The Great Resignation: What Does that Mean for the Employer?

The Great Resignation continues to be a hot topic as employers seek to hire and retain talent, while meeting the growing and changing demands of their customers and clients. The result is a situation that is complex, complicated and frustrating for employers and employees alike.

The situation is complex.

There is no single reason employees have left the workplace or are hesitant to return, which means there is no single or easy fix. Employers are finding they need to anticipate the varying needs and concerns of employees. This requires a bit of trial and error to determine the best path forward … knowing it will likely change along the way.

The situation is complicated.

The world of work looks different than just 24 months ago and is continuing to change. When no one knows what the future holds, employers must guess about what might happen with the economy, in the market place, and how to build and sustain a workforce that best supports their employees.

This raises the ever-popular question about where work happens. This too, continues to evolve – in the office, remote or a hybrid of both. Employers must re-evaluate organizational culture including the means in which work is done. And the expectations of employees have never been higher when it comes to doing work their way.

The situation is frustrating.

For everyone. Constant change makes it hard for employers to plan for the future, build and sustain workplace culture, and recruit and retain the talent needed to grow and thrive in today’s world. Unfortunately, this frustration is seeded by the ever-changing course of the pandemic, safety guidelines and minds of employees regarding what they now want from their jobs and careers.

Ultimately, employers are re-examining their relationship with employees. They must balance the work to be done with how employees want to do their work. Today, work is less about the calendar and hours spent working. Other factors are coming into play as employees struggle with the status of the pandemic (we can all see Minnesota is struggling). Inflation impacts one’s ability to not work. Kids are largely in school, but will it last? And work and business require change, including re-balancing of budgets, values and resources. This, coupled with employees reassessing the meaning of work in their lives, adds to the challenge employers face as they keep businesses moving with fewer workers for now and the unknown foreseeable future.

While employers are struggling now, the coming weeks and months will be telling. People will begin moving towards their new destination. And likely, that means a return to work, but perhaps a different kind of work.