What are leaders doing to stop workplace attrition?
In a survey for Forbes this year showed that 87% of those questioned in their 15,000 person survey, were looking to change job in 2022. With the main reasons being cited as better work/life balance and improved opportunities for career progression, it appears that the pandemic has given workers time to reflect on their places of employment, their happiness and purpose.
What did the pandemic teach us?
- Work/life balance – flexible working hours, time with family
- Remote work is possible in most jobs – this saves on time, commuting, petrol costs, office space and utilities, and also helps reduce money spent at work (on food and drink) as well as being able to avoid or spend less time with difficult team members.
- To re-evaluate our values– it made us reflect on whether our workplace was the right place for us depending on how they dealt with the circumstances
- Opened the possibility to start new ventures or business– entrepreneurial mindset
- Life is more important than work
Now, in the aftermath of the pandemic, employees are feeling less threatened by job loss or redundancy and are starting to consider new options for their careers. But what are companies doing to try retain their staff considering the war on talent is raging?
According to David J Hawkins in ‘The Ripple Effect’, ‘retention needs to encompass motivation and incentive’, but is this happening enough in the workplace?
Motivation
Motivation comes from feeling a desire to take action to achieve a goal. Some people are intrinsically motivated, and others are extrinsically motivated.
Intrinsically motivated people find the drive within themselves to either maintain their standards, work in alignment to their values or for the enjoyment of the journey. These people find their motivation from within.
Extrinsically motivated people however, need the reward. They seek recognition from external forces such as rewards, incentives, praise, recognition from team mates or their boss, or the feeling of pride in achieving the end goal; be it a medal, a certificate, a personal best, money, thanks or a prize.
For extrinsically motivated people, they need the external force to make them want to do their best and if this is not present, this group of people will seriously struggle to ever be motivated enough to reach their potential. This is where incentives comes in…
To cater for the 50% of employees who are extrinsically motivated, workplaces need to imbed an incentive scheme, or productivity will never be at its maximum performance level. Incentives help to attract and retain talent, celebrate employee success, improve team work and collaboration, as well as reducing absenteeism and boosting morale.
What incentives could be offered?
Money
Pay rises, bonuses, commission and cash prizes can all be classified as financial incentives. Money seems to motivate people more than other options and even smaller financial rewards can make a big difference to employees’ lives and their perception of feeling valued.
Prizes
Other prizes such a vouchers, dining, hotel stays, tickets to events and experiences can be helpful in driving some employees to work harder but the issue with this is that, if the team member is not interested in the prize, the desired effect of the incentive may not work.
Recognition, certificates and awards
Whether this is a simple ‘congratulations’ in a team meeting or a formal event and award ceremony, being recognised publicly can motivate people hugely and give them the desire to push themselves beyond where they usually would.
Praise
The power of a simple thank you (publicly or privately) is monumental but yet, forgotten in so many businesses. Expressing gratitude to teams, colleagues and leadership is the most efficient, quickest and cheapest way to instill a culture of appreciation within an organization.
Conditions
Some companies offer conditions such as flexible working hours, or the option to work from home, as an incentive, and I agree that it can help influence an employee’s happiness at work, but personally, this comes under conditions for me, and does not classify as an incentive.
Are companies investing enough into retainment through incentives for motivation?
If businesses want to boost productivity, create a culture that celebrates success and encourages everyone to achieve personal and collective goals, and as a result, ensure that work is being recognized, an incentive scheme is essential for motivation.
They improve loyalty to the company, can increase engagement in tasks and applauds high standards of work. Quite simply, if an incentive scheme is not present in a business, the leadership team must ask themselves how they SHOW appreciation. If the business or company is experiencing attrition, perhaps start by looking at how the team is motivated, because if the extrinsically motivated people need the incentive and it is missing, what is making them want to produce their best work?