Today, nearly everyone on the planet is aware of a widespread trend being called, "The Great Resignation". Work has been robbing life of its fair share of the work/life balance for too long and people are officially fed up. Our exhaustion came to a head during our long run with Covid. Attempting to balance our personal and professional lives – while working from home – left many employees asking the question, “Is this job really worth it?” Unfortunately for employers, the answer was often “no”.
While most analysts agree that we will never return to the way things were pre-Covid, there is hope for employers grappling with the question, “How do I keep and attract employees?” At the very highest level, the answer lies in aligning company cultures and roles with the personal values of employees.
When We Were Born Matters
Companies getting an edge in employee retention and recruitment are aligning how they hire, operate, and manage employees with what these people want from life, in general. Figuring it out starts with considering generational values.
I recently participated in the Townhall Discussion: "The Best Utility Response to 'The Great Resignation.'" Moderated by Dr. Randy Ross, CEO of Remarkable!, the panel also featured Kevin Anderson, President of CVG Staffing Insights, and Audra Drazga, Vice President of Energy Central. We discussed strategies for aligning personal values with employee experiences.
Figure 1 provides some food for thought.
Figure 1:
Be Clear About Your Goals
Intergenerational differences in values, communications, and work styles, make it clear that managers need to customize their hiring, managing, and professional development practices accordingly.
This starts with self-awareness. “How am I communicating with my employees and where is it working or not working,” is a good question to ask ourselves? Then managers should strive to understand employees. While generational differences is a place to start we must also remember not to stereotype because we're all unique. The ultimate goal is to manage people differently while still being fair to everyone.
Listening to the Townhall Discussion: "The Best Utility Response to 'The Great Resignation'" may spark some new ideas. You are also encouraged to attend the U2030 Annual SPARK Meeting, August 28-28, 2022, in Los Angeles. The agenda is 90% complete. A key focus is advancing customer-centricity with the right people, so retaining them is of extreme importance.Â
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