUT</b> <b>What to Do</b>: redistribute workload, look for tasks that can be outsourced or digitized, hybrid office/home work schedules, decentralizing staff to reduce travel. <b>DISENGAGEMENT</b> <b>What to Do:</b> A little empathy can go a long way. Train managers at all levels with the skill set support employees who are facing personal and professional challenges. Also, find ways to recognize employees - even for small achievements or wins. <b>NO FUTURE HERE</b> <b>What to Do: </b> Training and personal development not only makes employees feel like a valuable part of the organization. It gives them a sense of future growth opportunities. Even small programs can have a huge impact on making a person feel that you’re investing in them. The return on that investment is not only a happier employee, but one that is more skillful as well. <h3><b>Creating a Culture of Caring</b></h3> A caring culture tends to provide organizational support for employee's social, physical, occupational, and emotional well-being. One way to achieve a caring culture is equipping managers with the right skills, like the ability to empathize with their team members. For many, it’s about work-life balance. Going forward, companies will be challenged to rethink how they define office hours - and reconsider travel schedules. Top performers are lauded for giving their all to their work, but that often means having no time for friends or family. During the past two years, with nowhere to go and nothing to do, people were forced to a simpler lifestyle - and many liked it. “Leaders need to take this very seriously and need to ask themselves, “what's my role in improving this situation?,” said Mr. Specht. His book outlines a framework for doing this and at the end of each chapter there's a list of questions that calls ‘soul searching’. “This is really about soul searching and understanding what's happening inside your company. What's your role as a leader? How are you supporting what you think you want to achieve? “I think one that is often overlooked are employee surveys. Typically they are reviewed one one time when they come out, and then they get filed. And that was it. That actual employee survey is such an important tool to understand what's happening. I recommend that every leader regularly get employee feedback, because it tells you something that you often don't see, or you're not being told otherwise,” he said. <h3><b>A Future with Soul</b></h3> Change isn’t easy for any business, however the pandemic has opened a window of opportunity for companies to evolve in a new, more rewarding direction - for management and employees. .